# Swollen face on one side



## solefald (May 16, 2013)

I just noticed that Dre's face is swollen and hard on one side. I went to wipe his chin after dinner and he whimpered like crazy and started shaking. He went on a long walk today, and may have been bitten or gotten into something poisonous to him. I have inspected his mouth and lips, but looks like the swelling is somewhere above his canine tooth. It is also very hard, as far as i can tell. He would not let me push on it much. 

Yesterday morning i've noticed that one of his canines is broken and starting to look grey. I've googled around, and people say thats its normal with temporary teeth and means that its dead and there is a permanent tooth coming out, especially given his 15 week age. Swelling is pretty decent in size though, so I have no idea if it is the tooth.... You can see it below on the shopping cart photo. 

Now that it appeared I am going to call the vet first thing tomorrow morning, but he seems fine otherwise. He is eating, chewing on things and let me put an ice pack on a swelling for about a minute. Is this a bug of a feature?

Should i give him some Benadryl just in case?


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## tknafox2 (Apr 2, 2013)

THAT IS TOO CUTE!! I mean the shopping cart photo!! 
I'm seriously sorry he is suffering. I just pray it isn't an abscess. ( probably just Teething)
I don't know, but could you rub some ora-gel on it???


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

Nope. No medication of any kind, except the last round of shots 2 weeks ago and HeardGuard on the 7th.

I really think it is his tooth. He is his usual self, just does not really let me touch that area, but other than that he is not too bothered by it. I put some Orajel on it and left a message with the vets answering service to pencil me in for the first available appointment tomorrow.


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## Nelly (Feb 7, 2013)

Nelly had two of her baby teeth go grey and the second one only just fell out at 10 months. No swelling or obvious pain though. I don't know if it's just the light in the photo but his little gum looks a bit discoloured where the swelling is 

I would go vet if he is in pain with it.

Hope he has a speedy recovery


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Mine never got their adult canines till at least 6 months old.
They did get swollen gums but never a swollen face.
I wouldn't self medicate, wait and have your vet take a look at him.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

So we are at the vet. Looks like he canine tooth is cracked and traumatized and this is what causing the swelling. She also thinks his moller is cracked not across but along the length of the tooth. 

They are putting him on antibiotics and anti inflammatory until Wednesday and then will do X-rays and most likely pull the canine ;(

Also got a schpiel from the vet tech now giving him raw is terrible and that dogs on raw food don't live as long as pets on kibble. She also suggested not waiting with neutering and doing it sooner. Argh. May need a new vet if this continues...


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

Ok. Back home. 

Dre just let me take a better look at this teeth. Not sure where the vet saw the cracked molar. It looks absolutely perfect to me.


This Vet was recommended by our breeder and has highest Yelp reviews out of all vets in 20 mile radius, but I will find a holistic one today.They put him on Clavamox and Rimadyl (carprofen). I am not familiar with canine medications yes, so I have no idea if these are good or bad. 

Todays visit was $262 (they looked at him and took his blood). Estimate for Xrays, extraction, whatever is $1,007. We have Healthy Paws insurance, so I am calling them now to see what s covered. I am looking at this estimate and they are already factoring removing the canine (as expected), the molar (i guess Xrays will show if it needs to be removed), $200 for "unexpected estimate change" whatever that means, and another $100 for because he is "unvaccinated"... Funny thing is that they are giving him his final Rabies vaccine on Monday and he is scheduled for tooth extraction on Wednesday, so he is not "unvaccinated" by any means. 

San Diego Vizsla owners, would you please recommend a new vet? I don't care how far they are from me. I'd drive to LA, if needed.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

However, the cracked teeth must be addressed, esp if the crack is along the tooth from tip to root. :'( 
Poor little boy. 


I don't mention what I feed my boy. ESP the fact that I'm mixing more than one kind of food. 
They like to keep things simple in cases troubleshooting diet is necessary.


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

Poor poor Dre  

We use Dr. Crowe in Encinitas. We really like him. I wouldn't call him holistic, but he completely respects our preference to try natural measures vs. medications and did not throw a fit about late neutering. 

He is retiring soon though, so when he does we plan to try the Rancho Santa Fe Vet Clinic. Have heard very good things about them. Have also heard good things about the Drake Center in Encinitas and I know they see a lot of Vizslas and have respected the late neutering preference.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

RSF Vet Clinic is "All Creatures"? Thats where we went...


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

rsfvets.com

They used to be in Helen Woodward Center but now are off Lomas Santa Fe in Solana Beach. (which may be why they promote early spay and neuter if they were affiliated with the animal center...)

If that was them (I hope not though, they are right by our house and that would be really convenient!), then try the Drake Center, or the UC Davis center in Sorrento Valley. 

I really like our vet and recommend him, but I think he's only got a year before he retires so may be best for Dre to see someone who can follow his care longer.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

Ah, nope. Not them, but I've heard about them before. I got my cat Nixon from from Helen Woodward Center 13 years ago. He is trying to eat the corner of my laptop screen as I am typing this. 

The one we went to is on Villa De La Valle. They are super nice, but I hate this "raw is bad and your dog will die sooner" crap. We've had German Shepherds and a Russian Spaniel when I was growing up. All of them lived till 17-18 years and they were on 100% raw and human food diet. I'll definitely check out RSF vets next time. Don't want to stress Dre out with more random people sticking their hands into his mouth right now.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

Looks like the swelling is a tiny bit smaller right now, but he is sneezing sporadically with clear discharge from one nostril. Most likely due to one nasal passage blocked by swelling. The vet said call them if he sneezes and has nasal discharge, but he only does it every couple of hours and only 3-5 sneezes. nothing prolonged or consistent. He seems absolutely fine and unfazed by this. He is playing, running around, chasing the cat, scarfed up his bowl of food, chewing on everything he can find and did a solid hour and a hall off leash with crazy zoomies at the end. I am afraid that if i take him in right now they will pump him full of more meds that will fix nothing and cost me another $300. 

He is scheduled to go back in on Monday for Rabies vaccination and Wednesday for tooth extraction. 4 vet visits in less than a week would be too much.

I once again got him to keep his mouth open to let me inspect the molars. This time i used a flash light, looked all over and don't see any cracks. I have no idea how the vet found a crack in his tooth after looking at his half closed mouth for all of 2 seconds. I think I will stay there on Wednesday after dropping him off and wait for Xrays to be done. I don't want them to yank his teeth for no reason. While i am not familiar with canine teeth, i used to maintain dental computer systems and have seen thousands or human tooth Xrays, so I can kinda-sorta recognize problems by looking at tooth Xray. Same s*it, different shape


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

Boy, that last picture you posted sure looks painful! I'm glad it doesn't seem to be bothering him that much... I will be thinking of Dre. Poor little trooper!!  Be sure to let us know how it goes at the Vet on Monday.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

I two would give the antibiotics a chance to work before running him back. There is no reason to over medicate him.
Your vet should not have a problem showing you the crack in the molar before the tooth is extracted. Just tell them you couldn't see it and want it double checked before it is removed. That them showing you the injury would help you feel more comfortable with its extraction.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

This may sound strange but when I brush Sammy's teeth
I dab a little tea tree oil on his gums with my finger. 
He hates the taste but I was told in very small amounts tea tree oil could act as bacterial control (therefore, anti inflammatory) 

2.5 year old and I can already see see a little gingivitis setting in.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

i've been obsessing about this a little too much and consumed so much related information, that i feel i am becoming an leading authority on the topic of canine teeth 

the swelling is now down to a little bump size of a nickel. now the funny part. its not even above the broken canine or the molar, the vet claimed is cracked. it is between those 2, right above one of the premolars that just popped out a few days ago. The gum around it is definitely more swollen than on the other side. And you can clearly see (maybe not on the picture) that gun around the bloody spot has some "stretch marks" from the swelling. 

Scheduled an appointment for tomorrow afternoon to get a second opinion, but i am now starting believe there is absolutely nothing needs to be pulled and no surgery is required.


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

After reading this I checked out Chase's mouth and he had a little swelling on one side too from a tooth coming in. 

I wonder why they want to pull a cracked tooth if its likely to fall out soon. Is it dangerous to let it just fall out?


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## Capa (May 19, 2013)

I hope that you are able to find answers quickly so that he has some relief.

I'd encourage you not to do the Rabies vaccine until you have the problem resolved. The label on the bottle actual does state that it is for healthy dogs only. 

Sending healing thoughts your way.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

MilesMom said:


> I wonder why they want to pull a cracked tooth if its likely to fall out soon. Is it dangerous to let it just fall out?


Perhaps to prevent infection or prevent further infection, if indeed it is cracked. To possibly prevent complications like infecting the socket and passing pathogens into the bloodstream. 

The other explanation is too sleazy to even consider since vets are medical professionals (Santa just walked into the office).


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

So we just got back from an appointment at UC Davis Veterinary Medical Center, strangely enough, located in San Diego. I guess because UCSD does not have a veterinary school. 

Anyway, 2 different vets looked at it and came to the same conclusion as me - Nothing is cracked, except the broken tip on the canine. Swelling was caused by premolar coming out. Absolutely no reasons for concern. Both of them told me to cancel surgery appointment and not put the puppy under anesthesia and inject him with drugs for no reason whatsoever. Broken tooth should be fine until the permanent tooth pushes it out. Call them in case swelling comes back. 

Funny thing. Dre would not let them touch his mouth, but because I had my hands in there 10000 times over the weekend and he got used to it, he had no problems with me opening it, lifting up his cheeks, pressing on his gums etc., so i played a vet tech for a minute while vets were looking at it 

They inspected him all over and gave him a clean bill of health. Wheew. I am relieved. ;D


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Its so wonderful that you got a second opinion.
Looks like its time to find a new vet, and I would tell the old vet why.


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

So glad to hear that. Glad he's ok. 

A family member just got a job at UC Davis Vets, so when we transfer there we get a discount ;D Happy to hear about your good experience.


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## solefald (May 16, 2013)

MilesMom said:


> So glad to hear that. Glad he's ok.
> 
> A family member just got a job at UC Davis Vets, so when we transfer there we get a discount ;D Happy to hear about your good experience.


Ha! There was a blond girl at the front counter who said that her brother and sister in law (or other way around ;D ) have 2 Vizslas! Wait... or she said not hers, but her boyfriends... Something like that


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## MilesMom (Jun 21, 2012)

That's her!! She's our sister in law. 

Glad Dre is feeling well and found a good vet.


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## Capa (May 19, 2013)

What a relief! Glad that everything will turn out okay.


And it is a small world indeed!


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