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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
   
Location: Phoenix | I agree, y'all are over reacting. I understand the concern, but geezus jump down her throat why don't you? I think it would be neat to learn what to look for and how to relieve temporary pain. |
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  Fact Checker
Posts: 16572
Location: Displaced Iowegian | MeepMeep - 2015-04-28 8:50 AM FLITASTIC - 2015-04-28 8:45 AM While I do agree that professionals are probably best to handle this, I am surprised at how harsh some of you have been on the subject. I need to read origional post again in case I missed something but the poster was just asking for advice on floating their own horse's teeth. I really didn't feel it was worthy of " Wow, just wow" or  these emoticons. I castrate all my own stud colts, dogs, and cats I have ever had. Is that a " Wow" moment to? Yea Just read the origional post. Just asking if they could take some rough edges off, if it was possible. Certainly not wanting to start an equine dentistry practice or something. lol 
^^^^ Agreed......All I am going to say is WOW....oh..... WOW........my husband has done our horses for over 40+ years with NO serious problems.......and he shod all of our horses too...... |
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 A very grounded girl
Posts: 5052
Location: Moving soon..... | I don't think anyone was harsh, but giving an opinion, which was asked for. With that being said, would you go to have your teeth worked on by anyone but a licensed dentist? |
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 Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | Next time we all need to say good luck.... sure try it.
if you do it Id get some help.. and also thats why they have training and vets etc... to do them but it can cause damage that can take months to correct.. . |
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 Thread Killer
Posts: 7543
| Is it REALLY that hard to tell the difference between an honest, straight to the point opinion and needless snark? Yes, apparently it is. "TROOLLLL" "LOL WOOOW" "IS THIS FOR REAL?" Yes, indeed, how helpful and wise!
I'm pretty sure we all agree that leaving dental work to the pros is the best option. No one is defending the desire to have a DIY floating session. People are simply calling others out on the usual bullspit. COME ON. |
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Member
Posts: 30
| I agree you should get a professional to do teeth. But as the daughter of a vet, I do get frustrated with blanket statements that "vets don't do as good job/or detailed job" as an equine dentist. Just like anything else there are some that are better than others. A vet has had many years of school/training in medicine and anatomy. Depending on their focus, some are better dentists. |
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 You get what you give
Posts: 13030
Location: Texas | hlc84 - 2015-04-28 1:51 PM
I agree you should get a professional to do teeth. But as the daughter of a vet, I do get frustrated with blanket statements that "vets don't do as good job/or detailed job" as an equine dentist. Just like anything else there are some that are better than others. A vet has had many years of school/training in medicine and anatomy. Depending on their focus, some are better dentists.
I'm in vet school and it bothers me a lot too. It's like, don't forget I'm on the boards people.. I'm working really really hard to be the best I can be and then I read posts about how vet dentists aren't as good. Don't assume I won't do as good of a job as a dentist because I'm a vet and someone had a bad experience with a vet once.
We have learned a lot over the years and have many advances in dentistry. I guarantee you I will do the best job I can and I spend over $30,000 a year to learn this stuff.
Nothing against the lay person dentist.. but don't lump me in a group of people who won't be good at something when you don't know how much work I put into to get my degree just so I can be an EQUINE VET. And dentistry is a big deal, a lot can go wrong, a lot can be over looked.. I'm busting my butt to be able to do that as part of my profession.. don't count me out. |
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 Veteran
Posts: 287
| My dad trained for 40 years or so for the public. I remember him doing teeth on whatever horse needed them done. Shoed all of them hisself as well.
He didn't graduate 8th grade lol, so no vet school either. He had horses from all over the west coast come in for training so clearly he never killed one with his "untrained" dentistry. These weren't backyard sh!tters either. I remember getting horses in owned by syndicates back in the 80's
I agree wholeheartedly with the person that said we rely to much on other people to do work we might be able to do ourselves. Jmo |
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Location: Texas | Bibliafarm - 2015-04-28 12:10 PM
Next time we all need to say good luck.... sure try it.
if you do it Id get some help.. and also thats why they have training and vets etc... to do them but it can cause damage that can take months to correct.. .
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 422
Location: Fort Bragg North Carolina | There are some rude ppl out there. At least you are attempting to care for your horses there are so many whol would let their horses become a bag a bones instead of floating. I would only do my own floating IF I could work beside a vet or someone with ALOT of experience. My farrier floats mine and he's never went to school. some ppl want to cut cost to afford the expensive hobby and regardless of a diploma training is training. |
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 Hawty & Nawty
Posts: 20424
| Op. If the edges are just slightly sharp, try giving your horse a handful of corn. It helps take some sharp edges off while they chew. Just a little, don't overdo it. And please don't sweat some of these comments. Good luck. |
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 Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | While I think it is a great aspiration to have, I wouldn't trust my own self with my horses teeth.
When I first moved to TX I have had a "vet" grind my geldings teeth so low he no longer has 4 teeth in the front... They fell out a few days later after bleeding for hours on end after the "vet" was done. He lost hundreds of pounds because he couldn't chew properly.
Come to find out the "vet" was actually an intern and they didn't feel the need to ask me if he could "practice" on my horse that day. I got an apology, money for medical expenses (that I used at my current vet's office.) and they had the nerve to offer a free health exam to all my horses. As if...
I had so many people refer me to this vet practice and I honestly wish I could remember the name of the practice so I could PM whoever wanted the name. But being 6 years ago and me only calling them once I can't remember the name of the practice or the intern and vet's names.
I will never call a vet out to float, I will always take them in and I will always ask for the vet himself. No helpers, no other visiting vets. My vet, or i'm waiting for him to come back.
My horse now has permanent damage thanks to someone who wasn't trained properly. My Point? Do your research!! It's not as easy as it sounds and it can have a lasting impact on horses teeth/health. Good luck! |
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 Good Grief!
Posts: 6343
Location: Cap'n Joan Rotgut.....alberta | FLITASTIC - 2015-04-29 9:31 AM
mruggles - 2015-04-27 7:37 PM
Omg...wow.....just wowMI dont say that to often and i have typed it twice today
THis was a rude comment......
Gee flit....if u thought that was rude good thing i kept it pg.....lolM |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9991
Location: Kansas | casualdust07 - 2015-04-28 2:15 PM hlc84 - 2015-04-28 1:51 PM I agree you should get a professional to do teeth. But as the daughter of a vet, I do get frustrated with blanket statements that "vets don't do as good job/or detailed job" as an equine dentist. Just like anything else there are some that are better than others. A vet has had many years of school/training in medicine and anatomy. Depending on their focus, some are better dentists. I'm in vet school and it bothers me a lot too. It's like, don't forget I'm on the boards people.. I'm working really really hard to be the best I can be and then I read posts about how vet dentists aren't as good. Don't assume I won't do as good of a job as a dentist because I'm a vet and someone had a bad experience with a vet once. We have learned a lot over the years and have many advances in dentistry. I guarantee you I will do the best job I can and I spend over $30,000 a year to learn this stuff. Nothing against the lay person dentist.. but don't lump me in a group of people who won't be good at something when you don't know how much work I put into to get my degree just so I can be an EQUINE VET. And dentistry is a big deal, a lot can go wrong, a lot can be over looked.. I'm busting my butt to be able to do that as part of my profession.. don't count me out.
honestly.....I trust my vet to float my horses teeth because he's been doing them for 10 years....than I would an equine dentist.
So not all people think vets shouldn't be doing them :) |
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Veteran
Posts: 287
| I don't even know of any equine dentists around here. All we have are vets. And most are general practitioners and not just specialized in equine medicine. They are good but not specialized |
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Member
Posts: 41
| Hi, everyone. Thank you all for your comments and responses.
First of all, I'm not a troll. Maybe stupid, but not a troll.  I happened across this article (www.donblazer.com/ahorseofcourse/floating_02_08.html) and it got me thinking since I'm pretty sure at least one of the "certified professionals" I've used has done more damage than good on visits that should have been routine.
Second, I completely understand your concerns and genuinely appreciate that you care about my horses' wellbeing. The last thing I would want to do would be to hurt my horses and I realize that negatively changing the structure of one's mouth is the fast track to hurting one. I do not think that floating is an easy thing to do or doesn't require expertise and I certainly wouldn't go out and float my horses' teeth tomorrow without any training.
What I was thinking about doing was attempting to take off a sharp edge maybe 6 months down the road after consistently learning from a vet or dentist (the poster who commented about Ed Wright's clinic basically described what I was hoping to be able to do). Some of these responses have me wondering if that might be an overly aggressive goal. I never intended for my horses to never, ever see a dentist -- I only wanted to be more in tune with what was going on with their mouths, to know if the dentist is doing a good job, to be able tell if a float is really necessary (I would guess that there are horses out there who actually see the dentist too much and have lost more tooth than they can afford), and to be able to prevent a rough edge here or there from becoming a real problem.
When I looked into dentist schools, I found this website (www.horseshoes.net/advance.php), which claims to teach you to float and extract wolf teeth in 16 instructional hours during a farrier school. Presumably at least a few of these people will be floating other peoples' horses to make money -- "to improve earnings per stop." That doesn't seem like enough time or experience to really know what you're doing to me. Or this training is more in-depth and takes 4 weeks (www.amscheqdentistry.com/program.html) and goes beyond what someone would probably need to clean up a mouth and spot when it is time to call in a professional -- although the anatomy and so on would be vital. Of course, the learning that comes after the "training" -- the years, hours, and horses of experience -- is undeniably important.
So I guess my question was, if I invested the time to learn the basics (with "do no harm" in mind) and the money to get the right tools, would I be able to do right by my horses and actually provide them better care -- with a dentist or vet still on my team should the need arise? Has anyone successfully done it? From what I've read on here, many firmly believe "NO!" while some have had good success with it.
Again, thank you all for your input and time. |
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Expert
Posts: 1561
| NO WAYYYY!!!!
You need at least 80 hours training per tooth to know them inside and out, anything less is just irresponsible and animal abuse... |
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 Shelter Dog Lover
Posts: 10277
| 123barrelracer - 2015-04-28 7:48 PM Hi, everyone. Thank you all for your comments and responses. First of all, I'm not a troll. Maybe stupid, but not a troll. I happened across this article (www.donblazer.com/ahorseofcourse/floating_02_08.html ) and it got me thinking since I'm pretty sure at least one of the "certified professionals" I've used has done more damage than good on visits that should have been routine. Second, I completely understand your concerns and genuinely appreciate that you care about my horses' wellbeing. The last thing I would want to do would be to hurt my horses and I realize that negatively changing the structure of one's mouth is the fast track to hurting one. I do not think that floating is an easy thing to do or doesn't require expertise and I certainly wouldn't go out and float my horses' teeth tomorrow without any training. What I was thinking about doing was attempting to take off a sharp edge maybe 6 months down the road after consistently learning from a vet or dentist (the poster who commented about Ed Wright's clinic basically described what I was hoping to be able to do ). Some of these responses have me wondering if that might be an overly aggressive goal. I never intended for my horses to never, ever see a dentist -- I only wanted to be more in tune with what was going on with their mouths, to know if the dentist is doing a good job, to be able tell if a float is really necessary (I would guess that there are horses out there who actually see the dentist too much and have lost more tooth than they can afford ), and to be able to prevent a rough edge here or there from becoming a real problem. When I looked into dentist schools, I found this website (www.horseshoes.net/advance.php ), which claims to teach you to float and extract wolf teeth in 16 instructional hours during a farrier school. Presumably at least a few of these people will be floating other peoples' horses to make money -- "to improve earnings per stop." That doesn't seem like enough time or experience to really know what you're doing to me. Or this training is more in-depth and takes 4 weeks (www.amscheqdentistry.com/program.html ) and goes beyond what someone would probably need to clean up a mouth and spot when it is time to call in a professional -- although the anatomy and so on would be vital. Of course, the learning that comes after the "training" -- the years, hours, and horses of experience -- is undeniably important. So I guess my question was, if I invested the time to learn the basics (with "do no harm" in mind ) and the money to get the right tools, would I be able to do right by my horses and actually provide them better care -- with a dentist or vet still on my team should the need arise? Has anyone successfully done it? From what I've read on here, many firmly believe "NO!" while some have had good success with it. Again, thank you all for your input and time.
My apologies asking if your question was for real. Welcome to the board. Any body wanting to learn as much as they can about their horse is always a good thing. I would be concerned about the sedation and doing it without sedation would be extremely difficult. Skills can definitely be learned from an experienced teacher. Floating teeth is something I chose to have done by my vet. I am fortunate to have a great vet. |
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 Expert
Posts: 4121
Location: SE Louisiana | Itsme - 2015-04-28 7:59 PM
NO WAYYYY!!!!
You need at least 80 hours training per tooth to know them inside and out, anything less is just irresponsible and animal abuse...
Even vet schools don't provide that much training.... Just ask here... |
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Location: Texas | komet. - 2015-04-28 8:26 PM Itsme - 2015-04-28 7:59 PM NO WAYYYY!!!! You need at least 80 hours training per tooth to know them inside and out, anything less is just irresponsible and animal abuse... Even vet schools don't provide that much training.... Just ask here...
That might be why multiple people have complained or will not let vets float their horses teeth. |
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