When is it Time to Float your Horse's Teeth?

Horses are not able to tell you when they have a tooth issue, so how can you know? Their teeth are huge, and designed to keep growing. They have a sideways, grinding action causing sharp edges to form. This can cause a lot of problems in the mouth. No horse is ever able to go without having his teeth floated, especially if you want them to live a long time. 

The process is rather quite simple. The vet has a tool to keep the jaw open. The sedated horse stands still, with someone holding the head. Another tool is used to file down the sharp edges on the teeth. The vet also checks the health of the teeth.

So how can you tell when its time?

Chewing Slowly or Drooling - Basically, any deviation to the horse's diet or chewing can be the result of being long in the tooth. Watch for abnormal chewing behavior or drooling because saliva is activated by chewing but the horse may not swallow as easily or have to chew their food longer. The horse may even develop bad breath if a tooth is starting to decay.

Bit Issues - Anyone who has a tooth issue would not like to have a metal or foreign object in their mouth. Resistance can be just a tooth issue and not a horse behavior problem. This can even lead to stiffness, and head tossing.

Weight Loss - Any kind of weight loss can be a bad sign. While it may not be due to a tooth issue, it is a good idea to find the cause and deal with it right away.

In the end, it is important to remember that some horses have an incredibly high tolerance to pain and may not show any signs at all, even though they need their teeth floated. Incorporate it into your routine maintenance and you cannot go wrong.

For more information refer to Rider 4.