Nena (tooth root abscess) - Final U/D December...she's still fine :)

[yaretzi]

Thank you for your kind wishes everyone I had a little update about her earlier. Yesterday all she wanted to eat was recovery food mixed with baby food but today she's nibbled some cabbage, so she must be feeling a little brighter. It comforts me at least to know she's willing to eat more difficult food, as I know she's so stubborn that she'll flat out refuse if she's feeling very ill!

I'm going to ring back tomorrow and see how she is then. I may need to take her some more baby food or other food in which case I might be able to pop and see her, although if she's eating veg there's no need to take her baby food. I do kind of wish I could go, as perhaps seeing me might comfort her a little ? I feel a bit worried that she thinks I might have abandoned her

Hopefully with these drains the abscess will go down a lot. The vet said that generally they see a quick improvement when using drains so I'm really hoping that's the case with Nena, as I feel so terrible putting her through 8 weeks of treatment . Even though I know it's the right thing to do as she may have years left (with careful weight monitoring to ensure we spot abscesses quickly), I'm the one that's decided to put her through this and I feel very guilty.

 

[Debster]

Sending lots more vibes for Nena. I hope the drains clear the abscess and she feels much better xxx

 

[yaretzi]

Quick update today: Nena's been eating well again (veg and pellets) and there's still pus coming out but small amounts. It's hard to drain because all the pus is going inside her mouth instead of outside (since most of the abscess is inside her mouth... as in where her tongue is), but the vet is persevering. Both of the vets decided today that she's going to stay until saturday at the earliest as they want to get more out.

Tapla is in big trouble because she's chewed one Nena's drain off overnight :roll:! So Nena had to have another put back in today :roll:! So the vet is going to separate them somehow in the cage just so that Tapla doesn't chew it off again, as obviously it's not very nice for Nena to have to have a new one put in.

I've gotta ring tomorrow to check up on how she is. I might see if they need any new food or if it might help if I go in for a cuddle!

 

[yaretzi]

Update today:

When they flushed through today they hardly got any pus out at all which is great news. Nena is eating well and gaining weight, and not very stressed out at all by being in the vets. So that's great! I may have her home on saturday depending on how much pus they get out tomorrow and saturday. Need to ring tomorrow for an update.

They checked Tapla's teeth today. I requested that they give her her vaccine at some point during their stay as she was due, and I asked if they could check her back teeth at the same time to put it on the records for petplan. Her teeth are uneven. There's no points, spurs or ulcers or anything to indicate she's in any pain or anything, and she's eating like a horse as per usual, but the teeth are not wearing quite as properly as they should. This means that she may need a dental at some point which is more expense for me, and potentially a lot more expense if it's ongoing.

I always request that they check their teeth at their annual vaccination time, but the last vets didn't put it on their records so I don't have that to say that her teeth were okay then... so any dental work will have to come out of my pocket. I'm already £1400 into my overdraft since student loans gave me £2500 less last year than normal because I went off for 6 months due to illness . Nena has cost me £120 in excess fees (policy renewed 1st June so I've had to pay twice), plus £30 on recovery food and upwards of £60 in petrol. It's not a lot, but it's a lot for me when I can't afford anything right now.

I want to cry Both my babies have things wrong with them now, albeit Tapla's is very minor atm. I hate them being uncomfortable and I hate that my budget is going to be stretched to breaking point. It's very bad timing money-wise.

 

[Mrs. Bunnykins]

Sending you a comforting hug.

You and I must be paying for someone's salary this month........ouch!!!!

Poor Nena, poor Tapla..........and my poor Estelle.


Let's hope things start getting better for all of them.xxx

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

Pleased to hear Nena is making progress and there is less pus.

Money is a real stinker. I know, or should I say James knows the pain of vet bills.

 

[yaretzi]

Sending you a comforting hug.

You and I must be paying for someone's salary this month........ouch!!!!

Poor Nena, poor Tapla..........and my poor Estelle.


Let's hope things start getting better for all of them.xxx

Pleased to hear Nena is making progress and there is less pus.

Money is a real stinker. I know, or should I say James knows the pain of vet bills.

Thank you both. Money is a real pain, but these things happen don't they. Always when you least want them :lol: I'm sure if it comes to it my mom will lend me some money and I can pay it back bit by bit. I've never borrowed money before so hopefully it might be okay.

I should be feeling very positive about Nena but to be honest I'm more worried today than ever before. I feel like I haven't seen her in ages, I wonder what she must be thinking. N&T have never had another owner apart from me (except when they were very tiny), they must be very confused. The vet and nurses say they're very chilled out which sounds about right for my two... they are very chilled out in general... it's me fretting more than them, I think :lol:

I am sad that they're separated atm. They're in the same cage but they've been separated due to Tapla nibbling off Nena's drain. They're probably missing snuggles from each other

 

[yaretzi]

I have a provisional appointment to pick them up tomorrow at 11am

Vet is pleased with the fact that almost no pus came out today (along with very little yesterday). Providing it all goes well tomorrow morning my fluffy babies will be back with me tomorrow! Eeeeeeeee!

The vet nurse said 'They are such lovely rabbits' - and I agree :mrgreen:

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

Great news.

I am sure they will be pleased to be back home. They maybe a little huffy with you for a few days, then settled down and be very happy again. Cutie-pie and Bandit wouldn't let me near them for a week, but I could tell they were happier at home.

 

[yaretzi]

Great news.

I am sure they will be pleased to be back home. They maybe a little huffy with you for a few days, then settled down and be very happy again. Cutie-pie and Bandit wouldn't let me near them for a week, but I could tell they were happier at home.

:lol: yes they always get very grumpy, but they usually forgive me by the time it's tea-time! I'll sneak some cuddles in at the vets coz I sure won't be getting anything but stomps when I bring them home :roll:

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

:lol::lol: At least the worst is over for Nena. Who would ever guess their teeth and abscesses would be such a worry.

 

[MimzMum]

Ahh...good to know they will be home soon!
No more empty nest for you! :thumb:
Many vibes being sent that Nena continues to heal well and that both bunnies will be kind to you when they are home. xxxx

 

[yaretzi]

Ahh...good to know they will be home soon!
No more empty nest for you! :thumb:
Many vibes being sent that Nena continues to heal well and that both bunnies will be kind to you when they are home. xxxx

Thank you

Got them both home today Nena forgave me immediately but Tapla is still having a massive sulk! I suppose it's fair enough - Tapla probably had no clue why she was there!

Got an appointment in 2 weeks for a checkup and the same medication routine as before (depocillin injections every 2 days, baytril (upped to 1ml) twice a day and metacam once a day). The ulcer that was present before is still there but apparently definitely getting there/thinking about healing, so less sore. The problem is that because of Nena's wonky teeth, the vet thinks that it can sometimes cause her to bite her cheek or pinch the cheek between the two back teeth, which causes this ulcer and also means it's hard to heal. I'm not sure if removal of the teeth might be an option at a later date when the abscess itself heals up more, I haven't asked. One thing at a time! I do doubt whether it'd be feasible though due to how deep her teeth are.

In herself, the change is amazing. Since she's had this abscess, she's only been eating thin greens (radish tops, carrot tops, coriander) and then progressed onto savoy cabbage/kale etc as long as it was ripped up. Now she's happy to pick up a massive leaf and munch away :lol: She's obviously feeling better in her mouth, despite the 4 or more gaping holes in her face. She's also eating much faster than before.

Medication time was really fun tonight... My mom usually does it with me but she's away so I did it by myself, and because of all the holes in her cheek and under her jaw it was very hard to find a non-sore place to lift her head up to syringe her her meds. Took a good few mins of struggling but I got it down her so I suppose that's all that matters!

 

[Jack's-Jane]

What a brave girl Nena is I hope the meds keep the infection under control and that she will remain as comfy as possible.

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

So pleased they are home and Nena has improved so much. Hope it all heals up soon and the abscess disappears. Great that she has forgiven you too.

 

[yaretzi]

What a brave girl Nena is I hope the meds keep the infection under control and that she will remain as comfy as possible.

So pleased they are home and Nena has improved so much. Hope it all heals up soon and the abscess disappears. Great that she has forgiven you too.

Thanks both Nena is back at the vets for a follow-up tomorrow. She's been eating normally since I got her back and maintaining her weight somewhere between 2.350-2.450kg. I've been giving her more pellets and veg than Tapla, but not much more. I've been medicating her in the shed with Tapla and I've been feeding her in the shed with Tapla as I did before Nena got ill. I think she prefers that a lot! I watch to make sure she eats all her veg/pellets. I'm getting the odd small, hard, dark poops but I think she's just forgotten how much hay she needs to eat!

Not sure what the vets plan to do tomorrow - I don't expect they'll x-ray her so I wonder what they plan to do to assess the abscess itself. I guess her maintaining her weight and eating well hints that it's either not growing or in fact shrinking, but how can they be sure? I expect I'll have to continue with medication for a while... I'd be very worried about re-occurrence if we stopped abx only 2 weeks after her op. Hmm... I'm not really sure what the standard procedure is here! I know depocillin injections are recommended for up to 6 months after getting rid of the abscess but I dunno if the abscess has even gone :shock: Guess I'll have to wait and see!

Better pop my snugglesafe in the freeze tonight or I'll have hot cross bunnies on the 2 hour round trip tomorrow!

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

Good luck tomorrow, hope its positive news. At least there hasn't been any set backs which is good.

 

[Jack's-Jane]

Hope Nena gets on OK today xx

 

[Mrs. Bunnykins]

Good luck.:thumb:

 

[yaretzi]

Thank you everyone Just got back.

Vet is very happy that she's maintaining her weight without much extra food, and I'll slowly phase that out too to see if she can maintain it. Her weight is a little less than the ideal amount but she's not too skinny, and the vet is happy with her condition. As long as she doesn't lose any more weight she's okay. Vet says she doesn't think she'll ever get back to a normal weight again which is fine. N is stable between 2.350 and 2.450kg whereas Tapla is 2.6-2.8.

Vet couldn't feel any abscess on the outside of her jaw, and upon looking in her mouth and massaging she didn't get any pus out either, so she's pretty pleased that the abscess hasn't regrown. We've got an appointment on the 5th and the same abx and painkillers up until then so that she'll have had painkillers and abx for 6 weeks after the op. Providing that she's a good weight and there's no sign of the abscess coming back on the 5th I think the plan will be to take her off the meds and see how she goes. I'd be happy to continue depocillin injections for 6 months but it depends if the vet thinks it's necessary.

Vet says it's highly likely that we'll have problems again in the future because of her messed up teeth, so it really depends on how soon we get more problems. It's sad to have this cloud hanging over her head but she's been getting back to her cheeky self even more recently. She's started jumping on my back when I'm sweeping up and stuff now, which she hasn't done for months. If I'm sat on the floor and lean over to give her a kiss she always used to jump on my shoulder which she did again last night! Nearly burst into tears!

I think when she's off all the meds I'll continue to weigh both N&T twice a week to monitor weight to make sure I'm on top of any problems. It's so easy to not spot weight loss...

So good news and good progress all in all, I just wish it was a better long term prognosis. Oh well, could be much worse!