Tell me everything you know about dental bunnys....

I'm considering taking one on but am thinking of the cost implications. He's a rescue and needed a dental (probably due to appalling diet) though apparently his teeth hadn't caused any damage to his mouth. We don't really know if he will need more or how many he'll need yet.

So... dentals are new to me, and if you have a bunny that has needed a dental, can you tell me more about caring for them (I'm guessing extra close attention to diet and getting as much coarse hay in as you can, but tell me otherwise if need be) And how many dentals did you need, and how much did they cost, how frequent etc?

Thanks... I'd really like to take this bun on, but am tying myself in knots with all the what ifs. My vets charge just over £200 each time!!

I have 14 dental bunnies here (varying from severely dental, to abscessed, to tooth roots elogation, to occasionally dentals needed) and they don't need much different day to day care than any other bunny. High hay diet if the bunny will eat it and tolerate it.

Otherwise, it's just a case of adjusting things to suit each individual rabbit's needs, so might be increased pellets, junior pellets (high protein), or, if a bunny can't eat hay, mature pellets, but more pellets (lower protein), it might mean a need for different hays to tempt and stimulate or foraging, or cutting grass to bring in. It could mean daily medication (orally or injections).

Really, all you need to do is be prepared financially and then adjust your routine to suit the bunny and also be super aware and hyper alert for any signs of problems. The more you know the bunny, the faster you are likely to pick up problems. Really, that all applies to any bunny.

You'll need to find out from the rescue how often the dental has been, ask for a dental check prior to adoption so you know what the condition of the teeth are and how, potentially likely, an imminent dental might be. What changes have need to have been made (if any) to allow the bunny to live the happiest life.

My bunnies' dentals cost £65 so I wonder if there might be another competent vet around your area that may be cheaper?

Also I've personally found with a lot of my single dental bunnies, that if you bond them with a friend then it will make them happier, more likely to eat more and spread the time of dentals apart. In one instance I've had a bunny go from every 14 weeks to now not having a dental since Feb 2010- and his teeth are stable with how they appear too.

It is totally impossible to say what this particular Rabbit's needs will be as every Dental Rabbit is different. 'Dental problems' covers a vast spectrum of possible issues and each case will evolve according to the specific issues the individual Rabbit has.

For example are the Dental problems genetic in origin or acquired (due to poor diet etc) ?

Sometimes a one off Dental to address the start of problems due to a previously poor diet may be all that is needed as long as the diet is corrected. But if the Rabbit has a genetic malocclusion or advanced Acquired Dental Disease then the need for ongoing and probably lifelong treatment will be needed.

Other problems that may result due to Dental Disease are gut problems and upper respiratory tract/eye problems.

Mine charges 65 for a dental

OK, here, my experience whch hope helps.

Amber. I've had her since she was 12 weeks. She had her first dental whne she was about one and a half. She seems to have a bit of a problem with the same two teeth that get sharp spurs. I notice wth her that she just suddenly goes off leafy greens and pellets. Theres not too many other warning signs with her. She was having these two teeth filed every four months ( she actually lets the vet file them without the gag, not recommended obviously but it works with her as the spurs are so slight but annoy her. ts more of a back and forth once with the fiile. She has had proper dentals but doesn't bounce back that well gut wise ) She hasn't had a dental for 6 months.

Ollie. He's my rescue bun who is about 5 years old. His teeth are misaligned on one side and a bit of a mess. His last dental was over a year ago now so i'm really pleased. His sign is not eating as much hay but eating pellets etc fine.

Their diet is mainly hay and not many pellets. I given them lots of toys to chew like willow. I have also been giving them readigrass which helps too. Buns mouths change shape as they get older so they can need more or even less dentals.

Thanks all. More or less what I was thinking in terms of day to day stuff, and interesting in terms of frequency...

Our difficulty is that he has only just come into the resuce but had in all likelihood never seen a vet before- he's about 3 so its probably about 3 years growth and likely down to poor diet, but you never know. I also guess that once there is malocclusion it will affect how the teeth are aligned so even if the primary cause was diet, there could now be something more not quite right.

I'll talk to some other vets though, 65 quid would be much better, though my vets are ace. Which I guess is why they're so pricey!

Scarlet is a dental bun that we adopted from the RSPCA. She has cost us £1100 in 18 months and currently has her teeth attended to by Francis Harcourt Brown. We didn't know she was a dental bun when we took her on but I'm still glad we picked her. It is very satisfying to know we've improved her lot. Her teeth are slowly getting sorted via extractions but she was having a dental every 3 months for the first year. Her problems are very poor teeth on one side (mottled, growing at angles etc.).
Also bear in mind how easily you'll be able to get her the care she needs. I have an incredibly flexible job and can take time off at no notice to take her in for dentals and care for her for the first 24 hours. Sometimes a dental can be required with zero notice.
If you can afford it I would say do it. I am sure Scarlet wouldn't be here if we hadn't taken her on as I suspect the RSPCA would have called time on her having repeated dentals.

Really, you'll have no idea about what different care she will require or what she will cost without finding out what exactly was wrong with the teeth. You need to know front or back? Were they just spurs or bigger issues? Are the teeth misaligned or abnormal in any way? Are they growing correctly? Are there any other symptoms (snuffles, runny eyes, bulging eyes etc) that could indicate tooth root issues as well?

You also need to know if the bun likes hay and if they are eating a good amount of it everyday - as this will be essential if you want to lessen or prevent future dentals.