Mouth fur is damp on corner of mouth

[Crashley]

Hey everyone!! So Winnie has had the right corner of her mouth dampish for the past couple of days. Its always worst after she drinks water. She is eating and drinking normally. I have been feeling her mouth and cheeks for days. All seems normal. I checked her mouth tonight.. Her teeth are normal and cheeks and skin around mouth looks good. Its only on one side. Could this be from how she is drinking water? She drinks out of a bowl. She does not grind her teeth at all when touching her cheeks or mouth or the wet spot. Any advice on what this could be? Its not colored..meaning its NOT yellow or puss like looking.

[tobyluv]

If rabbits drool or have a wet area around their mouth, it could indicate a dental issue. I assume that you only checked out WInnie’s front teeth, so the issue could be with her back molars, which only a vet would be able to see, usually under anesthesia. It could be the teeth themselves (high points) or there could be a piece of food stuck in her teeth or some kind of sore at the back of her mouth. Or it could be that she is just getting her mouth too wet when she drinks for some reason. The only way to know if she has a dental or mouth issue would be to go in for a vet exam.

[Mikey]

If a rabbit starts to drool, even a little bit, it could be a sign that the bun is starting to overheat or is in a temp thats a little too high for the bun. It could also be a dental issue, as tobyluv pointed out.

[Deleted User]

I agree with Tobyluv. Definitely go see a vet because it could be an issue with her teeth.

[Crashley]

Thanks everyond. Im doing a quick test. I mean quick like quick. Just to see. Currently her mouth is dry. I took her water away only for about 10 mins. NOT LONG. I know they need there water. To see if without the water, will her mouth still get wet

[Crashley]

So far, her mouth is still dry

[LBJ10]

Will she drink from a bottle? You could try that to see if it makes a difference. If her mouth continues to be wet, you’ll want to have a vet take a look in her mouth.

[Crashley]

So, i gave her water in her old glass bottle. Checked no wetness. I put her bowl back down. And watched her tilt her head sideways and drink from the edge of the bowl. While her check was in the water!! im still gonna keep an eye on her. Almost certain its the water bowl though. Thanks everyone

[Mikey]

Hm, seems like she is unsure how to use the water bowl if shes tilting her head sideways to drink from it. Is it too tall for her?

[Crashley]

its really low to the ground. when i used a glass bowl before she would like nibble the side of the bowl and then drink. with this plastic bowl she like licks the water from the edge of the bowl and for her to do that she has to tilt her head. maybe a strange thing she does, im not sure. Im gonna test a different bowl today.

[Tony's Mum]

Tony sticks half his face in the water bowl, and sometimes even puts his paws in. He is basically always damp. If her mouth is dry when she’s not drinking, I wouldn’t worry but maybe keep an eye on her eating just to be safe.

[Q8bunny]

I swear, buns conspire to keep us on our toes. Are you paying attention, mama?

[Crashley]

I am scheduling a vet appt tomorrow for Winnie. Im scared it might be something else, although everything seems normal besides the mouth dampness. Her skin there looks alittle red now from it being so soggy for a couple days( which is already to long). Her behavior and eating habbits are normal right now. She seems to be drinking a lot more water then usual. Im calling the vets first thing in the morning. Hoping to get her in immediately.
Vibes for my sweet ((winnie)))

[Q8bunny]

I hope it’s nothing…
(((Winnie)))

[Crashley]

Winifred’s vet appt is tomorrow (saturday) at 8 in the morning, it was as soon as I could get it scheduled. Its with a different vet. Her original vet said they couldnt get her in till next saturday.

[Crashley]

I’m so worried about my Winnie. I really hope shes not in pain. :,( her birthday is this month she’s 2 years old and has an excellent diet and eats tons of hay. I just dont know what it could be I smelled her mouth last night and thats when I knew it wasnt just water. It smelled kind of gross

[Crashley]

I was thinking maybe she was purposley dipping that side of her face in the water, maybe it felt good? maybe theres a scratch or something under her chin, which she does not like her under her chin touched, so i couldnt really see.

[Crashley]

Its just strange as to what it could be, since she is eating, and she eats alot. her pellets, her salad and hay all day. seems any bunny with dental problems, stops eating. But she is still eating

[Q8bunny]

Bunny breath doesn’t usually smell, so it makes me wonder if it’s a dental issue that has caused an abscess
It’s good that you got her an appointment soon… please give her so e nose rubs for me…

[Mikey]

Always good to book appointments if you are worried about something and cant find an answer to it. I hope the vet appointment goes well and the vet figures out whats happening. (((((VIBES))))) Poor little bun

[Crashley]

I do too, im so worried about her. She’s such a sweet girl, I will give her nose rubs from you guys. I’ll post on here tomrrow if the vet can figure it out. I sure hope its nothing to serious

[puffs-of-fluff]

She is drinking out of a bowl, so hopefully she is just dipping the fur in.

However, Please please take her to a rabbit savvy vet to check her teeth no matter what. Ask them if the amount of saliva in her mouth looks normal. My baby Ethel is extremely ill at the moment, and this started with me noticing that she was eating a bit slower than usual, then eventually noticing damp fur on one side of her mouth. The vet checked her teeth and said they looked fine, aside from there was a bit too much saliva in there. So she did an x-ray and it showed some mild evidence of dental disease (which she thought was manageable with additional hay in her diet), but within 2 weeks has erupted into an abscess with inoperable osteomyelitis.

Not trying to scare you, but don’t wait. It’s not worth it. Dental issues can do a lot of damage very quickly. For the price of a check up, it’s worth it. But if her teeth look fine, increased saliva should alert you that there may be something wrong with her back teeth.

Really hope she is just being messy and dipping xxx

[Crashley]

Oh poor Ethel, I hope sure hope shes okay and gets better. Winnie’s appt is tomorrow at 8:50 in the morning, it was the soonest I could get her in to a rabbit savy vet. I am so terrified that the vet will make a small mistake in diagnosing her and some how it gets worse, as it did with Ethels case. Winnie has not slowed down on eatng, she still gets super excited for food, doing her usual tornado around my feet and is eating her normal amounts of pellets, salad and hay. The only thing that has been unusual is the side of her mouth being wet and her drinking tons of water.
Im so scared for my girl :,(

[puffs-of-fluff]

Don’t be scared, you are doing the responsible thing and I’m sure it will all be fine. I’m probably hypervigilant right now because of what has happened. The vet can see the incisors really clearly, but will have difficulty seeing the molars without GA. That’s why I suggested to ask about saliva levels, as it seems to be a good clue. Sometimes vets miss things because bunnies are prey animals and the hide weakness so well, but as long as you are switched on to her ways, then you will never go wrong.

Not sure if she is on pellets at all, but if you are worried about her teeth, try to reduce them to increase hay consumption for a while, That will file them right down.

[Crashley]

Yeah she is, she is an adult bun so she only gets a 1/4th cup a day. Its not very much. The rest of the day she eats hay, but if i have to I will cut down on pellets.

[puffs-of-fluff]

Hope it all goes well at the vet. fingers crossed for you both x

[Crashley]

Im at the vets now and they said her teeth look fine. He looked inside with an otoscope or whatever its called. Said her mouth looks fine. He shaved her face and found that its a rather large area of her skin. I have a picture is ut my phone wont upload it. He said she has some form(i forget ) of dermatitis. Maybe she ate something she shouldnt have.(which idk what it could be. Everything is bunny proof). He gave me topical treatments to start with. Please let me know if these are okay. One is a pad i clean her face with twice a day its called duoxo chlorhexidine 3%. And then the other is called zosil and its like a sauve i apply after cleaning it.

[puffs-of-fluff]

Great news that it’s not an abscess. That must be a relief! Should be cleared up in no time. I’m sure the treatments will work fine. Really pleased for you.

It may have been that she was dipping her face to get some relief from the itching!

[Crashley]

Thanks puffs of fluff, i sure hope so. Im really hoping its not contagious. I have a bonded pair. But im seperating winnie from pepito. Im hoping its not ring worm:/ we will see in a week if it spreads or not. Hopefully these topical treatments will clear it up.

[sarahthegemini]

Well I’m really pleased it’s not an abscess! It’s great that you’re so vigilant and took him to the vet so quickly Fingers crossed it clears up with the topical creams.

[jerseygirl]

If it’s moist dermatitis, I don’t think you need separate the rabbits. It’s not contagious. If she did have anything contagious, her bond mate would have been.exposed by now anyway.

Moist dermatitis is the result of the skin and fur being wet all the time. And with bacterial skin infections, it’s often just the normal bacteria that lives on the skin thriving and growing in number because conditions are ideal for it. ie moist & warm environment. If there was a kind of sweet, sickly smell, it may be yeast.

What puffs-of-fluffs said about saliva is a really good point! It is a good clue for the vet.
Her increased drinking could point to inflammation in the mouth also. Rabbits may self sooth by drinking water.

To really rule out dental issues, they need to do a more thorough exam when the rabbit is sedated. I think they just do light sedation with gas. That way all molars can be checked for spurs but also, the saliva glands and rest of oral tissue can be checked out too.

Something else you can check is if her facial muscles are working properly. Lay on the floor and check her face looks normal. Observe her blinking. I think you can touch that whisker that is above eye lid to get a blink reflex. Stay down there, feed her some greens and watch for anything unusual.

[Q8bunny]

Relieved that it seems to be minor. Hoping it clears up soon. (((Winnie)))

[Crashley]

Here is a pic of Winnies face

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