my rabbits wolf teeth

Question
My rabbit's bottom teeth grow out ofher mouth p toward er nose.  Our vet showed us how to clip them.  The firt few times we had no problems.  The last two times, there has been some light bleeding.  This bunny is a rescue.  We were told that when se was a baby, she was fed cheetos.  It is unlikely she was on a healthful diet during her growing and developmental period.  Is it possible our rabbit has a problem with her teeth because o a poor det?  Is the bleeding normal?  Can we do anything else to slow the growth of these bottom teeth  Thank you.

Answer
Dear Libby,

Your rabbit likely has a congenital (i.e., present from birth) dental malocclusion.  It's not likely due to any dietary problem, unless she suffered from truly *severe* malnutrition when she was developing.

The treatment of choice these days is complete removal of the incisors, since the constant clipping (dangerous!  cutting with a Dremel is better) is not only stressful, but can cause jaw abscesses due to micro-fractures of the teeth during clipping.  The bleeding is not a good sign, and suggests the incisors are loose in the sockets.  That means bacteria can get in under the gumline and cause very serious, potentially life-threatening problems.

Please read:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/dental.html

and find a very experienced rabbit vet here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

who knows that overgrown teeth cannot simply be treated as if they were overgrown toenails. They require special care, and preferably surgical removal.

I hope this helps.

Dana