overgrown teeth dilemma

[Susie]

Dear All,

First of all, please excuse my English.

My rabbit is 2,5 years old. 2 months ago he stopped eating so I immediately took him to the vet and the outcome was: hooks. The vet had all of the teeth shortened and that helped but yesterday the rabbit stopped eating again. Tomorrow he is supposed to have the teeth shortened again.

The vet said that there is nothing we can do about it, because it’s not caused by the diet. Also teeth removal is not an option as it’s not just one tooth but all of them.

My dilemma is: should I put him to sleep? I would really hate to do that (especially since he seems to be very happy, even when obviously in pain) but I also hate to see him so stressed before and after the surgery. It’s also very difficult to organise 2 people that can stay home for at least 2 days to force feed him (which is really very stressful for him and for us, because he really hates it). And financially we are also simply not able to spend so much money every 2 months.

Does any of you know what can be done to help my rabbit? 

Thank you all very much in advance!

[Wick & Fable]

Since quality of life is still quite good, I don’t think euthanizing him is the right choice. Re-homing him to someone who has the means to financially keep up with the teeth maintenance would be better. You can be involved with finding a good home, making sure they know everything about your rabbit, etc..

Wick goes to the vet every 5 weeks to have his molar spurs trimmed (I assume those are the “hooks” you talk about, because they look like hooks). I understand it can be financially stressful, and for a rabbit that doesn’t bounce back, it can be stressful for them too, but at this point, I don’t think euthanizing him is the best choice because if it’s simply re-occurring spurs, this is something a lot of rabbits actually deal with.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Deleted User]

There are plenty of rabbits that live happy lives with dental issues, as Wick has shown. Euthanizing a rabbit over the need for a routine procedure is unacceptable, in my opinion.

As Wick suggested, are you able to find him a home with someone who can afford the treatment? I think it would be utterly cruel to euthanize a happy, otherwise healthy rabbit when there are other options available. Please don’t do it.

[sarahthegemini]

Don’t euthanize him just because it’s stressful and you can’t afford it. Rehome him…

It’s completely unacceptable to put him to sleep when he is a happy rabbit that simply needs regular dentals. If you don’t have the finances or simply don’t want to deal with it, fine. But don’t condemn him to death :-/

[Susie]

Thank you all for your responses. That’s basically why I wrote: I really do not want to put him to sleep. And I would actually love to keep him, as he is so happy with us (and so are we with him). It’s “just” that financially and logistically (staying home to force feed him after the surgery for a few days, etc) it’s not possible.
I was kind of hoping that there might be some more permanent solutions to this problem but I guess that we will have to find him a great, loving family that can afford the treatments and if not possible, put him in the shelter.

[Wick & Fable]

Unfortunately when dental issues are not diet-related (Wick’s are genetic, so he grew having a crooked jaw and underbite), it means that only veterinary intervention will work to help keep those spurs in check. I am thankful that Wick recovers very quickly, but I understand that that not being the case makes it much more difficult.

To your knowledge, is the vet who’s doing the procedure very experienced with it? It’s my understanding that how well a veterinarian does the procedure can affect recovery time. If they accidentally braise the tongue, cheek, portion of the gums, etc., this can leave the rabbit in pain and discomfort for a bit after the short procedure. I’m not questioning your vet or blaming them, but just want to offer different perspectives. Wick typically has 3 spurs addressed mainly and his bottom incisors trimmed. This takes about 15 minutes, including anethesia.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Susie]

I don’t really know the vet that well, as we have only seen her 3 times so far but she seems to know what she is talking about. For example, she said that if she is doing the surgery, she tends to shorten the teeth as much as possible, while the other vets at the clinic tend to leave the teeth longer. So I guess she knows what she is doing. I’m quite sure that last time he was not really in pain, he is just very stubborn so he makes the force feeding difficult for us and himself. Perhaps it will go better this time, we’ll see.

[Author]

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