What
Is So Important About Horse Teeth – Doc?
by Larry Kimberlin, D.V.M.
I
get this question asked to me daily by horse owners. It usually occurs
right after they have described some problem to me that they think
is a behavior or gastrointestinal problem and I ask when they last
had the teeth checked. I will admit that equine dentists think that
all problems that horses have are related to their teeth, but most
equine enthusiasts are unaware how important the role that the horse’s
mouth and teeth play in their performance and wellness.
Equine
dentistry is hot topic these days. This has come about because the
veterinary community has realized in the past few years how important
this area plays in the overall health of the animal. The area of dentistry
has advanced by leaps and bounds due to better equipment, such as
motorized power equipment, and the full mouth speculum. There are
more young people becoming interested in going into the field and
much more research is been done in this field. The American Veterinary
Dental Academy now recognizes the importance of this field and has
devoted a specific area of expertise as an equine track for the academy.
If
you have never looked in your horses mouth – you should. There
will be a whole new world open up to you. If you haven’t had
a dentist look in your horses mouth – get he or she to show
you around in there.
The
equine has teeth that are very different from our teeth. They are
termed hypsodont teeth - which means “ long crowned”.
These teeth continually erupt throughout the life of the horse - as
they are worn down from grinding forage. They do not actually grow.
They eventually wear out or “expire”, but it seems they
are growing as there is more tooth erupting into the mouth at about
3-6 mm per year. These teeth were designed for grazing. The wild horse
will graze for about 16 hours per day. This type of feeding promotes
even wear of teeth. Domestication of the horse makes it necessary
to keep them in stalls and feed them processed grains and hay. These
husbandry practices cause accelerated wear and pathology to the teeth.
There are similar findings in colic-wild horses and pastured horses
colic very infrequently when compared to stalled and grain fed working
horses – is this stress, diet, dental? There is not a single
answer to this problem – but a combination of things that contribute.
Horse
teeth and human are made up of the same type of tissue –enamel
, cementum, and dentin etc. But the actual arrangement of these tissues
differ. The architecture and structure account for more wear in the
horse. The teeth will often wear unevenly. The lower jaw (mandible)
is about 30% narrower than the upper jaw (maxilla). Everyone has watched
a horse chew its characteristic figure eight pattern. These features
cause the teeth to wear at angles and develop sharp edges or “points”
when the horse chews. These points can be razor sharp and cause lacerations
and sores on the cheek and tongue. These points are removed when horses
are “floated”.
There
are many symptoms of dental disease in the horse – these can
include:
- Foul
breath
-
Dropping of grain
- Taking
extended time to eat
- Weight
loss
-
Head tossing
-
Resisting the bit
- Failure
to take leads
-
Chewing problems
-
Swelling in the jaws
-
Quidding
- Large
stems in stools
The
horse is a spectacular athlete. It moves a half ton of body weight
at high speeds and can stop and turn on a dime. It accomplishes by
using the head as a gyroscope. Ever wonder why so much attention is
paid by trainers, and professional riders to where and how the head
is carried ? When you ride a horse you steer it by the head - using
a bit. If the horse has pain or uneven pressure in the mouth caused
by unequilibrated bite or diseased teeth – it cannot function
properly. Have you ever had a tooth ache? It is very hard to concentrate
on anything else until it is resolved.
There
are thousands of horses taken to auctions and slaughter plants each
year because of dental problems that were thought to be behavior or
other health problems.
Every
horse needs dental care every year of its life to maintain balance
and function. Depending on age, breed and use and individual anatomy
this may only mean yearly routine floating or it could require twice
yearly equilibration for some horses.
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