This is Doc.
Pippin is in the background.
This is Doc on drugs.
He is floating!
Here are Doc's molars.
They are looking good - at least that's what the equine dentist says!
The equine dentist (Nathan Goddard) smooths the sharp edges of Doc's teeth.
Both boys had their teeth floated. Pippin, who is missing two molars, has to have his teeth floated every six months. The molars on the jaw opposing the missing teeth grow too long and form 'waves'. Doc gets a routine floating every year. Today was their lucky day! They are now out in pasture happily munching the grass. This morning's traumatic event is just a bad dream.
Not many people understand the importance of floating teeth. I got my old girl Naigens teeth done every six months. She was old and was previously starved so it helped her keep her weight on.
ReplyDeleteWhy the missing teeth?
Sydney, he came with one molar missing and had one that was abscessed and had to be extracted. He didn't form cementum in the folds of his teeth so he gets cavities. Last year we had 5 filled.
ReplyDeleteYou are right that most people don't realize the importance of dental health! Nathan just gave a fabulous presentation and showed lots of teeth gone wrong!
Can you tell by looking that they need it done, or does a vet need to check? I'm a newbie.
ReplyDeleteHi Jamie, I actually have started a post with some basic information about teeth. It's not quite ready to 'go public', but should be coming in a week or so. Don't want to make you wait, so, a quick answer to your question is (according to the equine dentist I use) that no, a look won't do. Many times vets will look at the front teeth and run their hand into the jaw between the teeth and the gum to feel for sharp points. My ED says that's not adequate. He feels that at least once a year the vet (or a dentist) should use a speculum to hold the mouth open to get a good look at teeth, their wear, sharp points, etc and that they should also use a mirror to look for cavities. Yes...some horses are prone to cavities (Pippin has had them in the past.)
ReplyDeleteI talked to another vet about this and he said that paying more attention to dental health (in all species) has come to the forefront in the past 5 years or so. Another vet told me that although the focus has changed, many vet schools still don't provide the necessary training.
Glad the boys had a good checkup this time. I really like my equine dentist. In my experience, the ED has caught dental problems missed by a regular equine vet. The extra expense of the ED is worth it to me.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information!
ReplyDeleteDoes the ED sterilize his instruments after every horse? I sure hope so!
ReplyDeleteHe uses something that is recommended for sterilization of instruments.
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