Holden missing both upper front teeth

[adoptedmom]

:wave123 Hi all. Does anyone know if blunt trauma to the face/jaw/nose can cause teeth to fall out at a later date?

When I came home from work last Tuesday night, I noticed one of Holden's upper front teeth was gone. The next evening the other upper front tooth was gone. She acted completely normal/happy/playful on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings - she didn't do that "leave me alone, I'm hiding because I got hurt" thing that they like to do, which makes me think there was no fresh trauma on Monday or Tuesday.

Back in May when she fell off of the bookcase and broke her leg , she also ended up with a bloody nose (her nose took part of the impact of her fall). The next day at the vet's, she jumped and landed on her nose again (which started the bleeding again). So I know there was blunt impact in May.

Both teeth are gone below the gumline. Could the teeth have fallen out because of the earlier trauma? Do I have to worry about infection? What is the likelihood they will grow back?

PS: for those of you who remember I was planning to clip one of her front teeth myself, I hadn't done it (chickened out). We were scheduled to go to the vet this Saturday...

[smoknbunny]

Wow - I don't know if there would be a delayed effect. I've had some experience with bad teeth but it wasn't from blunt trauma.
Tomorrow there should be some more experienced rehabbers who may have some ideas. In the meantime, I'd keep the vet appt and see if you could get an x ray to see what's going on in her upper jaw.:)

[tatcat]

:grouphug holden:grouphug keep that vet appt and see what is going on...:grouphug

[adoptedmom]

Thanks, SB! We did keep the appointment. Her current vet is a wildlife vet who seems to have sound general knowledge, but no specialized squirrel knowledge. He didn't feel an xray would tell us anything because (he said) if they fell out completely, there is no way to tell if they'll grow back and if they broke off below the gumline, they'll probably grow back out. He felt we should wait and see.

[adoptedmom]

Holden says thanks for the love, tatcat. :Love_Icon I am hopeful one of the rehabbers will have seen this before. In the meantime, I'll be chopping vegetables into squirrel mouth sized bites. Thank goodness the lower teeth are still there.

You guys think I should go back and insist on an xray?

[tatcat]

Holden says thanks for the love, tatcat. :Love_Icon I am hopeful one of the rehabbers will have seen this before. In the meantime, I'll be chopping vegetables into squirrel mouth sized bites. Thank goodness the lower teeth are still there.

You guys think I should go back and insist on an xray?


most deff darlin...i am sure it would not hurt...good idea in cutting the food small...can ya post some pics of him...:grouphug

[adoptedmom]

most deff darlin...i am sure it would not hurt...good idea in cutting the food small...can ya post some pics of him...:grouphug

We moved at the beginning of June and I haven't found the box for the digital camera :hidechair Found the camera, found the batteries, took pictures, but can't find the port thingy to get them off the camera. Not that I will know what to do with it when I find it:D I'll try to attach a couple from when she was little and see what happens....

And can I just say that I have newfound respect for everyone on this site who has managed to take such great pictures of their babies. Holden has some kind of ESP and stops whatever she is doing when I get out the camera.

[adoptedmom]

OK, let's see if this works. These are all from her early days with me. Fall of 06.

[smoknbunny]

Ah!!!! what an angel!!
In my opinion, you could wait a week or two for an x ray but you should get one done. Go to the specific ailment, malocclusion thread and have a look at the squirrel skull. You will probably want to get a look at what is going on in there but may get a better view after the teeth start to grow back. They have an odd structure since they have teeth that grow continuously. It almost looks as if the top teeth grow out of "tubes". Not sure how to explain it but if there is damage to the structure that the teeth grow from, there could be some issues.
But, I believe you should get some good info from experienced rehabbers tomorrow. They seem to be mainly East coast and are probably sound asleep right now:)

[island rehabber]

awww, poor adorable Holden! :(
Teeth will fall out from trauma, adoptedmom, and sometimes it will be a delayed reaction. Even clipping can sometimes result in a fallout later on. The thing to watch for is that her LOWER teeth do not overgrow, now, and pierce her gums causing infection. Normally her lowers would grind against the uppers but now they have unrestricted growth -- not good. Also try to put her on her back (when you're playing with her, maybe) and take a good look at the places where her uppers fell out. Make sure you don't see any pus or inflammation -- you don't want infection to start in there. Thank God you have a wildlife vet, squirrel-savvy or not. You are head and shoulders above most just having a vet to see your little squirrel girl. :)

Squirrels can chew perfectly well with their back molars, and I am assuming her molars are fine. The front teeth are for cracking nuts and self-defense, so she won't be able to do that, but she should be able to chew shelled nuts and crunchier vegetables. In other words, she doesn't have to eat all mushy things -- she just can't crack nuts herself.

[island rehabber]

Thanks IR! That's good to know! :thumbsup I watch Baby bite into her foods, and always thought she was using her front teeth. :tilt

She probably is, since they are there, but when I researched the possibility of Peppina and Squinti having their awful incisors removed I was told by so many 'experts' that squirrels didn't really need the incisors to eat properly if they were in an environment where they did not have to crack hard-shell nuts to survive. :dono:)

[adoptedmom]

awww, poor adorable Holden! :(
Teeth will fall out from trauma, adoptedmom, and sometimes it will be a delayed reaction. Even clipping can sometimes result in a fallout later on. The thing to watch for is that her LOWER teeth do not overgrow, now, and pierce her gums causing infection. Normally her lowers would grind against the uppers but now they have unrestricted growth -- not good. Also try to put her on her back (when you're playing with her, maybe) and take a good look at the places where her uppers fell out. Make sure you don't see any pus or inflammation -- you don't want infection to start in there. Thank God you have a wildlife vet, squirrel-savvy or not. You are head and shoulders above most just having a vet to see your little squirrel girl. :)

Squirrels can chew perfectly well with their back molars, and I am assuming her molars are fine. The front teeth are for cracking nuts and self-defense, so she won't be able to do that, but she should be able to chew shelled nuts and crunchier vegetables. In other words, she doesn't have to eat all mushy things -- she just can't crack nuts herself.


:thankyou Thank you, IR. That's a relief. I will keep an eye on the gumline. If they fell out completely, can I reasonably expect they will grow back in? If so, how long before I see them again?

Molars appear to be functioning just fine. If I cut up the endive (or whatever greens) so the pieces fit in her mouth, she has no difficulty chomping and swallowing. Any pieces that are too big to fit easily into her mouth get tossed aside. She is using her lowers to scrape/gnaw fruit and any shelled nuts. I will keep an eye on their lenghth and try to give her things she can wear them down on.

[4skwerlz]

Poor little Holden...she is a doll! Watch that her lowers don't cut into her upper gums; soft food is probably a good idea for now. IR is right, with both sets of incisors gone, they can still eat very well using only their molars. There was even a case of a wild squirrel being re-released after having both sets of incisors removed due to malocclusion. However, IMO a wild squirrel would def be at a disadvantage without incisors. I'm hoping and praying those uppers grow back!:grouphug

[TexanSquirrel]

Poor baby! I hope they grow back!

[adoptedmom]

Anybody have an estimate how long they will take to grow back if they do grow back?

[Jackie in Tampa]

In three weeks time, I see 1/4 inch growth. Good Luck, you have been given great advise to watch those bottom teeth.:)

[adoptedmom]

:wahoo :wahoo Hi all! Holden and I were playing yesterday (doing that wrestle-with-the-hand thing) and she got one of my fingers in her mouth and .... I think both of her teeth are growing back in. :jump I definitely felt something. I'm going to try to get a closer look tonight, but I just wanted to share the good news! :wott

[skye]

If the root is still there the teeth will grow back. I know of a squirrel that lost both front teeth but roots were there and they did grow back. Hope the little one is doing well. Best wishes to you:D

[Jackie in Tampa]

:thumbsup just my opinion. If a sqs teeth are long, the sq will try to snap their teeth off as to maintain the ability to eat.
I know of a sq who has done this several times:eek: this is too scarey. If they damage that root, it could lead to odontomas.
Not deviating from IRs info, because I believe that also!...
but wanted you to know, teeth are vital for the health and ability to thrive!
My fingers are crossed, grow teefers grow!:Love_Icon

[Frickster]

Squirrels can chew perfectly well with their back molars, and I am assuming her molars are fine. The front teeth are for cracking nuts and self-defense, so she won't be able to do that, but she should be able to chew shelled nuts and crunchier vegetables. In other words, she doesn't have to eat all mushy things -- she just can't crack nuts herself.


WAIT A SECOND! THEY HAVE MORE THAN THE FRONT 4 TEETH!?

[adoptedmom]

:alright.gif :alright.gif :alright.gif I finally got a look in her mouth. She has two little stubby and seemingly correctly aligned front teeth. :wott Gave her an almond in the shell this morning. ... drumroll please ... She opened it herself :multi :multi

My vegetable cutting days might be over soon :wahoo

Jackie in Tampa: I couldn't help thinking of you as I did my twice a day squirrel food prep duties. We all spend a whole lot of time (too much? :osnap) on and with our squirrels, but you have the additional prep work to feed your Rocky so you deserve a :bowdown

[skye]

:thumbsup Great to hear and I pray all turns out well.:D give fur ball hugs for me:grouphug

[JLM27]

Hooray for Holden's toofers!:jump So happy to hear things are on the mend.:flash3