Cases

This 3 year old was rightly presented by his owner due to a concern for malodorous breath. Unfortunately, his inquisitive nature got the better of him and he has pulled back whilst holding something in his mouth, almost tearing off his deciduous (baby/milk) teeth. Owing to the age of the injury (thought to have been a few weeks), it was not possible to correct this surgically; instead the vet opted to extract the deciduous teeth and leave to heal. 2 years later and the underlying permanent teeth erupted without issue.

Sadly, this is a common scenario especially with donkeys and mules where some owners are just not aware that they require dental care and treatment, whether they are ridden/driven or not. This mule had not received any treatment for 13 years. The steep angulation of the chewing surface of the cheek teeth is abnormal; imagine chewing 40-50,000 times per day with those sharp, dagger like enamel points. Just above the last tooth, you can see a collection of partly chewed grass; this is emerging from a penetrative injury caused by the lower teeth. It took us just three treatments over the course of 2 years to massively improve this mules mouth to the point where he was nearly normal.

Another example of a penetrative injury from a sharp dental overgrowth; this time in an animal that had been examined and treated only a few weeks before South West Equine Dentistry were asked for a second opinion. If you look at the tongue where the grass has collected, you will notice the soft tissue bulges around the infected pocket of food. This animal was said to have received a 'comfort float' - sometimes offered by service providers as a cheaper alternative to a full mouth treatment (sometimes called 'performance float') in non bitted or companion equids. At South West Equine Dentistry, we have one charge and one standard of care; the absolute very best your animal can expect.