The record-union., 1892-02-08
Equine Dentistry.

EDS. REcoRD-UNIoS: If you would
kindly grant me little space in your
valuable paper, would like to bring be-
fore the public the subject of diseases and
irregularities of horses teeth. Veterinary
dentistry has made immense strides in
| the last few years. There are men who
have made speciality of this branch of
surgery, and they have perfected meth
DDS and instruments for removing irregu-
larlties and extracting liberated or car
ious teeth.
The old way was to put hobbies on the
subject, throw him on the ground and
stretch his mouth to its fullest extent
with a gag, and If the unfortunate ami
NAL had an liberated tooth the operator
took blacksmith's hammer and a cold
chlsel and punched the offending tooth
out IN pieces; or, if the teeth were irregu-
lar, the operator took a hoof-rasp and
went at them as though he was saving
wood. The result was that he removed
as much of the poor animals cheek and
gums as he did of the teeth.
Now veterinary dentists operate in
more humane manner. We do not have
to throw a horse or put a gag in his
mouth-in fact, we do not have to confine
MN further than have an assistant steady
his head. In operating on the teeth we
| do not cause suffering unless when ex-
]
not avoid causing little pain, just as a
human dentist must cause pain when eX-
tracing tooth for us, but that pain is
counteracted by the instantaneous relief
which follows.
The most useful and noble animal that
God ever gave to man is the horse, and
therefore he should not be abused. Vet
Urinary dentistry, as it is now, is an act of
humanity. 1t not only relieves suffering,
but produces fine, pleasant driver, and
gives you a healthy and cheerful horse.
whose life and usefulness has been pro-
! longed for several years by attention to
| his teeth.
There are some people who do not be-
lieve that horses have toothache or any
trouble with their teeth. My experience
and teachings have shown me that they
do suffer from defective teeth as much or
more so than we do, but, being dumb,
they cannot tell us Of their pain. The
anatomical structure of their teeth leave
them much more liable to injury and dis
ease than ours. All of us have expert
enced at one time or another the effects
OF Ioothache; many sleepless night we
have passed, wishing it was morning so
we could visit a dentist and have it
''yanked," but the poor horse has to go
on days, weeks, months and perhaps
years, without relief
Some people have an idea that horses
have no trouble with their teeth until
| they are well advanced in age, but my
| experience shows me that young horses
| have more trouble with their teeth
| from the time they are born until they
! have reached the age of five or six years
than at any other period. In this respect
they are like little children, and any of
| US that have families will always remem-
| ber the cold and sleepless nights we ex-
perienced when baby was teething. But
our poor dumb friend, the horse, cannot
keep Us awake nights or arouse our SYM
pathies as the baby can.
On most of the large horse ranches in
the East and few in the West they en-
ploy veterinary dentist once or twice
! year to examine all their stock, especially
! their colts, as colts with defective teeth
cannot develop as they should. Few peo-
| pie have any idea of the disposition of
| horses teeth, SO | will endeavor to let a
| little light on the subject.
! The molar teeth grinders of a horse
| are beveled. The upper rows stand down
and out; the lower rows stand up and in
and they are so arranged that they never
get dull like an old milestone, but get
| sharper and sharper the more they wear,
so that the grinding surfaces are always
in good, sharp grinding condition. On
| account of the beveled form of the surface
the edges must naturally get sharp, which
! they do, and often prevent mastication
! by cutting the tongue and cheeks.
! very 1eW nOrSeS, old or young,
but have more or less sharp-edged
or rough projections upon their molars.
These sharp points lacerate the mouth,
thereby causing torture to the horse, and
he tries in various ways to rid himself of
the trouble. Some toss the head, loll the.
tongue, drool or slobber. Others start
suddenly or stop short, and some shy,
drive sideways, hold their head sideways,
or drive unpleasantly. Indigestion,
| collie, hidebound and general unthrifty
condition, and numerous other ailments.
are caused by defective teeth. Many
| people wonder why their horse does not
| keep fat, though they feed him literally,
and it never occurs to them that their
dumb servant, owing to defective teeth,
cannot masticate his food properly.
| Some horses are troubled with a condi-
ton known as ''lampas," or swelling of
the bars which line the roof of the
mouth. This is due in every instance to
dental irritation, and it does not warrant
the free use of the knife or hot iron by
| the ignorant or uninstructed, for it's re-
| moval. Lampas is but a synlptom of a
| disease, therefore if the cause be removed
the lampas will disappear without the
aid of the knife or hot iron.
K. A. ARCHIBALD.