Rabbit with dental maloclussion - suffering + £186 per month for teeth burring

[Amy2021]

Hello

I'm posting here for the first time. In August we bought two Dwarf Netherlands rabbits from a breeder, we thought a reputable one as we visited the rabbits twice and they were in great shape in fantastic living conditions. We were not specifically looking for this breed of rabbit, and we didn't know that they can suffer from congenital abnormalities. If I were buying a pet again, this is the first thing I would check out.

They are kept in lovely conditions with lots of space, lots of hay (following the recommended diet) and very well loved by our family. However, we found that one of them started struggling to eat and losing weight - he has malocclusion as a genetic disorder. We have been advised he will need his teeth burring every month for the rest of his life with sedation.

Two things for me: he is a happy little soul but trips to the vets are awful for him and I worry about the stress plus the strain of repeated sedation. We also went to the vets today and they quoted £186 for one teeth burr - we'd have to pay that every month. If it's in his interests and we have to do it, we will, but I'm in tears because I do not know how we will afford it (though we will somehow - we'll have to cut our budgets on other things).

I just wanted to see if anyone else has any experience with this. What is the best thing to do? I'm contacting all the vets in the area when I'm off work this afternoon to see if I can get a more affordable cost. I need some advice on that and the welfare issue too. I told the vet its unaffordable for us and she shrugged, so I'm not getting much insight from them.

I feel terrible about buying an animal that has a genetic fault bred into it - but he is our pet now and I'll do what I can to give him a good life.

Thanks

Amy

 

[InspectorMorse]

Is it Incisor Malocclusion ?

If so then it is usually better to have the Incisors extracted. Rabbits can cope without them with only moderate dietary alteration needed.

https://www.ufaw.org.uk/rabbits/netherland-dwarf-dental-malocclusion

https://vet-ecpd.com/content/uploads/2018/03/BSAVA-rabbit-practical-notes-JR.pdf

Please let the Breeder know what has occurred as he/ she should not continue to breed from the genetic line

 

[Bunny Buddy]

Try not to worry too much at this stage. The thought of £2,000 to £2,500 every year just for dentals is very, very scary right now but it might not be anything like that bad. Certainly don't make any big decisions just yet.

As per post above - removing incisors may sort it.

That does sound a lot of money, hopefully you can find a vet who is cheaper without compromising quality of care.

AND, it might not be every month. I had a bun with malocclusion about 15 years ago and at some stages the dentals were very 10 - 12 weeks, however in her last year of life (sadly only 4 years old) she managed to go seven months without needing a dental. So it might not be anything like as bad as it seems right now.

 

[CarelessSquid07]

I would see what they say after the first one and the gap needed between that and the next.

My little lionhead has a non insisor malocclusion and he averages about once every 6 months, and my little mini rex was having them every 4 months but we didn't know how often they were needed until we'd had a couple.

I usually pay £200 down in the South West for a bunny savvy vet and it was £180 at the local vets without fluid iv.

I was lucky that the insurance did pay the first one but then said they would pay no more after that as it wasn't covered.

Sent from my SM-A528B using Tapatalk

 

[Orenoko]

Hello

I'm posting here for the first time. In August we bought two Dwarf Netherlands rabbits from a breeder, we thought a reputable one as we visited the rabbits twice and they were in great shape in fantastic living conditions. We were not specifically looking for this breed of rabbit, and we didn't know that they can suffer from congenital abnormalities. If I were buying a pet again, this is the first thing I would check out.

They are kept in lovely conditions with lots of space, lots of hay (following the recommended diet) and very well loved by our family. However, we found that one of them started struggling to eat and losing weight - he has malocclusion as a genetic disorder. We have been advised he will need his teeth burring every month for the rest of his life with sedation.

Two things for me: he is a happy little soul but trips to the vets are awful for him and I worry about the stress plus the strain of repeated sedation. We also went to the vets today and they quoted £186 for one teeth burr - we'd have to pay that every month. If it's in his interests and we have to do it, we will, but I'm in tears because I do not know how we will afford it (though we will somehow - we'll have to cut our budgets on other things).

I just wanted to see if anyone else has any experience with this. What is the best thing to do? I'm contacting all the vets in the area when I'm off work this afternoon to see if I can get a more affordable cost. I need some advice on that and the welfare issue too. I told the vet its unaffordable for us and she shrugged, so I'm not getting much insight from them.

I feel terrible about buying an animal that has a genetic fault bred into it - but he is our pet now and I'll do what I can to give him a good life.

Thanks

Amy

I'm sorry your little bun has these problems. As others have said, it may be that you don't need it done as often as the vets are currently saying. That said, for any bun repeat anaesthetics are a risk, and it may not be fair to your rabbit to have these for the rest of his life given that could be several years.

Regarding the price, I pay between £200 and £250 for dentals at my vets, its a lot and I had a rabbit who needed them every 6 weeks or so, it soon mounted.

As your rabbit is young, I would seek out a rabbit savvy vet firstly for a second opinion and secondly to discuss potentially removing the teeth if that's a possibility (will depend which teeth it is).

 

[Shimmer]

My experience is similar to the others above. Dental bunnies can vary quite a lot over time with the intervals between burring. Monthly is fairly extreme, although possible. Mine were anything from about 6 weeks to twice a year (for the same rabbit). It does depend on the actual teeth involved (incisors can be removed, cheek teeth generally can't), diet (increase fibre to increase normal tooth wear - ie more grass / hay and fewer pellets & soft food - make everything count), and the vet. Some vets are more experienced at rabbit dentals than others, and a good rabbit-savvy vet will know how far to take the teeth down and shape them for maximum time between procedures.

Rabbit teeth grow continually. Incisors could potentially need trimming every couple of weeks if the rabbit isn't eating well. You also need to be aware that the roots also grow, so keeping the crowns in trim also helps to keep the roots tidy. Long roots can cause problems, eg with weepy eyes if they are affecting the tear ducts.

The best way of checking on the teeth at home is to monitor the rabbit's weight every week. A sustained loss over, say, 3 weeks usually means another dental is needed. You get used to the signs.

It is well worth asking for a referral to a specialist vet - it may not be any more expensive than your regular vet, but could give longer-lasting results. There's nothing to lose by asking.

 

[bunny momma]

I had a rabbit with incisor malocclusion and vet was able to burr teeth without general anestesia while I waited, so cost much less, though every 6-7 weeks. At the time I did not realize extraction was an option. Perhaps contact a rescue for advice and possible surrender if beyond your means.