Equine Dentistry
All of the veterinarians at AVS are professionally trained
equine dentists, allowing sedation
and anti-inflammatory drugs to be included in your horse's dentistry.
Like people, dental health is important for maintaining
overall health. Horses with dental
problems may show obvious signs, such as pain or irritation, or they may
show no noticeable
signs at all. This is because some horses simply adapt to their discomfort.
For this reason,
periodic dental examinations are essential to your horse’s health.
It is important to catch dental problems early. If a horse
starts behaving abnormally, dental
problems should be considered as a potential cause. Waiting too long may
increase the difficulty
of remedying certain conditions or may even make remedy impossible.
Look for the following indicators of dental problems from
the American Association of Equine
Practitioners (AAEP) to know when to seek veterinary attention for your
horse:
Loss of feed from
mouth while eating,
difficulty with chewing, or excessive
salivation.
Loss of body condition.
Large or undigested
feed particles (long
stems or whole grain) in manure.
Head tilting or tossing,
bit chewing,
tongue lolling, fighting the bit, or resisting
bridling.
Poor performance,
such as lugging on
the bridle, failing to turn or stop, even
bucking.
Foul odor from mouth
or nostrils, or
traces of blood from the mouth.
Nasal discharge or swelling of the face, jaw or mouth
tissues. Oral exams should be an essential part of
an annual physical examination by a veterinarian.
Every dental exam provides the opportunity to perform routine preventative
dental mainte-
nance. Mature horses should get a thorough dental exam at least once a
year, and horses
2 –5 years old should be examined twice yearly.
Additional information is available on the AAEP’s horse health Web
site,
www.myHorseMatters.com.
Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.