Weak Jaws

Hi all,
I am new to this forum. I have a 5 year old baby girl bunny, whose jaws are getting weaker after a teeth trimming procedure. I have read comments and see that there are lot of experienced and knowledgeable people in this forum! so I hope you can help/guide me. Sorry this is a loooong explanation!

This is the situation. Two and a half months ago, my bun was not eating the usual amount of hay for about a week. However, she was eating lot of fresh vegetables, her Oxbow pellets (1/4 cup) and was in an excellent mood with lot of energy. I took her to the vet who told me that she needed her teeth trimmed. The woman used a powered drill not the manual file (which I did not know she was going to use!) After the trimming, my baby was in lot of pain, specially on her left side. The vet gave her very strong opioid based pain medication, which produced anorexia. It has been a nightmare from there on. I took her to get second, 3rd, 4th opinions and no vet could see what was going on. Instead of focusing on her mouth, they started asking for ultrasound of her abdomen, etc. which all came back normal. They gave her different types of pain medication, obviously antibiotics, which created more problems.
I finally found a vet that uses common sense but she cannot understand what is going on.
I have been syringe feeding her all this time but she eats some soft vegetables. What I observed is that her jaws are super weak. She cannot chew her toys as she used to.
I also observed that she cannot open her mouth as before. Sometimes when she stretches, she barely yawn.
I also noticed that there is a small -the size of a lentil- inflammation on her mandible (lower jaw), on the left side, in the area that would be the beginning of her snout.
I also see that she sleeps with her neck stretched and sometimes puts her head on top of something taller, like to get some traction on her neck.
She has not lost weight and I am giving her Sherwood SARx, soy-free.
I am giving her CBD but I am not sure it does something. Also, vitamin B complex liquid and homeopathic medication for bloating, pain and digestion.

Since conventional veterinary seems not to know how to help her, I took her to a holistic vet who does acupuncture and also is an animal chiropractor. She uses a very gentle chiropractic technique. She adjusted her neck, which had a vertebrate misaligned and her jaws. He also used acupuncture. I have not notice any dramatic change. We had two sessions though.
Commenting this case with my human chiropractor, he said that he has had patients with a viral infection which affected some nerves and locked their jaws. He would prescribe them vitamin B shots.

My fear is that the vet that trimmed her teeth had damaged a nerve... if this is the case, what can be done to revert the situation and heal the nerves?
What alternative/natural supplements can help to make her jaws stronger?
Any ideas of what could be going on?

It has been 2.5 really tough months for my girl.

Thank you all very much!!!

Camelia said:

Hi all,
I am new to this forum. I have a 5 year old baby girl bunny, whose jaws are getting weaker after a teeth trimming procedure. I have read comments and see that there are lot of experienced and knowledgeable people in this forum! so I hope you can help/guide me. Sorry this is a loooong explanation!

This is the situation. Two and a half months ago, my bun was not eating the usual amount of hay for about a week. However, she was eating lot of fresh vegetables, her Oxbow pellets (1/4 cup) and was in an excellent mood with lot of energy. I took her to the vet who told me that she needed her teeth trimmed. The woman used a powered drill not the manual file (which I did not know she was going to use!) After the trimming, my baby was in lot of pain, specially on her left side. The vet gave her very strong opioid based pain medication, which produced anorexia. It has been a nightmare from there on. I took her to get second, 3rd, 4th opinions and no vet could see what was going on. Instead of focusing on her mouth, they started asking for ultrasound of her abdomen, etc. which all came back normal. They gave her different types of pain medication, obviously antibiotics, which created more problems.
I finally found a vet that uses common sense but she cannot understand what is going on.
I have been syringe feeding her all this time but she eats some soft vegetables. What I observed is that her jaws are super weak. She cannot chew her toys as she used to.
I also observed that she cannot open her mouth as before. Sometimes when she stretches, she barely yawn.
I also noticed that there is a small -the size of a lentil- inflammation on her mandible (lower jaw), on the left side, in the area that would be the beginning of her snout.
I also see that she sleeps with her neck stretched and sometimes puts her head on top of something taller, like to get some traction on her neck.
She has not lost weight and I am giving her Sherwood SARx, soy-free.
I am giving her CBD but I am not sure it does something. Also, vitamin B complex liquid and homeopathic medication for bloating, pain and digestion.

Since conventional veterinary seems not to know how to help her, I took her to a holistic vet who does acupuncture and also is an animal chiropractor. She uses a very gentle chiropractic technique. She adjusted her neck, which had a vertebrate misaligned and her jaws. He also used acupuncture. I have not notice any dramatic change. We had two sessions though.
Commenting this case with my human chiropractor, he said that he has had patients with a viral infection which affected some nerves and locked their jaws. He would prescribe them vitamin B shots.

My fear is that the vet that trimmed her teeth had damaged a nerve... if this is the case, what can be done to revert the situation and heal the nerves?
What alternative/natural supplements can help to make her jaws stronger?
Any ideas of what could be going on?

It has been 2.5 really tough months for my girl.

Thank you all very much!!!

Click to expand...

Hello

Has your Rabbit had any radiographs (Xrays) taken of her head ? To me it sounds as though she may have a dental abscess (the lump you can feel). Skull radiographs are usually an essential part of the diagnosis of dental problems in Rabbits

http://www.medirabbit.com/Radiography/anatomical_lines.pdf

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Differential/Rabbit_dentistry.pdf

*Warning graphic images on this link*
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Treatment/Facial/abs_dental.htm

If the trigeminal nerve has been damaged/become inflamed ( the nerve responsible for actions such as biting, chewing, opening the mouth when yawning etc..) in some way this can take months to resolve, depending on what caused it in the first place.

I assume that you are not in the UK ? My advice would be to try to find an Exotics Specialist Vet. Is this a possibility for you ?

Jack's-Jane said:

Hello

Has your Rabbit had any radiographs (Xrays) taken of her head ? To me it sounds as though she may have a dental abscess (the lump you can feel). Skull radiographs are usually an essential part of the diagnosis of dental problems in Rabbits

http://www.medirabbit.com/Radiography/anatomical_lines.pdf

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Differential/Rabbit_dentistry.pdf

*Warning graphic images on this link*
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Treatment/Facial/abs_dental.htm

If the trigeminal nerve has been damaged/become inflamed ( the nerve responsible for actions such as biting, chewing, opening the mouth when yawning etc..) in some way this can take months to resolve, depending on what caused it in the first place.

I assume that you are not in the UK ? My advice would be to try to find an Exotics Specialist Vet. Is this a possibility for you ?

Click to expand...

thanks Jack's Jane for your reply.
We are in the US and she has been seen by 5 exotic animal vets. We have dealt only with exotic animal vets. She got x-rays of every single part, including head, which were normal. She even got an ultrasound of the abdomen to rule out any other issue. It came normal.
The problem is in her jaws and area around it. And her jaws/bite is getting weaker. I'll take her next week to the conventional vet again to focus on her mouth.

If it is the trigeminal nerve, how would it be diagnose and what would be a treatment?

the no. 1 man in rabbit dentistry is Dr. Vittorio Capello in italy. He's the 1st man who wrote the 1st book on rabbit dentistry, called "Rabbit and Rodent Dentistry". On p202, he did describe Dremel high speed drill as a normal tool on rabbit dentistry. So if use it correctly, there is nothing wrong w/ it.

In Small Animal Dentistry by Cedric Tutt, he did mention that on p.71, in regards to slow speed air motor, "The speed should be adjusted to not more than about 3500 rpm for polishing purposes. Too high a polishing speed will result
in thermal injury to the tooth."

but he didn't say anything on nerve damage.

Likewise, in Veterinary Dentistry for General Practitioner by Cecilia Gorrel, she said almost the exact same thing on p. 192:

A high-speed unit generates large amounts of
heat on the tooth. This can lead to thermal
injuries of the tooth and associated structures.
The golden rule is thus that a high-speed unit
should never be used without water cooling of
the bur.



In Small Animal Dentistry by Heidi Lopprise (different book, just the same title) Ch. 54, under Trigeminal Neuritis or Neuropathy, she describes the symptoms of the above, you have to make sure your bun has these symptoms before you rule that he has Trigeminal nerve damage. The symptoms are:

Acute onset of dropped jaw
Inability to close mouth
Drooling
Difficulty in prehending food
Messy eating
No apparent deficits in sensory perception
Swallowing intact

Further down that page, under Diagnostics:

No specific test
Skull radiography, examination of bone marrow aspirate, and muscle biopsy to rule out the differentials

THERAPEUTICS
Corticosteroids—no indication that they help recovery
If prescribing steroids, do so with caution because dehydration may develop from steroid-induced polyuria and polydipsia in a patient that
relies on its owner for water intake.

Procedures

Treatment may be handled on an outpatient basis if the client is able to help the patient eat and drink.
Patient cannot prehend and move food and water to the throat; requires help when eating and drinking.
Patient is able to lap and swallow food offered by a large syringe placed in the corner of the mouth with the head slightly elevated.
Fluids may be administered subcutaneously when necessary to maintain hydration.
Pharyngostomy or gastrostomy tubes are rarely necessary to maintain adequate food intake.

COMMENTS
Expected Course and Prognosis
Self-limiting disorder
Full recovery in 2 to 4 weeks
Occasional masticatory muscle atrophy but without trismus

======================

I recommend you to email Dr. Capello, he is semi-retire and should be able to help you, being the 1st man who wrote the 1st book on this subject. Give him as much details as possible, and tell him the city and State you are in, ask him for the closest vet that HE WOULD RECOMMEND based on all the information you give him.

Dr. Capello email is:

capellov@me.com

=================

to answer your other question from the PM: HealX is by Dr. Harrison. He has since use a different label (same product), called Sunshine Factor, in which that has since changed to yet another label. To cut to the chase, all you need is to buy

Nutiva Red Palm Oil, 32 oz. for $8 in any health food store, give your bun 0.8 cc per day after you solved the above problem.

P.S. I won't waste time w/ acupuncture and especially chiro adjustment, it can make a bad situation worse