Horses are herbivores which have adapted to eating fibrous plant material such as grass. During normal grazing behaviour the grass is grasped between the top and bottom rows of front teeth (the incisors) and passed backwards in the mouth by the muscles of the tongue and lips. Here the grass is ground down into small pieces between the rows of powerful cheek teeth. This crushing of food is powered by huge muscles on either side of the jaw. You will all be familiar with the grinding sound your horse makes as its teeth crush its food.

Despite having very hard teeth, such repetitive grinding slowly wears the teeth down. Horses cope with this by having reserve tooth under the gum line which is pushed out slowly over the horse's lifetime. (About 2 to 3 mm of tooth per year). This is different to humans whose permanent teeth do not continue to erupt during life.

When we stable horses, reduce their access to forage, or give them cereal based feeds, their chewing activity changes and makes it more likely for them to develop abnormal wear to their teeth, most commonly in the form of sharp edges.

The canine teeth or tushes. These are the pointed teeth found in the bars of the mouth between the incisors and the cheek teeth. They are much more common in male horses, appearing at 4 to 6 years of age. These teeth are similar to human teeth and do not continue to erupt over time. Unlike carnivores, the canines of horses' teeth tend not to rub together as the mouth opens and closes. This makes them prone to accumulating tartar (a build up of irregular yellow deposit around the base of the tooth).

Cheek Teeth. There are a total of 24 cheek teeth in an adult horse. They are arranged in four straight rows of 6 teeth. The first three (counting from front to back) are pre-molar teeth. These teeth, like the incisors first appear as milk teeth, which are pushed out by the adult teeth. These milk teeth are known as dental caps. Most horses lose their dental caps spontaneously as the adult teeth erupt.

The back three teeth are molar teeth. These teeth do not have milk teeth.

The upper cheek teeth are wider in diameter and the rows wider apart than the lower cheek teeth. This produces a natural slope to the surface of the teeth. A common result of this arrangement of teeth is the production of sharp points on the outside of the upper cheek teeth and the inside of the lower cheek teeth.

Horses suffer a large array of dental conditions, just like humans. Signs of poor or painful teeth vary from dropping food, weight loss, through to behavioural and riding problems.

It is important for your horse to have a thorough dental evaluation by a Vet or qualified Equine Dental Technician (EDT) at least once every 12 months.

There are lots of people who rasp horses' teeth. Some are totally untrained, have inadequate equipment and do poor work. The British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA - see links page) has developed a training programme, an examination and a qualification as an Equine Dental Technician This qualification allows horse owners to recognise who is qualified and recommended by BEVA to carry out dental work.

The frequency of the examination will depend on the individual animal. Young horses should also be checked because problems can occur when the milk teeth are developing or are being replaced by the permanent teeth.

Your annual vaccination date is an excellent time for your horse to receive a dental check. An advantage of your veterinary surgeon performing the dental work is that some horses require intravenous sedation to allow the work to be performed effectively. Only vets can administer intravenous sedation. We are also happy to sedate horses for treatment by BEVA qualified EDT's.

Small Animal phone 01509 812446 Equine & Farm phone 01509 812445

Accounts 01509 814505 Fax 01509 816145