Not Eating Greens Post Dental Op

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DeeMarie

Hello, thank you for the forum, it's been very informative as I've browsed searching for similiar problems to what my guinea pig is facing.

We noticed he was having trouble eating his greens, chewing with his head on the side, and guessed it was teeth problems - we've had guinea pigs for on and off over three decades and this is the first time one has had teeth problems!

We took him to the vet who said said his teeth were very overgrown at the back, to the point the bottom ones had met in a V shape, which was obviously very shocking since his front teeth appeared fine. Unfortunately he had to undergo surgery to cut and file them all back and was very wobbly afterwards.

We fed him up on Science Recovery, kept him warm etc and he seems a lot happier now. The vet did point out a hard lump on the side of his jaw, she said it wasn't an abcess but actually bone which might be the cause.

The problem we have now is that while he'll eat hard pellets, and anything else we offer him, banana, even oaty porridge, he turns his nose up at all the greens. He won't eat grass or hay which I'm worried won't help his dental problems. He'll see something leafy and bite down on it, but then he'll let go. Occasionally I'll tempt him with a small bit which he'll eat, anything too long and he spits it out.

Before the op he was a big greens eater, and now he isn't, it's hard to watch him watch our bunny munch through all the leafy foods knowing he can't. I'm really not sure what to do :-\
 
Sometimes the bone reacts with the abscess/pus causing a lump. Grass and hay need a different sort of eating motion to dry food, it could be why- ie that way hurts. I would want the lump lanced to see if there was any pus (sometimes its minimal) and put guinea on 0.4ml of Baytril x2 daily to make sure infection doesn't get into the bone.

Whereabouts are you? There are vets and rodentologists that work with them who may be able to suggest more when they actually see your guinea.

Do you mean the teeth met in a V shape over his tongue?
 
Yes his bottom teeth had formed a bridge near the roof of his mouth, almost trapping his tongue. I spoke to the vet about the bone growth, she said there was nothing they could do for it, she said it didn't feel like an abscess but was just hard bone and it seemed tender to touch as he would wince a little. She didn't think there was a chance for infection as it's just a solid lump.

She did give him pain relief when we took him back but it didn't seem to help him eat his greens. I'm a little confused why he could eat those before the dental op and not after, unless trimming his teeth has given him more jaw movement and the bone growth is right on the hinge, making it painful to move in a certain way.

I'm in Norwich in the UK, our vet has a good dental section for small animals, they've always been pretty good in the past.
 
Do you know Sprowston Guinea Pig Rescue? Cheryl may be able to help. Surgery really shouldn't be necessary but as a one off is OK. How much pain relief did he have? Maybe it wasn't enough. Sometimes teeth are left with sharp edges and it hurts to eat afterwards- perhaps its this. Did she give him any oral gel? Infection could get in via the mouth surely?

Email Cheryl and see if she can help: cheryl@sprowstonguineapigrescue.co.uk

Try chopping the grass into different lengths and keep up with the Oxbow Critical Care :)
 
Thank you for the advice :)

I offered him chopped up grass but he ended up choking on it, so it was back to hand feeding. I noticed his front teeth are now growing in at different angles and he seems to be going off his hard food. I'm beginning to think the dental surgery wasn't a good idea :-\

I'll try Cheryl and see if she can help, so once again thank you.
 
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