The vet wants to pull 2 teeth...

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 17sd replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 16 years, 3 months ago by Sarita.

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- 12/05/2009 at 5:33 PM
  Jenalynn
  Participant
  75 posts
  So for those who don’t know.. I have a 13 month old boy who has been going for dentals every 5-6 weeks since he was 6 months old because all of his teeth were stair-stepped- and growing everywhere …in wrong directions….la la la malocclusions…. well at the dental check up today- she said that really there are 2 teeth ..his eye teeth – that are growing in wayy faster than the others- even though all of his teeth are messed up – really those 2 are the main problem they have to worry about getting grinded down - so she suggested we will pull the two teeth one at each dental check up….. she said if they were pulled I would probably be able to go almost 3-5 months without bringing him in to grind down the other ones- or posssibly even longer- she thinks this was save me a TON of money and it would be better for him since he has to be put under every 5-6 weeks….
  
  Has anyone had this done? She said that she will put him on tummy med 2 days before she pulls the teeth and then keep him on them for awhile alone with pain meds – in hopes that he doesnt have the GI stasis issue occur again… it seems like a good plan to me but just wanted to get some opinions from the bunny lovers.
  
  Thanks!
- 12/05/2009 at 6:35 PM
  Barbie
  Participant
  1581 posts
  I don’t have any personal experience with bunnies with malocclusions, but I have heard that buns with missing/extracted teeth can do just fine. You might need to adjust his food and hay if he has trouble eating after the teeth are pulled. Different cuttings of hay can be “softer” or “harder,” depending on when the hay was cut.
  
  I couldn’t tell from your post… does your vet want to pull the teeth while the bun is awake?! That sounds like a bad idea. I’m sure having a tooth ripped out of your head is incredibly painful and bunnies are so easily stressed… I’ve never heard of a vet pulling teeth on a rabbit, or any animal, while it wasn’t under general anesthesia… I used to shadow a vet when I was in high school and she did several teeth extractions (one on a rabbit!) and they were always anesthetized first. Did she say why she was going to pull them at different visits? Rabbits are sensitive to anesthesia so if she was going to anesthetize, I don’t see why she’d only pull one and then do the whole procedure over again for the other tooth. Unless she thinks it would take too long to pull both teeth and still keep your bun safe? Rabbit teeth are rooted VERY deeply.
  
  (((((Vibes for your bunny!))))
- 12/05/2009 at 6:48 PM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  She does have to make sure to get all of the root out b/c they will grow back if any is leftover… Does she think these teeth are the “culprits” that are making the others not wear properly? I’m also unsure why she wouldn’t extract them both while he is under anesthesia anyways…
- 12/05/2009 at 7:09 PM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  She may not want to keep him under anesthesia too long to pull both teeth. Most vets try not to keep them under more than 20 minutes, 40 minutes at the very most.
  
  I have a rabbit who has slight maloclussion but his teeth aren’t bad enough to be pulled.
  
  She sounds pretty competent but if you feel unsure you could seek a second opinion.
- 12/05/2009 at 9:08 PM
  Jenalynn
  Participant
  75 posts
  I feel safe with these vets. He will DEFINITELY NOT be awake during this lol _ i would never let that happen. She said she wants to do one at a time so this way he will have one side on this mouth he can chew on while the other is healing since he is prone to having belly issues- she wants to make sure he will keep eating. Also one at a time will be less painful- and less money… She did say she has to dig pretty deep to break up all the root and get it out of there. He has to be sedated when he gets teeth grinded every 5 weeks – so while he is under during his routine dental she will go ahead and pull one out. and then when i go back in another 6 weeks – if all went well then she will pull the other.
  She said that she thinks if she pulls these 2 major issue problemed teeth – that she thinks it will help the others – and although I still might have to get dentals done – it woul dbe every 4-5 months- rather than ever 5 weeks like we are doing now.
  Buzz is very stressed going to the vet every 5 weeks- so I hope it all works out.
- 12/05/2009 at 9:15 PM
  BinkyBunny
  Moderator
  8776 posts
  Rucy had one of her incisors and several molars pulled, and she did just fine. I have to ditto Beka about making sure to get all of the root. That actually caused more problems later on down the line – abscesses, infections and more teeth to be pulled.
  
  When I volunteered for years at local rabbit rescue, I have seen bunnies who had to have all of their front incisors pulled and do well.
  
  I am not sure where the “eye” teeth are in a bunny. ?? I’m assuming those are actually the incisors? I just haven’t heard that term used for a bunny.
- 12/05/2009 at 9:25 PM
  Jenalynn
  Participant
  75 posts
  Its good to hear that all these bunnies do well. I will make sure to keep asking about the removal of the root when I talk to her. SHe is supposed to be sending me an estimate in the mail for the procedure. too bad the insurance wont cover this – i am sure the teeth extraction will be under “pre-existing condition”. Its not his incisors- those are the only 2 teeth that don’t have issues- hmm I am not sure what she meant- she pointed to the front area of the mouth but also towards the side…
- 12/05/2009 at 9:44 PM
  BinkyBunny
  Moderator
  8776 posts
  hmmm. Well, as far as i know eye teeth are the sharp canine type, but rabbits don’t have that….as far as what I have always known. Maybe some of our vet techs here can help answer this question.
- 12/06/2009 at 4:15 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  Rabbits have peg incisors that are on the upper arch, slightly behind the incisors. I wonder if that’s what she’s referring to? In addition to that they have a ton of premolars and molars, but those are the “cheek teeth” and much further back.
- 12/06/2009 at 4:28 AM
  RabbitPam
  Moderator
  11002 posts
  Your description of what she’s told you is very clear, and it sounds to me like she addressed the concerns we’ve brought up already. I had the impression she sedates him for grinding, so had assumed she’d be sedating him for the pulling, but it ultimately means less occasion to have to sedate him over the long term, with less visits to grind the teeth after the pulls help. And she mentioned the roots to you as well.
  So it sounds like you have a vet who knows their stuff and is doing something that will help. When is it scheduled for?
- 12/06/2009 at 4:31 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  I agree Pam. Reading her response, it makes sense that the vet is going to do this and how she is planning it.
  
  Jennalyn, has your vet performed this procedure often in the past? If you haven’t already, I would recommend you ask her the success rate and how often it’s happened where the roots have grown back or there have been other complications. It does require a delicate touch to work on teeth that little…
  
  (to work on teeth at all… lol.)
- 12/06/2009 at 11:13 AM
  Jenalynn
  Participant
  75 posts
  Umm I have to make an appointment for 5-6 weeks from now – and that will be when it is scheduled. Sometime arounf Jan 9th-16. I am waiting for her to send the estimate so I can make sure I have enough in the bank for the bill. Being a broke college student – Plus around christmas time doesn’t help. I will work extra because I want him to get it done the next visit -so he can be on his way to less vet visits/stress.
  I will also ask the vet about the success rate of removing the root. Any other questions I need to ask?
  The place is called Midwest Bird & exotics in elm wood Park / Chicago. They are very well known – and so far have been very good.
- 12/08/2009 at 5:47 AM
  PlanetRabbit
  Participant
  1 posts
  If it helps at all there was a recent article on the Rabbit Advocate about malocclusion and the option of extractions.
  
  http://therabbitadvocate.blogspot.com/2009/11/health-special-malocclusion-in-rabbits.html
- 12/09/2009 at 6:20 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  What a sweet story! Thanks for sharing that!
- 12/09/2009 at 9:21 PM
  Kokaneeandkahlua
  Participant
  12067 posts
  Thanks for sharing planetrabbit!!
  
  Jennalyn-I have no suggestions for what to ask your vet-but I wanted to say kudos’ for going to the trouble to spend the extra cash-December is hard and on students harder-very cool you are doing what needs to be done for your bunny Keep us posted!!
- 12/14/2009 at 10:16 AM
  Jenalynn
  Participant
  75 posts
  Omg that story is so awesome! How could anyone let them get so bad…. =( I’ll admit before I got my first bunny (have 2 now) I never knew bunnies required so much attention – and I never knew how sensitive their bellies can be. Buzz taught me ALOT with his malocclusions- and now I am getting more and more knowledgeable and make sure that if people are considering rabbits for themselves or their children- they KNOW EVERYTHING about rabbit care so they don’t end up in the shelter. After spending over $1200 on Buzz Light year in ONE year.. I would sometimes feel like “what did I get myself into!”….but then I look at his adorable face- and remind myself that he has every right to a good life- so as long as I can keep trying to save money to support his bills – my goal is to give him a good long life.
- 12/14/2009 at 3:41 PM
  KatnipCrzy
  Participant
  2981 posts
  the vet sounds competent- just make sure that the vet has dental x-ray equipment to check the extraction site to make sure the excision is complete (not ALL vets have dental x-ray equipment).
- 12/15/2009 at 5:40 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  That’s true about the x-ray machines – my vet’s x-ray is not nearly as precise as the dental vet’s which is why Pepe went to a dental vet for some work.
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