Rabbit teeth grow continuously throughout their lives. Normal chewing action wears them down just to the point that they don’t overgrow. This is one of the reasons that it’s important to feed your rabbit a high-fiber diet.
A rabbit that has a malocclusion, or an obstacle to bringing the teeth of the upper and lower jaws into contact, does not have this normal wearing action and can suffer overgrown teeth. This problem can be serious enough to inhibit the ability to eat. Most rabbits do fine if their teeth are trimmed periodically. On select cases, a vet will remove the problem teeth, including those that don’t respond to periodic trimming.
Overgrown rabbit incisors.
If the overgrown teeth are the four front ones (incisors), they can be easily trimmed periodically and normal eating will return. When the molar teeth are involved, the problem can be more severe. The molar teeth can have points that lead to pain when chewing; thus, a rabbit will stop eating.
In some cases, the roots of the molar teeth will overgrow, leading to an even more severe problem. If the roots elongate, the teeth may abscess and will be difficult to treat. This is diagnosed by a radiograph. Removal is usually the only choice in many of these cases. Sometimes, the problem is chronic and the rabbit does not respond to treatment.
You can learn much more about this potentially serious health problem in rabbits by going to our web page on rabbit teeth problems.