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Dental Possible jaw abscess

Piggy foster mum

Piggy foster mum

Junior Guinea Pig
Joined
Jul 28, 2019
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Location
Watford, uk
I’ve had a recent rocky ride with my boar piggy. 10 weeks ago he had surgery to have two lumps removed, one was in his side and one on his face. Unfortunately the vet said the one on his face was too complicated to remove so she lanced it and flushed it and I did a week of baytril.
Two weeks ago the one on his face came back and he was struggling to pick up food and eating much slower than usual. The vet managed to squeeze quite a bit of puss out and I started critical care syringe feeding. Two days ago he went back because he still wasn’t eating himself and the vet found blood in his urine so he went for an x Ray and she saw what looked like calcium deposits in his bladder so he had a bladder flush procedure. We have more baytril and a different pain killer but he’s still not eating on his own. I'm doing syringe feeding critical care mixed with prebiotics and also water. He’s had a few slices of cucumber that I’ve held when he’s on my lap and it’s taken him ages to eat it. I feel like the abscess is the problem even though I can’t see it on the outside and I can’t feel it on the inside. My piggy is so trusting and allows me to put my finger in his mouth without biting.
He is also snuggling a lot with his buddy as well as constantly sniffing her bum. Is he trying to steel her good poops. I was doing poop soup but stopped - should I continue with this.
We are back at the vets on Wednesday and I did speak to cat and rabbit vets but they said I’d need a referral and last week they were booking for 11th May. I’m not sure I could continue to syringe feed him until then. He’s happy in his self which I don’t get as he’s lost weight and not eating so how can he be happy. His buddy also keeps licking his face. Mostly the top of his nose and ears.
 
I'm sorry to hear your piggy is unwell. Syringe feeding is such a tough one on owners - how often are you doing it at the moment?

I'm going to tag @furryfriends (TEAS) as she lives close to the Cat and Rabbit Clinic and offers a boarding service, I believe also offering care such as syringe feeding / medication but I'll let her advise on that. If I've remembered rightly, this could be an option to help take the pressure off you while you wait. :) He would be in expert hands but I understand it might be difficult to let someone else take care of your pet while they're poorly.

Fingers crossed all goes well with your boy 🤞
 
I’m feeding him every 4 hours in the day and the last feed is about 11pm then the first feed is about 7. We’re maintaining weight around 920g. He’s doing ok but it’s not sustainable to continue to do this
I don’t mind feeding him but I’m worried this will still be going on by 18th May when I have to go away overnight with work. I’m going to have to train the husband.
 
Can you get a referral from your vet to see Simon or Kim Maddock at the Cat and Rabbit Cl8nic, they are the go to vets for anything dental/mouth related and they are amazing!
It’s very hard on you syringe feeding for long periods of time and ultimately he needs to be eating independently. They deal with lots of abscesses, tooth spurs and are also marvellous vets for any guinea pig illnesses
Good luck x
 
Sorry that you are in this situation.
It is very tiring caring for a sick piggy and constantly having to syringe feed.
I have often popped a little dish of the Critical Care mush in the cage, with a small piece of mashed banana added. This helps the piggy to eat for themselves.
You may also find that some grated carrot with raw oats helps.
 
Update on Harry is he saw a dental vet who a friend uses for her rabbits. I couldn’t get an appointment for cat and rabbit. He had 2 back teeth burred as one was trapping a bit of his tongue and the other was heading in the same direction. He also had a mouth ulcer on one side. Unfortunately this was Wednesday and the vet was going on holiday for 2 weeks on Friday. He’s still not eating independently and has lost more weight. I will ring the vets practice tomorrow but I think I’m fighting a losing battle. I’m honestly surprised he a) made it through the anaesthetic and b) is still alive just by having critical care and a tiny bit of cucumber middle. It’s breaking my heart as he still runs around after his buddy, tries to steel poops from his buddy and desperately tries to eat grass and hay. I think I’m going to have to let him go as I just can’t see him improving.
 
@furryfriends (TEAS) ?
There is an antibiotic called zithromax that people have used for mouth problems with success. Any chance your vet could do a referral to cat and rabbit now?

Did you have the incisors trimmed at all? My little sow who was syringe fed for a number of weeks had back teeth burred but not the incisors and this eventually affected her ability to chew. You could see that her chewing was slow and irregular but I didn't realise at first that this was because all the teeth had overgrown while she was struggling on the syringe food - of course she wasn't biting food. I saw her trying to bite at wooden things a bit. Then she saw a different vet on a check up who noticed that she couldn't actually close her mouth! After her trim (conscious - it took 10 minutes) she chewed much better and faster. Sadly in her case it didn't 'cure' her as we think her problem was swallowing: she would work at very small amounts of syringe food for ages. She seemed normal in herself right until the end - 6 weeks on syringe food alone - then she deteriorated one weekend and we knew she'd had enough.

We think dental issues were secondary for my poor girl, but your boy's problems seem to have started with a mouth abscess that couldn't be properly cleared and you've had a really rough ride on the back of that. But if it started as a dental problem I'd still be thinking that a good piggy dentist could sort it out? After our dental we had a week of antibiotics and plenty of painkiller: 1.5mg/ml metacam twice a day - at least 4 units each time I think but can't remember exactly now. It can make the mouth very sore for a long time and they won't eat with pain. Even after the incisor burr we got painkiller because she got a bruised lip. Did you get meds after the last dental?
 
Last edited:
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
Please ask your vet to do a referral to Cat and Rabbit Clinic. Simon/Kim Maddock should be able to help him. Please don’t put to sleep without getting him seen by them.
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Free Ranger said:
@furryfriends (TEAS) ?
There is an antibiotic called zithromax that people have used for mouth problems with success. Any chance your vet could do a referral to cat and rabbit now?

Did you have the incisors trimmed at all? My little sow who was syringe fed for a number of weeks had back teeth burred but not the incisors and this eventually affected her ability to chew. You could see that her chewing was slow and irregular but I didn't realise at first that this was because all the teeth had overgrown while she was struggling on the syringe food - of course she wasn't biting food. I saw her trying to bite at wooden things a bit. Then she saw a different vet on a check up who noticed that she couldn't actually close her mouth! After her trim (conscious - it took 10 minutes) she chewed much better and faster. Sadly in her case it didn't 'cure' her as we think her problem was swallowing: she would work at very small amounts of syringe food for ages. She seemed normal in herself right until the end - 6 weeks on syringe food alone - then she deteriorated one weekend and we knew she'd had enough.

We think dental issues were secondary for my poor girl, but your boy's problems seem to have started with a mouth abscess that couldn't be properly cleared and you've had a really rough ride on the back of that. But if it started as a dental problem I'd still be thinking that a good piggy dentist could sort it out? After our dental we had a week of antibiotics and plenty of painkiller: 1.5mg/ml metacam twice a day - at least 4 units each time I think but can't remember exactly now. It can make the mouth very sore for a long time and they won't eat with pain. Even after the incisor burr we got painkiller because she got a bruised lip. Did you get meds after the last dental?
Click to expand...
His incisors weren’t clipped, the vet said they were ok but I can see that if the back has been burred it’s might all feel out of alignment. Been back today to see our vet and she’s at a loss so we’re carrying on until Wednesday
 
I used to rest my fingers very lightly in the bald patches behind Ivy's ears. I could feel her grinding action on the recovery food. Before the incisor burr her chewing was slower, irregular and a bit intermittent as she got her front teeth stuck. After the burr (which, as I said, was too short initially but they grew back pretty fast) she chewed fast and hard with a very regular rhythm you could feel evenly on both sides... she just didn't seem to swallow.

We'll be thinking about you - it absolutely is very stressful and can pull you down so try and look after yourself x
 
please get a referral to the Cat and Rabbit Clinic if you can, they are the best for any dental problems X
 
I have spoken to cat and rabbit but they don’t have any availability for a few weeks. Vet said the X-ray showed he had osteomyelitis which I don’t think is fixable really.
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
Please ask your vet to do a referral to Cat and Rabbit Clinic. Simon/Kim Maddock should be able to help him. Please don’t put to sleep without getting him seen by them.
Click to expand...
I have spoken to cat and rabbit but they didn’t have any appointments until 13th May and that was last week. I don’t think he will live that long. The X-ray showed he had osteomyelitis and they think he’s older than we thought. I’m still going to keep fighting with him but I’m not sure it’s the right thing
 
Free Ranger said:
I used to rest my fingers very lightly in the bald patches behind Ivy's ears. I could feel her grinding action on the recovery food. Before the incisor burr her chewing was slower, irregular and a bit intermittent as she got her front teeth stuck. After the burr (which, as I said, was too short initially but they grew back pretty fast) she chewed fast and hard with a very regular rhythm you could feel evenly on both sides... she just didn't seem to swallow.

We'll be thinking about you - it absolutely is very stressful and can pull you down so try and look after yourself x
Click to expand...
I can feel this too and have been doing little massages which he seems to like and sometimes falls asleep. He seems to chew ok once I’ve syringed the food in and swallows ok but it’s just very slow. Tonight I crushed up one of his favourite soya bean treats and mused with water, he couldn’t get enough of it and was biting the syringe for more. I then mixed this with some ready brek porridge and he ate a lot. Now he’s trying to eat a piece of celery, he’s struggling to bite it but he’s not giving up unlike the other few days where he’s tried once or twice and then walked away. I still don’t really know if I’m doing the right thing because if it’s not something he can recover from then I’m artificially keeping him alive. Just not ready to give up yet
 
Today we went to cat and rabbit and saw Simon. Harry was eating when we got back to the car. He’s still on critical care tonight to try to get his weight up but I’m hopeful. I can see a difference which is such a change to the 4 weeks of syringe feeding and nothing else.
 
I just want to update everyone about Harry. After going to the cat and rabbit clinic he is a new piggy. I would hundred percent recommend this vets for dental issues. I wasted money at 2 other vets first and should have come here to start with. It’s a 1 hr 30 trip every 2 weeks to start with but as things improve the visits get longer apart. I will go as many times that are needed for the rest of his life. Having good teeth have taken years off him and I don’t regret a single visit. I understand it’s not an option for everyone and you do need to have the money for each visit.
 
I am so glad that Harry is all better. Your post is very encouraging. My Edward is going to the Cat and Rabbit clinic soon for his teeth. He had slanted incisors, couldn’t eat very well and was (and still is) losing weight. My vet trimmed his incisors but she’s done them too short and now his eating is worse than ever! I am having to syringe feed and cut his veg in to matchsticks and hand feed him when he struggled. He has an appointment booked for 18th of July but we’re hoping to have him seen sooner. Here his story Edward: dental problems
 
Thank you so much for the positive update. I'm so pleased Harry is doing so well. I’m taking my piggy Pepper to Cat and Rabbit on Friday. It’s at least 2 hours away from me so I really hope they can help.

Here is his story so far.

Dental? Pepper is off to the vets tomorrow
 
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