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Certified graduate of the Academy
of Equine Dentistry and World Wide Equine
Proud member of the Association of Equine Dental Equilibration
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Patterns of Neglect:
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When horses' mouths are left to wear as they will, a
half dozen descriptively named abnormalities are "sculpted" by
imperfect chewing patterns.
- Sometimes sharp protrusions called hooks develop on the first or last
cheek tooth when an overbite, underbite or other dental deformity
causes an imperfect meeting of the top and bottom arcades. "Front hooks
are commonly caused when the upper first cheek teeth stick out in front
and the lower first teeth and the unopposed part of the upper tooth
gets no wear," says equine dental specialist B.A. Rucker, DVM, of
Lebanon Virginia. "Over time, as the front hook gets longer, it
thickens and pushes the [lower] jaw rearward, forcing the back cheek
teeth out of contact."
- Ramps are
typically premolars with a surface that slopes like a ski jump. These
abnormalities are likely to change the horse's bite over time by
pulling the lower jaw forward or pushing it back. "Ramps may occur when
the upper front premolar baby tooth is retained, preventing normal
growth of the permanent premolar," says Johnson. The opposing permanent
tooth wears unevenly, developing a ramp. Both ramps and hooks can cut
or scrape the tongue or cheek, especially when the horse is bitted.
- Wave mouth
occurs when two or more teeth in the arcade are high, creating a series
of ascending and declining grinding surfaces in a wavelike shape. This
severely restricting dental abnormality can be the end stage of another
neglected malocclusion, such as missing teeth or hooks or ramps.
Failure to properly shed baby teeth may initiate a wave mouth. "Wave
mouth can start early, around age 6, and gradually gets worse," says
Johnson.
- A stepped molar
has grown unopposed and thus unworn so that it juts above the rest of
the arcade. A gap in the opposite molar lineup initiates the
abnormality, and the overgrown tooth can seriously inhibit chewing
motions. Step mouth can be corrected by filing or cutting the molar to
the level of the rest of the tooth line.
- Shear mouth
describes a dental configuration in which the molars' grinding surfaces
are worn at a 60 to 75 degree angle rather than at the normal 15.
See the diagrams below for more information:
  
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