Dental Disease

Photos and edited by Susan Horton, DVM

Dental disease in rabbits is a very commonly diagnosed problem and is now recognized as the underlying cause of numerous other disorders. For this reason an understanding of dental health and physiology are crucial for veterinarians that treat rabbits and for rabbit owners alike.

Rabbits are herbivorous, naturally eating a wide variety of vegetation and roughage. A unique feature of rabbits is that all of their teeth are open rooted which means that their teeth grow continually throughout their life. A healthy rabbit eating a proper diet constantly chewing will wear down the teeth as they grow.

Signs of dental disease
Signs of dental disease are very broad and may be non specific. Early signs can be subtle and may not be immediately noticeable to the rabbit owner. The rabbit may change its food preferences, stop eating certain things that may be difficult to chew, or drop food from its mouth. The rabbit may have some weight loss or may look unkempt from a change in grooming habits, especially if the incisors are overgrown. Advanced signs of dental disease may be excessive salivation, loss of appetite, malodorous breath, and severe weight loss. Also, the rabbit may present for another problem such as GI stasis, an abscess, or an infected tear duct, all secondary to the primary dental disease.

This rabbit had a traumatic blow to the nose.  The upper incisor on the right fractured below the gingiva.  The tooth continued to grow until it erupted behind the end of the fractured incisor that was above the gingiva.  We removed the vestigial piece of tooth and this bunny went back to normal occlusion.

Causes of dental disease
Dental disease in rabbits is most commonly caused by dietary and genetic factors.  Genetic predisposition is very common. With inbreeding, some rabbits are born with incisor malocclusion in which the incisor teeth overgrow and curl around because they do not meet properly.  Some rabbits breeds prefer elongated or shortened skulls (depending on the breed type) which also leads to dental occlusion problems. Another common cause is diet. Many rabbits are primarily fed a diet of pellets. Because the pelleted food is dense in nutrient content and is already pulverized, the rabbit chews less. Rabbits’ molars curl as they continually grow. The lower molars develop points that grow into the tongue and the upper molars develop points that grow out into the cheeks because of decreased wear from less chewing. These changes occur gradually with time and can lead to many secondary problems including abrupt loss of appetite and infections. Acquired dental disease with deterioration of the tooth quality, malocclusion and elongation of the roots with abscesses is another form of dental disease in rabbits. Diet, genetics, and metabolic bone disease are all proposed causes for this problem.

Molar Disease

Dental Abscess!!



Diagnosis
A dental exam should be a part of the annual physical examination. By lifting the lips to check their length and occlusion, the incisors are checked. Also during the exam, the veterinarian will check for the overall body condition, the coat condition, jaw swellings, moisture from the mouth around the chin and neck, and moisture around the eyes,  which can all be indications of dental disease. The sides of the cheeks are palpated for any sharp protrusions. We use a lighted nasal speculum to visually evaluate the molars. Occasionally,  we can not see points or spurs on the molars well and will recommend a more complete dental exam and filing of the molars under anesthesia based upon our observations.

The dental examination under anesthesia can be performed safely after we determine that your rabbit is a safe anesthetic risk.  This may require blood work. The anesthetic agent used is usually isoflourane gas.  It is very safe and the rabbit recovers very quickly when this gas is used. We may add analgesics (pain medicine)  to decrease the stress of the procedure and improve the rabbit’s recovery. Specialized instruments are utilized to visualize the oral cavity including cheek spreaders, an incisor speculum, and a special light source. Special diamond files, rongeurs, and straight dental burs on a low speed drill are used to remove points and file the teeth down. A system for grading the extent of dental disease based on radiographs has been developed. The extent of dental disease present is graded I through V with V being most severely effected.  While under anesthesia, we may take radiographs to evaluate the tooth roots and abscesses.

Pictured above is a tongue ulcer caused by a draining tooth root abscess at the back of the mouth.  This bunny was drooling excessively and had a foul odor from the mouth.  All the molars are abnormal in this picture.

Treatment is determined by the extent of the disease.  We will present you with the options once a thorough evaluation has been done.  The first step is making an appointment.  847-329-8709.