Teeth

Prevention is better than cure

During the first nine months of life a foal will develop six upper and lower incisor teeth (grazing teeth) and six upper and lower cheek teeth (chewing teeth). These teeth are milk (deciduous) teeth and will be replaced by permanent adult teeth at specific times from approximately 2½ to 4½ years of age, and by five years of age a horse will have a full mouth of permanent teeth. These consist of six upper and lower incisors, four canines (not always but most commonly in geldings) and twelve upper and lower cheek teeth.

In addition, a small rudimentary cheek tooth (wolf tooth) is sometimes present immediately in front of the first permanent cheek tooth, more commonly in the upper jaw. This small tooth serves no function and can, in many cases, cause discomfort as it sits where the bit comes into contact with the jaw. Wolf teeth can also break or become loose - again causing a problem, so my advice is always to have them removed by your veterinary surgeon. This is a very simple job, using a mild sedative to minimise any discomfort, and takes only a few seconds. On occasion, minor gum damage may occur and your vet may wish to administer an antibiotic. Washing the gum area for a few days with salt water will also help.

Regular annual dental care is necessary because of the structure and pattern of wear of horses teeth. The grazing horse spends 12 - 14 hours of his day tearing and grinding grass and his teeth have specifically evolved in construction and shape to allow maximise efficiency for this. They are coated with extremely hard enamel to cope with the continuous grinding action. The cheek teeth are rectangular in shape and are in direct end to end contact to make a continuous ridge of solid enamel surface. To cope with the inevitable wear the teeth continue to grow into old age, when the growth declines and the teeth gradually wear down and fall out. The two grinding surfaces are the upper and lower cheek teeth on both sides of the mouth. During the grinding process the force applied is not consistently even over the entire surface i.e. the outer surface of the upper cheek teeth and the inner surface of the lower cheek teeth receive less force than other areas. This reduces the wear on these surfaces and allows the development of sharp edges or enamel spikes. These sharp edges and spikes can easily injure the soft, sensitive cheek areas especially when the bit is in the mouth and causing pressure. These spikes are normal features of a horse's mouth but must be removed by filing with specialised rasps for the horse's comfort and welfare, and for your safety when riding. If more advanced, with uneven teeth tables, they will need more specialised attention, which Parkside can provide.

On average it takes about a year for these sharp edges to redevelop and cause a problem so our annual inspection should be adequate (however, do remember that, like us, all horses are individuals!). To make a thorough examination we need to use a mouth gag that will allow both a visual and manual examination of the teeth. For safety, any examination with a gag should take place in a confined area i.e. a loose box. Even better, bring them to our new surgery, where we can box them, sedate them and examine them in a specialisd horse crush. Initial examination of the incisors is made before the mouth is opened and the gag is fitted. Most horses will co-operate willingly with this examination but, very occasionally, and probably due to some previous bad experience, a sedative is required - more so for more advanced problems and examinations.  The inside of the cheeks is examined visually for signs of damage and the general shape and condition of the enamel surfaces is noted. A manual examination of the cheek teeth is then made for any abnormalities or spikes and for the presence of wolf teeth. A dental miror, after a mouth wash, is used to check the buccal (inner) surfaces. Enamel spikes are removed by rasping and a variety of size and shape of rasp are required to reach all areas of the mouth. A straightforward rasping of spikes where no abnormalities are present will take approximately five minutes. More advanced remodelling, which can take a few visits, is done using an electric power-float with a diamond-impreganted grinding surface.

This can often be avoided by annual veterinary attention. We consider that five to ten minutes once a year can help prevent major dental problems occurring later on in life. It will also help keep your horse happy and comfortable when ridden and therefore improve safety and control for you. It makes good financial sense to combine the annual dental inspection with your horse's yearly vaccination. As a vet, dental care is a job from which we get a great deal of satisfaction - We would rather prevent a problem than have to deal with it, any day. Dental care is a vital part of a horse's health programme. Contact Parkside Equine if you have a query.

Here you can see uneven wear (and no Veterinary checks) causing a wave formation which needs to be corrected.