GUINEA PIG TEETH: Malocclusion Causes, Symptoms and Treatment
Like 3 Dislike 0 Published on 17 Aug 2014
Malocclusion is misalignment of the teeth, often caused by overgrown teeth, a common illness in guinea pigs which can be fatal because eventually the piggie will stop eating. This video is all about what to look out for, the diagnosis, treatment and some tips which might help to prevent overgrown teeth in your piggie.
-----CAUSES-----
Guinea pig teeth grow constantly and so need to be kept worn down at the same rate of growth. Different things lead to changes in the eating patterns of guinea pigs and consequently overgrown teeth:
* Other illness, which may put piggies off their food
* It is thought to be genetic in some cases
* Aging, as in older piggies the jaw muscles weaken and they may not have the same appetite
* Sometimes trauma to the teeth or mouth can lead to overgrowing teeth. It is not uncommon for guinea pigs to break one of or even a pair of their incisor teeth. If this does happen, take them to a cavy savvy vet who will decide if the tooth needs removing or the others need clipping to compensate. Usually guinea pigs recover very well from a damaged incisor.
-----SYMPTOMS-----
Signs of overgrowing teeth include…
* Not eating properly - dropping bits out of their mouth (though some piggies are just plain messy eaters!)
* Exaggerated chewing when eating
* Eating slower than normal
* A sudden preference for soft food over hard food
* Not eating, but still showing an interest in food (later stages - get them to the vet immediately)
* Mouth hanging open and a wet chin from dribbling (later stages - get them to the vet immediately)
-----TREATMENT-----
If you suspect teeth problems, take your guinea pig to an experienced vet asap. You should already know of a good vet to take them to in case of health problems and you should have money put aside for vet bills (If this sounds over the top - it isn't. It is an important part of being a responsible owner).
* The vet will probably examine the incisors and feel along the jawline
* They should attempt to look at the molars with a lighted scope or using buccal pad separators
* They may suggest an xray
* If they diagnose overgrown teeth they will arrange for the piggie to come in and have the teeth clipped or filed (planed) down. It depends on the vet, but it may be preferable to do this without using anaesthetic, particularly if treatment will be reoccurring
* Read about the Chin Sling in the links below, this is an alternative treatment to encourage natural wear of the teeth, which has had some great results!
-----PREVENTION-----
There is no sure fire way to prevent malocclusion, but we can reduce the chances of it occurring and make sure that if our piggies teeth do overgrow we noticed it quickly and arrange treatment for them. Try adding the following into your guinea pig care routine:
* WEIGH EVERY WEEK! Just in case I didn't stress this enough in the video :) Weighing is the number one thing we can do to catch health problems in our guinea pigs and it only takes a second. A gradual drop in weight means that something is likely to be wrong, get them checked out by an experienced vet. By weighing every week we can notice something is wrong before our guinea pigs become seriously ill, and we may well save their lives by doing so.
* Feel along their jaw line as part of their weekly health check, if they cry out or flinch as if in pain, they may be developing tooth problems. Examine the incisors to check they don't look too long or aren't slanted (which might mean overgrowing molars).
* HAY HAY AND MORE HAY! Usually problems with overgrowing teeth start with the molars. Hay and grass contains silicates that wear down the teeth as the piggies eat. Hay should make up 80% of a guinea pig's diet. Ensure they are eating enough hay by making it freely available 24/7 and by offering some different sorts to increase variety.
* Don't rely on wooden chews - they don't wear down the molars and that is often where problems start. Wooden chews should not be thought of as replacing hay in terms of wearing down the teeth.
If you read all this information thank you! Comment "Piggie teeth!" if you did!
-----Useful links!----
Guinea Lynx teeth: http://www.guinealynx.info/teeth.html
Guinea Lynx malocclusion: http://www.guinealynx.info/malocclusion.html
Malocclusions photographs: http://www.guinealynx.info/malocclusion_pics.html
Science and more pictures: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC339280/
Forum thread and real piggie story: http://www.guinealynx.info/forums/viewtopic.php?t=36088
The Chin Sling: http://www.guinealynx.info/chinsling.html