Lump and Dental Issue (Need Help)

[Ali A]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to the forums, I have a mini lop who is almost 4 years old and his name is Hershey.

Been having some concerns with my bun and need some help. His teeth recently for about a year have grown long and every month he would go to our local vet in Massachusetts for tooth trimming. Our vet recommend we get his teeth removed the front ones that are always growing, so we setup an appointment with MSPCA Angel Hospital in Boston (our vet told us to bring him there).

We scheduled an appointment vet checked him out said we should do the tooth removal the cost was about 3000$ this was back in December, so I told them I would need to save the money, so I finally got the money saved up, $3500 saved more then needed in case, and I went to call the VET to schedule told me to bring him in for a re-check then we can schedule the appointment so I scheduled the appointment on FEB 10 and the appointment was for FEB 10 (There are busy). ON FEB 12 I noticed a lump under his chin and it was very squishy, and I figured I’d wait til the appointment on FEB 17, but the next day the lump got bigger so I called and asked to be seen ASAP so they scheduled me for 2 days later for an appointment on FEB 15, so I brought him in, they did a check up. Doctor mentioned the following;

1.) Possible Respiratory Infection – VET Recommended a swab and culture to be find out and see what bacteria so they can properly prescribe the right antibiotic. Swab result came in with nothing – still waiting on the culture.

2.) Tooth Incissors Malocclusion – Recommended to do a CT to get a better look at what teeth need to be trimmed and what could be causing the lump. 

3.) Stated the lump might be abscess due to tooth infection 

Cost of first visit on FEB 15 – Exam ($100) – Culture for Respiratory ($150) – Cytology 1 Site (100) and take home meds total of 378$
I then scheduled the CT scan which was today FEB 21, came back and the vet told me that there still waiting on the respiratory culture, but the lab test of the swab didn’t detect anything and that he showed signs of improvement when he went in for scan. She then stated that the swelling of the soft tissue under his chin is due to one molar and one incisors which will obviously be removed with tooth extraction. She also stated that the lump might be a mass that might be cancerous but she and radiologist did not think it was but it might be, so they wanted to get a sample and test it so I gave the go ahead, results should be in by Tuesday. Vet also stated he has a mild ear infection and sent him home with Baytril Otic Drops give every 12 hours. Also gave him metoclopramide due to him not pooping but he pooped fine yesterday, but vet said they didnt see him poop all day, they had him from 8a to 6p. I paid $588 for todays visit which included the CT scan. Im at a total of almost $1000. I am curious to see what you guys think if this lump under his skin could be cancerous or not? I read a lot online about it being abscess. I feel like the hospital is just trying to dish money out of me on a bunch of tests. Can this abscess lump really be cancerous? Or is it just abscess due to his jacked up teeth.

What do you guys think is going on, I now have to wait until Tuesday to figure out the results of the lump culture. I feel bad making him wait this long his teeth are too long and he can barely eat, I have to finely chop all his food, and I can tell he is in pain. I am tired of waiting its already been over 1 week with this lump and his teeth aren’t even extracted yet. 

Any insight would be great, thanks in advance. 

[Luna]

Hi! I’m not experienced with dental issues, but based on other posts I’ve read before, it seems that a trimming every month is quite frequent. Maybe a different vet who is really good at tooth trimmings might be able to trim more in 1 visit so that he wouldn’t have to go as often? Then, he wouldn’t have to get his teeth removed? The lump as a possible abscess sounds more likely than cancer, considering the vet’s opinion on possible malocclusion and the respiratory infection. I agree on the Baytril, but I don’t think a culture was necessarily required (though the possibility of upcoming surgery might have necessitated the culture).

Is there a different vet you can go to for a tooth trim in the meantime? It might also be good to get a second opinion regarding whether the tooth removal is necessary.

Sending healing vibes to Hershey ((((Hershey))))

[Ali A]

Hi Luna,

Thanks for the reply, the vet also said its more likely not cancer, and he has seen 3 different doctors each have said he needs his teeth removed, his grow very quickly and the grow back extremely fast. The vet did trim 2 of his teeth when they sedated him for the CT yesterday so he was able to eat on his own today. I am just worried about this lump. The lump has like kind of moved to his cheek now and under his chin isn’t lumpy anymore its back to normal, now the lump is like I said in his cheek area.

[Bam]

If it’s moving it’s not likely to be cancerous. Cancerous lumps tend to be growing from underlying tissues and stay very put where they are, When/if they metastatize they “throw out” cancerous cells into the bloodstream or the lymphatic, the whole tumor doesn’t migrate to a new site.

Rabbits are prone to abscesses. Some can be successfully treated with antibiotics, some need cleaning out (rabbit pus is very thick and wont drain through a tube) and the wound sawn open (surgical procedure called marsupialization) so the insides of the abscess is exposed to air and the wound heals from the inside and out.

A bun can live a very good life without its incisors. They learn to pull the food into their mouths with their tongue. The do most of their actual chewing with their molars anyway.

[Author]

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