DENTAL WOES – MOOCHIE & YUZU
A good rabbit owner will know that checking their rabbit’s dental is more than peeping at their 4 front teeth! Our rabbits have a total of 28 teeth (4 front incisors, 2 peg incisors and 22 cheek teeths) and 24 are not easily visible! You need a professional orthoscope and a very experienced eye to assess their condition.
Moochie is only 6 months old and Yuzu is already 5 years old. You can see from the photos that regardless of age, their teeth are not healthy. Moochie has multiple sharp spurs and abnormally shaped teeth that needs to be trimmed or extracted. And Yuzu had rotten teeth as well as pus under her teeth that needs to be surgically treated.
Dental diseases are very common in rabbits and unfortunately, very stubborn to treat. To prevent, it’s important to ensure our rabbits are eating lots of hay to keep their teeth trimmed and don’t get spoilt by treats. On a weekly basis, massage your rabbits’ jaws and feel around for sensitivity or swell. For rabbits with reduced appetite or weight loss, we will bring them to our trusted vets for health check to ensure early signs of issues are detected. Early prevention is most effective, and is the cheapest! Let’s help our rabbits keep their dental woes away!
For more information about dental disorders in rabbits, please consult the following good articles:
http://rabbit.org/
http://www.mybunny.org/
http://www.bio.miami.edu/