Teeth questions

[Ferith]

So to set the scene a bit: about a week ago, my rabbit started acting out of sorts, not eating, not pooping, etc. We took him to the vet, and he's on a course of antibiotics at the moment. They seem to have helped, as he's started eating and drinking again, even if he's not quite as lively as usual yet.
The thing is, he keeps getting some sort of white stuff on his front bottom teeth. (See pic below where ive marked where it is in red) We asked the vet about it, and he shrugged it off and said it was just food... but it comes back every day. I clean it off with a cotton bud, and the next day it's back. He seems to have trouble eating some things (large pellets, etc) too - he responds enthusiastically when i give him food, but sometimes he spits bits out :/
So I just wondered if anyone had seen this white stuff on the the teeth before, and if anyone can tell me whether it's anything I should be worrying about? He has a small gap between his two bottom teeth too, which gets filled in with this white stuff and isn't clear on the photo. I don't know if this is normal?
Thanks

Here is a link to the picture, since I can't seem to add it to the post:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/125621742@N08/14706894761/in/photostream/

 

[JBun]

It looks to me like your rabbit probably has an infected tooth. That looks like pus, as rabbit pus is very thick and white. Your rabbit will likely need xrays done to see the extent of the infection and if the teeth need to be removed or not. Your rabbit will also have to be on antibiotics, probably for several weeks to months, as infections in rabbits are often extremely difficult to clear up.

You can see in this link, the white pus around an infected tooth.
WARNING: GRAPHIC MEDICAL RELATED PHOTOS
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Dental_diseases/Treatment/Facial/abs_dental.htm

In the mean time, your rabbit needs to be on pain meds. It's typical rabbit behavior for them to loose their appetite when they are in pain. So pain meds are essential in helping them to maintain their appetite. The NSAID meloxicam is commonly used, but if the pain is very severe your bun may need something stronger.

You will also need to keep a close eye on his eating and drinking. If he isn't able to eat hay or hard food, try soaking his pellets in warm water and see if he'll eat the pellet mush. If he won't eat enough on his own, you are going to need to start syringe feeding. You can get a powdered mix for rabbits called Oxbow Critical Care, from your vet or ordered online.

I think you really need to find a better vet, if you have rabbit specialists where you live, even better. This vet doesn't sound like they really know what they are doing when it comes to rabbits, if they don't know what something like this might be and take it seriously. You can have a look at these rabbit vet lists, and hopefully you'll be able to find a good one near you.
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/showthread.php?t=13366
http://rabbit.org/vet-listings/

 

[TopDoll]

ray: Hope your bunny's teeth can get better, Ferith. It's great that you're more vigilant than even a vet

 

[Ferith]

He doesn't seem to be in much pain, and since he started the antibiotics he's been eating pretty well, as long as I keep his food small. Hopefully that means it's not too serious. At least now I know it's something that needs looking into and I can bully a vet into sorting it out.
I'm going to look into finding a better vet; unfortunately I live in Greece, so that list isn't very useful to me But I found a post from a couple of years ago on here about Greek rabbit-savvy vets, so let's hope it's still current.
Thank you so much for your help though.

 

[Ferith]

Thanks topdoll, I hope so too!

 

[Ferith]

One more question: until I can get him to a vet (which will be soon), should I keep cleaning the pus away or leave it alone?