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Dental Guinea pig dental problems

T

Tuin & Musi

New Born Pup
Joined
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Location
Bangalore, India
My guinea pig is 2 yrs old, I noticed she is not eating/unable to pick up food/drops food even if she picks up on 11th May. Started syringe feeding her & took her to the vet on 12th May, as suggested by the vet got her mouth x-ray done. As per the vet her incisors was over grown as well as her back teeth were affected, so went a head with trimming of incisors.

She still did not start eating so took her to the vet again on 15th, he suggested her back teeth needs to be trimmed as well which has to be done under anesthesia, but since she seems very weak, so wait for some days and come again.

On 20th I took her to tue vet again, but he suggested since she looks better than earlier so if I wait foe sometime she might start eating by herself.

That did not happen anyway, so visited the vet on 26th May, he put her on gas anesthesia and trimmed her back teeth, but he noticed an ulcer kind of thing inside her mouth and asked to apply medicine on it.

I am continuing all medications, along with syringe feeding but cant really see any improvement. In a day I am able to manage 120-130 ml. Since CC is not available here so I am making it on my own. She is unable to close her mouth, so I can see her fur keeps wet almost till her front leg because of saliva.

I dont want to see her suffer, yet afraid to give up.
 
I am so sorry for you and your piggie. Clearly there is something wrong if she can’t shut her mouth. You are doing very well syringe feeding her so keep it up if you can. I don’t know what type of pellets you have in India but you can also mush them up with warm water and also add a bit of vegetable baby food too.
I am going to tag the member with the most experience when it comes to dental problems in guinea pigs who might add a few suggestions, she runs a guinea pig sanctuary for guinea pigs with special needs including long term dental problems @furryfriends (TEAS) she is a very busy lady so may take a while to reply

I think from your description with her mouth not shutting properly and drooling that the back teeth aren’t properly balanced and sitting evenly together

have you tried hand feeding small veggie stick (matchstick) size and she if she manages anything?
 
What medication is she on?
Is she being given oral pain relief?
What is the medication you’ve been asked to put on the ulcer?
 
Bill & Ted said:
I am so sorry for you and your piggie. Clearly there is something wrong if she can’t shut her mouth. You are doing very well syringe feeding her so keep it up if you can. I don’t know what type of pellets you have in India but you can also mush them up with warm water and also add a bit of vegetable baby food too.
I am going to tag the member with the most experience when it comes to dental problems in guinea pigs who might add a few suggestions, she runs a guinea pig sanctuary for guinea pigs with special needs including long term dental problems @furryfriends (TEAS) she is a very busy lady so may take a while to reply

I think from your description with her mouth not shutting properly and drooling that the back teeth aren’t properly balanced and sitting evenly together

have you tried hand feeding small veggie stick (matchstick) size and she if she manages anything?
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for your kind reply. Yes I did tried to feed her tiny pieces of vegetables, she tries to bite on it then drops same with spinach leaves. Currently I am grinding up veggies and mixing the power of the pallet (which I used to feed her since last 2 years) and feeding her, but definitely try adding baby food. Thanks for tagging the dental problem expert, really appreciate it :)
 
Piggies&buns said:
What medication is she on?
Is she being given oral pain relief?
What is the medication you’ve been asked to put on the ulcer?
Click to expand...
Thanks a lot for your kind reply, currently she is on
--antibiotic(Bayrocin 50 mg, 1/10 per day);
--analgesic & anti-inflammatory(Himalaya - Himpyrin, 3 times a day);
--applying on ulcer(Metrogyl DG Gel forte, twice a day)
--Digestive stimulant(Himalaya Digyton; twice a day)
--also another homoeopathy liquid I am applying on the ulcer,
 
The ulcer is probably caused by a dental molar spur (a sharp point that grows outward 9n the side of the molar or pre molar. This should be what your vet will have trimmed back to stop it growing into the side of the mouth.
If she is doing so well with the pellets I would not bother with the baby food, you could try a bit of mashed banana into the pellet mash for a bit if a change of taste for her, but you are doing very well with feeding her.
Once the ulcer has healed she may start to eat a little hand fed veggies, also her incisors may have been cut quite short (a common mistake vets make) these will grown very quickly and she will then be able to hold food better x
 
apology, I couldn't update in last couple of days. Yesterday I took her to the vet again to trim her incisors since it were over grown again. Today I took her to a different vet, since her condition was not improving. He did a x-ray and confirmed that the incisors are fine, but the back teeth are over grown.

So next week he is going to trim the back teeth(I am not sure if the earlier vet really trimmed her back teeth or not). But as per him it may gain grow back in a month, so every month the back teeth might needs to be trimmed. I am not sure does it really happens like this, if yes then why it was not over growing earlier. I am so confused.

He also noticed blotting in he stomach, suspected it might be due to the vegitable paste I am feeding her. So suggested to keep her only on pallet paste diet, can add some banana for taste.

I am attaching the x-ray copy if anyone can suggest anything.
 

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Tuin & Musi said:
apology, I couldn't update in last couple of days. Yesterday I took her to the vet again to trim her incisors since it were over grown again. Today I took her to a different vet, since her condition was not improving. He did a x-ray and confirmed that the incisors are fine, but the back teeth are over grown.

So next week he is going to trim the back teeth(I am not sure if the earlier vet really trimmed her back teeth or not). But as per him it may gain grow back in a month, so every month the back teeth might needs to be trimmed. I am not sure does it really happens like this, if yes then why it was not over growing earlier. I am so confused.

He also noticed blotting in he stomach, suspected it might be due to the vegitable paste I am feeding her. So suggested to keep her only on pallet paste diet, can add some banana for taste.

I am attaching the x-ray copy if anyone can suggest anything.
Click to expand...

Dental issues can crop up - something starts going wrong in the way the teeth are wearing and then they can need multiple dental treatments to get things right again. Initially needing dentals frequently, but then the time between them can lengthen once things get back on the right track. They need a lot of hay or grass in their diet to keep the back teeth wearing evenly.

As she is bloating, then I would cut vegetables out and stick to a fibre rich pellet syringe feed. This guide explains dealing with bloat Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
 
Good that you’ve seen another vet, he sounds more knowledgeable than the last one. Now you have found out the problem is with the back teeth not the front teeth then you have a positive diagnosis and it can be treated. It only takes a sore gum to start piggies off eating wrongly. Like us if we get an ulcer we don’t eat on that side until it’s gone because it’s painful. The difference is our teeth don’t grow, there’s grow continually and this then unbalances the whole mouth and sharp spurs can then develop because that area of the tooth may not be worn down.
Success very much depends on your vets ability to trim the teeth so there’s a nice even tooth surface area that lets the teeth rub together backward and forwards and side by side and wear the teeth nice and flat. Dentals may need to be done at regular intervals, depending upon how unbalanced the teeth have become. Good luck x
 
Piggies&buns said:
Dental issues can crop up - something starts going wrong in the way the teeth are wearing and then they can need multiple dental treatments to get things right again. Initially needing dentals frequently, but then the time between them can lengthen once things get back on the right track. They need a lot of hay or grass in their diet to keep the back teeth wearing evenly.

As she is bloating, then I would cut vegetables out and stick to a fibre rich pellet syringe feed. This guide explains dealing with bloat Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Click to expand...
Thanks
Piggies&buns said:
Dental issues can crop up - something starts going wrong in the way the teeth are wearing and then they can need multiple dental treatments to get things right again. Initially needing dentals frequently, but then the time between them can lengthen once things get back on the right track. They need a lot of hay or grass in their diet to keep the back teeth wearing evenly.

As she is bloating, then I would cut vegetables out and stick to a fibre rich pellet syringe feed. This guide explains dealing with bloat Digestive Disorders: Diarrhea - Bloat - GI Stasis (No Gut Movement) And Not Eating
Click to expand...
Thanks for the information. Since I am syringe feeding her with pallet paste with small portion of banana, but not sure how much ml of this should I feed her daily. Currently I am managing 100 ml per day. Please let me know should I increase or reduce the quantity.
 
You need to weigh her every day (at the same time every day) as this your guide to how much to feed her. If her weight is stable then she is getting enough food. If her weight drops day on day, then she needs to be fed more.
 
Bill & Ted said:
Good that you’ve seen another vet, he sounds more knowledgeable than the last one. Now you have found out the problem is with the back teeth not the front teeth then you have a positive diagnosis and it can be treated. It only takes a sore gum to start piggies off eating wrongly. Like us if we get an ulcer we don’t eat on that side until it’s gone because it’s painful. The difference is our teeth don’t grow, there’s grow continually and this then unbalances the whole mouth and sharp spurs can then develop because that area of the tooth may not be worn down.
Success very much depends on your vets ability to trim the teeth so there’s a nice even tooth surface area that lets the teeth rub together backward and forwards and side by side and wear the teeth nice and flat. Dentals may need to be done at regular intervals, depending upon how unbalanced the teeth have become. Good luck x
Click to expand...
Thanks
Bill & Ted said:
Good that you’ve seen another vet, he sounds more knowledgeable than the last one. Now you have found out the problem is with the back teeth not the front teeth then you have a positive diagnosis and it can be treated. It only takes a sore gum to start piggies off eating wrongly. Like us if we get an ulcer we don’t eat on that side until it’s gone because it’s painful. The difference is our teeth don’t grow, there’s grow continually and this then unbalances the whole mouth and sharp spurs can then develop because that area of the tooth may not be worn down.
Success very much depends on your vets ability to trim the teeth so there’s a nice even tooth surface area that lets the teeth rub together backward and forwards and side by side and wear the teeth nice and flat. Dentals may need to be done at regular intervals, depending upon how unbalanced the teeth have become. Good luck x
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reply, it makes sence. Currently am syringe feeding her with pallet paste with small portion of banana, but not sure how much ml of this should I feed her daily. Currently I am managing 100 ml per day. Can you please suggest if I should increase or reduce the quantity.
 
What I would do is weigh her daily (keep a note/spreadsheet) at the same time, if her weight is roughly the same then she is getting the right amount of food and will maintain her weight, if she’s dropped then increase a little. I would just mash an inch size piece of banana into a portion of critical care if she likes it. You could Laos try a small bowl of plain dry porridge oats left in her cage, they are quite easy to eat and healthy too
If you can offer her a little bit of cut up veggies half way through a feed just to encourage her to try to eat as they do loose confidence over time and really have to regain it again. It doesn’t matter if she won’t eat it just carry on giving her the critical care but at least you have given her a chance to try x
 
Piggies&buns said:
You need to weigh her every day (at the same time every day) as this your guide to how much to feed her. If her weight is stable then she is getting enough food. If her weight drops day on day, then she needs to be fed more.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for the tip, I followed tye same and her weight is stable since couple of days, even it has increased 20 grams :)
 
Bill & Ted said:
What I would do is weigh her daily (keep a note/spreadsheet) at the same time, if her weight is roughly the same then she is getting the right amount of food and will maintain her weight, if she’s dropped then increase a little. I would just mash an inch size piece of banana into a portion of critical care if she likes it. You could Laos try a small bowl of plain dry porridge oats left in her cage, they are quite easy to eat and healthy too
If you can offer her a little bit of cut up veggies half way through a feed just to encourage her to try to eat as they do loose confidence over time and really have to regain it again. It doesn’t matter if she won’t eat it just carry on giving her the critical care but at least you have given her a chance to try x
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for the tip, I followed the same and her weight is stable since 5/6 days. Currently I am feeding her banana and pallet power paste, critical care seems way too expensive here, around 41 pounds for just 141 grams, only available in amazon and that to the delivery time is around a month. Is it also this much expensive there or just here coz of the import charges and taxes. Will try the oats though.

Tried feeding her spinach leaves during her syringe feed but she is not trying bite hard enough, where as she chew on the syringe itself. Today got her back teeth trimmed and it was done under anesthesia, thankfully it went fine, she is ok now, I am continuing syringe feeding. Hopefully she will start eating on her own soon.
 
Its been more than 15 days since her back teeth are trimmed, still she is not eating on her own, only on syringe feeding. I try to feed her chopped vegetables during syringe feeding, she won't even bite on it. Got her incisors trimmed last week, after that she has started drinking water from her bottle, but she literally soaks till her belly portion white drinking and she refuses to drink from bowl. Not sure what to do. Her weight is stable.
 
So sorry for you, I think you will have to carry on and see if she improves. Sometimes when vets trim the incisors they tend to over trim them and this could be the reason why water is draining down her front.
Fingers crossed you can find her something that she will eat, they do loose confidence eating after a while, but you are doing a great job if her weight is stable. Is she still on painkillers as pain can also stop them eating
 
Bill & Ted said:
So sorry for you, I think you will have to carry on and see if she improves. Sometimes when vets trim the incisors they tend to over trim them and this could be the reason why water is draining down her front.
Fingers crossed you can find her something that she will eat, they do loose confidence eating after a while, but you are doing a great job if her weight is stable. Is she still on painkillers as pain can also stop them eating
Click to expand...
Yes, she is still on pain killers, but vet suggested to stop. I stopped for 2 days and she stopped getting out of her hideout to roam around, did not lie down at all, always sit in a hunched posture, so I started pain killers(meloxicam) again. Ever since her dental problem started, she rarely lies down, most of the time she sit in a hunched position. I am not sure if she is in lot of pain, but after visiting the the current vet, she became little more active, comes out of her hideout 5-6 time during the day, drinks water, roam around.
 
On 11th July I got her back teeth trimmed again under anaesthesia. The vet told me her back teeth were badly over grown again, and its growing in the opposite direction also towards the jaw and if she doesn't start eating in next 20 days, we might have to go for PTS. Its almost 10 days since her back teeth trimming (2 nd time, 1st was done on 9th Jun) and been 2 months she is not at all eating by herself only on syringe feeding. I am not sure what to do, its heart breaking to even think about PTS. Any suggestions will be helpful.
 
I’m so sorry, I personally think treating a dental piggie is one of the saddest and most difficult problems there is. Vets do their very best but very often it doesn’t actually help very much. Because the teeth are constantly growing you are battling against continued growth plus trying to get your piggie eating properly too and it’s a vicious circle.
Syringe feeding plus hand feeding is really the only option you have really, sending you big hugs x
 
I agree. It can be an awful, vicious circle to try break out of. I’ve been there, hardest year of my life. But stay strong, quite often you can get a positive result in the end. In the end, a course of Tramadol got my boy’s jaw pain under control and got him eating and wearing his teeth down again. So the time between dentals increased.

Thinking of you all and sending love 💕
 
Bradshaw Piggies said:
I agree. It can be an awful, vicious circle to try break out of. I’ve been there, hardest year of my life. But stay strong, quite often you can get a positive result in the end. In the end, a course of Tramadol got my boy’s jaw pain under control and got him eating and wearing his teeth down again. So the time between dentals increased.

Thinking of you all and sending love 💕
Click to expand...
Thanks a lot for replying. Hearing a happy recovery from dental issues made my day, I was loosing all hopes. I have few queries though, was your piggy on syringe feeding n how long. Was he eating anything by his own while on syringe feeding. What was the frequently in-between dentals and were they done under anesthesia or conscious dental. I apologize in advance for asking so many questions :)
 
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