Dentistry

At Dalehead we are able to provide a full spectrum of dental care for your horse, from routine rasping to surgical correction of serious dental problems. Out team of equine vets are all experienced and well equipped, with modern hand tools and also the power ‘dremmel’ for correction of larger dental overgrowths. We are of course also able to sedate more fractious patients to facilitate a safe procedure for both horse and humans alike.

Horse’s teeth are unlike human teeth, as they grow  or ‘erupt’ continually throughout the horse’s life, to replace tooth worn away by the grinding of the huge quantities of roughage required every year. A young horse has several inches of ‘spare’ root below the gum (referred to as ‘reserve crown’), which is continually pushed up through the gum surface to replace the ground-away tooth. By the time the horse is in its late teens or twenties there is very little reserve crown left and eventually the tooth falls out.

The anatomy of a horse’s jaws is such that the lower jaw is narrower than the upper jaw. This means that the teeth do not wear completely evenly, instead the inside edges of the lower jaw, and the outside edges of the upper jaw develop sharp edges.

Young Horses

Young horse’s teeth erupt especially quickly, which can result in very sharp edges – ‘enamel points’, and painful cheek ulceration, just at the time when they are being broken and are learning to accept the bit. The bit rings sit right against the cheek adjacent to these enamel points causing discomfort. Additionally, many horses are developing ‘wolf teeth’ at this point, which can interfere with bitting. Young horses (up to 6 or 7 years of age) should ideally have their teeth checked every 6 months.

Old Horses

As the teeth wear down they often loosen, shift or fall out. Gaps between the teeth (diastemas) can be especially painful when food material packs tightly in them, pushing into the gum. Because the remaining teeth will continue to grow, gaps caused by missing teeth can be a real problem – overgrowth of the opposing teeth which are no longer being ground away by their opposite number can create large step-like overgrowths, which may require power rasping to correct.