Let me see those pearly whites!

Two trail rides, two riders down.  Wtg, Gene.

But more on that at another time.

On Thursday the dentist came out for the boys. They had not been done in a year and a half - intentionally, mind you - although they had been checked on last fall. I was freaking out because the mantra telling horse owners that "teeth must be floated yearly at most or you are a terrible person" is hard to shake. So, I had kinda hounded the dentist, trying to get an appointment before winter so that Gene went into it with his teeth at their best. I also wanted to make sure that he would be ok chomping oats.

Now it should be noted that I use a Natural Balance dentist. They attempt to do with teeth what a natural trimmer does with feet: mimic the wear exhibited by a feral horse, with the theory that the natural wear is the correct wear that the body was designed for.

So, what does that mean to me other than the fact that this dentist charged exactly twice as much as the barn dentist?

It means that they are not just after taking off hooks and calling it a day. Nay nay! They are all about balancing the tmj and ensuring that all of the angles in the mouth are correct for the skull and for optimal function. To do this, they concentrate a lot on the incisors to establish the correct angle.

For example: Gene's incisors are no longer than Peanut's.  I picture in my head that an older horse would have long, very steep incisors, but that is the same thing as thinking a contracted heel is natural.  It's what is often in books but really is due to mismanagement of the body part.

What does all of this mean?  That once a horse gets to the place where their mouth is balanced, they can go 2-3 years between dental visits.  Their pattern of wear will not cause the issues that a traditional "knock the hooks off and call it a day" float will.  Peanut is going 2 years until his next float, and that makes me nervous but I understand now.  After a year and a half, his problems were so minimal that he was done in a flash.  The sedation took the most time, as he continues to be a head-tosser.  In fact, the dentist said that he had about a fingernail's worth of a hook forming, and nothing else.  He could have easily gone another 6 months.  She did do a bit on his incisors, more than on his molars, in fact.

She mentioned that some horses simply need their teeth done more often than others, even when they have their mouths balanced.  A dentist can see the stress that a horse is under in its teeth.  Our guys are turned out 24-7, hang out with a herd, and aren't trailered much, etc etc and she can see it in their teeth.  They just aren't very stressed-out critters.

Gene, in her opinion, will go 2 years as well.  It is not because he has a good mouth - he doesn't.  The pathologies from dental neglect will always be there because he simply does not have enough tooth left to grow them out completely.  It is exactly that lack of tooth that she is worried about, and as she said: "if I never touch that horse's mouth again for the rest of his life I'll be very happy."  She told us what to look out for that would necessitate another visit, but she will otherwise revisit his mouth in 24 months.  Age 25 is typically the end of eruption, and that's his next birthday.

The biggest problem in Gene's mouth is the molars opposite the expired ones; they are growing in to fill the space.  However, she said that he could have gone another 6 months as well.

All-in-all, it was a very interesting visit full of a lot of aha moments.