Can you imagine not being able to eat well, enjoy your food or live with constant pain?
Anyone who has ever experienced an oral problem knows it’s time for an evaluation. It is much the same for our equines, who are in our hands. Without the ability to eat, decline is predictable.
On the other hand, maintaining proper routine dental care rewards your horse with a longer, more comfortable future, and may save you, as the owner, money in the long run. Examine the warning signs to learn that even some bad habits in performance can be traced to dental problems.
Does this seem like your equine in the stall or the pasture?
- Drops wads of feed (especially hay) while eating
- Leaves large amounts of hay or grain in the water bucket
- Holds his/her head at an odd angle while chewing
- Refuses to eat
- Has bad mouth odor or general poor body condition
- Has unilateral nasal discharge
- Experiences difficulty chewing
- Salivates excessively
- Leaves undigested food in manure
- Presents unilateral swelling of the face or mandible
Does your equine exhibit these behaviors in the ring?
- Pushes his/her nose in the air when you apply pressure on the reins
- Resists turning in one or both directions
- Chews excessively on the bit
- Rolls the tongue over the bit
- Fights the bit
- Bucks frequently
- Fails to stop or turn
- Tosses or shakes the head when wearing a bridle
