If you own a horse, sooner or later you'll have to have your horse's teeth floated. The term may not make sense are first as it conjures up images of teeth being loosened or floating in the horse's mouth. However what it actually entails is filing down the teeth of the horse so they even and give your horse an even bite for eating.

A vet or equine dentist will use a specialized dental rasp which is also called a float to file down the teeth. You will need to have your horse's teeth floated at least every few years and some horses will need it even more often. The only way to know for sure is to check your horse's teeth on a regular basis and make sure he or she has healthy, even and aren't causing your horse pain.

Unlike your teeth which come in and won't grow any more, horse teeth will grow throughout their lives as in the wild they eat foods that grind down teeth and that is nature's way of combating the problem. However domesticated horses don't eat fodder that wears down their teeth as quickly so they need to have their teeth floated on a regular basis to stay healthy.

If you've never floated your horse's teeth, early signs it needs to be done will include difficulty eating, inability to hold food in his mouth and shunning anything to do with his mouth including taking treats from your hands as his teeth have developed sharp edges and are cutting and painfully poking the inside of his mouth.

Having his teeth floated will return your horse to his old self in a short period of time along with his previous appetite.

Labels: horse, horse-care

Anyone that saw the 2006 Preakness Horse Race saw a very real reminder of why horse racing is dangerous for horses and how dangerous a broken leg can be. A heavily-favored-to-win horse named Barbaro took a misstep shortly after leaving the starting gate and broke his leg. Barbaro was loaded onto a specialized ambulance for horses. Barbaro was one of the unlucky horses who unfortunately developed other problems around the break and unfortunately are in the majority and do not recover from a broken leg and it results in the horse needing to be euthanized as there is no chance of recovery.

So you're thinking, people and even dogs and cats get broken legs and they recover, why can't a horse? Basically, it can take months for a horse to heal from a broken leg and their other three legs normally can not bear the weight of the horse for that long of time. A horse is compelled to move freely at all times and when it can't it will begin to attempt to move and injure itself worse and worse until there is no hope of recovery. People have even tried to sedate horses for the recovery period and found most horses can not survive that as a horse feeling trapped in a cramped stall tends to tap dance, which can easily aggravate the original broken leg.

There are treatments for broken legs that involve cold laser treatments and they are only considered for the youngest and strongest of horses as it's still a long and hard recovery process. Even sling treatments are dangerous. Keeping a horse hoisted in a sling while their leg heals is also dangerous as the horse will fidget and wiggle and cause chafing which leads to dangerous sores that can develop an infection.

Watching your horse's weight, regular hoof care and controlled riding techniques can go a long way to helping your horse avoid the tragedy of a broken leg.

Labels: horse