I, being the hard working feline that I am, am often hand fed by my humans and do not often have to think about the use of my teeth. Your horse, however, requires roughage (hay, grass, other gross green things) in their diet which they generally need to use their teeth for. Today we are going to talk about equine dentistry and the effects it has on your horse’s well-being. 

If you’re a reader of this blog, I know you care deeply for your equine friends. You have your veterinarian out on a regular basis, vaccinate for the things they recommend, and only deworm based on fecal egg counts as directed by your veterinarian. So, who’s floating your horse’s teeth?

If it’s not also your veterinarian, keep reading. Oh–and even if it is–you should still read the rest of my blog.

What Do We Do to Horse Teeth During a “Dental”

Horse teeth are designed to grow continuously throughout the horse’s life. As the horse chews, they wear down their teeth. When the mouth is balanced, the teeth wear down in a relatively even way. Once imbalances start though, they only get worse as the grinding action occurs every day. Horses can develop imbalances–things like malocclusions, sharp enamel points, and hooks–for a variety of reasons, and yes they do develop these things “in the wild” too. Some imbalances are relatively minor and don’t prevent the horse from eating, but some cause severe oral pain and make your herbivorous friend taste blood in their mouth. 

So, when my docs go in there with their special tools, what they are doing is correcting those imbalances. My docs use tools called “power floats” which make the dentals quicker and put less strain on their overworked backs, but you may see your veterinarian use tools called “hand floats” which basically just look like metal rasps. And that is where the term “floating a horse’s teeth” comes from–just the name of the tool used! The floats are designed to be used in specific ways to safely grind down the high or sharp points on various surfaces of the teeth in order to bring things closer to being balanced. It is very possible to “over float” however, which is why a dental speculum and bright light are absolutely vital to the dental–and you can’t use those effectively without the magic word: sedation!

Sedation can only be used and administered by or under direct supervision of a veterinarian. There are lay people who claim to float horse teeth out there who use sedation but this cat knows they went under the table to get it–and that spot is reserved for me. So, sedation is used by my docs to make the horses a bit more calm and amenable to the whole process. It is a very light sedation that keeps them standing and aware, but also allows the doctor and technician to be safe while the speculum goes into the mouth and holds it open for the dental exam. 

The dental exam is one of the most vital parts of the entire procedure and is definitely not being performed by lay people claiming to be able to float teeth. The dental exam involves both visual and tactile assessment of every tooth in the horse’s mouth. The docs look for missing teeth, sharp points, oral ulcerations, tumors, extra teeth, you name it they want to find and document it. Just like doing a physical exam for vaccines helps your veterinarian know what is normal for your horse so they can more easily spot abnormal, doing dental exams every year allows them to track progression of any imbalances or abnormalities your particular horse has.

How Often Should Dentals Happen?

For most horses, my docs recommend a dental exam and float once per year. Exams should start within the first few years of life and often there are already mild sharp points that my docs take down quickly with their power float. Starting dentals early helps find any issues your horse was born with so they can be managed over time. It also helps young horses get used to the sedation of the speculum and the noise of the float in their mouth, which will make them better patients for the next visit.

Regular dental work by a veterinarian can help prevent pain and discomfort, improve chewing ability so they get more out of each piece of food, and can even improve behavior and comfort while working. Sometimes my docs will recommend twice yearly dental work for young horses with pre-set imbalances so we can set them up for success in later life, and very often my docs will recommend twice yearly dental care for older horses who teeth are starting to “expire.” 

Don’t worry, I’m not going to go Tim Burton on you, by expire I just mean teeth that are so worn down they are not very effective at grinding anymore. If a horse lives long enough, this will happen, and it takes a skilled hand to manage the teeth around that one, especially the one directly across the mouth from it. Remember how I said at the beginning that the teeth are designed to grow for the entire life? Well, if one expires, the one opposite on it on the upper or lower jaw will often keep growing, and growing, and growing…

For horses that don’t get regular veterinary dental care, this leads to the sensation of having a giant pillar in their mouth that they can’t quite chew around, and will often make them less likely to eat. If my docs meet an older horse who isn’t keeping weight on or isn’t eating well, one of their first steps will be a dental exam and likely floating the teeth!

Take Home Points

What this cat wants you to know is this: all of your horses should have dental care performed with sedation by their veterinarian at least once per year. 

It doesn’t matter what a lay person tells you about how “skilled” or “specialized” they are in equine dentistry, they are not qualified to appropriately manage your horse’s teeth.

A horse’s teeth are vital to their digestion of nutrients. Most horses eat hay or grass as the majority of their diet. This is known as roughage because the plant fibers need to be broken down by the grinding action of the teeth. This is why older horses that have expired teeth should switch to a complete or “senior” feed. Senior feeds have the roughage component in them already ground down, essentially doing the work of the teeth prior to entering the horse’s mouth! 

Well, I hope that gives you some perspective on equine dentistry. If you have any follow up questions my docs are always happy to answer, just give the clinic a call or talk to them at your horse’s next wellness appointment!

Until next week,

~Tony

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As you all know, my docs and techs have been doing some traveling this time of year to different continuing education seminars. But did you know, this is a requirement for my docs? They have to go for 30 hours of continuing education every 2 years to stay up to date to the most recent research and talk to other docs about all things equine. They happily oblige as they usually get to go somewhere different, catch up with old friends and colleagues, and learn some pretty neat stuff to bring back to all you lovely folks.

A couple weeks ago, Dr. Abbott went jet setting off to the frigid tundra that is Wisconsin. They asked me to go, but I don’t leave the comfort of my Florida warmth. Since Dr. Abbott has been back, all I have heard about is teeth this and teeth that. Goodness, who cares about teeth that much? I am sure I could eat my canned food just fine even if I did not have any teeth. In fact, I bet I could eat it even faster! Nonetheless, the docs all seem to think your horse’s teeth are pretty important and now they expect me to teach you all about them.

Unlike the superior species that is the cat, horses have hypsodont teeth. This means that their teeth continue to erupt after forming and will do so for most of the horse’s life. This also means that the length of their teeth is limited and therefore so is the lifespan of their teeth. Why is this important, you ask? Well, since their teeth are continuously erupting, this means they are also continuously developing wear patterns as they grind their feed. Horses eat even more than I do, so that’s a lot of wear.

Oral Examination

Horses grind their feed in a circular pattern, and they have the tendency to develop dental problems as they age.  You all have heard about floating horse’s teeth and the importance of the yearly dental. But did you know the bigger part of the yearly dental is actually the oral exam? This is why it’s so important to have your horse’s teeth examined at least yearly by a licensed veterinarian. Luckily, you have my docs at your fingertips. When you call to have a dental performed on your horse, one of my docs will come out and do a thorough physical examination on your horse to make sure he is healthy for sedation. Then they will sedate your horse, place a speculum, and open your horse’s mouth. One of my techs will then place your horse’s head in a head loop and my docs will go to work.

First, they will shine a bright light in your horse’s mouth (and likely in their tech’s eyes, but not on purpose, of course) to inspect all of your horse’s teeth for any abnormalities, including cavities, open roots, fractures, and any other dental problems horses can have. They will also use a mirror or camera to look at the very back of your horse’s mouth and they will probe any areas of concern.  While performing the oral examination they are also looking for any evidence of ulceration, foreign material and abnormalities in the wear of your horse’s teeth.

The Float

Since you all have your horses signed up on my wellness plans, you have been through this process before. But for you slackers out there, I will explain what happens during the dental float. Once my docs have assessed your horse’s mouth and made note of any problem areas, they will grab their float and get to work. During this time, they file down any sharp points that may be causing discomfort to your horse’s soft tissue. They also make sure that your horse’s teeth line up appropriately so they can continue to chew efficiently.

Horses often have conformational challenges that cause their teeth to wear incorrectly, where some teeth grow longer than others or sharp points called hooks develop. Most of the time my docs can correct abnormalities in one float, but sometimes they can’t make full corrections without compromising the integrity of your horse’s tooth. At this point they will likely suggest that your horse be seen again in 4-6 months to continue addressing the abnormality. Most often, however, they will recommend another dental examination with float in 1 year.

Radiographs

One of the best diagnostic tools my docs have on hand is the x-ray machine. Radiographs are great if your horse has nasal discharge, a foul odor from his mouth, or if your horse has been involved in any kind of trauma. If, during your horse’s oral examination, my docs find any concerning areas such as an open root, a fracture, or severe gingivitis, it is likely they will recommend dental radiographs. When my docs take radiographs, they will be able to look at the roots of your horse’s teeth to determine if there is an infection or abscess, if there is a tooth root fracture, and/or if any of your horse’s teeth need to be extracted. As horses age their tooth root becomes shorter and shorter and it is never a bad idea for my docs to shoot some radiographs of your older horse to assess how much tooth root remains and so they can take any preventative measures to maintain what teeth are left. Lucky for you, I had the bright idea to offer a dental radiograph package, so call the girls in the office for more information.

Incisors

During the final part of your horse’s dental examination and float my docs will look at the front teeth, or incisors. They will check for any abnormalities, overbite, underbite, non-viable teeth or disease, or other conformational changes. At times they may recommend radiographs of the incisors or floating of the enamel points to adjust their bite.  They will also remove any excess calculus that may be on your horse’s canines. For some reason, the docs and techs find this to be the best part of the dental. I, however, find it disgusting.  Either way, it is an important part of the dental as calculus build up can lead to gingivitis and other oral diseases.

You all go to the dentist every year, and you would not let your children skip the dentist, so don’t let your horse skip their yearly dental. Having a thorough oral examination and dental float performed will help keep your horse in tip top shape and prevent the spread of disease, weight loss, and keep them happy and healthy for years to come.

If you desire more information regarding your horse’s teeth and dental requirements, I expect to see you at my open house this Saturday, October 19th from 10am-2pm. Dr. Abbott will be doing a live dental demonstration including the oral examination and floating of sharp enamel points. If you don’t have any questions about dentals, that’s ok, I still expect to see you at the open house. You can pet me, you can get a signed copy of the best-selling book in the horse world, and you can be entered to win a free wellness plan! It’s a triple bonus.

Until next week,

~Tony