Equine Dentistry

 

 

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! The importance of regular oral examinations and floating is difficult to overstate and more and more horse owners are realizing the value in proper dental care for their horses. Minor problems which could evolve into significant dental abnormalities can be detected and corrected. Additionally, performance problems caused by soft tissue injury from contact with sharp teeth can be eliminated. Dental exams are performed appropriately using a full mouth speculum and should be performed at least once annually. Often times, a horse will appear fine and thus dental examination is neglected until a problem is noticed. At this point, treatment may involve extensive (and sometimes expensive) dental work, medical and / or surgical intervention for correction. We recommend that all horses beginning at two years of age have their mouths examined by a veterinarian at least once annually.

Our veterinarians have undertaken postgraduate training in equine dentistry and have invested in modern equipment to ensure a high standard of dental care for all our patients. In April of 2000, Avon Animal Hospital also hosted a continuing education equine dentistry wet lab as part of the Atlantic Provinces Veterinary Conference. The lab was taught by Dr. Jack Easley of Versailles, KY.  Dr. Easley is know worldwide for his expertise in equine dentistry.

Signs a horse is suffering from dental problems

  • Poor weight gain

  • Weight loss

  • Dribbling food from the mouth while eating ("Quidding")

  • Drooling

  • Takes longer to eat

  • Reluctance to eat or drink water

  • Solid food & fibers in feces

  • Odd head posture during feeding

  • Head shaking

  • Abnormal head carriage when being ridden

  • Lunging in or out on the track

  • Fighting the bit

  • Resents tightening of the noseband

  • Dorsal displacement of the soft palate in performance horses

  • Chronic Colic

  • Choke

  • Bad breath

  • Sores in the mouth and on the tongue

  • Facial swelling

  • Chronic Nasal Discharge (usually on one side)

The horse is a herbivore and uses its massive molar teeth in a side to side grinding motion to break down hay, grass, forage and other materials into a more easily digested pulp. In the process of domestication, we have changed the diet of horses to include more concentrates which must be eaten using an up down motion of the jaw verses side to side. In turn, horses do not wear their teeth as well, and regularly develop sharp points on their teeth. More on sharp enamel point below.

The orange dot has been placed on the fifth cheek tooth of the upper arcade. In the young horse, molars have extensive roots (4-5" long) that extend upward and fill the sinus cavities. As the horse ages, the molars are continuously erupting into the mouth, until the tooth roots take up very little space in the sinuses. For the older horse, this means there is very little anchoring the molars in place predisposing them to loose and missing teeth, tooth root infections and sinusitis.  The young horse in the photo to the left has a lump on the bottom jaw where a large tooth root has developed. These lumps usually  resolve in time as the tooth erupts into the mouth. However, these lumps can also indicate inappropriate retention of a molar cap trapped between two adjacent molars.

The upper jaw has a row of molars on either side. The upper jaw is wider than the lower jaw, so it is normal for the outside edges of these teeth to become sharp and pointed. It is usually the outside (buccal) surface of the upper molar and the inside (lingual) edges of the lower molars that require rasping, often called "floating".  These sharp enamel points develop especially fast in young horse whose tooth enamel is softer.

Failure to ensure good dental health can result in signs such as slow eating, inappetance, quidding, bad breath, oral ulceration and weight loss. Long undigested fibers and grain in the feces can indicate dental disease. Sharp hooks in the front on the first cheek teeth and in the back of the mouth on the last molars can also result in problems with chewing, the bit or head shaking.

Careful palpation of the cheeks will sometimes reveal sharp edges or irregularities, but there are a number of other abnormalities that can occur. Owners should NEVER try to feel inside the gums themselves. This is extremely dangerous. A full mouth speculum is used in most horses with a safe short acting mild sedative to enable a detailed dental examination. This picture illustrates the use of a full mouth speculum on a happily sedated horse. The mouth has been rinsed and the veterinarian is about to examine each tooth visually with a light source and manually with his/her hands. This technique allows for a thorough examination of all dental surfaces, the tongue and cheeks of the horse.  No guess work is involved.

 

There is a bewildering array of dental rasps for horses teeth. The three basic types that we most often used are illustrated here. The upper most rasp is used on the first and second cheek teeth of the upper arcade. The middle rasp is used on the inside surface of the lower cheek teeth and the back molars of the upper arcade. The bottom rasp is used to remove hooks from the caudal molars.

Sometimes teeth can become so rotten and diseased that they have to be removed. In the horse this can means surgery under general anesthesia to extract the affected tooth. Remember how long the roots can be (4-5") embedded in the sinus cavity! For example: Try uprooting a tree with a pair of pliers. In older horses with shorter roots, the teeth are often loose, and can sometimes be removed orally while the horse is just sedated.   These rotten teeth were severely ulcerating the gums of the horse concerned.

Large extractors are used to gradually loosen the tooth in its socket until it can be removed. Heavy sedation is required and antibiotic therapy, and tetanus vaccination is essential.

 

 

 

What we look for during an oral examination

  • Discrepancy between reported age and actual age as determined by dentition

  • Parrot Mouth

  • Blind Wolf Teeth (erupt sideways under the gumline)

  • Broken or Loose Teeth

  • Halitosis (Bad breath)

  • Ulceration of the Gums and Tongue (may be from sharp points or a sign of systemic disease)

  • Sharp Enamel Points

  • Malocclusion

  • Retained Deciduous Premolars (Caps)

  • Retained Deciduous Incisor Teeth

  • Supernumerary Incisors

  • Hooks, Ramps and Beaks

  • Tall or Long Teeth

  • Wave or Step Mouth

  • Tall or Sharp Canine Teeth

  • Absence of Lateral Excursion

A dental record is kept for each horse with results of each oral examination

Wolf Teeth

Most horses (male & female) develop "wolf teeth", these are in fact the first premolars. When present, they are located between the canine tooth and the first visible upper molar, where the bit lays. They often appear to be a part of this molar. In some horses, these small teeth will cause discomfort when a bit is worked in the mouth. Wolf teeth are easily extracted under sedation. This procedure is relatively simple, but should be performed only by a veterinarian.

The age of the horse is always taken into consideration, as different conditions should be addressed in each stage of the horse's growth, development and maturity.

Old Horses

Although some old horses have relatively good teeth, and for them only routine floating and minor incisor adjustments are indicated, horses 20 years and older frequently have severe wave mouth and incisor abnormalities. Incisors may become extremely long (hence the expression "long in the tooth") that the molars fail to meet making the breakdown or grinding of ood material difficult to impossible. Because the crown of the cheek teeth is also greatly reduced in the older horse (with no or little root left), these teeth often become loose and fall out. Loose mandibular teeth and loose root fragments are best extracted and sharp edges floated. These horses need to be maintained on some form of pelleted feed. Several feed companies have pelleted feed especially formulated for old horses. Soaking pellets and alfalfa cubes in a bathtub (for example) is also adequate. The bathtub can then be used as the feeder. Loose maxillary molars may lead to infection up in the sinuses. Help prolong the years of an old horse's life with proper dental care.

Young Horses

We generally suggest dental examination and care as early as 2 years in most horses and earlier when problems are suspected. This examination generally involves checking for congenital defects, dental malocclusion, appropriate eruption of incisors, wolf teeth eruption, wolf teeth removal,  retained premolar caps in the 3-5 year old, and floating of any sharp enamel points hooks or sharp edges. Young horses will actually get sharp edges faster than older horses due to  softer enamel.

Middle Aged (5 - 20) & Performance Horses

By this time all permanent incisors and molars should be erupted and in wear. Annual examination focuses on examinination and care and/or correction of loose and broken teeth, hooks, uneven wear, sharp enamel points and tartar build up. Dental age and any evidence of vices (ie. wood chewing) is also noted. The horse's use can play a part in whether bitting has to be considered a factor in the horse's dental care, as special "bit seats" can be created, or rounding of the second premolars in order to increase comfort.

Who is an Equine Dentist?

In Canada, only qualified veterinarians and certified animal health technicians (under direct supervision of a veterinarian)  can legally act as "equine dentists". For the safety of the animal, treatment by any other person is against the law. Unfortunately, in the past, equine dentistry was a neglected area of veterinary medicine, and thus, individuals calling themselves "equine dentists" started floating teeth, performing dental procedures, and attempting to treat dental problems without proper training, license to dispense pharmaceuticals, or anatomical knowledge. The possession and administration of sedative, antibiotic, anti-inflammatory drugs or any pharmaceutical by these persons poses a potential threat to your horse and is illegal. Example: One small dose of sedative administered inadvertently into the carotid artery (which lay adjacent to the jugular vein - a common injection site for intravenous drugs) can instantly cause convulsions and death. Lay "dentists" have no professional insurance, so if a problem occurs, neither you nor your horse will have coverage. In addition, the use of an unqualified person to treat your animal may invalidate your own insurance coverage should future treatment be required. You wouldn't dream of letting someone with no training work on your own teeth, so why do it to your horse!

Dos and Don'ts of Equine Dental Health.

  1. Do ensure a yearly dental health check for your horse beginning at 2-3 years of age.

  2. Do use a properly qualified person, this should be a Veterinarian.

  3. Do check your horse's mouth for sores and palpate the cheeks for any sharp points.

  4. Do check your feed troughs and hay nets for stones or other foreign material that can chip your horse's teeth.

  5. Don't ignore the telltale signs of  dental problems

  6. Don't stick your fingers in your horse's mouth - as serious and painful injury may result!

 

AAEP's Guide for Determining the Age of the Horse

An updated edition of the AAEP's popular "Guide for Determining the Age of the Horse" is now available. Age is important in determining the economic value of a horse, and the guide includes full-color photographs that document the tooth-aging process in the horse ages one week through twenty years. To purchase your copy for $20 (includes shipping), contact the AAEP office at (859) 233-0147.

This booklet contains 39 pages.
Here are some sample pages - please click on an image to view larger.
NOTE: You may have to scroll the large image down to see complete text.

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Dental Examination

Is It Possible to Age Horses Accurately?

(M.T. Martin, W.L. Scrutchfield, J.R. Joyce, Matthew Martin, Members AAEP)

Bits, Bitting and Dentistry

Learn to Recognize Your Horse’s Dental Problems

The Importance of Maintaining the Health of Your Horse's Mouth

Understanding Your Horse's Teeth

Equine Dental Care Is More Than Just Floating

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