Abscessed tooth in my chick.

[duluthralphie]

I think my chicken has an abscessed tooth, she is not chewing much and seems to be drooling on the left side of her mouth.

What do you all do for your birds when they get an abscessed tooth?

Thanks in advance for helping with this....

 

[Blooie]

I think you are missing an important part of this equation.....rather than focusing on the abscess and the possibility of rabies as a result, you need to find out what has happened in the chick's environment to cause the issue in the first place. Otherwise you are looking at the possibility of all of the chicks having the same problem. So you'll need to ask yourself a few questions.

What size grit do they get? If the grit is too large, they can't chew it down to a more manageable size. It could even be that what you think is an abscess is actually a bit of grit lodged between two teeth, sort of like when a popcorn hull jams itself between your teeth and gums. If it's jammed in there good, it would be like splinter, swelling and just getting more and more painful. I'd open the chick's mouth and use a toothpick to see if you can dislodge the grit piece, if that's what you find.

Are you adding a little Listerine to their water? Clean gums mean clean teeth. Of course, that won't help the one that is suffering now. You might try holding it carefully, putting a couple of drops of Listerine directly into the mouth (avoid letting it run down either of the holes at the back of the throat) and then hold it by it's little wings and give it a good shake. Since chickens can't gargle like we can, that's as close to mouthwashing action as you're likely to get. It may even serve to dislodge any offending bits of whatever it has caught in it's teeth. Take the opportunity, while you are already holding it and have done the gargling thing, to use a toothpick and carefully clean between each tooth. If the mouth stinks, it's an abscess. If the chick bites, it's mad at you.

What kind of treats do you feed? You know that chicks are even more sensitive to sweets than 3 year old humans because their teeth are so much smaller and close together. Cut back on the sugary treats. They'll be mad and maybe throw a couple of temper tantrums....but they'll get over it.

As far as the rabies threat, you can eliminate that by removing the heat lamp. Rabies needs constant warm temperatures to thrive. So turning off the heat lamp and feeding your chicks some ice cubes will alleviate the swelling and pain and also kill any rabies germs that are hiding in the abscess. You may want to vaccinate the other chicks against rabies first though, so if any of the germs scurry out to get away from the cold and jump into a warmer chick's mouth, they can't multiply.

I hope these suggestions help. If so, send your check to me directly. If they don't help, don't tell me. My ego couldn't stand the blow.

 

[Paganrose]

I think they make easy open caps for vicadin. Otherwise rooster teeth are great for opening medicine bottles I hear.

 

[duluthralphie]

Putting her in bed with my DW and see if her insurance policy covers death by rabies.... What else can I do?

 

[Toddrick]

This thread has me so worried about my chickens dental heath, which I have neglected for some time now. Do you think she looks okay?

That is a fine specimen, keep up the good work! For tooth abcesses, as well as the gum disease "gingivitis", I heard it helps to add four cups of Listerine per gallon of water, and then just bath them in it. Of course, I've never had to try this since all my birds see the family dentist for regular checkups, and have gorgeous, pearly whites! However, I do have an older hen with dentures that I have to bath in Polident frequently (what a pain, it would be nice if those dentures were removeable).

 

[drumstick diva]

You know dental care doesn't come cheap. I think Delta doesn't cover major work, partials, crowns, root canals, implant - till the policy has been in effect for 12 full months. If you bird is young enough it may cover braces etc. Try using those dental rinses for gum disease etc. that may be the real problem. Deep gum pockets. I don't even want to go there

 

[Free Feather]

Uh huh....
Give her a rag to wipe the drool with.

 

[duluthralphie]

Uh huh....
Give her a rag to wipe the drool with.

Excellent Idea. Do you know do abscessed teeth in chickens often turn to into rabies?

 

[Free Feather]

Excellent Idea. Do you know do abscessed teeth in chickens often turn to into rabies?

I have heard of that one. Very, very serious. What are you thinking of doing for her?

 

[Free Feather]

Putting her in bed with my DW and see if her insurance policy covers death by rabies.... What else can I do?

I am not sure. An ailment of this severity is beyond me. Hopefully someone more experienced with this condition can help.