Welcome! Equine Dental Exams

Welcome to Equine Connection, a blog for horse lovers! I'll be updating this occasionally with topics of interest for horse lovers dedicated to the physical, emotional and mental well-being of our equine friends.

The topic of this post, dental health, seems to have been chosen for me by the forces that be. First of all, today was my horse Cowboy's annual dental exam so of course the subject was on my mind. Then I got a notice that there was a webinar on dental health sponsored by The Horse.com, which was quite informative. And an issue regarding a consequence of not tending to your horse's teeth was highlighted on an Animal Planet episode--more on that later. So three incidents relating to this subject in three days seemed to point to this being the topic of the first post of this blog.

I'm not a veterinarian or even any type of horse professional, but I am a concerned horse owner and take an active interest in my horse's well-being. So this is purely from a layman's perspective but I hope that makes it easy for the average horseperson to relate to.

Why is it important to tend to your horse's teeth? Lots of reasons, most of which horse people are familiar with and that relate to comfort, overall health and safety.

-Sharp points on a horse's teeth cause pain for the horse, and removing these points is part of the dental appointment.

-Misalignments make it difficult for the horse to chew, causing unthriftiness. Not good for the horse's health, and also not good for your feed bill.

-Related to this, the inability to properly chew their food can lead to impaction colic and choke

-An exam will identify cracked, broken or loose teeth that need attention and possibly extraction

-An exam will also identify any abcesses, tumors or sores in the horse's mouth that need treatment

-Treating all these conditions will extend the horse's life and contribute to their comfort and well-being

How is an exam conducted? One question is whether or not the horse should be sedated. Cowboy has always been sedated for his exams and I can't imagine being able to do an effective exam on him without it. One of the veterinarians from theHorse.com webinar said that she had been quite proud of her ability to perform dentals without sedating the horse until she had the opportunity to examine a horse's mouth while it was under sedation, immediately after performing the dental maintenance before it was sedated. She was quite surprised by what had been missed and now recommends sedation for 99.9% of the horses she treats. This is a pretty invasive procedure from the horse's point of view, and sedation makes the whole process more comfortable for the horse and safer for the equine dentist.

So typically, the horse will be sedated, and after a preliminary exam, a speculum will be used to keep its mouth open and stable. Then the dentist will check the mouth out for any of the problems mentioned above, and perform corrective procedures as necessary. This can include grinding down points and correcting misalignments. Usually power tools do most of the heavy work, followed up by hand tools for fine tuning. Not all dentists use power tools, but they make the work go much faster and aid in accuracy. Since the horse is, as mentioned, usually sedated, speed is important since it allows the horse to be sedated for a shorter time. Water cooling may be used for the tools, depending on the type of tool  used and how much heat it generates. Some dentists also use a vacuum system for the dust generated. Horses don't breathe through their mouths, so only the dust that reaches their nostrils is an issue--it may be more of an issue for the dentist!



Cowboy with a speculum



Once the procedure is done, the horse should be watched until the sedation wears off. They may be a bit sore afterward and often are give Bute. They should be eating normally the same day.

What are some signs that your horse is in need of dental attention? Some are obvious, such as dropping food or losing weight or showing obvious discomfort in their mouth. Other problems that aren't as obviously connected to teeth are gait abnormalities, odd head positions, problems that may seem like bit issues, or behavioral problems. Which leads me to the Animal Planet spot I mentioned above.

The episode was highlighting rodeo accidents and was about a young woman embarking on a professional barrel racing career. She was about to make the run that would determine whether she would qualify as a pro. Her mare was, untypically, acting up before the run, but there was a lot at stake and the rider decided that it was a behavioral issue that she could deal with. The video clip showed a frantic horse entering the arena at high speed, oblivious to the barrels and the task at hand and focused on escaping some sort of torment. As she was out of control, the rider tried to stop her by pulling more and more on the reins, apparently causing the horse more and more distress until she finally went into bucking and then reared straight up and went over backwards, landing on the rider. The rider took the saddle horn full on the forehead, essentially ripping off the top half of her face. The horse popped up, with the rider's foot caught in the stirrup, and began dragging her.

Fortunately, the rider was able to stop the horse with voice commands (!) and free her foot. After 400 stitches and numerous surgeries, she is recovered and miraculously not disfigured. What was the cause of the horse's behavior? A sharp point on one tooth causing pain aggravated by bit contact.

I can think of a couple things wrong with this picture. Of course, it seems like this severe a dental problem would have been causing issues before it got to this point and should have been addressed earlier. The other thing is a basic rule of horse safety--if a horse doesn't appear to be safe to ride, DON"T GET ON IT! If it doesn't seem safe to ride, it probably isn't. I've certainly found this out the hard, fortunately with minor consequences. It's easy to ignore the signs if you have something you want to accomplish on horseback, or if you're worried about being seen as a wimp, but better to take the time to deal with the issue on the ground than to get hurt.

That wraps up Post 1 of the Equine Connection. Hope there useful information that will keep your adventures with your equine buddy safe to be safe and happy.