Dental work in horses! how often

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Dental work in horses! how often Moderators: luluwhit, gotothewhip, cindyt, crossspur, ForumAdmin Jump to page :	Last activity 2014-01-28 9:11 AM 22 replies, 4961 views View previous thread :: View next thread
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Tys-ol-lady Reg. Nov 2012	Posted 2014-01-27 2:45 PM Subject: RE: Dental work in horses! how often
Elite Veteran Posts: 1066	mruggles - 2014-01-27 11:30 AM horses that are dry lotted and or dont get a lot of grazing time will need more dental work than a horse that has a lot of turn out grazing time........and i only get mine done every few years........ m I 100% agree with this. Our horses are all on pasture all summer, and all but the mare are on pasture in the winter when she is in a seperate pen. They all eat off the ground year round, and we get their teeth checked a couple times a year when they're in for injections, but they only require a minor touch up about once a year. We could easily get them done every other year, but figure might as well touch them up while they're out anyways. That said, my gelding spent one year at an arena in a pen where he only ate hay, and his teeth were noticably worse that year... grazing really does help keep them in good shape.
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Canchasr1 Reg. Oct 2003	Posted 2014-01-28 8:56 AM Subject: RE: Dental work in horses! how often
Special Somebody Posts: 3951 Location: Finally horseback again....	I like to start checking on dental on mine at 1 year to 18 months and then continue at least every six months until 5. Horses are constantly erupting and shedding teeth from birth to 4 1/2 years. Every thing should be in wear by 5. By starting early there are alot of things that can be corrected and problems avoided such as parrot mouths ,over jet of the incisors, protrusions from loss of baby teeth and opposing teeth not being in wear yet.... If a horse is a performance horse, I believe it is in the best interest of your pocket book to have them checked every six months at least. They will generally tell you when they need something if you have maintained them at a level they are comfortable at. It is cheap to do a refloat and the money you spend on refloat and exam will add to what you win. I have some pro horses that are brought to me every three to four months just to check and touch up. As far as just riding or pleasure horses that are on pasture, most horses from 5 to 16 or so can get by with once a year providing they are grazing and being able to maintain themselves the way nature intended. After 17-19 years old they need to be checked at least yearly due to expiring teeth, loosening or loss of teeth because as they begin to lose/ expire the opposing teeth will grow unopposed into those areas and lock up the movement of the mandible causing pain and irritation as well as difficulty eating and possible weight loss and loss, wear and loosening of other teeth. I see alot of horses that fracture and break teeth that go unnoticed until the problem is so severe and infected that it requires extreme and expensive treatment and extraction to resolve. Alot of the issues can be lessened simply by good maintainance. And as someone stated, every horse is different in the shape of the head, mouth and how they wear. With good routine maintanence, you will be able to understand how each horse wears and how long he/ she can go before they need to be refloated. Edited by Canchasr1 2014-01-28 8:58 AM
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Thistle2011 Reg. Mar 2012	Posted 2014-01-28 9:11 AM Subject: RE: Dental work in horses! how often
The BHW Book Worm Posts: 1768	angelica - 2014-01-24 3:48 PM My vet or ex-vet is money hungrey also. He wouldn't sell me heart guard for my dog unless I got blood work done on my dog every six months. I changed vets and he suggests getting a heart worm test every two years as long as you keep them on the medication. I worked for a vet in college YEARS ago and he would sell the heart guard without a second test being demanded as long as you didn't skip giving the medication to the dog. I noticed the ex-vet also sneaking $15 nail clipping onto the bill and I did not ask for them to touch her nails. Why do people have to take advantage of others so much! Before we moved to Dallas, my horse vet in Arkansas suggested doing my horses teeth ONLY if they had any sharp points. This usually showed up every TWO years. Doing a horses teeth every six months is cheating people, unless the horse is OLD and needs constant care. I actually work for a vet like this.... he is a scum ball has ran off multiple vets and some very good techs. he is CRAZY...thank goodness I only have a couple weeks left with the SOB. he will not OK anything with owners and wont release there dogs if you argue with him. he is a bully to every one. we have a boarding facility that requires 2 more vax than any kennel in the area via his preference ...one of the vax covers something that hasn't been seen in KS since 1990.. and it is not lethal. if dogs play hard in Daycare and get a scratch ...im talking not even a drop of blood he will prescribe antibiotics weather you want them or not. ....o lord help me I could go on forever... o our nail trims are 16.50 and done with super old hand clips by high school kids that just have to wing it. I cant wait till im outa there!! Edited by Thistle2011 2014-01-28 9:18 AM
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