Food right after teeth surgery? Other post-surgery questions

[Karla]

Jack is having his incissors pulled out as we speak (send good vibes!) – what should I feed him the next few days which is soft and gentle to the wounds?

He is not a hay eater.

[lashkay]

A tiny slice of banana will show him you’re on his side for what he’s gone through. A little acidophilus in yogurt would be okay but I’m not sure what’s the limit to feed him on this. Anyone? Red leaf lettuce and green leaf lettuce is rather soft and can be chewed easily. You might want to withhold the crisp stems that take some biting but most of the leaf I think should be alright. Then there’s always baby food green beans and carrots, baby food peas and carrots, baby food green beans, nice and soft mush and he’ll proably scarf them right down. Feel better, Jack!

[Karla]

Thanks!

Banana! Why didn’t I think of this…he is going to love me for it You would feed yoghurt? Not sure that is a good thing though? But chopped lettuce is a good idea, and so are the beans. I always feed the same 5-6 veggies so I have sort of gone blind to any other greens.

Thanks for your input. Got to go shopping now for greens

[lashkay]

But remember, no iceberg lettuce. The other kinds are fine. Rabbits love baby food, strained peas & carrots, green beans and the like. And it’s already mush, so he won’t need to use his incisors. I know some rabbit vets recommend acidophlilus yoghurt, I’m just not sure how much to give them, but 1 or 2 tsp of it shouldn’t hurt. Just a sliver of banana, not 1/3 of the fruit, it’s high in sugar! Happy noshing, Jack, feel better soon!

[jerseygirl]

(((Vibes for Jack)))

I just skim read a HRS article. It’s reported that many buns eat better after incisors removed so he may even take up eating hay one day!
 

AFTER THE OPERATION

The day of the surgery the rabbit is usually quiet and may not eat anything. However, we have had some individuals who went home and ate five hours post-surgically. The following morning they usually start drinking water and picking at their pellets (pellets are extremely easy for them to to pick up with their lips). We recommend tearing up their greens into two-inch sections to make them easier to pick up. Don’t make the pieces too small as it can be quite difficult for them to grab with their lips. Initially, we also recommend breaking up the hay into three- or four- inch sections until they “get the hang of it.” Try to avoid force feedings for at least 48 hours, if the animal was initially in good condition. This can be uncomfortable and can prolong the time before the bunny eats on her own.

By two to three days post surgery, most rabbits are eating 75 to 100% of their presurgery amounts of food. There are occasionally rabbits who will change change dramatically in their eating habits after surgery, such as not eating certain foods or losing interest in hay, but 90% of our patients go back to the presurgery diet.

source:http://www.rabbit.org/journal/2-6/tusks.html  

He might be able to mange normal foods as he’ll by-pass the incisor area and get onto chewing with the molars.If he’s a bit tender – maybe baby foods, canned pumpkin and some pellet mush?

[Sarita]

I imagine that you will need to syringe feed him a pellet slurry.

Also what I do for my rabbits that get tooth trims (and pulling an incisor is major) is to do pain meds for the next few days and reglan for gut motility just to be safe.

You will have to cut his food up for him into small bits forever too.

[Karla]

Would be great if he would begin eating hay! Thanks for the info, JerseyGirl

Sarita: I’ve been cutting his food into small bits all the time, since he has been missing his lower incisors from the day I got him, so the upper incisors have been merely for apperance and not for use. But now they have finally been pulled out (we just had to wait and see if the lower incisors would begin to grow back out).

I only got pain meds for today and tomorrow. The vet said he would be fine by tomorrow…but I should give him a call, if I suspected otherwise. But I am ready with some mashed banana and some wet pellets once he wakes up. He is fast asleep right now.

[Sarita]

Poor little dude! Healing vibes to Jack. I hope he starts on the hay as well.

[Monkeybun]

((((healing vibes for Jack!))))) That does not sound fun at all! Mushy food is good, banana, pumpkin, wet pellets, Moose thinks having his greens all blended together would be great, but Moose would eat anything (typical teenage boy)

[BinkyBunny]

Sending healing vibes! I also wanted to ditto jersey that yes, one day he may eat hay! I know when I volunteered at SaveABunny, there were a few bunnies over the years that didn’t have incisors and they had no problem pulling in the strands of hay with their lips to their back molars.

I bet you Jack will be just fine after he’s healed. Rucy had one incisor and almost all of her molars on one side pulled over the years, and she always recovered fairly quickly. By a full week she was pretty much back to normal. Though I had to keep an eye on her of course. From what I remember I do remember having to help with syringe feeding the first few days just because she was so sore right after surgery.

Also, at the rescue, some bunnies would actually slurp up the pellet slurry mix out of bowl. You could try that.

keep us updated

[Karla]

BinkyBunny, did you experience problems with the eyes after Rucy had her teeth pulled out? I know there is a connection between eye infections and teeth problems, and of course since Jack’s eye infection appeared while being at the vet, I wonder if it is because of some nerves, the vet might have accidently pulled during the surgery…

I have been bathing his eye with chamomille tea and it is looking better.

I hope he will get to eat regular hay one day! It would be great. I have noticed though that he is perfectly fine eating special meadow hay mixes, so I know he can

[Karla]

I have another question as well – Karl keep wanting to lick Jack’s eye. I guess he is cleaning it. I assume it is a natural rabbit way of taking care of an infection, but I am not sure how clean such a bunny tongue is, so should I let him?

[Sarita]

Absolutely let him clean the eye – it won’t clear the infection of course but it will keep it from getting red and irritated. It will also help Jack feel better.

I would mention the eye problem to the vet too. Better to nip it in the bud right away if the vet thinks there is an infection.

My first rabbit Bunbun had chronic runny eye that we could never ever clear up and his poor eye area was always wet and infected and red because he didn’t have another bunny to help keep it clean. We tried everything but the poor thing just had bad genetics and nothing helped.

[Karla]

Thanks, Sarita! I’ll let Karl work as a nurse these days.

I am not too fond of the vet, in all honesty, and he doesn’t seem to have an interest in rabbits although he is said to be specialised in rabbits and an expert in dental problems, so I haven’t called him. I meant to it this morning, but then I thought the eye looked better today…

[Sarita]

It could be looking better because Karl is playing nurse. I think even though you may not be fond of the vet it would be better to see what the vet thinks since he is the expert and he would probably know best about possible infections or leaky eyes after dental surgery.

[Karla]

You’re absolutely right. I just called, but was told to phone back tomorrow morning at 8 am when the vet has phone consultation. The nurse couldn’t see that there could be any connection between an eye infection and having teeth pulled out, but then again these were the same people who tried to convince me to have him fast before the operation.

[MarkBun]

In case no one else mentioned it, the reason for Yogurt is that it is to help replenish their bacterial states inside of their digestive tracks. Personally, unless the rabbit is taking meds that are antibiotics or otherwise depleting their natural bacteria, I wouldn’t bother with the yogurt. The balance in their bodies is a delicate one. Of course, my suggestions should ALWAYS be overruled if your vet tells you otherwise.

[Kokaneeandkahlua]

Ditto all And many {{{ Healing Vibes}}}

I read an article I cannot for the life of me find on HRS-and it was about rabbits who had their incisors pulled. One perk is they can’t chew wires-but a consideration is cutting the hay up small (they can still eat it with their back teeth-but can’t cut it with the front) they said they chopped veggies and hay small and didn’t need to cord protect but other then that they were totally normal.

Anyways-sounds like your doing great and know better then the vet So keep us posted

[Author]

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