Researchers Examine Disorders in Horses Lacking Dental Care

All horses had issues, with older animals having more fractures, gaps between teeth, and cavities than younger ones.
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Routine dental examinations should be a part of every horse’s health program, but for some horse populations—such as feral equids or neglected rescues—these dental exams rarely or never occur. For such horses, what types of dental disorders do they develop and with what frequency? A group of scientists from the University of Pretoria in South Africa used a unique method to answer these question.

Ditte C. Vemming, DVM, Msc, and colleagues worked with a slaughterhouse to evaluate 40 horse heads from a rural South African population. The team used dentition to estimate the horses’ age and divided them into one of three groups: immature (2-5 years), adult (6-14 years) and older (15 years or more). Then, two blind observers each conducted oral exams on the heads for no longer than five minutes and recorded their findings on dental charts. After completing those exams, the team bisected each head using a band saw, and two different observers jointly examined the oral cavity, including the periodontal pockets (severe periodontal disease), and recorded their findings. The team also collected any parasites found in the oral cavity to determine their species.

After combining the findings from both intact and bisected heads, the team determined that:

  • Immature, adult, and older horses had median body condition scores of 4, 5, and 3 (on a 9-point scale), respectively;
  • Dental disorders affected all age groups, with the most prevalent being sharp enamel points (97.5%), periodontal pockets (70%), and wave mouth (57.5%);
  • Older horses had significantly more cheek teeth diastemata (a gap or space between teeth), infundibular caries (cavities), and fractures compared to other age groups; and
  • About 20% of the heads examined contained Gasterophilus spp. larvae in periodontal pockets, particularly in the horses examined in the winter.

The researchers then compared the findings for intact and bisected head examinations. Obvious dental disorders, such as rostral focal overgrowth (hooks), fractures, and age seemed to correlate well between both methods of oral examination. However, several minor disorders showed fair to poor correlation, suggesting that a more detailed examination of intact heads might provide a more in-depth diagnosis. The researchers cautioned, however, that their study contained a relatively small sample size, so additional research is needed

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Written by:

Kristen M. Janicki, a lifelong horsewoman, was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Sciences from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and later attended graduate school at the University of Kentucky, studying under Dr. Laurie Lawrence in the area of Equine Nutrition. Kristen has been a performance horse nutritionist for an industry feed manufacturer for more than a decade. Her job entails evaluating and improving the performance of the sport horse through proper nutrition.

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