Dental issues but no signs?

[AbbieMiddleton]

Thank you, everyone. I'll try again this afternoon. ❤

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

She started wheeking this afternoon. Not heard her wheek in ages.
The slight fold in her skin has gone this afternoon. I think that was the extent of any swelling around the wound. We're aiming at the dark spot you can see below. There's no swelling at all, the natural shape of her jaw bone looks like a swollen lump but that's just how it looks when shaved! Nothing is coming out still. Just teeny, tiny specs of pink on the cotton wool.

 

[Claire W]

Aw I’m so glad she has her wheek back bless her. You’re both doing so well

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

This all sounds completely normal! xx

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Afternoon all, just wondering if I could try and gather some more advice, please.
Floof is doing great. Gaining weight, eating well, only showing the occasional mouth dysfunction; extra wide chewing/mouth opening to manoeuvre something with her tongue but she cat eat now instead of just attempting to peck things and failing.

What's worrying me the most is trying to understand her abscess surgery site. I can see it's a downward incision leading to the "flushing hole" and despite being a middle aged woman with two teenage sons, I can't figure out what I'm looking for in terms of scabs. Nothing much is coming out. No more pink specs. Just some slight grot if I really scrub the area. I've tried and failed to get a good picture. The wound is very flat and it does feel prickly, which is the stitches as far as I can tell. Can somebody please tell me what a scab will look/feel like?

Will it literally fill the hole? Cover it with a flat surface? I feel so ignorant about this!

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

It will look like a normal scab. It sounds like everything is going well and nothing to worry about. You only get scabs if blood and pus are draining.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

It will look like a normal scab. It sounds like everything is going well and nothing to worry about. You only get scabs if blood and pus are draining.

Thank you, Debbie. ❤ I was getting concerned because nothing is draining. As far as i know, the abscess capsule hasn't been removed which is why we're focusing on the flushing aftercare but every time we go to flush/clean it there's nothing there. Her fur is perfectly dry. No damp patches or anything sticky or crusty. No smell at all. Absolutely nothing unless I scrub it with a pad to get some very faint browning. I was worried it's healed too quickly from the inside....

 

[weepweeps]

That wound is looking amazing. Like Debbie said if there’s no gunk coming out it probably won’t form a scab as such. Just heal up nicely.

Peppers abscess was 4 cm wide so he had a large wound to start with.



See what Simon says at the check up appointment. It’s looking good though.

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

It sounds like a nice straightforward one. I’ve had ones like that and they’ve resolved really quickly! All good!

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

That wound is looking amazing. Like Debbie said if there’s no gunk coming out it probably won’t form a scab as such. Just heal up nicely.

Peppers abscess was 4 cm wide so he had a large wound to start with.

View attachment 224158

See what Simon says at the check up appointment. It’s looking good though.

Good grief! That's a big wound! What a brave little sausage. ❤
See, that's what we expected overall but there's nothing going on here. I guess, when something doesn't fit the expected parameters, I automatically assume the worst. Kim said the reoccurrence rate in these types of abscess are really high and it's stuck in my head that because it doesn't look the same as everything I've seen online, I must be doing it wrong and that it's probably already lurking.

It sounds like a nice straightforward one. I’ve had ones like that and they’ve resolved really quickly! All good!

Thank you again, "Abscess Queen"

I really appreciate every single one of you reaching out to me.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Update:

Floof had her 5 day check up today. Simon said her surgical site is the best it could possibly be at this stage. No swelling, no noticeable discharge etc. He cleaned it out and found very minimal pus. We just need to keep doing what we're doing. Flushing the wound a few times a day, soaking off any dry/dead bits while keeping her on antibiotics for another week. I'm also keeping her on critical care as a top up feed to help her gain weight, if she'll let me. It makes me a bit uncomfortable that Simon found any pus at all, minimal or otherwise, and obviously that's the bit I'm now focused on. (Read: Obsessively worrying about.)

Yesterday three tiny specs fell out of the wound during flushing. We think they were bits of dead flesh though because they were stringy and stretchy and I imagine pus would be more.... spreadable...

Oddly, despite us telling Kim a few weeks back that Floof's front left incisor looked and felt wrong and her telling us it was fine, Simon pulled it out easily today. It had been infected last February, so this isn't a huge surprise. Unfortunately, he couldn't tell us if it'll grow back or not. He said because of the root discolouration and previous infection, he couldn't tell if the tooth has rotted off or snapped at the root due to weakness. So we have to wait and see.

Does anyone know how piggies get along with a missing tooth, please? Or have any idea how quickly the teeth grow so I can keep an eye out for signs of regrowth?

 

[weepweeps]

This is exactly what has happened to Pepper. He had his abscess last July/August. His bottom right incisor was wobbly, then fell out, then grew back half the width it was supposed to be. He is eating fine and has finally put on the weight he lost. I do cut his cucumber and pepper into long strips. Just in case. He’s managing just fine.

 

[weepweeps]

Also Pepper had a follow up appointment with Simon at 5 days and he squeezed quite a bit of puss out. It’s normal and ok

 

[weepweeps]

I’ve managed to find some pics

Peppers tooth went a funny colour and then fell out.





Then grew back odd



He’s now got half a width tooth on that side.

Hope this helps.

 

[Little Ones]

When Little only had 1 bottom incisor, he could eat fine and was pretty normal. The only issue was that we had to go back to see Simon every 2 weeks for his incisors burring as it needed to be done intricately so we couldn’t go anywhere else. It was a lot easier once his second incisor also went as it meant we could get his top incisors burred locally.
Glad she’s doing okay in spite of everything! She’s really going through it. Hope you are okay too

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Thank you, both! It's reassuring to know the abscess is doing well despite producing a little pus. We're just going to keep plodding along. Poor Floof is really having a time of it. One infected tooth, two abscesses, one dislocated shoulder, opposite shoulder bone deformities discovered, bloat, a cyst drain, three rounds of GA and the abscess surgery itself... All in the space of three months. She's very cautious about eating but offering her smaller bits does seem to help. If we can get her over the abscess, we can hopefully then deal with her tooth. Fingers crossed she won't lose another one. The tooth next to the lost one looks healthy!

I'm exhausted but she's doing really well, so that's all that matters. I'm glad you got your fur babies through all this type of stuff.

 

[weepweeps]

Poor little Floof. She has been through the wringer. I really hope she’s on the up now

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

This is exactly what has happened to Pepper. He had his abscess last July/August. His bottom right incisor was wobbly, then fell out, then grew back half the width it was supposed to be. He is eating fine and has finally put on the weight he lost. I do cut his cucumber and pepper into long strips. Just in case. He’s managing just fine.

Sorry to bother you but I've been having some thoughts on what you said! From your pictures, I'd say this is exactly how Floof's tooth looked. (Although it's her top tooth instead!) The discolouration is exact. I distinctly remember the infected tooth looking slightly orange as though she'd been eating carrots and the other tooth almost looking grey by comparison. Do you have any time frame for what happened to Pepper's tooth? Floof's tooth was infected last February and it was checked regularly. Even two weeks ago Kim and Simon were applying pressure to the tooth and assuring us it wasn't wobbly. It was fine and usable for months, albeit discoloured. I could understand if it dropped out a few weeks after infection... but months? Also, was Pepper's tooth lost far below the gumline and if so, how long was it before you saw growth poking through?
Simon wasn't able to tell us if the tooth would grow back, did you have a similar prognosis?

I'm sorry if I'm asking things you can't possibly recall but any information you have would be gratefully received.

 

[weepweeps]

Hi. No problem. It was 9th June I noticed Peppers teeth were wonky and he lost weight. That was the start of the abscess saga. It was the 14 September that I noticed his wobbly tooth. Yes Simon also told me that it may grow back but may not. I’m not sure exactly how far below the gum line it broke.

By the 25th October it had grown back to normal length but thin.

Then he lost both bottom teeth. I’ve no idea how. But luckily he still ate fine. They both grew back to normal length. But one is still thinner. Hope that helps.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Hi. No problem. It was 9th June I noticed Peppers teeth were wonky and he lost weight. That was the start of the abscess saga. It was the 14 September that I noticed his wobbly tooth. Yes Simon also told me that it may grow back but may not. I’m not sure exactly how far below the gum line it broke.

By the 25th October it had grown back to normal length but thin.

Then he lost both bottom teeth. I’ve no idea how. But luckily he still ate fine. They both grew back to normal length. But one is still thinner. Hope that helps.

Thank you so much, that really does help! I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I'll keep dealing with the abscess and check her front teeth every few days or so. She has a check up on the 25th. Fingers crossed I see some new growth. We've spent around £1500+ now, so I'm just trying to mentally/financially prepare myself for monthly tooth burring costs if it doesn't return.

 

[weepweeps]

I panicked and felt the same as you with the ongoing tooth issues. I imagined having to go to the cat and rabbit every couple of weeks. (It’s 2 hours away from me). But really so far he is managing just fine. I spent about £1,000. Piggies are definitely not cheap pets. Keep going. The end is in sight with the abscess. I know Floof has other issues too.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Thank you for your reassurance and kind words. It is quite panic inducing, the costs and travel; It's about an hour and a half drive for us to see Simon. I've had piggies on and off since the 1980's but consistently for the last 7 years. We'd never reached these heights of cost before though. Maybe the odd £100 or so here and there. Still, I can't imagine my home without these little creatures. Thank you again! I'll update this thread if there's any significant changes and hopefully with good news.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Just a lil' update.

We managed to keep the wound flushed and open for 12 days. Nothing came out. Very occasionally there were a few light pink patches of blood on some of the cotton wool but that's it. No pus that we could see, there's no smell, her eating has improved but not back to 100% because of, I assume, her missing tooth and me constantly aggravating her stitches. I'm not really sure what else to do now. Last night it suddenly clamped shut with a yellow/ white crust which is fully adhered to her dissolvable stitches. It won't soak off, it won't pick off, if I pull it her stitches pull with it. We've gone through two bags of saline and I'm trying to make my own at the moment. (1tsp salt and cooled, boiled water.) We've bought some cotton swabs to try and scrub it off too. I'm really concerned that 12 days isn't enough. We spoke to a vet at the clinic who said it might be her fat layers trying to regrow and to just keep it clean and do what we're doing as she's still on .5ml Zithromax twice a day any way. I've read so many things that say the wound must be kept open for 4 to 6 weeks and I feel like I've failed and put her in danger of it refilling.

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

You’ve done well to keep it open as long as you have. When’s her next check up at vets? It all sounds fine to me xx

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

You’ve done well to keep it open as long as you have. When’s her next check up at vets? It all sounds fine to me xx

It's such a small site to keep open, less than a centimetre, so we've tried to be quite rough with it and picked off any tiny crusty bits, but even her fur surrounding it has shown no blood, leakage or anything else. It's been a really dry wound overall. It's been a week since Simon gave it a second flush (minimal pus, his words) but her check up isn't for another week on the 25th. I'm assuming that's due to the clinic moving as I received a letter mentioning it a few weeks ago. I can just about get my little finger's fingernail in the wound to try and pick at the rubbery/crusty lumps but every time I try to pull a bit of it, it's one of the dissolvable stitches. They're starting to congeal and connect, kind of?

 

[weepweeps]

12 days is great. I’d leave it alone now. At some point it has to heal. The Zithromax will keep working on it. My piggy didn’t start to eat again properly until the course of Zithromax was finished. He had a two bottle course.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

12 days is great. I’d leave it alone now. At some point it has to heal. The Zithromax will keep working on it. My piggy didn’t start to eat again properly until the course of Zithromax was finished. He had a two bottle course.

Thanks! I might keep blasting salt water at it a few times a day to help it but I should probably stop picking and pulling at it. We've just finished our first bottle of Zithromax and have a second bottle to mix up tonight. I've just got to get her to next Thursday now. One step at a time... Thanks again, both of you.

 

[AbbieMiddleton]

Good afternoon!

Hopefully this is the last update I'll be making about Floof and her dental journey. Simon was very pleased with her progress today! The surgical wound is healing and dry (still no pus or leakage) so we're now able to fully drop syringe flushing and just give it a good ol' scrub every day to keep it clean until it closes. She's gained 130g in weight too, about 10g a day! No sign of any more dental infection or anything of the sort which means we can also wean her off Zithromax and Tramadol. Simon even suggested letting the Loxicom run out as well because her previous shoulder issues look much better. Her top incisor hasn't grown back but the other top tooth is compensating very well, thicker and slightly angled towards the middle, so we can reduce her dental check/trim to around once a month. (Phew!)

We have no idea what actually caused all this. Two back-to-back abscesses at different sites and a root infection at another site but we just have to keep going without that knowledge. To celebrate today though, I'm about to buy a huge amount of soft cut Timothy hay (their favourite) and loads of fancy forage because my little trio have been amazing throughout all of this.

Thank you to everyone single person on here who reached out to me with support and kindness. You are wonderful people and I'm really grateful.

 

[Claire W]

Aw that’s wonderful news

 

[furryfriends (TEAS)]

Fantastic news! Simon works his magic once again and you’ve done an amazing job! I’m going to hand over my ‘Abscess Queen’ crown to you!