Dental Services
The Oral Exam
Every visit begins with an oral exam. This is an opportunity to assess your horse’s overall dental health. Following a brief physical exam, all patients receive an appropriate amount of sedation to facilitate a safe, comfortable, stress-free dental experience. A horse’s health status, age, temperament and comfort are always taken into consideration before sedation is administered. A full mouth dental speculum is applied to hold your horse’s mouth open safely, therefore allowing good visibility during the exam and float. Most horses recover fully from sedation within an hour following administration.
* A current rabies vaccine (or proof of a recent rabies blood antibody titre) is required for this service. A tetanus vaccine is strongly recommended
Dental Floating
The term, “floating” is a laymen’s term adapted from the masonry industry, where a surface is made smooth by “floating” it with a special tool. In horses, performing a dental float aims to reduce or “smooth” the excessive enamel points formed on the outside of the upper and inside of the lower dental arcades. Horses rely upon a figure 8, lateral grinding motion to chew their course fiber diet. This type of chewing motion causes an uneven wear pattern on their teeth, creating these dental points. In our practice, following a sedated oral exam, a motorized, diamond burr float is used to gently and safely reduce those portions of a horse’s teeth which may be causing an obstruction to normal grind and/or creating soft tissue trauma. This tool is safe and efficient when used by a trained medical professional. Water is used frequently to rinse the mouth before, during, and after the procedure. This protects the teeth from excessive heat damage and dust build-up in and around the oral cavity. The goal of floating is to maintain the quality of the horse’s chewing ability, their “grind”, with appropriate dental occlusion between the upper and lower jaws. Most horses require a float just once a year. However, some may have different dental care needs depending on their life stage, performance discipline or dental disease status.
Uncomplicated Cheek Tooth Extraction
Occasionally on oral exam, a loose tooth and/or loose, fractured tooth fragment is discovered. This condition is a likely cause of discomfort for horses, especially affecting their ability to chew. Our practice is equipped to extract diseased and/or loose teeth in some instances. However, appropriate referral to a veterinary dental specialist would be recommended when the dental disease is advanced and a risk of complications due to extraction is present.
Wolf Tooth Extraction
Horses may have 0-4 “wolf teeth”, identified as vestigial first premolars. These teeth usually erupt between 5-12 months of age, but their presence and size can vary. They have the potential to bother a horse as the bit contacts them, especially if these small teeth become loose or are “blind”, existing non-erupted below the gum surface. Therefore, removing wolf teeth is common practice to avoid interference with the bit once training begins. Removal is usually straightforward, performed under standing sedation with local anesthetic around the tooth to facilitate extraction. This procedure is best done on young horses under the age of 4 yr.
The following are symptoms of dental disease and oral discomfort:
Decreased appetite or not finishing usual amounts of food
Dropping feed or spitting out partially chewed pieces of hay
Abnormal head position when eating
A foul odor coming from the mouth or nose
Nasal discharge
Excessive drooling
Head shaking
Being Head shy
Difficulty accepting the bit
Abnormal swelling on the face or jaw
Decreased performance under saddle
