Don’t you just hate when it’s time for your dental check-up? I don’t think the horses much appreciate it either.
Today was our check-up day at the farm. It became more than just a check up. No one had any major problems, other than old mouths, and missing teeth. The horses are beyond the ages of braces or those new clear things they swear by to straighten your teeth. Where were they when I was a kid? Twice I could receive the local radio stations with all the wires I had in my mouth. A lot of good they did. I’m down to caps and bridges now. At least they are all attached. I told several of the horses that implants were not an option. Glad horses and dogs don’t do braces. I did have a few dogs that could have used them.
Just routine dentistry was performed today, but I do try to keep up on their dental appointments. (They are really bad at flossing. Darn kids.) She did them in their stalls, which is where they feel most secure. Will never do the dental trailer thing again. EVER. Still dealing with the after effects.
Seriously, how often do you have your horses teeth checked? Do you really pay attention to any balling up of hay left behind? Grain passed whole in the manure? Grain dropped? I have one horse who takes a mouth full, chews with his mouth open, and swings his read around in all direction to see whats going on at any given time. He just might have missed something when his head was in the bucket. No matter how many times I tell him to chew with his mouth closed, it just doesn’t work. I hope this will help, but I really don’t think so.
No matter what food you give them, if it’s reasonably priced or top of the line, if it doesn’t get chewed, or digested properly, it’s not going to put weight on, or keep weight on them. You might as well just take hand fulls of grain and toss it on the ground. Or for that matter, just take the money and do the same thing.
Have you ever bitten the inside of your cheek? Hurts like anything, and you just keep biting the same place over and over again. Imagine doing that every time you eat. Those sharp edges just rubbing against the inside of their mouths. Really doesn’t make eating appealing does it?
You can run you fingers up the sides of their teeth, unless you are fond of five fingers on each hand, or have your vet give them a check-up. If they tell you there are sharp edges, think about the old biting the inside of your cheek and have their teeth taken care of. It will probably save you money on the grain you are buying in the long run, and make the horses feel so much better for it. Also you can only feel so far back, and then those teeth that are way back aren’t checked.
And if you are having problems with the bit, or head tossing, it just might be the teeth, not an attitude issue.
If you can get yours to floss, let me know how you did it.
Rinse please.