Dentistry.
Ideally the vet should check your horse’s teeth once a year, as dental problems are fairly common in horses, and if left untreated can not only cause nutritional problems but can also cause pain and discomfort.
The vet will look for a variety of common problems, including:
Cracked teeth. Mouth ulcers and sore areas of mucosa. Gum inflammation. Problems with tooth eruption. Sharp teeth edges and hooks. Teeth misalignments, including parrot mouth or sow mouth. Wolf teeth interference. Rasping
Rasping is a very common job for a vet which can be done at home. It involves using various sized rasps to remove sharp enamel points and hooks from cheek teeth, levelling tall or long teeth, rounding and smoothing of teeth to improve the fit of the bit. A dental mouth gag may be used to keep your horses mouth open throughout the procedure – no pain is involved – preventing your horse form biting the vet by accident. Rasping may sometimes involve sedating your horse if he is particularly lively or if extensive work needs to be done – your horse may have to go to an equine hospital if this is the case.
