Bear
"Bear" had lost a tooth and had probably never been floated. He had absolutely no anterior/posterior movement and little comfortable lateral excursion. The owner reports that a vet once stuck his fingers in this horses mouth and said he didn't need any dental work. Without a light a speculum it is impossible to accurately detect a problem. This guy did not want to have his mouth touched. It is amazing how much pain a horse can tolerate. When you ask a horse to collect or even stop and he breaks at the poll, the lower jaw slides backwards. This guy absolutely could not move his lower jaw backwards.
With an overgrown tooth like the one in the left side of the picture, flexion at the poll under saddle was putting a great amount of stress not only on the overgrown tooth and surrounding teeth, but also on the TM Joint. This situation prohibits free movement of the horse's entire body. The only outward sign this horse showed was that he would drop his head when asked to stop. This allowed the lower jaw to move forward and allowed for a release of pressure on the teeth.
Starbucks
This poor guy has had a rough life. The photo at left shows his old water set up before dental work. His water bucket had to be barricaded because he would intentionally tip it. Starbucks was in alot of pain, which manifested in his behavior. He was also a hay dunker, a common feature of horses with oral ulcers. "Hay Dunkers" try to soften the hay in water before eating it.
I was called in to work on this horse because he was no longer eating grain, but only soaked hay. Ulceration in his mouth was about an inch and a half wide and extended the entire length of both molar arcades. He is a Quarter Horse gelding who weighs in at about 1600 pounds. He has the typical refined head, strong masseter muscles and a huge tongue, leaving very little room to work. Because of his confirmation and difficulty to work on, it would have been ideal to desensitize him to dental tools as a yearling. Starbucks had reportedly been floated 6 months prior to my examination, and bit seats had reportedly been installed.
However, there were no physical signs that any dental work had been done. And he was supposedly floated with power equipment.
Upon re-examination two days later, his ulceration was healing and he was eating grain heartily.
Starbucks - 3 month follow up
Starbucks has since stopped dumping his water and drowning his hay. He will receive a follow up float in six months to smooth any new sharp edges because his cheeks are naturally so tight.
Case Studies
Reggie
This horse's system was a complete train wreck. "Reggie" was in poor flesh and just didn't look healthy. His appearance was dull and he lacked energy. (See first photo) This horse has a history of navicular problems and a severe curvature of the spine. Rescued by his owner, he was to be used as a jumper at six years of age.
In addition to extensive veterinary care, this horse has received numerous massage therapy and chiropractic sessions to rebalance his system. Reggie's initial exam found that he had long upper nine cheek teeth, rostral hooks on the upper sixes, and his incisors had the appearance of an over bite.
After completion of the first dental session with incisor reduction, Reggie's overbite was gone. By removing even the small amount of rostral hook this horse had, and by reducing the incisors, I was able to correct this horse's "overbite." It was not a true overbite, but one that was circumstantial.