Please help. Harvey has ulcer/lesion in mouth.

Harvey went in for a dental yesterday. I took the day off work.

He had a few small spurs on his molars. But when the Vet phoned me back she told me that she had found a small lesion at the very back of Harveys tongue on the left hand side. She said it looked like a human ulcer but she had never seen one like this on a rabbit before. She said it could be caused by him biting his tongue or it could be a tumour. She also said that removal would be very difficult if not impossible as it is right at the back of his tongue near a major blood vessel. I think this must be what is making Harvey miserable. Now I am absolutely worried sick. I feel sick in my stomach and can't eat. I am so upset and don't know what to do. I also feel helpless as my Vet doesn't know what it is. All she could tell me was that it looked like an ulcer like humans have in their mouth but she has never seen this in a rabbits mouth before.

Please can you advise me on what to do next. Have you heard of any such thing before? Is there anything that can be put on the lesion/ulcer to clear it up? When humans have mouth ulcers there are certain solutions that can be applied to clear it up. I feel helpless as the other Vet I sometimes use is off on holiday this week and Harvey is just recovering from his dental so I don't want to drag him to another Vet and stress him out again. I have been syringe feeding him to get food into his tummy.

I just feel sick to my stomach. On one hand the Vet is saying he could have bitten his tongue and on the other she is saying it could be a tumour. What can I do to help my dear Harvey?

If you can give me any help/advice I would be very very grateful.

L of L,

Nicola and Harvey xxx

Hey Nicola,

Sorry to hear you are so worried
Im not sure about mouth tumours but I have seen a few buns & piggies with ulcers/lesions from spurs rubbing but Im not sure if your vet has ruled this out because it's so far back on the tongue, but if the spur had grown that way its possible? Plus like your vet said he may have bitten it at some point & it won't heal quickly because of where it is.
No treatment was given for the ones I know of but just checked regularly to make sure they healed. But that was ages ago & maybe if your vet is baffled it might be worth him/her asking an opinion from a rabbit specialist? They may have a treatment that they know is safe & can remedy it if it is just an ulceration.

Hugs for you & healing vibes for Harvey ~~~*~~~

Hi Leanne,

Thanks for replying. I have got the description of the ulcer wrong.

Apparently it is like a raised red circular lesion. Like a blood blister with lots of red blood vessels.

The Vet said it could be where he has bitten his tongue or it could be a tumour.

I have been worrying myself silly over it.

If anyone knows of such a thing or has an inkling what it could be please let me know.

L of L,

Nicola and Harvey xxx

I was just about to add!!!

I had EXACTLY the same thing about 2 years ago. There is a name for what it is called & basically I bit the inside of my mouth & because of where it was it kept rubbing on my teeth & took 6 months to heal!!!
I went to my doctor after it being there for a few months as it kept going down abit then swelling with blood & looked awful. My doctor said he wasn't sure what it was & scared the living daylights out of me. He referred me to the hospital but it was a 6 month waiting list so I paid to go to BUPA & got seen within 2 weeks. The consultant was fab & he explained exactly what it was & waived the consultant fee!!! He arranged for it to be removed in his NHS surgery but by the time my appt came round it had healed itself!

If I remember what it is called I will let you know!

He also said that because it is so fragile that the tiniest knock can cause it to inflame again as the blood fills up the blister(thats not what its called but can't remember!) & then drains away, starts to heal then it gets knocked again by my teeth & the process starts all over again!
I think it finally went down for good because I stopped grinding my teeth in my sleep ~ I was very stressed before I got the diagnosis as my GP scared me into thinking it was cancer. Then once I knew it healed quite quickly!

Thanks Leanne,


Oh please do let me know if you remember what it's called. I'm trying to give my Vet as much info as I possibly can. So if you remember what it's called please let me know.

Love and hugs,

Nicola and Harvey xxx

Any chance your vet could do a needle aspiration? They sometimes do this with suspected tumors. They use a needle to suck out a few cells, then test them to see if it's an infection or a tumor. It doesn't always work though, because sometimes it's hard to get a decent sample out.

Hello,

Thank you for your suggestion. I will ask my vet and see waht she says.

L of L,

Nicola and Harvey xxx

sounds like a Haematoma . One of my old boys, Dusty, had one in his mouth, it took a good while to clear up but it did.
i hope your baby is ok, they cause so much sleepless nights dont they

TX

Hello Trevlove,

Thank you for your suggestion. Did it affect Dusty's eating because my Harvey has totall gone off his food? I am having to syringe feed him every day to make sure he's getting enough food and fluids.

Also was Dusty given anything to help it clear up? Is there anything I can do to help it go.

I hate seeing dear Harvey not being able to eat, it is so distressing and just seeing him hovering over his food and not being able to eat it is awful.

If anyone else has any suggestions I will be eternally grateful.

Love and hugs,

Nicola and Harvey xxx

Thanks for everyone's advice.

If anybody else has any inkling what this could be and how it could be treated please let me know.

Harvey and I will be eternally grateful.

Love and hugs,

Nicola and Harvey xxx

Aww - what a cutie. Hope he starts feeling better soon.

the vet gave me a few packets of what i can only describe as green powder, cant for the life of me remember what it was called, it will come to me. I mixed it with water and it went into a green sludge. Dusty really only ate it when i fed it to him on a spoon. He didnt want to chew. But it is very important to get fluids into him, they go down hill fast without fluids.
I hope its just a blood blister and nothing more seriuos

take care

Tx

Hi Trevlove,

It must have been critical care formula or something similar that you were given. That is what I've been feeding dear little Harvey on.
How long did it take for Dustys haematoma to go?

Also, did the haematoma cause Dusty to go off his food?

Love and hugs,

Nicola and Harvey xxx