Kessock Equine Vets provides the very best dental care for horses in the north of Scotland � no one can be matched in this area. Regular, thorough dental work is important in maintaining your horse�s health and performance.

Signs of dental problems are very varied and some of the more common are:

• Subtle changes in ridden performance such as resistance to contact and unsettled head carriage.
• Difficulty in chewing and dropping of food (quidding)
• Weight loss
• Nasal discharge
• Lymph node enlargement
• Head shaking or tossing
• Foul-smelling breath

Importantly, severe dental disease can exist for a long period of time with no outward clinical signs. Consequently regular thorough dental examinations are essential in the general management of the horse.

We recommend a complete oral examination every 6-12 months with preventative dental work carried out as required. This work should be carried out by one of our vets. Please remember that only a vet can examine your horse and look for other health issues at the same time and only a vet can sedate your horse, if necessary, often enabling the back of the mouth to be rasped more effectively. It should also be noted that any damage to your horse�s mouth, caused by an unregistered dental technician, would not be covered by your insurance.

Regular examination of your horse�s mouth allows early diagnosis and treatment of dental abnormalities before they develop into more serous problems.

Common problems identified include:

Sharp enamel points � These usually develop on the outside of the upper cheek teeth and in the inside of the lower cheek teeth. They occur in almost every horse fed on a modern diet and can cause sores on the cheeks and tongue.

Hooks � The upper front cheek teeth can lie in front of the opposing lower cheek teeth resulting in overgrowths that point downwards. The lower back cheek teeth can lie behind the opposing upper teeth, resulting in overgrowths that point upwards at the back of the mouth.

Diastema � this is the name given to gaps between the teeth, which can result in very painful disease of the gums and ultimately tooth root abscess and tooth loss.

Dental Caries � dental decay that can lead to tooth root abscess and fracture of the tooth.

Most routine dental work can be carried out at your own stable yard. However, for more advanced procedures your horse may need to come to our equine clinic. Here the use of stocks, x-rays and advanced sedation techniques provide appropriate restraint and enable work to be carried out with the minimum amount of stress to your horse.

Dental services offered include:

Quality routine rasping at competitive prices using the latest manual and mechanical dental equipment. A full dental report is supplied at each consultation.

Wolf tooth extraction

Dental x-rays

Diastema widening and treatment of periodontal disease

Cheek tooth extraction � usually performed standing although a general anaesthetic is sometimes required.

Orthodontics (e.g. bracing parrot mouths)

Sinus surgery

Remember you can take advantage of our FREE zone visit scheme for any routine dental work. Should you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us.

.