Horse's teeth erupt throughout their lives with constant wear occurring from teeth grinding against opposing teeth and continual stropping by the tongue. This wear is uneven and creates razor sharp edges that cause discomfort as those edges ulcerate the cheek and their tongue. So if eruption and wear is continuous throughout the life of the horse and the result is pain within the mouth, AND the removal of the sharp points (floating) is easily done, WHY DO SO MANY HORSE OWNERS AVOID THIS IMPORTANT ASPECT OF HORSEMANSHIP? 1) THEY DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IT If you don't know about the process of floating teeth and why it is done but you are reading this, then spend some time on my web site www.theequinepractice.com. Here is a compact yet detailed area where you can learn more. In fact, there are lots of places you can go to learn more. However, be aware that there are many sites and references where what is said may disagree with what I describe. My ideas are based on over 26 years of floating horses and over 42,000 floats. It is based on horsemanship and common sense. 2) THEY HATE THE DENTIST THEMSELVES Horse and human teeth have very little in common. I realize that many of you fear the dentist more than death itself. But just one look at the relief your horse gets after having it's teeth floated will quickly dissipate any anxiety. The primary purpose of floating horse teeth is to remove the sources of pain within the mouth. Realizing this will overcome any irrational thoughts you may have based on your personal experience. 3) THEY DIDN'T KNOW THERE WERE TEETH BACK THERE What you don't see must not exist. Well, that's ridiculous. Ownership of an animal has the responsibility of knowing the basics. So here it is. There are 24 teeth in the back of the horse's mouth behind where the bit lies. They are out of site but they can cause so much problems if they are not maintained. Why do they need maintenance? Because we have bred them for beauty, speed, agility, and strength but we have NOT bred them for their teeth. 4) THEY WAIT TILL THERE IS A PROBLEM This is a button for me and all veterinarians you don't want to push. Why wait till a problem arises when some prevention could prevent undue stress and pain in your horse? This is when someone offers the example of changing the oil in the car. I don't because when you don't change the oil and the engine fails, then you replace the engine. A horse is a living being and simply put, they have evolved into a near perfect creature. We as humans alter their base state by stabling, bitting, and riding and, most importantly, through breeding. So we have created an altered living being with an altered purpose. Therefore we MUST apply prevention because the end result cannot be replaced with a simple part replacement. 5) THEY HAD IT DONE ONCE AND SAW NO CHANGE How many times will you dip your hand into your wallet and pay for something that you see no results in? Not often I'm sure. Not all tooth floating is the same. Some tooth floaters miss spots that continue to cause pain. Every float must address every point in the mouth to be effective. Pain is the most common cause of an incomplete floating. In our practice, pain is avoided by the place and pull technique as well as the use of pain relieving medication in the few horses that are extremely sensitive. 6) THEY HAD IT DONE ONCE AND VOWED NEVER TO HAVE IT DONE AGAIN This I hear often. The past experience of the horrific approach of over drugging, head hanging, mouth jacking, and the application of power tools that grind the surface of the teeth like a carpenter would approach a block of wood. I have heard reports of horses unable to eat for long periods of time after floating, horses falling down from over drugging, jaws breaking from improper use of the mouth jack, neck injuries from head suspension along with the horse falling down, and even death from application of unproven theories such as incisor reduction. We are grateful for those who have experienced atrocities and yet seek us out knowing how important it is to have the teeth floated. 7) THEY CAN'T FIND AN EQUINE DENTIST IN THEIR AREA OR THEY HATE THEIR EQUINE DENTIST Many rural areas have difficulties in finding competent horse care professionals. You may be reading this and live in a sparse area where the nearest vet, let alone equine dentist, live over 100 miles away. Worse yet, the dentist or vet that serves your area is incompetent or unreliable. Unfortunately, most quality professionals live in an area where they can make a better living. There are many reasons for this, but it boils down to money, or lack of it in your area. We are aware of this and therefore we drive throughout the US rather than fly. Many horse farms have gotten together to group their horses and wait until we come through the area. This way, and experienced equine dentist who has worked on some of the top equine athletes also work on your "backyard" horse. Someday I will teach many people to become competent in this skill so they can return to their areas and serve. 8) THEY HAVE NO FAITH IN THEIR VET This is a little tougher. If you don't like your vet doing your horse's teeth, and he or she is the only vet coming to your area, you don't want to loose the relationship and loose the emergency response for colic or suturing. Some vets are jealous of other practitioners and will make it hard for others to work in "their territory." Life is not fair. It is more important that you get the teeth floated even if it goes against your horsemanship. You may need him later for an emergency and this is always important. 9) THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT THEIR HORSE This possibility seems beyond most horse owner's imagination. Yet I hear this often: "Doc, this one's for sale so we aren't floating this one to save the expense." How much more money could have been received if the horse went without his head fighting the bit? In our opinion, ownership of any animal, no matter how brief, demands we give the highest level of care. However, as a vet, I have seen repeatedly abuses from not floating all the way to death by starvation. It is human nature. 10) THEY ARE BROKE OR THEIR EXPENSE PRIORITIES ARE WRONG This one is more apparent with the economy today. When horses are being abandoned or starved, how would teeth floating even be considered? Well, I am not talking about the extreme cases. It is the person whose expense priorities are not in order. When someone forsakes floating their horse's teeth for squandering their money on something whose value has no baring on a living being, a question must be asked. Who is your horse's advocate? It is you. Not me or the vet or the neighbor. SUMMARY - A CHRISTMAS GIFT You are reading this either as an E-Letter sent to your inbox, on Facebook, Twitter, or maybe you were notified of a blog entry on my web site. But you are informed or are seeking more knowledge and I appreciate this. Please take the time to pass this out to all your sources. This list applies to many other aspects of horse care. Hopefully it will stimulate someone be their horse's best friend and advocate. That would be the best Christmas gift. Bless you all this season and in the new year. Geoff, Brandon, and Melissa SEE YOU ON FRIDAY OR SATURDAY THE 10TH AND 11TH OF DECEMBER MARK YOUR CALENDAR - Dec 11th and 12th there is a fund raiser for our own United States Equestrian Team at the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center in Palm Beach, FL. This team represents our efforts on the world stage. No matter what your sport is, they should be supported. We are donating 10 floats to the cause. This may be a way to get me to float your horse and contribute at the same time. In addition, we will have a booth in the vender area for you to visit and meet the team. We all hope you can stop by during the event. Click on http://www.succeedevent.com/ to learn more about the who's who of presenters including Steffen Peters, Gina Miles, Courtney King Dye, Karen O'Connor, David O'Connor, Chester Weber, Monty Roberts, Kate Levy, Pierre St. Jacques, Samantha St. Jacques, Hawley Bennett, Tami Hoag, Kim Gentry, Cathy Wieschhoff, Jeanne Lambrecht, Lynn Palm, Stephan Kiesewetter, Reese Koffler Stanfield and Kai Vorberg.
|