The Lexington intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1901-1949, 1903-10-24
DENTISTS FOR HORSES.
How Operation of SeTaping and Fill
ing Moisr Is Performed.

III Is Only within the last three
years thar the dentist has come
TO give lie horse serious atten-
ton. AS yet there are but one or
two thoroughly qualified horse
dentists in New York city, and
they are kept surprisingly busy
the year round, says the New
York Times.
1t is interesting to watch an op,
GRAFTON in equine dentistry. re.
pOrtervisited the other day a large
stable containing a string of val
uable horses owned by a wealthy
New Yorker. One of the animals,
a polo pony, was suffering from a
bad mOlOr, and it was about to be
appeared in a thin white canvas
box stall, and table on which
we're a glittering array of dental
Instruments, was placed in a con-
venient position by two groOms.
The dentist, a stOckily built man,
appeared in a thin white canvas
coat. He picked up one of the in
struments. 1t had an ivory handle
and four small bars of nickel,
working on a ratchet and crossing
one another so as to form a hollow
square that could be made large
or small by the turning Of a screw.
This instrument the dentist
called a spectrum. Setting it to
the proper size, he slipped it
gently into the animals mouth,
which was kept partly open mean.
time by the efforts of a groom, un.
til the instrument fitted upon the
back teeth and thus opened her
mouth as wide as 1t was possible.
The groom now took hold of the
handle Of the spectrum with one
hand and the mares tongue with
the other, enabling the dentist to
get a full view Of the damaged
tooth. After examining it care.
fully he found that a splinter
would have to come off. Taking
up a cutter, a scissor-shaped in
strument two feet long, and with
saw-like edges, he applied it to the
tooth and by a quick movement
snapped off the offending splinter.
Among the display of nickel.
plated dental tools on the table
was an electric battery buzzing
away. To one Of it's wires the
dentist fixed a diminutive drill.
Instantly there was a burr upon
the end of the drill as it began to.
rev0lye b ythe currents force, with
the rapidity of a circular saw
Quickly the dentist applied the
drill to the damaged mOlar, and
with a buzzing. grinding sound it
bored it's way through the enamel.
After removing the drill the
dentist took mp a syringe, through
which hot air was blown into the
tooth, thoroughly cleansing it. A
small piece of gold was then
pl"oed in the cavity by a fOrceps.
This malIeable metal the surgeon
pounded tightly into the socket.
adding more and more of the gold
as he hammered and nodded it,
until finally the tooth had re
gained its original size and shape.
The operation lasted barely an
hour. The spectrum was removed
by the groom and the mare was
given a bucket of water, which il
drank up greedily, and afterward
ate a hearty meal. The animal
suffered no pain. Throughout the
operation it remained perfectly
still; it seemed to know that
something was being done for its
benefit,
The mare had had the tooth
broken accidentally in the field by
a blow from a polo club. The
splinter that remained cut her
mouth and the pain prevented
her from eating.
Aluminium and amalgam as
well AZ gold are used in the filing
and browning of horses teeth
The fee charged varies anywhere
from IS to $125. Where gold il
used it is, of course, the most ex.
pensiye item in the operation, for
the back tooth of an equine meas.
ures an inch broad and three inch.
es long, and it requires therefore
a large quantity of valuable met
al to fill up these molars.