Unlike humans, whose teeth grow to a certain size and remain that way forever, horses have teeth that grow continuously for the majority of a horse’s life, up until age twenty-five or thirty. While ever-growing teeth may seem impractical for humans, it is an efficient system Dentistry Hot Topics for a horse. Horses in the wild will graze most of the day, and the plants that they consume are often covered in a thin layer of dirt. This dirt and other sediment slowly wear away the teeth, usually in a fairly even manner making room for more teeth to grow in.
Unfortunately, one of the shortfalls of modern horse care is that horses have been removed from their natural conditions and are often fed types of feed that will not wear down the teeth as efficiently as the teeth were developed to.
Are there any dangers for a horse’s teeth to wear out unevenly? Occasionally these mis-worn teeth will be ground into razor sharp hooks that can cause a horse serious discomfort. Often with the help of the halter, the cheek will be pressed against the tooth where it will be sliced into repeatedly. This can be very painful for the horse and an infection might develop over time.
If left unchecked, the uneven wear could eventually lead a horse to chew in an unnatural fashion that could, in the end, lead to a tooth that simply loosens and falls out. A horse with missing teeth will aggravate the problem and lead to more serious teeth uneven wearing problems.
Without leaving your horse out to pasture for eighteen hours a day, how is a horse owner to cope? Here is where equine dentists come into play. Using a rasp, either manually or by means of a power tool, an equine dentist will “float” your horse’s teeth. The idea is that the sharp ridges and hooks that may have been created will be filed down, allowing the horse eventually to move its jaw in the correct manner and without pain.
The equine dentist will not file the horse’s teeth until they are smooth however. The horse needs some contours to its teeth for proper chewing. The teeth will be filed to roughly the same length, and if a horse’s canine tooth has grown too long, it may be filed as well. Occasionally, a tooth will be too long to be filed efficiently. When this happens, a dentist will then use a specialized tool to cut it down to size. This task especially is best left to a professional to ensure that your horse’s tooth will not shatter.
In order to detect a dental problem in your horse, simply pay attention to how the horse eats. It is time to consult a equine dentist when you find your horse salivating more often, eating slower, dropping food from their mouths or feces with large pieces Mouth Cleaner Liquid of food visible. If you are not familiar with an equine dentist in the area, your veterinarian or other local horse owners may be able to help you track one down. In actual fact, many equine veterinarians are also trained in equine dentistry.