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Overgrown teeth
malocclusion
Rabbit teeth grow throughout life and wear against each other when the bite is correct. If the jaws are misaligned or the diet lacks fibre, the teeth overgrow, injure the mouth and the rabbit cannot eat. Incisor problems are often inherited, so affected rabbits should not be bred.
When to call a vet
See a vet
A vet chooses the treatment — don’t give medicines yourself. Until then, give first aid.
See a vet if the rabbit stops eating, drools, or has a lump on the jaw
Symptoms
- Long, curved incisors sticking out of the mouth
- Drooling, with a wet chin and front paws
- Dropping food and picking only soft food
- Weight loss and fewer or smaller droppings
- Watery eyes or a lump under the jaw (abscess)
What to do
- 1 Offer softer but fibrous food for now, such as finely chopped greens and hay, and watch that the rabbit eats
- 2 A vet shortens the teeth with proper tools, and this may need repeating regularly
- See a vet if the rabbit stops eating, drools, or has a lump on the jaw
What not to do
- Do not clip teeth with pliers, wire cutters or nail clippers — the tooth splits, causing pain and infection
When it strikes
No season; inherited incisor problems show up at about 3–8 weeks old, while overgrown cheek teeth from a low-fibre diet appear in adults.
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Prevention
- Give unlimited hay and safe tree branches, which wear the teeth down
- Check the incisors when buying a rabbit and every month
- Do not breed rabbits with bad bites or their offspring
- Keep branches in the cage so rabbits chew those instead of the wire
Causes
- An inherited short or misaligned jaw
- Too little hay and fibre, with too much soft feed and bread
- Teeth broken by pulling on cage wire or in a fall
- Old age and tooth-root infection