Equine Dentistry
- Equine Dentistry or ‘Floating’:
- Power tools:
- Q and A about Equine Dentistry:
Equine Dentistry or ‘Floating’:
The practice of veterinary medicine with regards to equine dentistry has greatly evolved over the last decade. The need for routine dental care is widely accepted by most equine owners and equine veterinarians. Preventative care including vaccinations, parasite control, good husbandry (including quality feed and housing), and equine dentistry are contributing to the modern horse living longer healthier lives.
Some misconceptions with respect to equine dentistry still exist by some equine owners and practitioners. One misconception is that horses will show outward symptoms when they are in need of dental care (such as weight loss, nasal discharge, not accepting the bit, or odor). These clinical signs may lead me to begin a physical exam in the mouth, however, many infer that if their horse does not show any of these outward signs then it does not require dentistry. Unfortunately this is not the case.
Our goal at Capitol Equine is to provide a service based on preventative care. Routine, thorough equine dental exams and dental equilibration can prevent a variety of conditions and provide a healthier horse more able to perform his or her job. Dental exams should begin in the first year of life (to extract wolf teeth and attempt to correct conformational abnormalities such as a parrot mouth) and continue throughout their life.
Power tools:
The art of equine dentistry is ever evolving. One major change is from the old method of two hand floats in a bucket of water, to the use of motorized instruments. The advent of motorized equipment overwhelmed many owners and equine practitioners. Certainly, some mistakes were made. However, over the last decade a lot has been learned from other mistakes. In my opinion, motorized instruments can provide better equilibration of the equine mouth in substantially shorter time -- making it easier for not just the veterinarian but your equine companion as well. However, hand floats still have a very important roll and I tend to use a combination of both. More important than whether your horses’ mouth is floated using power tools or elbow grease and hand floats, is a thorough exam which should include the use of a speculum, picks, mirrors and a light.
Questions and Answers about Equine Dentistry:
Horses in the wild don’t get their teeth done, so why does my horse need his or hers done?
This is correct, horses in the wild also don’t get vaccinated, wormed, or have regular hoof care performed. They also live MUCH shorter lives.
How often should my horses’ teeth be floated?
This depends on your horse. Some horses may go years between floats, but this may not be because a dental shouldn’t have been performed earlier. Most horses require dental care yearly. Some can adequately be maintained every other year. However, certain horses with severe malocclusions may require biannual floats until the horses’ mouth comes into alignment. My recommendation is that your horses’ mouth be checked bi-annually with at least one of those checks including a complete speculum exam.
What is a speculum exam?
A speculum exam consists of placing an instrument in your horses’ mouth to get a better look. Unfortunately, I can’t just ask my patients to say “AHHHH”. Most horses are lightly sedated for this procedure. A light is used to visualize all the way to the back of the mouth. A mirror is used to visualize all sides of the teeth and often a pick is used to probe for recesses. Any abnormalities are charted and procedures can be performed if necessary. This should be performed yearly and is included in the ‘wellness packages’.
I have several horses, all of different ages: some just getting broke as two year olds, to the old faithfulls approaching their early 20s. I have always begun dental care in their late teens unless there was a problem. Why should I unnecessarily spend money?
This is one of the misconceptions I try to clear up for my clients. Proper dental care in young horses is just, if not more, important as it is for older horses. Human dentists don’t say to their patients, don’t worry about your kids teeth now…wait until there’s a problem or until they start falling out—we’ll deal with it then. Horses’ teeth undergo many changes early in life and continue to erupt throughout life. It is important to maintain a level grinding surface so that abnormal/uneven pressures are not exuded which can lead to certain pathologies more difficult to fix than to prevent.