Dental health and jaw movement is so incredibly vital to the rest of body functionality, mobility, locomotion and psychological health of the horse. The links between the two are endless....
Thanks to Dr Alexandra Rees & Gabby from #dentalvet for coming out to check over my herd today!
The usual and expected finds were present in all of them.
Rosie who had her first Dental under my care #exracehorse was also predictable with remineralizing old caries (dental decay) growing out, sharp edges/hooks, but also unfortunately a frustrating find of her Wolf Teeth having been rasped previously down to gum level. Unfortunately, this doesn’t remove the issue of the bit making uncomfortable contact with the tooth, (with now also potentially sensitive dentin exposed could make it much more uncomfortable!) and leaves the edges of the tooth now a potentially sharp edge. You can see it was not a 'tidy' job....This really, in reality just creates more issues, and puts the horse at risk of prolonged pain, and infection risk.
When they have been rasped down, they are much harder to remove as the portion of the tooth which is normally above the gum was no longer present.
Yet another strong reason for routine equine dentistry to be undertaken by a Professional with
1. The equipment to correctly visualize the entire mouth
2. The training to recognize and correctly manage issues
3. And incredibly importantly, the correct use of, and access to sedatives and pain relief...
Oh! and, the added bonus of using a highly qualified equine professional is the extra checks that happen - it turn out Rosie has a Grade 3 Heart Murmur which allows me the opportunity to make exercise relative choices for her future.
@ Dental Vet
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