MELISSA SHURR, CEqDT
AED Certified
(916) 849-7500
MeslissaShurr@aol.com
ROUTINE DENTAL MAINTENANCE & EQUILIBRATION
Routine dental maintenance and equilibration begins in the late yearling. Owners, managers, and trainers should keep in mind that dentition in the horse is ever changing. Horses under five years of age are constantly cutting teeth. For the best performance, horses should be evaluated on a regular basis.
Before
After
INDICATIONS OF DENTAL PROBLEMS:
- Head throwing while riding
- Tilting head while eating or riding
- Lack of condition
- Longer than normal particles in feces
- Bleeding of the mouth
- Inability to shift mandible laterally
- Cheeks sensitive to pressure against teeth
- Bolting of grain and quitting of feed
- Eating hay before grain
- Dunking of hay in water
- Hard to bit
- Dribbling feed from the mouth
- Excessive salivation or drooling
- Troubled expression and bad general attitude
- Irregular movement of the mandible
- Dental cysts or enlargements of the skull
- Fistulous discharge from mandible or face
- Discharge from the eye or nose
- Sores of the lips, gums, palate, and soft tissue
- Soft tissue punctures and lacerations
- Lugging and rearing problems
- Taking hold of the bit and lack of control
- Hard to collect and round up
- Rooting the reins out of your hands
- Chomping at the bit
- Going one way better than another
YOUR HORSE COULD BE FACING:
- Inhibited movement of the mandible
- Inter-oral soft tissue and/or tongue damage
- Lack of simultaneous occlusion of cheek teeth
- Frequent bouts of colic
- Gum disease
- Periodontal disease
- Temperament problems
- Reduced nasal air flow
- Limited axial flow of food
- Frequent oral infections
- Sore Tempromandibular joints (TMJ)
CAUSED BY ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING:
- Protuberant teeth
- Wolf teeth, extra teeth, and/or sharp canines
- Un-erupted wolf teeth
- Aberrant, supernumerary, and/or ectopic teeth
- Retained dental caps
- Impacted incisors and/or cheek teeth
- Missing or fractured teeth
- Performance and/or training demands
- Tartar, caries, and/or decay
- (ETR) Excessive transverse ridging Waves or step mouths
- Poorly balance table angles
SERVICES PROVIDED:
- Removal of Incisor Caps
- Incisor Reduction
- Incisor Angle Change
- Incisor Realignment
- Reduce and Buff Canines
- Removal of Wolf Teeth
- Performance Float
- Removal of Molar Caps
- Removal of Rostral Hooks or Ramps
- Removal of Caudal Hooks or Ramps
- Correction of Steps or Waves
- Correction Protuberant Teeth
- Molar Extraction
- Incisor Extraction
- Relief Cuts
- Periodontal Cleaning
MAINTENANCE & EQUILIBRATION SCHEDULE:
Late Yearlings
- Equilibrate and performance float (Balance) all teeth
- Extract wolf teeth
Two years old
- Equilibrate and performance float all teeth as needed
Two and half years old
- Equilibrate and performance float all teeth as needed
- Check and remove caps
Three years old
- Equilibrate and performance float all teeth as needed
- Check and remove caps
Three and half years old
- Equilibrate and performance float all teeth as needed
- Check and remove caps
Four years old
- Equilibrate and performance float all teeth as needed
- Check and remove caps
Four and Half years old and older
- Equilibrate and performance float all teeth every 6 months to year as needed
For more information about me or the services I
provide, pease do not hesitate to contact me.