Where People & Piggies Thrive

Newbie or Guinea Guru? Popcorn in!

Register for free to enjoy the full benefits.
Find out more about the NEW, drastically improved site and forum!

Register
  • ONE THREAD per pig please!
    We really want your pig's history all in one place to help you. Please don't start a new thread for a new issue. Just reply to your old one. We can edit the title for you if needed.

Teeth Three Broken Teeth!

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312
Boy there is always something going on with my boys, I swear! I noticed today my boar Sparky had THREE broken teeth! I checked his weight and is about the same as it is each week, I haven't noticed much difficulty eating, and his appetite is fine. He is around two years old, according to best approximation of the rescue I got him from. He chews on the grids of his cage a lot, has stripped it down in a few places. He seems to do this to get my attention in lieu of wheeking. He also drinks out of his water bottle unlike any other pig I've seen by putting it quite far back in his mouth and really chomping at it. So, my guess would be that is how they broke.

Not sure how much of a cause for alarm this is, and I don't know if there is anything I can even do for him?

Sorry for the poor quality he absolutely hates when I check his teeth! For more perspective his top left tooth is broken to near half the size of the right.

photo (8).JPG
 

HannibalLecter

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Oct 17, 2010
Posts
1,798
Joined
Oct 17, 2010
Messages
1,798
Oh wow.
If he can eat normally (both hay & veggies), there's nothing else to do other than wait for his teeth to grow back. Usually not an issue with healthy pigs.
If he has issues eating you need to supplement with Critical Care or pellet mash, either on a plate or by syringe. Some extra vit C should be added as well.
And make the coroplast sides higher so he can't chew the grids, or cover them with something. The water bottle issue is harder to solve though.

https://www.guinealynx.info/teeth_broken.html

One of my girls broke one of her molars from biting the bottle spout while drinking, but it sorted itself out.
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
Yikes! This is exactly what I was worried about when I posted yesterday about Cocos chewing issues! He does exactly the same thing with his water bottle. . . Just stands these and does it over and over and over. I can hear it across the house! He also occasionally chews the bars to get my attention. I am so worried he will do the same thing!

Some vets can trim the teeth like they sometimes do with rabbits. If it were me, I would probably consult with a cavy savvy vet to ask their opinion. I would be a little concerned about not only eating becoming am issue, but also about the sharp points they seem to have. Would worry they could be dangerous to the other pigs or even cause irritation or sores in his mouth.

Let me know if you plan to take him to the vet or not. My vet is probably coming to see me this afternoon and if she does, Ill run it by her to see what she would do to get a second opinion and for my own knowledge in case this ever happens to Coco (knock on wood!)
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
After reading the link above, it confirms my concern about the sharp (ragged) edges. See info below. I copied and pasted from that Guinea Lynx article.

*WHEN TO SEE A VET* 
You may wish to contact a veterinarian if: 

     The break is ragged. 
     The opposing teeth begin to curve inward and contact the mouth (possible if most of the tooth and root was lost) 

An experienced exotics veterinarian can trim a ragged tooth if needed or slightly clip the remaining teeth if they begin to grow inward. If you suspect any other problem (infection, apparent pain when eating) be sure to see your vet right away. 
 

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312
Thanks for the advice! I will call my vet. I don't think it will possible to cover the grids though he chews up to the very top one, and all around the cage. I think it's more likely from the water bottle personally, any pig I've had has chewed on their cage bars and I've never see broken teeth before now.
 

madelineelaine

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Posts
2,597
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
2,597
I don't recommend clipping teeth, from my knowledge it's unnecessary and very painful.

If piggie is eating fine, don't mess with it, leave the tooth to grow back. Just make sure the teeth are growing straight.
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
While I certainly respect peoples personal opinions, I also trust my vet and Guinea Lynx. I simply recommended they take the piggy to be evaluated by a cavy savvy vet to see what, if anything, needs to be done. I would never recommend clipping or filing teeth on a regular basis, nor would I recommend doing it in all cases of a broken tooth. Unfortunately, from what I have read in these posts, once sores and infection develop in the mouth they are often very hard to treat. Once the eating is disrupted, getting the weight etc. to stay where it needs to be is also difficult. With pigs being so small, infection can spread fast and sometimes the ultimate outcome is not so great.
Sometimes I think taking "proactive" measures to keep the more dangerous and deadly things from happening may be best for the piggy and the wallet.

As stated in my previous post, I still think the best thing is to take the pig to a CAVY SAVVY vet to let someone look at it in person. Maybe its not as sharp or ragged as it looks in the picture. If not, maybe nothing will need to be done. I would review the options the vet puts on the table and together decide what the best course of action is. If the vet thinks they need to be clipped or filed to keep worse things from happening, I would certainly take his or her opinion into consideration and make an education decision. I would certainly not shy away from the vets advice, regardless of what it is, because of something you read on here that might make you feel "guilty" for doing something the vet recommends.

Climbing off my soapbox now. . .
 

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312
I think I'll be calling the vet on Monday, the bottom teeth are quite sharp and pointed. And though he does not live with him anymore, this is the pig that took out my other pigs eye with a bite, and that was when his teeth were not pointed! His cage mate and him now get along perfect though so i'm not worried about biting. It's hard to tell from the picture but his top tooth broke flat so that's probably fine but his bottom teeth are quite pointed. Also how would infection happen? could he bite his own tongue or something? Observing him further he eats with no problem at all, pellets, hay, and every variety of veggie I gave him was fine, even whole cherry tomato. I read the guinea lynx page its a little confusing. I'm not really sure what exactly them mean by ragged. If you look at the last picture on the guinea lynx page posted by @(broken link removed) in the picture of the guinea pig with one top incisor his bottom teeth look a bit like that ones bottom left tooth. Here's another pic with maybe better perspective.photo (9).jpg
 

Bumble125

Active Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Aug 10, 2012
Posts
23
Joined
Aug 10, 2012
Messages
23
My boar broke his two top teeth off when we had him separated from our girl right after he was neutered. He chewed in the bars all the time. Since his top teeth were pretty much gone and his bottom teeth were fine, we had to get his bottom teeth trimmed because they were getting WAY too long as we were waiting for the top to grow back. He could still eat the same food but we had to just chop it up smaller. He only ate very soft hay. My vet put him under to trim his teeth. She tried for a sec to trim them without putting him under since he had just been neutered five days before and she didn't want to put him under again. But he was WAY too stressed and she was worried about his heart. Luckily he did fine. It was a very expensive week though :)
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
He could get infected if his teeth irritate the inside or his mouth or cause paperwork something. I think guinea lynx means like jagged or sharp edges. The bottom teeth are my concern as well. Maybe the vet will be able to tell if they are rubbing anything inside or not.
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
He could get infected if his teeth irritate the inside or his mouth or cause paperwork something. I think guinea lynx means like jagged or sharp edges. The bottom teeth are my concern as well. Maybe the vet will be able to tell if they are rubbing anything inside or not.


Ugh . . Blame auto correct for the "paperwork". Should have said "sores or"
 

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312
Haha that's fine I get messed up in autocorrect all the time since I am usually on my phone :)

I will be calling t Monday, I'll be calling the fantastic vets at cornell who helped me with Pickle's eye and seeing what they say. It's kind of far away but they have been accomadating and letting me send pictures so I can probably send a picture of the teeeth and hopefully that will be enough for a free opinion. I know the vet around here would trim them as they recommended maintenance trimming anyway. The only thing I'm worried about it he can eat great with his teeth now, and I don't want him to have issues eating if they trim them too short. It sounds like reading some of the things on guinea lynx that is an issue sometimes.
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
Make sure you bring that up when you talk to them. Maybe they will tell you to watch and wait. Make a list of all your questions and concerns so you don't forget any . Hope things turn out good either way and he is good as new in no time.

Keep us posted!
 

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312
Make sure you bring that up when you talk to them. Maybe they will tell you to watch and wait. Make a list of all your questions and concerns so you don't forget any . Hope things turn out good either way and he is good as new in no time.

Keep us posted!

Just an update, sorry I forgot to post it before now! I talked to my trusted vet and sent pictures of the teeth. I explained all of my concerns, and it was recommend to leave them for now. I am just keeping an eye on his weight and eating habits and checking his teeth and mouth daily.
 

T1ggerPigLuvur

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 2, 2012
Posts
522
Joined
Sep 2, 2012
Messages
522
I hope that they heal soon! It sounds like you have a good vet at hand.
 

MissJean

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
May 2, 2011
Posts
1,616
Joined
May 2, 2011
Messages
1,616
I wonder how long this will take to remedy itself? He looks like a vampire!
 

ellisa

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Mar 29, 2011
Posts
2,009
Joined
Mar 29, 2011
Messages
2,009
Does he have a cage mate? He may be lonely and that's why he chews bars all the time.

Hopefully they start to grow and wear down soon! He does look like a piggy-vampire!
 

Agrimony

Cavy Star, Photo Contest Winner
Cavy Slave
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Posts
1,312
Joined
Jul 27, 2012
Messages
1,312
He does have a cage mate and they get along great. I think he does it to get my attention rather than wheeking, he is a very quiet pig. Although really I think he did it chomping on his water bottle.

He does look like a vampire pig! So now I have a vampire pig and a pirate pig, it's a motley crew here lol
 

lifesvr7

Well-known Member
Cavy Slave
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Posts
580
Joined
Sep 9, 2012
Messages
580
LOL. . A little late for halloween! Glad he is doing ok. Will he chew wood or anything to wear them down faster?Hope he heals soon without complications!
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.

Similar threads

Top