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One tooth longer than the other...

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elvis is my cavy

elvis is my cavy

Junior Guinea Pig
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i clipped elvis nails today so i decided to check his teeth. his top two teeth are weird. one is longer then the other i think he broke a tooth. oh gezz i feel guilty right now. what do i do?
 
DON"T PANIC.... these little ones do it all the time ::)

You will find it will grow back fairly quickly. I don't get the other one clipped back to match now as i find it mucks them up for eating they can't grab there food if there teeth are too short.

Can Elvis still eat ok?
 
Keep an eye on him, if he has problems eating or is drooling etc.. i'd call the vets O0

Good luck, i remember the first time Sully (RIP) did this i panicked and went rushing to the vets, they grinned and said not to worry but trimmed his other tooth back to match, that's when i found out that it makes it doubly hard for them to eat when they're short.

Oh Elvis don't scare your mummy so much you cheeky little man ::) :smitten:
 
ok now his other top tooth (the longer on) is wobbly and is bleeding i think he is chewing his cage. what do i do?
 
If its wobbly and bleeding phone the vets now and demand u get an appointment TODAY. It wont be emergency vets until after about midday I think (well it is with mine) so its normal surgery this morning.
 
it stop bleeding doesnt look like hes in pain but i will ask my parents togo to the vets, but what do you reckon the vets will do? thats not meant to sound like i dont want to take him to the vets. :)
 
I was told that if one tooth breaks, the other one must be filed by someone experienced to match asap as they grow at different rates, is that true does anyone know?
 
Tooth fractures can be left to grow back naturally, the problem coomes when the fracture has gone down vertically to the gum- it will just be a fine line that you may not even be able to see. Thats where infection gets in. I have seen a pig that was left untreated for too long die because of this. I don't tend to file the teeth down if its more than halfway up the tooth thats alongside it as the opposing teeth will wear it down usually until the other grows back- just keep an eye on it to make sure it is being worn down.

If its broken off really short sometimes its best to trim the other one as well but they will need food cut into bitesize 'bits' as they can't pick it up :) Every break is different :)

The vet should check to see if its loose or discoloured and look at the break and where it is. Keep an eye on his eating, he should be fine. 'Look out' for any smells coming from the mouth.


Don't ever attempt to cut teeth yourself. You could end up making things a whole lot worse if you aren't sure of what you're doing.
 
So its loose? Then he needs antibiotics (Baytril o.4ml x2 daily) and the tooth removed if possible. I have a sow here with 3 Incisors who manages perfectly, she got a loose tooth that had to be removed. :)
 
do their teeth get weak and snap? baby broke one of his so we had the other cut back to. both grew again and looked fine but then the other one has now broke. this time i haven't taken him to the vets and it seems to be growing fine. just seemed strange that one broke and then a few weeks on the other one went.
 
tawny said:
do their teeth get weak and snap? baby broke one of his so we had the other cut back to. both grew again and looked fine but then the other one has now broke. this time i haven't taken him to the vets and it seems to be growing fine. just seemed strange that one broke and then a few weeks on the other one went.
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I don't know if a lack of Calcium might cause that, sometimes it seems to be more the individual pig than the diet. If a change of diet to one containing more Calcium doesn't do it then it may be how they are. Its usually a knock that causes it- or a run in with another pig ::)
 
karen...could inbreeding have anything to do with weak teeth at all? :-\ (I'm getting a proper education from you ;D )
 
Yes,unfortunately jaw and dental problems can be caused by inbreeding,as can cardiac problems.I have seen pigs with deformed jaws,overgrown roots and misaligned molars all caused by interbreeding to get a particular face shape.
 
I was thinking of inbreeding as just something thats done accidently or through illeducation, completely not even thinking about the fact that people can inbreed on purpose to try and get a certain result :o

Why people would do that just goes over my head :(

Thank you Mary! :)

And yes, how is elvis?
 
Did u take himto a vets?
PLEASE dont make him wait till Monday, however much it costs now!
 
PerfectPiggies said:
I was thinking of inbreeding as just something thats done accidently or through illeducation, completely not even thinking about the fact that people can inbreed on purpose to try and get a certain result :o

Why people would do that just goes over my head :(
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Same here, why would anyone do that?! >:(
Can teeth overgrow for something like, lack of chewing wood or something like that or is it mainly due to inbreeding or genetics? And do these conditions happen early in, or develop later in the piggy's life?
 
Overgrown teeth can occur for several reasons.Maloclusion can happen if the piggy is sick and only eating syringe food,iIf the pig has a sore lip or an ulcer and is eating on one side only,the molars on the opposite side can overgrow.
Sonetimes pigs can be born with genetic defects in the jaw,which may or may not be caused by overbreeding.Genetic problems normally manifest around 4 or 5months of age,but they can appear earlier,and can sometimes cause no problem for 18 months or more.
Accidental inbreeding like for instance a boar getting to its mum or sister because it has not been seperated from them early enough,should not cause any problem.The interbreeding I refer to is when pigs are deliberately bred with a parent or sibling,then those babies are bred with the grandparents.,and so on.Breeders do this to get certain colours,hair length ,face shape etc. This practise makes me realy angry because they only do this to produce show pigs.I am very much against cavy shows(or dog shows) because the animals are stressed and suffer for the benifit of humans who like to collect ribbons and rosettes.
 
omg my parents wont let me take him to the vets god god god god. if he gets infected he will die.i go he needs antibotics my dad says i dont care I'm not taking him to the vets :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'(
 
good news my mum come back from soocer i asked her if i could go to the vets she said yes. i showed her the tooth and was it bad i hope he can pull through. the vets is closed today which is stupid but atleast I'm allowed to go
 
Good news, :) As long as he's eating OK then there's nothing to worry about I don't think. Just get him there sooner rather than later. Its against the law by the way not to take a piggy to the vet and get medical attention...
 
oh no i didn't mean it like that my dad was in like the worst moods when i asked him. it isn't animal cruelty or anything i hope you understand that :)
 
elvis is my cavy said:
why has this thread mystresly ended up in the food section i started this in general chat?
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Was moved to wrong board - It is now in Health and Illness.

Please can you also make sure that you include an appropriate subject for new topics. This helps members when looking for specific posts instead of having to work there way through thousands of posts. This is a rule stated in the Forum Rules and Guidelines. :)
 
PerfectPiggies said:
karen...could inbreeding have anything to do with weak teeth at all? :-\ (I'm getting a proper education from you ;D )
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The majority of pigs with dental problems that I've seen have been pets that were bred with no thought to their background, I have no idea if they were inbred as I don't know their history. Line breeding is also despised by some members of the Fancy, as Mary has said when done properly Line Breeding is not dangerous and would occur in the wild. To be honest I think rabbits and dental problems have more of an issue than guinea pigs. A study done a few years ago showed that it was pet cavies that were worst affected with dental problems, I can't remember any more but was suprised because some of the Selfs have quite round faces. Incidentally, two Pets at Home Piggies that I rehomed (brothers) have died within the last couple of months, both had dental problems on the same side of the mouth and were almost identical- from that I would assume it inherited or a BIG coincidence.

Apologies for pignapping your thread Elvis is my cavy :)
 
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