Dental Problem

Question

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The text above is a follow-up to ...
Hi Dana I did find another Vet -David Vella a small animal vet and he spent 2.5 hrs with Chloe yesterday and took more xrays. I took the articles you suggested along and Chloe is now on the injected antibiotic since yesterday and already there is an improvement in her breathing. Sadly it is 3 teeth at upper right at the back that have caused the problem and she has a huge abcess behind the eyeball that bone has grown around and he is a great believer in 'palliative' care but I'm hoping for a miracle and maybe we will get one but at least we are on the right track thanks to those articles.I can't thank-you enough. XXX Kindest Regards Jane
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The text above is a follow-up to ...Thankyou for replying so quickly ,the antibiotic is called Ilium Opticin(eye ointment)3 times a day and 0.5 mls of Baytril once daily. The eye looks a little better this morning but Chloe is very snuffly and I have her inside in our hospital cage as its still getting down to about 8'C at night.The Vet says that the mouth in a rabbit is too small to pull the tooth thru the mouth I asked him to try yesterday as I don't have $800 for the way they want to do it and I don't think the rabbit would cope she has in her short life had a twisted ovary and one op. already to remove an abscess from the same cheek. He is telling me its that way or Chloe must be put to sleep within the next day...I would never let her suffer but she is eating well and I have read those sites which sound hopeful.Kindest Regards Jane

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Hi we live in Sydney Australia and we have a beautiful lop eared rabbit calle 'Clowie' she has an abscess from a back molar and the vet is telling us the only way to remove the tooth is by the eye socket and that it is a 2.5 hour op and she would be unlikely to survive otherwise she will need to be put down. She is eating and seems happy but eye is weepy and pusy and she is on antiobiotics.My kids love her so much and I wonder are you aware of any recent treatments that might be able to give her a chance?Kindest Regards Jane
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Dear Jane,

What type of antibiotics is Clowie on?  Some are much better than others when it comes to jaw abscesses, so please read this:

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

before you make any decisions about surgery.

I'm not sure why the vet thinks the molar must come out via the eye socket!  That seems rather too invasive to me.  The mouth should be big enough to accomodate surgical tools, and if the socket is really infected the tooth might come out with little trouble!  But I'd try the appropriate antibiotics first:

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

Please especially be sure to read the link to the article by Tyrrell, et al. in the jaw abscess article above.

You might also consider joining EtherBun, a free rabbit listserve with over 4500 subscribers, who might be able to share their experiences with you about jaw abscesses.  There are vets, rabbit rescuers and very many experienced people who I'm sure could help you.  For more info, and a link to join, go to:

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

I hope this helps!

Dana
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Dear Jane,

If I were you, I would try to find another vet.  This one sounds very aggressive and unreasonable.  There is NO reason to put Chloe down if she's eating well and even starting to respond to the meds!  

Hope she continues to improve!

Dana

Answer
Dear Jane,

It's great that you found a good vet!  What antibiotics are you now using?  I highly recommend bicillin for this problem:

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

if you can get it.  It's worth a try, and it has worked very well for us in the past.  It has saved many lives.  But it might be necessary to continue the injections for weeks or months until the infection is fully resolved.

Good luck!

Dana