Equine Dentistry- Hooks, Nooks & Crannies, Dipsie Doodles, Oh My!
Posted by Geoff Tucker on Mon, Jan 05, 2009
The opinions and views of this blog is for information and entertainment only and should not be used as a substitute for seeking advice from your veterinarian about your horse and your situation. Specific advice may only be given after a valid veterinary - client - patient relationship is made.Can there really be so much going on in a horse’s mouth that it has to become rocket science with hanging the head from the rafters, jacking open the mouth, drugging to another planet, and firing up the power tools. Emphatically no! However, every tooth floater needs to address anything that brings discomfort.
Nooks and crannies describe very small pockets along the edge of the tooth where it should be level. Think of a serrated edged knife. The small, sharp areas usually have an S5 edge and are difficult to file when they are located between 2 teeth.
The dipsie doodle is a low area that occurs in many horses on the back third of the lower jaw. Often confused with “Wave Mouth”, it usually affects the 2 or 3 teeth before the last bottom tooth. The teeth in this area are much sharper than any other tooth in the mouth. I suspect the movement of the tongue in positioning the food wears these areas more aggressively. Smoothing these areas requires extra effort and are often missed by inexperienced floaters. Remember, the goal is to remove all causes of discomfort.
Hooks occur when a tooth has no opposing tooth to wear it down to the level of the surrounding teeth. The common cause is an overbite easily seen by parting the lips to determine if the incisors are lined up or not. A parrot mouth only affects the incisors but does not affect the cheek teeth or cause hooks. An overbite will shift all the teeth so hooks will form on the 1st upper cheek teeth – even on the caps – and after 6 years of age, on the last lower cheek teeth. The back lower hooks can prevent the mouth from fully and comfortably closing just like trying to close a door with a rock or shavings on the hinge side. Tight bridle nosebands preventing the mouth from opening accentuates the problem especially when drawing the head down (collecting). The horse usually resists and can even violently flip his head up.
Old horse tooth occurs in horses older than 17. At this age the first lower cheek teeth are running out of normally hard tooth to erupt. Softer material is exposed to the continual tongue movement. Like the old barbers who sharpened their razors on a leather strap (called a strop), the tongue sharpens these teeth to a razor’s edge. Often in older horses, these are the only teeth that need attention.
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