Molar roots

[RalphiesMomma]

Hi, I posted a couple weeks ago about Ralphie and his wet chin and now he has been to the vet, they found an abcess under his chin and also took x rays of his teeth and turns out his molar Spurs were worse than we could see while he was awake. The root of the molars are reaching the jaw and trying to break through, which the vet said could break his jawbone. ? Also the upper roots of the molars were reaching his eye duct and causing him eye discharge, to add on top of that they aren’t straight at all. He was given metacam for pain and an antibiotic for the abcess after she trimmed the molars. Also when he got his insciors removed they didn’t get the root of two teeth and now they’re growing back crooked. She told me to keep a watchful eye on him for the next week to see if he gets better or if it gets worse. And if it gets worse that’s when I need to make the decision on if I need to put him down so he isn’t suffering anymore. I’m not sure how to handle this it’s very upsetting. Anybody have advice to keep him thriving? I want my baby to feel better.

[Muchelle]

Hi, except for the chin abscess and incisors problems, my bun has the same molar problems. We went through 2 surgeries to trim his spurs and even had to remove one molar that would grow back too fast and too crooked. He also has roots growing too long.

Now he’s 2 1/2 and the roots seem to have stopped growing (he does have permanent discharge on one eye and needs constant cleaning + vet cleaning the duct every now and then). Roots remained the same ever since somewhere in between the two surgeries, so since he was almost 2 years, so it can be the roots of your bun will stop at a certain point too I think. Now he’s been surgery free for almost one year, mostly thanks to a diet made of hay, a lot of hard hay pellets and very little vegetables.

Right now it’s normal that your bun is in royal pain because of the abscess, the extractions and the trimming. Keep watching him, especially that his guts don’t build up gas, and if necessary force feed him + give subq liquids. Maybe do trim the incisors instead of going for another extraction right away, so that he doesn’t get even more stressed. When he’s better and will accept again solid foods, try to adjust his diet to harder foods and give him some time. If I’ve learned something from my experience is that buns are very resilient and will do their best to live. It’s gonna be hard for the both of you, but it’s worth giving it a shot.

Do keep us updated, I wish you and Ralph the best of luck <3

[RalphiesMomma]

Thank you so much, I’ve been giving him applesauce mixed with his anti biotic like the dr instructed me and he’s been eating it but has been laying down all day. He hasn’t touched his pellets though he is cleaning himself. Hearing your story actually gives me a lot of hope thank you so much

[Muchelle]

It’s normal that he will refuse “hard” food for a while during his recovery. Think if you had to eat steak right after you had a molar extracted!
If he isn’t eating anything except apple sauce, do buy Critical Care (or similar), that is powdered hay to mix with water and it forms a liquidy paste-like substance that the bun can either eat on his own or that you can force feed. Also give the bun a bowl from which to drink water, so it’s more comfortable for him to lap it up and monitor that he drinks everyday. 

He will spend a lot of time balled up in a corner, remember that he’s in discomfort. Keep him comfortable and check on him every now and then, offering softer  food he might like (parsley, basil, salad…). He might nibble it from your hand. This was my Kuro’s set up after first surgery (water bowl, CC paste bowl, cut up veggies and hay):

It can be your bun won’t like to be “bothered” by you (sure mine didn’t want me around much), so leave him some space to sleep and relax in between medication/checkup times. Again, be strong!!

[Sr. Melangell]

Ralphie, get well soon, you said they didn’t get the roots of two teeth, can’t they take him in an operating room and have the roots removed? There must be something they can do rather than say see how he gets on, if he doesn’t you have a very tough decision, I know he’s going to be poorly and it won’t go over night, I get abscesses in my mouth, most of my teeth are broken, I have bone disease in my lower jaw and waiting for my operation to have all my teeth out and part of my jaw bone cut down, but there must be something they can do for this bun boy.

[Muchelle]

My vet adviced not to operate right away after an extraction failure because it is HUGE stress on the bun and on the jawbone, so that’s probably why Ralphie’s vet told them to wait and see

[Vienna Blue in France]

Muchelle has some good advice there and sends hope…. So keep going and keep us updated. Stressful times for us, our unwell buns.

(((( Ralphie )))))

[LBJ10]

Oh sweet Ralphie. I’m sorry to hear this. I know it’s hard, but I would wait and see as well. Some bunnies can live with tooth root problems for many years.

[Odette]

I am so sorry, Shelby. You and Ralphie did extraordinarily well with the critical care when he became distressed. I think if anyone can do this, you can. I don’t know anything about tooth problems, but I wish you and Ralphie much more time together.

[LittlePuffyTail]

Very sorry to hear this.. Wish I had some advice. (((((Healing Vibes)))))

[RalphiesMomma]

Thank you all for the support. Update on day 1 after his trimming and x rays: he randomly stared eating hay, he’s eating his anti biotic through apple sauce and licks the pain meds off a spoon happily. He seems a little bit happier today. He is in the corner like Muchelle said, but he seems to be doing better. The vet called me today to check on him and make sure everything was going well. She wanted to make sure he was pooping, I found 4 poops in his cage (freshly cleaned yesterday) and 2 on my floor when I got home. Hopefully that’s enough for a day(he normally poops ATON) and when I got home apple sauce with his antibiotic in it had barley been touched. Still hasn’t touched his pellets, I decided to make them into some sort of mush. They must be too hard for him. I wish I could post his x Ray photos on here through my phone. I would show y’all what he’s dealing with to get a better idea.

[RalphiesMomma]

The vet also has told me he might have gas, and to give baby gas drops to him and rub his belly. Since he only had 4
Poops is it possible there’s gas? She wanted me to bring him in again if he wasn’t pooping but he’s had some poops. I’m just not sure. I’ll call them tomorrow and see but does anyone know?

[Bam]

There could still be gas, and you can give gas drops as a precaution anyway, it’s not absorbed by the body but stays in the GI canal and helps break up gas bubbles.

4 poops is too little, so it’s best to contact your vet about that. There are stimulating meds a bunny can get to help the intestines move and push their contents forward.

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