Dental

With over 1,000 horses seen for routine or extensive dental work, equine dentistry has been a very large portion of our caseload in the practice, where we utilize the latest and best equipment from Powerfloat.

Dentistry is an integral part of the performance of the show horse; important for promoting proper gastro-intestinal health and keeping the horse in good physical condition. Dental health also affects how the horse interacts with bit contact, and how it frames itself in collection. It affects comfort during riding, as well as the development of oral vices.

Good dental health has greatly prolonged the lifespan and comfort of trained horses as compared to wild horse populations. In no uncertain terms, dental care is a must for our equine patients, as it plays a critical role in both health and performance, and is as important to the young show horse as it is to the geriatric horse in your pasture.

Horses have hypsodont teeth, meaning that their teeth are continuously erupting. They get worn down through chewing, but aren’t always worn away evenly. This is where dental floats play an important role. At HVS, we perform both routine and complex dental procedures in clinic as well as on farm. It is important to note that for on farm appointments, an overhead beam or stocks with an overhead is required to keep the horse’s head elevated during the procedure.

When does your horse need dental care?

• Young horses should be checked before going into training. Wolf teeth (the small tooth in front of premolars) should be removed as they can interfere with the bit, and caps (baby teeth) may need to be removed for comfort as the adult teeth grow in.
• Older horses are prone to loose teeth and tooth loss. It is important to regularly check their teeth to keep them comfortable, and to also determine the best diet to keep them at a healthy weight.
• Issues like fighting the bit, dropping feed, weight loss, finding larger pieces of forage in feces, or seeing quid balls (small balls of partially chewed forage around where the horse is eating), are all signs of your horse needing dental care.
• It is recommended to get a dental check done before going into training and/or heavy use. Typically, dentals are done once a year for the performance horse, and every 2-3 years for others.