[Gpdd] [HEALTH] Sid's loss of appetite

DebJonSara at aol.com DebJonSara at aol.com
Thu Mar 16 12:28:56 EST 2006


I see you are in the UK, and suspect Sid's teeth have been clipped by a  
rodentologist? May I ask why his teeth were clipped? In other words, what were  
the symptoms that eventually led to his teeth being clipped?
 
I ask because we had a similar scenario with our dear departed Red Dandy.  
His original symptom was not eating. His teeth were clipped several times by  
several different rodentologists, and although he nibbled the odd bit of greens  
and grass afterwards, he never really got back to eating independently. He 
was  syringe fed for over a month, but gradually lost weight. Syringe feeding 
him was  a full time job.
 
Eventually I left him with some rodentologists, and in spite of their doing  
all they could, he passed away after about a week with them. They explained to 
 me that sometimes, when a piggie's teeth overgrow, it is a symptom of some  
underlying problem, rather than the initial cause of not eating. The piggie  
feels ill inside, so stops eating because it gived him a dore tummy. Because he 
 stops eating, particularly if he stops eating hay, his teeth overgrow. Then 
he  can't eat anyway because his teeth are overgrown. The owner notices and 
gets the  teeth trimmed, and everyone expects him to start eating again because 
the tooth  problem is solved. But he doesn't, because eating still gives him a 
sore  tummy.
 
I so wish I had insisted on more tests for Red Dandy. We went through all  
kinds of diagnoses and treaments, all whilst he was getting thinner and thinner. 
 People kept cutting his overgrown teeth, but only the last people he was 
with  realised that teeth might not be the primery problem, and by then, it was 
too  late.
 
Sorry, I don't want to be a harbinger of doom. We were recommended to give  
him tiny pieces of his favourite fruit and veg, shoving them right inside his  
mouth in case he'd just got scared to eat because he knew it would hurt his  
mouth. For fluid, I spent ages liquidising his favourite veggies - celery juice 
 and cucumber juice were very popular.
 
Like I say, we and he struggled for over a month, all the time thinking  
teeth were the main problem instead of looking for something internal. If I had  
him back, and oh how I wish I did, I would be asking an experienced vet to look 
 for other problems with blood and urine tests, things like that.
 
How is he otherwise? Is he active, lively, alert? Red Dandy spent  increasing 
periods of time hunched in his house, although he was always eager to  be 
fed, and did come out and run round when I put him with my girls to spice him  up 
a bit. 
 
I wish you the very, very best - please do keep us informed. Here's hoping  
for another happy ending like Martin Luther's.
 
Debbie
 
 



More information about the Gpdd mailing list