Routine Dentistry

Horses need regular preventive dental maintenance every six months to one year. Unlike people, horses' teeth have an eruption rate of two-three mm per year. The teeth should wear in correspondence to yearly eruption rate. Malocclusions, or improper position of the teeth, can lead to many health issues and behavioral problems.

Identifying dental problems as early as possible is important. There are several factors that come into play at a young age that might increase treatment needed, or make a remedy even possible: loss of food while eating; eats hay before his grain; grain in water bucket; difficulty chewing or excess salivation; loss of body condition; large undigested food particles in manure larger than one quarter inch; head tilting or tossing; bit chewing; tongue lolling; tries to rear while bridling; fighting the bit or resisting the bridal; bucking or failing to stop or turn; foul odor from the mouth or nostrils; traces of blood in the mouth; or nasal discharge or swelling of the face. Other horses may not show noticeable signs, because they just simply adapt to their discomfort.

Dental floating is a technique to correct abnormal wear pattern associated with dental eruption. The procedure also allows sculpting of the teeth to accommodate the bit. Enamel points of the lingual and buccal surfaces are removed. Proper equipment and restraint are necessary to accurately sculpt the teeth. Traditional float blades are made of carbide chips or tungsten carbide planing blade. Although adequate, these floats are powered manually in a back and forth motion which is time consuming and sometimes traumatic to the horse. Alternatively, the power float is an electric device with a rotating abrasive wheel. The small grinding surface and small diameter handle enable difficult to reach surfaces to be more accessible than the manual float. The power float is a fast, efficient and precise means of removing points, reducing hooks, wave mouth, tall teeth, and incisor bite alignments. Most importantly, the device provides a save and less traumatic experience for the horse.

We offer reasonable pricing for routine dental floating. Prices vary for different abnormalities. The doctor will discuss costs before any additional services are rendered. Call today to set up an appointment!