Misaligned Teeth, Overgrowing & Diet.

[Lozz]

Hello again!
Gus Gus had his teeth clipped about a fortnight ago (and again today) as they were very overgrown and growing quite quickly. Unfortunately, they are misaligned so won't wear down naturally and will have to be clipped regularly. Because of the angle they are on he can't eat dry food- he just presses it against his teeth then gets frustrated and drops it, it's so sad!
I'm not sure why this has happened, he is approximately 11 months old (I'm not 100% sure since he is a rescue) and this has only become a problem in the past few months. I stopped giving him seed blocks to chew because he has some dental caries and apparently the honey used to bind them is awful for their teeth. Could this have caused it? He has never been one for chewing his wooden toys, just a little nibble on his bars every now and then, I'm not sure why.

The vet said I will probably have to feed him wet food from now on so I was thinking of mashing up some Supreme Science Selective Hamster nuggets and supplementing it with some peeled sunflower seeds, scrambled egg, boiled veg and baby food etc but I'm worried his diet will suffer. Does anyone have any experience with this, maybe with feeding older hamsters or hamsters with missing teeth etc? I want him to stay as healthy as possible because he is only young.

Secondly, since he can't really chew anything now because his bottom teeth now touch the front of his top teeth, is there anything I can do to wear them down a bit between clips? They seem to be growing quickly and I don't understand how this has come about.

Thank you so much! Xx

[cypher]

Do you know if his back teeth are ok?
If the back teeth are ok with regular clipping of the front teeth they can still eat some solid food.
I had this problem with one of mine & he did have to have his teeth clipped every few weeks but once that was done could manage some normal hamster food, rather than mashing up science selective which he wouldn't touch anyway I just soaked normal hamster mix in water & he did quite well with that, he also had porridge & baby food, with regular clipping he managed to continue eating his fresh veg just fine so his diet didn't really suffer.
The speed at which the teeth regrow can vary so you just need to be quite vigilant & watch to see what your ham seems to be managing, adjust the food you give as needed, weigh regularly & if possible check teeth regularly too so you can stay on top of the problem & your ham should do ok.
If you feel the need to give a bit of a protein boost these Thrive cat treats, dehydrated chicken, are easily managed & enjoyed, you can just crumble them to give tiny pieces.

[souffle]

It may be that he has caught his teeth on the bars at some point and twanged them which has twisted the roots causing them to grow wrongly. Is he /was he in a barred cage at all? Has the vet taught you how to trim the teeth as it would be easier for you but regardless if they don't meet he will still have trouble chewing normally. You could try whizzing his dry mix up in a food processor / blender or even use a morter and pestle to grind it fine. They can usually hoover it up then. You could also try dwarf hamster mix which has smaller bits in it and see how he does. All wet food is not ideal so try and find something he will take dry. Make sure you remove any wet food he tries to store as it goes mouldy. Give some fresh veggies too like brocolli stem which he will hopefully manage to provide plenty fibre.

[Lozz]

Thanks so much for replying. I'm not too sure about his back teeth, do you have any advice with regards to checking?
He is in a barred cage which he did used to nibble when he was filling asleep (not too sure why haha). He is a bit overly brave with regards to flinging himself around so maybe he has knocked them at some point; they are very crooked.
At the moment he is on Burgess Dwarf Hamster mix but doesn't seem able to peel the millett or anything so I have been soaking some Harry Hamster. I can't tell if he is still struggling with dry food or just finds it easier/ more comfortable to eat the wet stuff. When I left him with his dry food for a day to check he didn't touch it, and I'm worried about him being hungry- he's lost quite a lot of weight.
Is there a way I can encourage him to try some dry food?
Thank you again, I'm so grateful for your advice! X

[souffle]

He may well be feeling sore when he eats. I have heard of vets removing the teeth totally but it's quite a big op. Such a shame as he must be finding it hard. If he will only eat the soaked food then that is better than nothing. Maybe try grinding up some seed then adding it in to a porridge and see if he will lap at it and take some in? If you get some porridge oats take about a teaspoon full and add water then microwave for about 20sec to cook. Use that to mix in the ground seeds. Offer some of the dry porridge oats too as that is quite soft and he may try it. You can add a tiny splash of milk. Oily seeds like sunflower hearts and linseed may help him gain some weight. You can get an Omega mix in Holland and Barratt which he could try?

[cypher]

Mine would always at least try to eat his dry food but sometimes couldn't manage it, if the back teeth are ok (I could never see mines back teeth so you may need to ask the vet) they can still grind food down but I think they need to use the front teeth to shell seeds so that could be the problem although he should be able to do that within a day or two of having them clipped but if they are really crooked he may just not manage, I would provide both wet & dry so he can have a go if he wants to try & eat dry mix.
I used to grind seeds in my pestle & mortar, shells & all & he would happily pick out what he could eat from that, I also did the seeds mixed in to porridge thing & that went down well!
I think the omega mix souffle mentioned would be worth a try, you can get something similar in tesco too I think.

[Lozz]

Brilliant, I'll pick up some Omega Mix tomorrow and try him on some porridge oats (dry and wet) tonight. Thank you so much for all of your advice xx