New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-10-06
DENTISTRY ON HORSES.
OPERATIONS WHICH ARE PERFoRMED-REMov-
ING A DECAYED ROOT

ING A DECAYED ROOT.
Al each OF ito stables. the Metropolitan Traction
company maintains hospital for the car horses
sick or temporarily disabled Probably the most
interesting part OF the duties OF the veterinary sur
goon In charge Is that OF attending to the horses
teeth.
Equine dentistry Is generous scale. and the
formidable Instruments used seem to pertain 10
a blacksmith more than dentist. once every year
the horses mouths are overhauled and a thorough
examination OF their teeth takes place. The opera
ton Is known technically "a floating. ana con-
sists for part Of ling off the sharp cages
Of molars which ibabe to iacerate the mouth
OF the animal. The Instruments for this purpose
are a heavy rasp about foot long. which Is used
for connecting Irregularities in the front teeth. and
smaller curved rasp. attached TO long handle
which is uscl for the molars No pain seems 10 DE
felt by the horses while the filing H. going on
The veterinary explained that this was because the
teeth Of a horse extraordinarily SOLO, anu
moreover, the canal containing the sensitive nerve
does not extend UP very c.ose to the top OF the
tooth.
4 far more painful operation 10 necessary when
a tooth becomes too long and has TO be shortened
The teeth OF a horse are always growing. ana whel
the animal loses front tooth the opposing 'oo'i
gradually becomes onger 1t has nothing opposite
To grind il down, and would In time very seriously
Inconvenience the animal Time IL precious ana
borsefash is cheap therefore the shortest possible
method t. used To file the tooth down would take
too long 30 II is cut off at a single snip with an
instrument which would do the same to thih iron
bar The cutters are about three feet long and nave
A lever arrangement near the cutting edges "hich
trebes thc force which would be obtained by the
1881. of the hanlcs acne The horse Is not tied,
but simply held by attendant while the surgeon
adjusts the cutting edges to the tooth, ana with d
mick pressure of the long handles cuts on as much
Of the tooth as required. Before the invention OF
this instrument II customary 10 cut OF
tooth by means of a chse and hammer. This
vas an exouisltely painful operation, whereas with
the new instrument, the pain Is much less, very
often the animal evincing no discomfort whatever
# is not often that the extraction OF a horses
tooth is necessary. but when 1t Is the operation ~
rather formidable one. The teeth OF Morse
DESPITE their sodity. decay rapidly II they once
start and a tooth Is usually gone before the ve'er-
mary knows that 1t is decayed WI
tbnse msej in ordinary dentistry. but much .arger.
Their appearance is calculated to give man Win
and Of treat power 1t requires pretty strong pair
OF arms to pull out horses tooth, notwitnstan1ing
the s5e 9 and Trae the OF o e tooth While
attendant holds the horses mead II the animal Is
an operating table is required The animal is backed
up to the table which Is very solid and with a
top of the table the horse is brought to recumbent
position by Simply turning the top back upon it, IT,
which a horse Is required to be passive Great
strides have been made recently In dentistry for
horses Only Of late has the importance OF sound
teeth been recognized contributing greatly to the
service and health OF the animal Operations are
now performed which would have been deemed i'm
possibe ten fifteen years 1t sometimes
happcns that the OF a decayed tooth will cause
trouble TO horse which can only be relieved by
extraction. The root cannot well be reached by
orceps because it is far below the surface OF the
gum.
In an aggravated OF this kind time
ago the operation OF trephning performed.
The tooth to be extracted was in the lower jaw.
and 4 hole was bored from under the jawbone right
up 4 the root Of the tooth 4 chise was then
passed up me cavity and a smart tap with a
hammer sent the Offending flying out. The
a NAL was soon well again and able do It's work.
Among valuable horses the filing of decayed teeth
is quitn extensively practised. The filing material
IS a silver amagam which il packed tight with a
chsel and mai.et False teeth have not yet been
made use OF for horses but horse experts say
that they could be utilized in some cases. to ad-