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Dental Suspected tooth problems

She is very lively and runs over excitedly for veg, hay/food in general and she's bright eyed and fights me, runs around the cage to get away from being picked up. In general acting like her normal self.

It's only because I noticed she was dropping her food that she's not right so I hope that's somewhat positive that she's not so Ill she's showing it. That's why I'm hoping she can make it until tomorrow's appointment.
 
Its best to weigh first thing in the morning (I tend to do about 9am) rather than last at night.

Its good she is still active.
All you can do is get as much syringe feed into her as possible. Keep that weight record (perhaps write the times on also so you can remember that there is a bit of a gap between those first two) and show the vet
 
Piggies&buns said:
Its best to weigh first thing in the morning (I tend to do about 9am) rather than last at night.

Its good she is still active.
All you can do is get as much syringe feed into her as possible. Keep that weight record (perhaps write the times on also so you can remember that there is a bit of a gap between those first two) and show the vet
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Should I weigh her now then? I'm just about to do her next feed and medication. I'll jot the times down thank you :)

I'm going to partition the cage while I'm out and give her some mushed banana, mushed pepper and mushed cucumber because I notice the pepper and cucumber she wants to eat the most (as well as hay which I can't help with)
She won't willingly eat the pellets mushed up but I'll leave that too in hope.
 
Yes I’d weigh now. The important thing is that it is the same time each day.

if she will eat the veg while you are out is the best you can do. Syringe before you go and when you get back
 
Piggies&buns said:
Yes I’d weigh now. The important thing is that it is the same time each day.

if she will eat the veg while you are out is the best you can do. Syringe before you go and when you get back
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She's 824 and just gave her 10ml and her pain relief as well as a little water.

I'm going to give her 20ml before I go. Then return home in 3 hours to give her some more feed
 
Managed to keep her weight stable :) she has her appointment at 1pm. I phoned and checked and the vet can do dental too
I'm hoping she'll be able to eat soon!
 

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So I took her. The vet took her to the back room and did her back teeth and front.

However she's back home and still can't seem to eat. She still wants to, especially pepper but she still can't seem to.

I'm really confused on what's wrong :(
I've phoned the vet and I'm just waiting for a call back because he's busy with another animal right now.
 
Someone with more experience should be around sometime soon, however from reading other posts on here I'd say it's not uncommon for there not to be an immediate improvement - the area could still feel 'off' (think about your own trips to the dentist), or maybe the pig has become used to pain when eating and just needs some time to get used to things. Of course keep an eye on things and go back to the vet if it persists, which it sounds like you're already on top of. :)
 
:agr:
This is a common story and you are not likely to see any immediate improvement. She is likely still uncomfortable and sometimes they lose confidence in eating.
Make sure she remains on her pain relief

The only time Ive heard of piggies eating hay again after dental surgery is when it is has been done by Simon and Kim at Cat & Rabbit in Northampton
 
poggle said:
Someone with more experience should be around sometime soon, however from reading other posts on here I'd say it's not uncommon for there not to be an immediate improvement - the area could still feel 'off' (think about your own trips to the dentist), or maybe the pig has become used to pain when eating and just needs some time to get used to things. Of course keep an eye on things and go back to the vet if it persists, which it sounds like you're already on top of. :)
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Thank you. I really hope she will pick up and start eating. I had the same problem with my own mouth last week ironically and I know even today I'm very hesitant with biting down... I hope that's the same for her.

I just feel so lost :(
 
Piggies&buns said:
:agr:
This is a common story and you are not likely to see any immediate improvement. She is likely still uncomfortable and sometimes they lose confidence in eating.
Make sure she remains on her pain relief

The only time Ive heard of piggies eating hay again after dental surgery is when it is has been done by Simon and Kim at Cat & Rabbit in Northampton
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Thank you. I really hope that's what it is.
How long do you think it will be? Should I keep syringe feeding her in the mean time?

I've ran out of pain relief. There was barely any in the bottle.
 
Julesie said:
Thank you. I really hope that's what it is.
How long do you think it will be? Should I keep syringe feeding her in the mean time?

I've ran out of pain relief. There was barely any in the bottle.
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It depends how competent the vet is in doing dentals.

Yes you need to keep syringe feeding until she is back to eating enough hay independently.

She will need more pain relief. If she is in any pain then she will be very reluctant to eat for herself.
 
Piggies&buns said:
It depends how competent the vet is in doing dentals.

Yes you need to keep syringe feeding until she is back to eating enough hay independently.

She will need more pain relief. If she is in any pain then she will be very reluctant to eat for herself.
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He's on here as a recommend piggie vet and he's done tons of surgeries and other stuff. I'm not sure how well he is with teeth though but as far as I'm aware he's capable.

Okay I'll resume with the syringe feeding thank you.

I have no more the bottle is empty. They gave me the tiniest amount...

I do have one that is from 2018 and it says it ran out of date on 2021... Is that safe? Or should I try and go to a nearby vet? The one I went to today is a half hour car journey away.
 
Julesie said:
He's on here as a recommend piggie vet and he's done tons of surgeries and other stuff. I'm not sure how well he is with teeth though but as far as I'm aware he's capable.

Okay I'll resume with the syringe feeding thank you.

I have no more the bottle is empty. They gave me the tiniest amount...

I do have one that is from 2018 and it says it ran out of date on 2021... Is that safe? Or should I try and go to a nearby vet? The one I went to today is a half hour car journey away.
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There is a difference between being piggy savvy and being piggy dental savvy. It is likely to just take her time to feel better though

No the 2018 one won’t be any good - it has to be used within six months of being opened. You will need a new prescription and fresh bottle
 
Piggies&buns said:
There is a difference between being piggy savvy and being piggy dental savvy. It is likely to just take her time to feel better though

No the 2018 one won’t be any good - it has to be used within six months of being opened. You will need a new prescription and fresh bottle
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Thank you.
I phoned my local vet but they said I can't get more metacam until 24-48 hours which is too long. I have none at all and now I don't know what to do...
 
Julesie said:
Thank you.
I phoned my local vet but they said I can't get more metacam until 24-48 hours which is too long. I have none at all and now I don't know what to do...
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I know it’s a journey but can you try the one you went to today?
 
Sorry to here your little piggie is still having problems eating after her dental. This is very common, they loose confidence, there’ve tried to eat for some time and failed so they basically loose the confidence to eat and eventually just give up. Also her mouth may be sore, she may have ulcers too. In my experience I would get some metacam down her. Ask for dog metacam and talk to your vet about prescribing her a good dose around 0.3 gms twice a day. You need to step in with syringe feeding every 2-3 hours giving about 10 mg at each sitting (give her a last feed before you go to bed and then another around 6.00 am if you can) and also try offering small bits of grated veggies or tiny amounts of grass (if she doesn’t normally eat grass as part of her diet)
If you see no improvement within a 3-4 days then I would get a referral to the Cat and Rabbit Clinic in Northampton, you need to see either Simon or Kim Maddock. They are general vets and not expensive. Your vet may be on the recommended list and very piggie savy but to be honest the go to vets for dental problems in the UK is Simon Maddock or his wife Kim. There are actually very few vets that get enough experience of performing guinea pig dentals to make them proficient and get good results. Simon or Kim will diagnose what’s wrong and do any dental work consciously there and then, it’s worth every mile you need to travel.
I used to travel a round trip of 600 mile from Cornwall for regular dentals for my Ted, I never regretted it, after local vets made such a mess of his teeth. Simon got him eating hay after the first dental Ted was given, amazing results. Guinea pigs teeth are extremely difficult to get right once they’ve gone wrong and a piggie will not eat if things don’t feel right or there are still sharp spurs or uneven surfaces on their teeth. Vets can often cut their incisors very short too, this also doesn’t help your piggie to eat either

Good luck, hang in there
 
Can I suggest that if she still has interest in eating food, to hand feed her. You can put her on your lap and hand feed her whether with grass, some strands of hay, veggies cut up in strips, and pellets. Whenever we have a dental piggy, we hand feed him/her with these food along side the critical care. This encourages them to eat solid food eventually. Also doing it this way lets us know when they can start to eat more solid food.
 
So I have a small update

My vet never got back in contact with me (I don't blame him. They're very forgetful at the reception and I've had it happen before..) Sadly he told me last time I went he doesn't work Wednesday so I'm going to try call and see if he's there anyway tomorrow but if not it seems I'll need to wait until Thursday now.

However the other vet local to me called. They got Yugis information from the vet I went to today (they said after a lot of pushing) and apologized for getting back to me late and they have given me some more cat metacam for Yugi. I have to give her 0.5ml every 12 hours so I've given her some just now at 8 and I'll feed her the next dose at 8am.
 
Bill & Ted said:
Sorry to here your little piggie is still having problems eating after her dental. This is very common, they loose confidence, there’ve tried to eat for some time and failed so they basically loose the confidence to eat and eventually just give up. Also her mouth may be sore, she may have ulcers too. In my experience I would get some metacam down her. Ask for dog metacam and talk to your vet about prescribing her a good dose around 0.3 gms twice a day. You need to step in with syringe feeding every 2-3 hours giving about 10 mg at each sitting (give her a last feed before you go to bed and then another around 6.00 am if you can) and also try offering small bits of grated veggies or tiny amounts of grass (if she doesn’t normally eat grass as part of her diet)
If you see no improvement within a 3-4 days then I would get a referral to the Cat and Rabbit Clinic in Northampton, you need to see either Simon or Kim Maddock. They are general vets and not expensive. Your vet may be on the recommended list and very piggie savy but to be honest the go to vets for dental problems in the UK is Simon Maddock or his wife Kim. There are actually very few vets that get enough experience of performing guinea pig dentals to make them proficient and get good results. Simon or Kim will diagnose what’s wrong and do any dental work consciously there and then, it’s worth every mile you need to travel.
I used to travel a round trip of 600 mile from Cornwall for regular dentals for my Ted, I never regretted it, after local vets made such a mess of his teeth. Simon got him eating hay after the first dental Ted was given, amazing results. Guinea pigs teeth are extremely difficult to get right once they’ve gone wrong and a piggie will not eat if things don’t feel right or there are still sharp spurs or uneven surfaces on their teeth. Vets can often cut their incisors very short too, this also doesn’t help your piggie to eat either

Good luck, hang in there
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Thank you so much.

Sadly I saw this post too late and I've been given some cat metacam but hopefully it will still help her. I had wondered if that's what it was or if maybe she's just hurt her jaw somehow?

I am still syringe feeding her between 1-3 syringes per feed and setting an alarm for 2-3 hours depending on how much she eats. Though she hates me feeding her it, she's content enough and bright eyed, looking around.

I'll try her on some grated food. I did mush bananas, cucumber and pepper yesterday however she didn't eat it. I'll try again today and see if she will at the same time I feed the boys their veg. Hopefully then Joey won't eat her share.

I'll see if I can get my mum to go with me to Northampton if I have to. I really don't want her to struggle though getting there is my biggest worry.

Thanks again :)
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
If you want Simon or Kim Maddock to see your guinea pig, the link below explains the protocol for getting an appointment. Please also note, Simon and Kim are on holiday from 30th April for a week and will be back in work on 9th May.

The Cat and Rabbit Clinic, Northampton - Referrals for guinea pigs with dental issues
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Thank you. Amir isn't at work today because he has Wednesday off and the reception workers aren't very good. However my local vet who I go to otherwise are amazing and also have her information (they got it from Broxbourne yesterday so I could get her metacam) I'll give them a call and ask them to refer Yugi
 
I've called my local vets and asked them to send the information over for Yugi. She's still unable to eat but she did potentially have the tiniest piece of carrot yesterday? It was a little hard to tell. I'll just post the video in a moment.
 

I can't 100% tell if she's eating and she's taking incredibly long between each bite if she is. She only had the few bits in this video before stopping and not wanting anymore.

She still hasn't eaten anything else solid and fighting the syringe. I managed to get 115ml in her yesterday.
 
My vet has sent the info over about Yugi to the cat and rabbit clinic. They said it's a very long waiting list of at least 3 weeks and they hadn't heard of Yugis case before.

I'm just waiting to see if I can get a referral. Really hoping 🤞 I only lost Eevee last month and I'm struggling mentally at the thought of losing Yugi so soon after too.
 
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