Why does your horse need dentistry?

Horse teeth are quite different to those of cats and dogs, and are known as hypsodont teeth. This means that the horse's teeth erupt gradually through their life, about 2-3 mm a year, and are worn down when the horse nips and grinds feed.

Thousands of years ago, horses lived in semi-arid conditions and walked many kilometres each day, eating much coarser feed than what horses are fed today. Because of this, horses today develop problems with their teeth such as excess growth of tooth that is not worn away correctly, sharp edges, high points, and ridging on the grinding surface of the teeth.

In addition, soft processed feeds, feeding horses off the ground and environmental changes such as stabling for long periods of time can have an effect on the wear patterns of the teeth.

Things you can do to help your horse:

• Feed at ground level

By feeding a horse above ground - for example hanging a feeder over a stable door - the incisors are not able to line up and will not wear correctly or evenly. Because the horse's mandible does not slide forward, this can also result in uneven wear patterns on the cheek teeth and hooks/ramps (ski-jump like high points) commonly appear on the surface of the last and first cheek teeth due to the limited rostral-caudal (forwards-backwards) movement of the lower jaw.

Feeding on the ground also enables the horse to stretch through the nuchal ligament running along the top of the neck, and helps sinuses to drain efficiently.

• Provide feed appropriate to the horse's age

Towards the end of the tooth's life, the tooth mostly consists of only the softer substance called dentin, which is worn away by the grinding motion of the molars quicker than the tooth's harder substances of enamel and cementum.

Because of this, older horses have a reduced grinding ability, and are unable to grind up coarser feeds as efficiently as younger horses. Softer feeds, such as Gumnuts, are good for older horses. Older horses may also have very small incisors and can benefit from being on longer grass that is easier for them to nip.

• Regular dental care

All horses should have regular dental care through their life, and this is especially important in younger horses (under five) and older horses (over 18).

Younger horses have deciduous teeth erupting and being shed, and permanent teeth erupting at regular intervals from birth to five years old. It's important to make sure that the deciduous teeth are shed at the correct ages - retained caps (the remnants of deciduous teeth) can cause problems with the eruption of the permanent teeth.

Most horses are mouthed and started around the time they are shedding a lot of deciduous teeth, and any retained caps can be uncomfortable for the horse. Horses between two and five shed deciduous teeth approximately every six months, and will lose 24 teeth between the age of 2 1/2 and five years old, so it is recommended that they have six monthly dental checks to maintain a healthy mouth.

Older horses should also have dental checks every six months, as the horse's teeth can begin to expire from the age of 18. It's important that their teeth are checked for any signs of decay that may occur as the tooth begins to expire, and in some cases teeth may need to be extracted in older horses.

Horses between the age of five and 18 generally require annual dental care.

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