abcess on molar

Question
Hi Georgia,
I am worried sick about my young adult Peruvian guinea.  He went off of his feed mid-August.  I took him in to my vet's office to have her check him out.  She had responsibly treated my house rabbit and another of my guinea pigs.  After examining Rooster(my piggie), she said that he had a molar spur that she felt needed trimmed down.  He stayed in the hospital overnight receiving fluids and she trimmed the molar the following day.  I brought him home from the animal hospital the next afternoon.  I still needed to syringe feed him as his mouth was sore and he wasn't managing very well with pellets or hay.  After a few days he began to nibble at fresh lettuce and pellets, and sometimes his hay.  Two weeks went by and while he wasn't back to his old self he was much improved.  Then I made a scary discovery about 3  weeks ago.  I was taking him out for some floor time and found a marble size hard mass under his jaw.  I had him in the vets office the following day.  She lanced the abcess and sent him home with a sulfer-based antibiotic.  Rooster appeared to be responding well while he was on the antibiotic, but a few days after the antibiotic med was through (7 days) the lump returned, and he was not eating.  The vet referred me to an animal hospital that is more than 60 miles from where I live.  I seached the ads in the yellow pages and took him to a vet that is about 22 miles or so from where I live.  She seemed very knowledgable and explained the various tests that could be done, and what procedures were available.  She said that we could take a conservative approach if that is what I wanted to do.  As much as I love my guinea pig I do not have an unlimited amout of money to provide for all of the cultures and bloodwork.  She lanced the abcess and sent him home with Baytril, Critical Care, and an antiseptic solution that I use once a day to flush the wound.  She said that the prognosis with guinea pigs and abcesses is not usually good.  Have you had any experience with this situation?  She talked of surgically excising the abcess, but said that in a debilitated state there is the possibility that he would not survive the surgery.  Other than having trouble chewing his food he seems in good spirits...he purrs when I reach in the hutch to stroke him or when I pick him up.  I can't bear to think of him suffering.  Please let me know of anything that you're aware of with regard to abcessed molars.  I am kicking myself for ever allowing the first vet touch his teeth.  I appreciate your time, and apologize for the lenghth of this narrative.
Thanks so much for caring.
Regards,
Ann

Answer
hiya ann, do not worry about taking up my time, it is natural to care about ginnys. abscesses usually occur in  the neck and jaw area. i have not got much experience in thia area but i can say that if the abscess is monitored and drained then it should not be life threatening. sometimes abscesses in the lower jaw start with an uneven growing tooth. so he could have had the abscess at the beginning.i really think that you should have it  drained as if Rooster is not eating then he may be in pain. please let it be drained or something else. my heart goes out to you and Rooster. i hope everything is ok. please contact me if you have any further questions.