My guinea pig had spurs on his teeth and got them filed down. now the same problem is happening again.

Question

what can i do to help prevent this happening again and what should i look out for in the vets. should he be given a sedative to have his teeth filed, what is the normal procedure and how often should this be done.

Answer 1

Hay should be the bulk of  your guinea pig's diet, this will help keep the teeth at a normal length.  Most guinea pigs won't really "chew" toys or blocks of wood, etc, like hamsters, because they are more of a grazing animal.  Some will, but in my experience, most won't.  One thing that a few people have had success with are corn husks, which are very fibrous and tough to chew, and which many pigs also enjoy as a treat!

If he has enough hay and is getting a good quality pellet (plain, with no colored bits or seeds), your piggie probably has a genetic predisposition towards occlusion (tooth alignment) problems.

Ideally, your vet should anesthetize your pig, and then plane down the molars.  Make sure s/he's leaving them at the correct angle so they have a chance to correct themselves.  Otherwise they will quickly develop spurs again.

Answer 2

This happens with many animals Hamsters, Gerbils(including Rabbits)and it's important that they have something to gnaw at to keep their teeth at a the correct size. Otherwise they continue to grow. In the case of Rabbits the vet sometimes has to clip the teeth which they obviously dislike.

I think you can buy hard items at the pet shop which you can put in the cage with your pet and they'll bite and chew it which will help. A diet though healthy of fruit and veg is too soft all the time...Hope this helps...

Answer 3

Does he have plenty of hay?

Some guinea pigs need their teeth filed regularly if they have a big problem.

You should read http://www.guinealynx.info/teeth.html for more tips

Answer 4

try giving him plenty to chew on

Answer 5

Give your guinea pig more things to chew on like pet treat chews from PetsMart or toilet/towel paper tubes or even some carrots. Get your piggie treated by the vet again and get some more recommendations.