jennifervb
Well-Known Member
Greetings! 
It was suggested to me that my experiences with incisor problems would be good to post so here we go...
For those of you who are unfamiliar with my story, I lost my little rat man Jerry in June, at the tender age of only 6 months and one week. Jerry suffered an injury from malocclusion back in April which left a vicious slice in his lower lip.
The injury healed very nicely but Jerry was burdened with additional health issues including infected abscesses to the lower jaw, drastic weight loss AND incisors gone haywire! The vet believes that Jerry must have been suffering from something not yet diagnosed (i.e. cancer in a hard to diagnose place). His surgery and treatment (assist feeding with high protein foods) should have seen my little gent gaining a ton of weight. Instead he was deteriorating before my eyes.
On the very day of his follow up incisor appointment, I found him comatose on the floor of the cage. His lower incisor had stabbed up into his head and he was bleeding internally. I guess the point of all this is that his incisors are apparently what finally killed him.
Unfortunately, Jerry was not too keen on having his incisors checked so I wasn't able to see just how long they had gotten. If I had known that his lower incisors were long enough to stab into his head then I would have taken him to emergency that very day.
Ben and Basil also HATE having their incisors checked! Fortunately, their incisors are short enough where I can see their length when I hold up a treat. They stick their noses up into the air to get the treat and I can look at them from there. (I did not, of course, figure this method out until after I had made enemies for the day by checking their incisors the way the vet does... OY!!!!!)
I can only emphasize how critical it is to keep a sharp eye on those teeth!!! Your rat does not have to love it, but since the length of their incisors play a vital role in their well being, I want everyone here to know to watch their growth. It is amazing how fast they grow!
Jerry had received an incisor trim only 3 weeks before he died! That means that his teeth skyrocketed within less than a month.
I do not want anyone to suffer the grief I suffered at watching my little man die without a clue on what to do and how to help. The most painful thing about it is that I could have saved him if I would have known to check the incisors every few days and would not have given in to Jerry's vehement rejection of being examined.
Ben and Basil are reaping the benefits of my hard earned knowledge. I won't lose another little soul to malocclusion. Tough love my sweet little souls... tough love.
Hugs
It was suggested to me that my experiences with incisor problems would be good to post so here we go...
For those of you who are unfamiliar with my story, I lost my little rat man Jerry in June, at the tender age of only 6 months and one week. Jerry suffered an injury from malocclusion back in April which left a vicious slice in his lower lip.
The injury healed very nicely but Jerry was burdened with additional health issues including infected abscesses to the lower jaw, drastic weight loss AND incisors gone haywire! The vet believes that Jerry must have been suffering from something not yet diagnosed (i.e. cancer in a hard to diagnose place). His surgery and treatment (assist feeding with high protein foods) should have seen my little gent gaining a ton of weight. Instead he was deteriorating before my eyes.
On the very day of his follow up incisor appointment, I found him comatose on the floor of the cage. His lower incisor had stabbed up into his head and he was bleeding internally. I guess the point of all this is that his incisors are apparently what finally killed him.
Unfortunately, Jerry was not too keen on having his incisors checked so I wasn't able to see just how long they had gotten. If I had known that his lower incisors were long enough to stab into his head then I would have taken him to emergency that very day.
Ben and Basil also HATE having their incisors checked! Fortunately, their incisors are short enough where I can see their length when I hold up a treat. They stick their noses up into the air to get the treat and I can look at them from there. (I did not, of course, figure this method out until after I had made enemies for the day by checking their incisors the way the vet does... OY!!!!!)
I can only emphasize how critical it is to keep a sharp eye on those teeth!!! Your rat does not have to love it, but since the length of their incisors play a vital role in their well being, I want everyone here to know to watch their growth. It is amazing how fast they grow!
Jerry had received an incisor trim only 3 weeks before he died! That means that his teeth skyrocketed within less than a month.
I do not want anyone to suffer the grief I suffered at watching my little man die without a clue on what to do and how to help. The most painful thing about it is that I could have saved him if I would have known to check the incisors every few days and would not have given in to Jerry's vehement rejection of being examined.
Ben and Basil are reaping the benefits of my hard earned knowledge. I won't lose another little soul to malocclusion. Tough love my sweet little souls... tough love.
Hugs
