Signs of tooth problem?? HELP

[meiying]

:frown2:We have adopted Jeffy, a 4-year old fur chewer, for 2 months now, we know nothing about his past history and we assumed his previous owner did not take him to the vet to have a regular check up because Jeffy was neglected badly when we first met him. He had no hay, no regular sand bath, no chinchilla pellets, chewed plastic bath house.. etc.

I noticed whenever he is eating, from time to time, he has his ears "pull back" and up again. It happens only when he is eating. At first i thought it was kind of "cute" since my other chinchilla never do that "pulling back ear thing". And i also thought he must be being "cautious" while eating. I also noticed that whenever he eats, he eats like "a prisioner just got out of prison". I mean, my other chin Chester, when he eats, he eats with his little hands, take a small bite , sniff it, take a small bite , sniff it, take a small bite. But when Jeffy eats, he takes the whole pellet in his mouth and chews, and he chews loudly, never uses his hands, never sniffs, chew the whole pellet.

I came across some threads today, and below is what i read:


"Ear Flicking - Chinchllas with tooth problems will often flick their ears whilst eating (pain from the tooth roots is referred up into the head, causing the ears to flick). If only one side of the mouth is affected then the corresponding ear may flick or both ears may flick. Can be very subtle and needs careful observation."

I have notice no drooling from Jeffy, no wet fur, he eats and drinks okay, poops look okay,he has hay and Mazuri pellets everyday, can anyone tell me if he has tooth issue? If i take him to the vet, do i get x-ray????? The so-called exotic vet here is not good at all, know nothing about chinchillas, I know tooth disease is a BIG issue, please help!

 

[InkedupTara]

How has his weight been? You should weigh him with a gram scale, this will help indicating any issues. You will have to find a vet good with chins, we have to drive well over an hour for emergency vets after hours, but I lucked out and have a fairly good vet, who listens to me, and researches when they dont know something.

Just as a side note, chins dont need regular check ups, but you should always take for an initial appointment, so they have seen the pet, should an emergency arise.

If it were me, and there were no other symptoms, I would start with a weight and see where he is at and if he is losing weight. Is he chewing on sticks regularly, and eating all his hay?

 

[Claire D]

The quote is from the article I did on signs of pain in chinchillas. "What follows is a list of signs and smptoms which may indicate that a chinchilla is in pain or discomfort. If one or more signs are present then immediate veterinary assessment and intervention is necessary."

If the chin is not showing any other symptoms then I would keep a close eye on him and, as Tara has suggested, start weighing him. One symptom by itself is not necessarily a problem but careful observation is needed - if more than one sign is present then it's worth a trip to the vets.

Is the chin showing any other signs of tooth problems? Grinding teeth, crumbling pellets, weight loss etc etc?

 

[meiying]

Is the chin showing any other signs of tooth problems? Grinding teeth, crumbling pellets, weight loss etc etc?

Hi Claire, may I ask what is "crumbling pellets"?

 

[Claire D]

The chin takes a bite of pellet but crumbles it rather than eating it - there are crumbs/powder left on the bottom of the cage, in the bowl, or under the food bowl.

 

[Lillybabe]

When my guy was in the most pain he'd also take a bite out of a pellet and then drop it either back in the bowl or on the floor of the cage. It's like he'd try a bite, realize it hurt, drop the pellet... then try again after a few minutes.

 

[Buddy]

I need some help too! My chinchilla recently went for an opperation to have her teeth burred, because they found a few sharp edges and she stopped eating and drinking a few days before i took her to the vet. They gave me the recovery food to syringe feed her. Which she is fighting loads . But she's still not eating at all- No normal food. She keeps grinding her teeth, and pawing at her mouth. The vet said that they gave her a pain killer just before i picked her up today. They injected her with something to get the gut moving again. However, this is the next day from her opp- and she's still not eating, not even trying too. I havnt had an x-ray yet. That is the next step, but thats going to cost me about £300- and I really dont have that kind of money at the moment What could be wrong with herr??