Equine Dentistry
Why Worry About My Horse’s Teeth?
By Dr. Paula Valeria

Whether your horse is a highly skilled athlete or just a pet and companion, dental care is a critical part of its overall well-being. The teeth of horses have an extremely important role in digestion and when problems occur they can seriously affect a horse’s over-all wellness and comfort.  

Horse teeth differ significantly from human teeth.  A horse has “hypsodont” teeth which unlike the “brachydont” teeth of humans continue to erupt throughout a horse’s life.  Horses were designed to be grazers of forage year round which kept the teeth wearing properly as they erupted.  In the wild, nature selected for good teeth, as those with poor dentition were not as healthy and did not survive.

However, with domestication a lot has changed. Horses are kept on lush forages and processed feeds, spend less time grazing and are fed off the ground in feeders. Most breeders are not selecting for good dentition.  We are demanding more of our horses and are seeing horses live to much older ages. All of these changes have resulted in more problem teeth and the requirement of corrective and preventative dentistry procedures.

Signs of dental problems include the following:

• Dropping feed while eating, cudding up hay,  packing food along cheeks, or excessive salivation;
• Loss of weight or condition;
• Passing poorly digested feed particles in manure (long stems or whole grain);
• Head tilting or difficulty chewing;
• Problems with the bit including head tossing and resisting bridling;
• Performance problems such as lugging on the bridle, failing to turn or stop, or possibly rearing or bucking;
• Foul odor from mouth or nose, nasal discharge or swelling of the face or jaw; and
• Potential choke or colic.

It is important to realize that many horses show no sign of dental problems until the problems are severe.  If problems are not caught early it can make them much more difficult to treat and may make them impossible to correct.  This is why routine dental checks and preventative dentistry are so critical. 

It is recommended that most adult horses have their teeth checked yearly.  To do a thorough oral exam it is necessary to use a full mouth speculum under light standing sedation.  Often sharp points and uneven wear areas are detected.  These are ground down or floated using either a power grinder or hand floats or files.  Horses shed and replace 24 teeth between the ages of 2 and 5 so it is critical they be monitored closely during this period to make sure all the caps or baby teeth are properly shed and that the new permanent teeth are coming into proper alignment. 

Your veterinarian should be the one who performs routine dentistry exams and does equilibration or floating for your horse for several important reasons. 

1. Wisconsin state law requires animal dentistry be performed by a veterinarian or under the direct supervision of a veterinarian (with the veterinarian on the same premises). 
2. Dentistry is an integral part of the digestive and overall health of the horse, so it is important your horse’s veterinarian remain involved. 
3. There are systemic diseases that may show dental signs in their early stages (i.e.: Liver Disease can show excessive tartar build-up and Cushings Disease can show periodontal problems).  A veterinarian’s knowledge of all body systems can allow earlier detection and treatment of some disease processes.