Incisor removal advice

Hey everyone, I'll try to keep this short

I'm after a bit of advice. I've finally convinced my OH that Pip needs to have her incisors removed. They first went wonky in Feb and shes had many burrs since then and they sadly haven't straightened.

Most of her dentals have been conscious, but she's had to have 2 anathestics due to us leaving it too long during lockdown and she got a spur on a molar. [emoji24] our vets would only see emergency appointments until Sept!

We are having to get her teeth burred between 2-6 weeks depending on the vet she sees and how short they are trimmed. Although she copes really well with the procedure and starts munching straight away. I dont want to keep taking her for the rest of her life which could be another 5-7 years.

Now there is no rwaf recommended vet near me, my current vet was a silver and I've noticed they have been removed. I believe this is due to a particular vet leaving.

This vet has opened a new practice and I've booked Pip in for a second opinion at this practice.

I have no idea what I need to ask in terms of the operation? Has anyone had this done? It sounds like a horrid procedure and I'm so scared of it going wrong. I know it's in her best interests though. Is there anything I need to consider in terms of Pros and Cons of having it done?

She's had no xrays done. Her teeth are only out by about 3mm, which makes it more difficult to see because they grow under her top lip. She's so teeny which such a tiny mouth, it doesn't take long for them to get too long!

Our current vet has been really good with her and I can't decide where is best to go. I'm in serious worry mode.

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I have had a few Rabbits who had their incisors extracted. All did extremely well, both immediately after the procedure and for the rest of their lives . Skull radiographs are usually essential before the procedure.

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

I've got a Netherland who had his Incisors out about 18 months ago and he copes very well. He can eat pellets, grass and hay with no trouble but veg has to be in narrow strips.

Thanks to you both. Have you buns been able to groom themselves?

I've read the doc Jane thanks. I'm sure he will recommend an xray.

I'm glad she should be able to eat hay. I read they should be given chopped up hay somewhere and she won't eat it. Only eats long strands[emoji2356]. She doesnt get any veg, so we don't need to worry about that. She does get forage, but that's dry, so normally in small pieces.

Buns are such a worry

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Yes he seems to manage very well. It's better than keep having them burred imo. :thumb:

tonibun said:

Yes he seems to manage very well. It's better than keep having them burred imo. :thumb:

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That's good to know. Thank you so much. Yeah I recon it must stress her even though she doesnt show it. Plus I'm always worrying whether we should be taking her. Its hard to plan around the appointments. Especially with lockdowns etc

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Just one thing to be mindful of is that she will need her molar teeth monitored every few months to make sure that they are being worn down appropriately. Molar problems are certainly not inevitable after incisor extraction, but it is always best for the Vet to monitor them.

When I adopted my first bun Scrappy, she had already had her incisors removed by her previous owner's vet. She coped perfectly well without them. She managed long stranded hay fine. The only thing was, as people have mentioned, is that other food need to be chopped up to make it easier for her to manage.

The only thing I would say is to make sure the vet working on Pip is competent in dentistry. It turned out that Scrappy's previous vet had just snapped the main part of the tooth rather than fully extracting it. This meant the root was left behind. This was shown up in CT scans we had done to get to the bottom of her recurrent tear duct infections. That left behind root was the cause of the problem but unfortunately couldn't be extracted without risky and complicated surgery.

Sorry to give you something extra to worry about!

Jane do you mean the removal could cause spur problems on the molars? We do get their teeth checked when they go for their vaccines, but that would only be once a year now they are on the new triple vaccine.

Scrappy thanks for the extra info. Yes I'm worried about them being removed properly. I will ask how many removals the vet has done, which will hopefully give me an idea. I cant imagine surgery is easy on a teeny bun

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Mervinius said:

Jane do you mean the removal could cause spur problems on the molars? We do get their teeth checked when they go for their vaccines, but that would only be once a year now they are on the new triple vaccine.

Scrappy thanks for the extra info. Yes I'm worried about them being removed properly. I will ask how many removals the vet has done, which will hopefully give me an idea. I cant imagine surgery is easy on a teeny bun

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Gilbert didn't have molar problems before incisior removal and hasn't since. I suspect Jane means incisor removal won't cure that situation rather than there being a likelihood of it causing it.

Bunny Buddy said:

Gilbert didn't have molar problems before incisior removal and hasn't since. I suspect Jane means incisor removal won't cure that situation rather than there being a likelihood of it causing it.

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Thanks Bunny Buddy. Shes only had problems when we were unable to trim them due to lockdown. However we would monitor them after the surgery to check they were ok

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Bunny Buddy said:

Gilbert didn't have molar problems before incisior removal and hasn't since. I suspect Jane means incisor removal won't cure that situation rather than there being a likelihood of it causing it.

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Yes, that is what I meant.

I forgot to ask you all what aftercare I will need to give Pip after her surgery. Also forgot to ask the vet [emoji33]! Bad bunny mummy.

Anyway. I remember him mentioning antibiotics, I never given these to a bun, are they syringed? I'm also guessing she might need pain meds and syringe feeding?

Pip is adorable, but not a hands on bun at all. I have no idea how i would do any of the above. I syringe fed her once. She was so ill she couldn't lift her head up at the time, so couldn't get away from me. Burrito didn't work last time I tried. My OH won't hold her still, he freaks out he's going to hurt her [emoji849].

Obviously I want to do what's right for her, but want to check what I'm going to need to do, so I can research and prepare.

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In my experience, antibiotics are usually syringed. If she's eating ok after the op, then you could try and hide it in food. I believe a lot of people have had success using a malted shreddie or a fenugreek crunchie. Personally I've found a bit of mashed banana works well. I have to warn you though, if it's the dreaded baytril then that's a lot harder to sneak in as apparently it tastes and smells awful!

I feel your pain about trying to syringe feed a very feisty rabbit. Fudgie sounds as bad as Pip. The only thing I've found that works with her is (after a lot of chasing!) to take her into a room she doesn't usually go in. In my case, it's the bathroom. They seem to be marginally easier to deal with in a slightly unfamiliar territory. I also find she's much more cooperative with the syringe if she has all four feet on the ground. So I usually syringe her on the bathroom floor, with me on my knees and her loosely wrapped in a blanket between my thighs. I lean over to do the syringe feeding.

If she's having a GA she might feel a bit woozy for about 24 hours after she comes home. She might be a bit too zonked to remember to eat so I'd prepare yourself to have to syringe feed some critical care as well, just in case.

I hope all goes well with the op!

Lots of good advice from scraps. When Boobly had the dental where they finally found that rotten tooth she was given a one off shot of Penicillin (I've never experienced antibiotics used like this but assumed it was different as used as 'preventative'. Baytril is nasty & I can't imagine any bunny being fooled past first dose, sulfatrim is also nasty but less so (panacur is chalky, metacam is honey). The problem with hiding the dose can be if you lose any drugs cos they don't get well hidden enough or perhaps they have only half the dosed shreddie. Shreddies always works on metacam here but they like metacam

Recovery food is ofen made more appealing with pureed fruits (fruit only baby food). I like to sprinkle a little fenugreek powder on as my bunnies find it irresistable. If she is poorly enough to need syring feeding she'll prob be a whole less feisty. I've always found meds harder than feeds. Whens her op? You might have time to play with foods / flavours she likes. Remember to offer moist nuggets or thick recovery from a saucer - sometimes they'll eat it on their own

Thanks to you both, loads of helpful info. I've checked the quote and its sulfatrim drops.

She's not booked in yet, but I'm thinking around 2 weeks time. So I've got time to prepare. She's never had a shreddie, fenugeek or banana [emoji33] i offered her banana a few times and she's sniffed an hopped away. She is very wary of new food! I guess banana would be best cos its squishy? If her mouth is sore?

The kitchen is a room she's never been in. So that might help with syringe feeding. Not sure how I'd get her in there though. [emoji1787] might have to try a pet carrier, which she will hop into and then carry her into the kitchen.

Yeah I guess if shes dopey enough to need syringe feeding that might be easier to do.

Her current pellets are beaphar nature rabbit. They are very large! Maybe an inch long by 6mm wide. Im wondering if they might be too large too much afterwards [emoji848], due to her mouth being sore?

I can soften them with water to syringe feed though.



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When Fiver had his Incisors out about 18 months ago he had the usual 3 injections whilst at the Vets but none to bring home. I have also had 2 other Rabbits which had their Incisors out a few years ago, in all 3 cases they ate more or less as normal when they came home. Those Beapher pellets do sound a bit big, can you break them up?

tonibun said:

When Fiver had his Incisors out about 18 months ago he had the usual 3 injections whilst at the Vets but none to bring home. I have also had 2 other Rabbits which had their Incisors out a few years ago, in all 3 cases they ate more or less as normal when they came home. Those Beapher pellets do sound a bit big, can you break them up?

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Hi Tonibun thanks, that's good to know. I guess it depends on the bunny. Shes normally really quick to eat after any other dental, but I know its more intensive.

The pellets are quite hard, I might be able to with a small [emoji375] hammer. I am considering changing their pellets. They are really hard to buy now and they both seem to have got bored of them. Hahaha

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Lopsy was an absolute nightmare to syringe feed: OH is about as useless as yours for the same reason :lol: Lopsy's really strong as well, he's a 2.5kg rabbit and he KNOWS how to use his back legs to get his own way He's wheedled out of every burrito we've tried him in. Thankfully I discovered I can syringe baytril into the 'dish' of a fenugreek crunchie and he'll get very excited for it and eat it all :lol: Baytril's a bit viscous so had to do the dose when I administered the dose before, so it would actually soak in properly. We even got to the stage that we didn't have to separate him from Aboleth as long as both got the right fenugreek crunchie :lol:

keletkezes said:

Lopsy was an absolute nightmare to syringe feed: OH is about as useless as yours for the same reason [emoji38] Lopsy's really strong as well, he's a 2.5kg rabbit and he KNOWS how to use his back legs to get his own way He's wheedled out of every burrito we've tried him in. Thankfully I discovered I can syringe baytril into the 'dish' of a fenugreek crunchie and he'll get very excited for it and eat it all [emoji38] Baytril's a bit viscous so had to do the dose when I administered the dose before, so it would actually soak in properly. We even got to the stage that we didn't have to separate him from Aboleth as long as both got the right fenugreek crunchie [emoji38]

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I'm glad you have a useless OH too. Pip is just a wriggle machine and can squeeze through teeny gaps. I might google these crunchies, as a few people recommend them. Shes book in for the 16th [emoji33]

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