Badger Cannot Eat!

[LydiaMinx]

Hey all, just need some advice.

Badger has been acting a bit off for a few days, not eating his veggies or nuggets, or drinking much water. He's also acting lethargic, not really moving much.

He's interested in food, but seems reluctant to eat it, as with drinking from his bottle. He's chewing slowly and oddly when he does eat, and fussing over his mouth a bit.
Because of this, I suspect a tooth problem (most likely overgrown molars from what I'm reading).

I began syringe feeding today, along with water, and he seems to have perked up.

I've had him seen by a vet today, but the man wasn't that helpful. He examined Badgers mouth (very roughly) and said his molars were not 'massively' overgrown, but he did have food in his mouth. His tongue looked normal.

The vet gave him a Metacam injection and said to see how he goes over the weekend.

I'm not entirely sure now if Badger's molars are overgrown, or if his mouth is even the problem?
He suggested that we have him anaesthatised to have his mouth checked entirely, and possibly file any teeth down early next week.

Can this wait that long? How often should I syringe feed, and how much?

Thank you all! Please send good thoughts to Badger!

 

[flintstones]

Hi There,

So sorry to hear of Badger's illness. Your vet doesn't sound particularly cavy Savy, is there any other vets recommended near by?

Keep syringe feeding to keep his guts going, the recommended amount is 120 ml's. I never get to this amount, so aim to get as much as you can - that's what I aim for.

I also try and tempt them with hay and there favourite veg. I do hope you get to the bottom of badgers problems.

 

[LydiaMinx]

Hi There,

So sorry to hear of Badger's illness. Your vet doesn't sound particularly cavy Savy, is there any other vets recommended near by?

Keep syringe feeding to keep his guts going, the recommended amount is 120 ml's. I never get to this amount, so aim to get as much as you can - that's what I aim for.

I also try and tempt them with hay and there favourite veg. I do hope you get to the bottom of badgers problems.

Thank you for your reply! The vet isn't cavy savy at all, I really hoped not to get him as he's by far the least knowledge at the practice. There's another vet there who has piggies herself and I will specifically request her on Monday as she is brilliant.

And as I wrote this Badger willingly went to his food bowl and ate a few nuggets! First time since yesterday I believe, so the Metacam may be on to something

Thank you for your reply, it is much appreciated

 

[Wiebke]

Please keep on syringe feeding, as much as necessary and keep weighing him daily to see how much he is eating and drinking - just watching him nibble on food can be very deceptive, especially with dental piggies that can't process it properly. Stepping in promptly with syringe feeding is very important; please keep it up even if your bo continues to nibble. The scales will give you a truer picture of the situation. Our syringe feeding guide has got a section for dental guinea pigs.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

However, as he is very lethargic, there may be another reason. He needs to be ideally seen by another vet if you can do that; the vet you have seen doesn't seem to be very clued up.
Guinea Pig Vet Locator

@furryfriends (TEAS) @MintyAndGarry (TEAS)

 

[LydiaMinx]

Please keep on syringe feeding, as much as necessary and keep weighing him daily to see how much he is eating and drinking - just watching him nibble on food can be very deceptive, especially with dental piggies that can't process it properly. Stepping in promptly with syringe feeding is very important; please keep it up even if your bo continues to nibble. The scales will give you a truer picture of the situation. Our syringe feeding guide has got a section for dental guinea pigs.
Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

However, as he is very lethargic, there may be another reason. He needs to be ideally seen by another vet if you can do that; the vet you have seen doesn't seem to be very clued up.
Guinea Pig Vet Locator

@furryfriends (TEAS) @MintyAndGarry (TEAS)

Thank you for the reply, I've soldiered on with syringe feeding but he's having less and less, the only thing he's taking now is mixed herby salad (dried)

He's lost 40g so far, and probably more today as he's eating less and less. I'm getting him to another vets asap on Monday, but I work 6-2, so I'm panicking that he has to wait until the afternoon

I feel very hopeless at the moment, he's very unlike himself

 

[flintstones]

, it's so stressful when they are ill. If he's grinding his teeth after you put food in there's still a chance. Little and often with his food, syringe feeding is stressful but he needs it to keep his guts moving.

I would recommend asking the vets to Xray if they will, as he reacted to pain killers by eating which indicates him being in pain.

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for the reply, I've soldiered on with syringe feeding but he's having less and less, the only thing he's taking now is mixed herby salad (dried)

He's lost 40g so far, and probably more today as he's eating less and less. I'm getting him to another vets asap on Monday, but I work 6-2, so I'm panicking that he has to wait until the afternoon

I feel very hopeless at the moment, he's very unlike himself

If he is eating less and less, please see an out-of-hours vet again. That doesn't sound like just a dental issue to me!

 

[LydiaMinx]

Update on this:

He perked up on Sunday as I began slicing his veg very thinly, he gave it a fair go to eat the whole bowl I prepared for him; managed a radish, two green beans and a fair chunk of pepper in the end. He also started to take more of the syringe feed, I think he clocked on it was food going into his mouth and nothing nasty; still couldn't get near the recommended 100-120ml but it was better then before. He also continued to nipple at his hay through the evening, albiet slowly.

Today, I managed to get 42ml into him this morning, along with another radish, 2 green beans, small amount of pepper and a tiny amount of aubergine. He had the vets this afternoon with a different practice altogether, one highly recommended by everyone in my area. He saw the vet and it was immediately clear that the guy was more on top of this then the previous vet.

He checked the throat, but again couldn't make much out because Badger was chewing the device and had a small amount of food in his mouth. He weighed him, he's lost 100g thus far but everything else appears fine. He mentioned that Badger was dribbling, a new development. We agreed for Badger to spend the night there, so they could give him blood tests and X-rays in the morning, along with a sedative to fully check his throat. I was prepared for this and brought his favorite bed, hay and some nuggets (just in case).

He mentioned that while he couldn't see anything obvious, he thinks it could possibly be 'burrs' in his throat (he said little hook type things that grow too long)? I don't know what these are, are they the same molars? Anyone got any info or previous experience on that?

He injected him with an anti-inflammatory and a drug to keep his guts moving overnight. Hopefully by tomorrow afternoon I should know what is up with my poor baby

While I'm happy a vet is taking him seriously, I miss him so much already Thanks for the help thus far guys, I'll keep updating this in case anyone wants to see how this pans out

Fingers crossed it's all very simple

 

[Freela]

I'm guessing that burrs would be molars that have overgrown and become sharp- they can cut into the mouth and tongue, causing pain while chewing. My vet calls them molar spurs most of the time. I hope you get some peace of mind tomorrow and the vet can help him! One of my pigs had several dentals and difficulty chewing (ended up being due to a dental abscess that had not puffed up yet) and it was stressful for both her and I!

 

[LydiaMinx]

I'm guessing that burrs would be molars that have overgrown and become sharp- they can cut into the mouth and tongue, causing pain while chewing. My vet calls them molar spurs most of the time. I hope you get some peace of mind tomorrow and the vet can help him! One of my pigs had several dentals and difficulty chewing (ended up being due to a dental abscess that had not puffed up yet) and it was stressful for both her and I!

Thank you for the well wishes! I've got everything crossed it's cut and dry. I'm skeptical though, as both vets didn't mention that the molars were overgrown, but hopefully that's due to bad visibility!

I find out this morning and I'm just on edge at work, the waiting is the worst - imagination is running wild with worst case scenarios

Happy to hear your piggy recovered well though! I read so many sad stories, it's reassuring to read a happy ending

 

[flintstones]

Hope everything goes well. I've had quite a few dental's done on my pig's. Everything one has bounced back quickly. Please remember to syringe feed if he's not eating when you get him home. Also ask about pain killer, as if he needs a dental his jaw will be quite tender.

 

[LydiaMinx]

Happy update! Just been in contact with the vets and the vet discovered that he did have very small 'burrs' at the back, and they've filed these down. The x-ray showed he has a slightly elongated root on one side so they are keeping an eye on that, but believe it was his teeth overgrowing causing his symptoms. He's come through anesthetic ok, and he's just having bloods before we collect him.

To say I'm relieved is an understatement. So so happy. Collecting him at 5!

Also, just a note to prove how bad my luck us; I got both of my boy insured on the 29th January...Badger has never had a problem in his life regarding his teeth, but as it is within the initial 14 days of cover, they won't cover anything to do with his teeth in the future, ever. So typical for me! But really, I'm just happy everything turned out the best for my boy

Thank you all for the help, and I'll continue to update when he gets home

 

[Freela]

Happy update! Just been in contact with the vets and the vet discovered that he did have very small 'burrs' at the back, and they've filed these down. The x-ray showed he has a slightly elongated root on one side so they are keeping an eye on that, but believe it was his teeth overgrowing causing his symptoms. He's come through anesthetic ok, and he's just having bloods before we collect him.

To say I'm relieved is an understatement. So so happy. Collecting him at 5!

Also, just a note to prove how bad my luck us; I got both of my boy insured on the 29th January...Badger has never had a problem in his life regarding his teeth, but as it is within the initial 14 days of cover, they won't cover anything to do with his teeth in the future, ever. So typical for me! But really, I'm just happy everything turned out the best for my boy

Thank you all for the help, and I'll continue to update when he gets home

I'm glad he's doing well and they found something that they could fix! You may find that he goes back to eating normally right afterwards, or he may still be uncomfortable and reluctant to eat, so make sure you still have some syringed food on hand just in case. It's also possible that there could be a recurrence or an underlying reason for the molar spurs to have formed, so keep an eye on his weight and his chewing and his food intake to make sure it stays normal. I would also advise that daily you run your fingers along his jawbone to feel for lumps and bumps, just in case there is an abscess brewing that hasn't puffed up yet. That was the case with Sundae when she started having dental issues and overgrown teeth, but it took several months for the abscess to puff to the surface where we could feel it.

 

[LydiaMinx]

I'm glad he's doing well and they found something that they could fix! You may find that he goes back to eating normally right afterwards, or he may still be uncomfortable and reluctant to eat, so make sure you still have some syringed food on hand just in case. It's also possible that there could be a recurrence or an underlying reason for the molar spurs to have formed, so keep an eye on his weight and his chewing and his food intake to make sure it stays normal. I would also advise that daily you run your fingers along his jawbone to feel for lumps and bumps, just in case there is an abscess brewing that hasn't puffed up yet. That was the case with Sundae when she started having dental issues and overgrown teeth, but it took several months for the abscess to puff to the surface where we could feel it.

Thank you, will 100% be keeping a very close watch on his mouth area from now on to be on the safe side! The jawbone trick is something I hadn't thought of, so will definitely be doing that also, thank you! I've got syringe food ready to go just in case he's tender, and all of his favorite veg mushed up

 

[Freela]

Thank you, will 100% be keeping a very close watch on his mouth area from now on to be on the safe side! The jawbone trick is something I hadn't thought of, so will definitely be doing that also, thank you! I've got syringe food ready to go just in case he's tender, and all of his favorite veg mushed up

Hopefully you won't need the syringe food at all. I might have just lucked out, but Sundae was always so eager to eat that she gorged herself after having her teeth filed! I actually would bring treats when I picked her up and my son would feed her in the car on the way home!

 

[Teddybear22]

I'm glad the vet found out what was going on and that everything went ok! Now its time for lots of cuddles with Badger!

 

[LydiaMinx]

Hopefully you won't need the syringe food at all. I might have just lucked out, but Sundae was always so eager to eat that she gorged herself after having her teeth filed! I actually would bring treats when I picked her up and my son would feed her in the car on the way home!

Ohhh very good idea with the treats! May have to steal that! Fingers crossed he scoffs his face immediately, then I'll know he is back to his old greedy self

I'm glad the vet found out what was going on and that everything went ok! Now its time for lots of cuddles with Badger!

Cuddles for hours! Going to be letting him to bed in his cage reluctantly I think

 

[Wiebke]

Happy update! Just been in contact with the vets and the vet discovered that he did have very small 'burrs' at the back, and they've filed these down. The x-ray showed he has a slightly elongated root on one side so they are keeping an eye on that, but believe it was his teeth overgrowing causing his symptoms. He's come through anesthetic ok, and he's just having bloods before we collect him.

To say I'm relieved is an understatement. So so happy. Collecting him at 5!

Also, just a note to prove how bad my luck us; I got both of my boy insured on the 29th January...Badger has never had a problem in his life regarding his teeth, but as it is within the initial 14 days of cover, they won't cover anything to do with his teeth in the future, ever. So typical for me! But really, I'm just happy everything turned out the best for my boy

Thank you all for the help, and I'll continue to update when he gets home

Glad that Badger could be sorted. Burrs are overgrowing molar spikes.

Please be aware that he may be in pain and that is certainly going to be rather sore for a bit (I hope that you have got some painkiller for when you are allowed to give him some) and that he is not necessarilty going to eat on his own straight away; it may take a bit, and it may also take another round or two of filing to get the whole dental system working again. The discomfort from the longated can cause uneven chewing.
You can find tips on how to look after a dental guinea pig in our Syringe Feeding Guide: Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

 

[LydiaMinx]

Glad that Badger could be sorted. Burrs are overgrowing molar spikes.

Please be aware that he may be in pain and that is certainly going to be rather sore for a bit (I hope that you have got some painkiller for when you are allowed to give him some) and that he is not necessarilty going to eat on his own straight away; it may take a bit, and it may also take another round or two of filing to get the whole dental system working again. The discomfort from the longated can cause uneven chewing.
You can find tips on how to look after a dental guinea pig in our Syringe Feeding Guide: Complete Syringe Feeding Guide

Thank you for the reply! They mentioned that along with the burrs, they suspected he had an elongated root - what is the ongoing care for this? I've just looked it up and can't really see anything on it. I'm obviously prepared to have ongoing filings, etc, to keep this in check He's yet to touch nuggets but he's stuffing his face with hay in a way I've not seen in days so thus far, I'm very pleased

 

[Wiebke]

Thank you for the reply! They mentioned that along with the burrs, they suspected he had an elongated root - what is the ongoing care for this? I've just looked it up and can't really see anything on it. I'm obviously prepared to have ongoing filings, etc, to keep this in check He's yet to touch nuggets but he's stuffing his face with hay in a way I've not seen in days so thus far, I'm very pleased

There is not a lot that you can do at the moment but keeping the teeth going as they are.

 

[LydiaMinx]

There is not a lot that you can do at the moment but keeping the teeth going as they are.

Ahh no, I really hope they were wrong then and it just wasn't a great x-ray He's been eating veg and hay non-stop since we got back, had a few nuggets also

 

[Wiebke]

Ahh no, I really hope they were wrong then and it just wasn't a great x-ray He's been eating veg and hay non-stop since we got back, had a few nuggets also

That is great news that he's got an appetite and is tucking in straight away!

 

[LydiaMinx]

That is great news that he's got an appetite and is tucking in straight away!

Yes he seems quite chipper, better then he has in days - more himself.

Although to put the cherry on the cake I just found a lump on Boris's neck that literally was not there 2 days ago....so much for a slightly laid back day tomorrow!

 

[Wiebke]

Yes he seems quite chipper, better then he has in days - more himself.

Although to put the cherry on the cake I just found a lump on Boris's neck that literally was not there 2 days ago....so much for a slightly laid back day tomorrow!

Poor you!

At least with Boris tucking in, it is more likely that the pain from the elongated root is actually not quite as bad.

But a sudden lump is never happy news!

 

[LydiaMinx]

Poor you!

At least with Boris tucking in, it is more likely that the pain from the elongated root is actually not quite as bad.

But a sudden lump is never happy news!

Badger still has a bigger appetite then before his dental, building up slowly it seems. He's eating so coarse hay voluntarily and some small nuggets. Is it normal for them not to go straight into a normal eating pattern again?

And Boris's appetite is never dampened, lump or no lump it seems!

Thank you for the reply, as always

 

[LydiaMinx]

So Badger has been recovering well from his dental, now back to his usual self (although took him until today to drink from his bottle himself).

He's eating fine today, however he's 'pulling faces' while eating again. Not all the time, just sometimes, and only seems to be when eating veg. He rubbed his left lip while eating nuggets too, like it was annoying him.

Is this a sign his teeth have overgrown again already? I simply cannot afford dentals a week apart And Badger can't afford the regular ops! Anyone able to help?

Feeling pretty rock bottom right now. One thing after the other

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

Unfortunately dental issues (unless very subtle) aren't cured by one dental. This is why the conscious dentals are the way to go, as the teeth can be filed and then the mouth tidied up again after a week or so, which enables the guinea pig to carry on eating well, rather than waiting until everything goes wrong again, and another GA dental is needed. We get excellent results because the time between dentals can be slowly increased until, in many cases, a complete cure is achieved. Those that can only be managed, but not cured, generally get to a point where they just need a little dental filing every few weeks or so. Sadly finding a vet who will do dental work without GA is very difficult, which is why so many people travel the length and breadth of the country to come to the vet we use, Simon Maddock of the Cat and Rabbit Care Clinic.

It was due to the lack of good veterinary care for guinea pigs with dental disease, is the reason we set up TEAS. We have many permanent residents living out a good life, getting the treatment they need from Simon.

 

[LydiaMinx]

Unfortunately dental issues (unless very subtle) aren't cured by one dental. This is why the conscious dentals are the way to go, as the teeth can be filed and then the mouth tidied up again after a week or so, which enables the guinea pig to carry on eating well, rather than waiting until everything goes wrong again, and another GA dental is needed. We get excellent results because the time between dentals can be slowly increased until, in many cases, a complete cure is achieved. Those that can only be managed, but not cured, generally get to a point where they just need a little dental filing every few weeks or so. Sadly finding a vet who will do dental work without GA is very difficult, which is why so many people travel the length and breadth of the country to come to the vet we use, Simon Maddock of the Cat and Rabbit Care Clinic.

It was due to the lack of good veterinary care for guinea pigs with dental disease, is the reason we set up TEAS. We have many permanent residents living out a good life, getting the treatment they need from Simon.

Thank you for the reply, I'm going on the hunt today fot vets who are willing to do a file without GA. I'm still (perhaps foolishly) hoping he may need one more and that will be that.

I've been reading all of the threads on this forum and others about dental pigs and have seen Simon mentioned. Unfortunately, I'm simply too far away without a car to travel to Northampton, as much as I'd love to. The train fare alone would probably be more then my wages

I'm going to ask around though and see what I find, thank you again

 

[helen105281]

We go by train, I am lucky that Ross already has a monthly ticket into London for work so we only need to pay the top up to Northampton, which for tomorrow's appointment will be £27.40. It means I don't go, when I would like to though. I think you can get cheap tickets if you book a few days in advance but you are tied to a specific train.

 

[LydiaMinx]

We go by train, I am lucky that Ross already has a monthly ticket into London for work so we only need to pay the top up to Northampton, which for tomorrow's appointment will be £27.40. It means I don't go, when I would like to though. I think you can get cheap tickets if you book a few days in advance but you are tied to a specific train.

From what I can tell, the cheapest train is £70 for me, at about 4 hours each way. I would love to go to Simon, but on my income this is something I simply can't do, especially on a regular basis I'm asking my local GP rescue if they can recommend anyone locally, fingers crossed they can