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There is a lot more to dentistry than rasping off sharp points!

Equine dentistry has progressed astronomically, from ‘just rasping off some sharp bits’ (and ignoring the serious, painful pathology), to thoroughly examining the mouth so we can pick up these often very subtle, yet very serious problems. If your human dentist came in with a blindfold, had a quick feel and scaled off some calculus with their eyes closed, do you think they would pick up the serious, yet subtle pathology there? Many of the most painful conditions affecting our equine patients such as dead, infected, abscessed teeth, or many cases of periodontal disease can only be seen, they can’t be felt. This means a thorough oral examination using a powerful light, a mirror or endoscope, a full mouth speculum and a relaxed patient, are essential.

At Dental Vet, just as in human dentistry, we focus on prevention, picking up problems early to prevent them becoming big problems. Years ago, vets would see a ‘suddenly’ fractured tooth, a sinus infection ‘out of nowhere’, an older horse that was dropping weight ‘because it is getting old’, or a facial swelling draining pus that ‘must have injured itself’. In these cases if we had been regularly examining and treating these horse’s mouths in the years before we likely would have seen the deep cavity and decay in the tooth years before it fractured (and could have done ‘fillings’ to prevent it from fracturing). We would have seen the dead, infected tooth or deep periodontal disease and treated this before it progressed to a sinus infection or draining abscess. If we had been treating the older horse’s teeth throughout their lives then a lot of periodontal disease and early tooth loss, dental overgrowths etc. would have been prevented and they are then able to keep their functioning teeth into their older age. Of course not every problem can be foreseen but there are so many painful conditions that if picked up and treated early, can prevent years of suffering in our horses, and save owner’s a lot of money in the long run by preventing small problems from becoming big problems.

Dental Vet is the only dedicated veterinary equine dentistry clinic in Western Australia (it’s all that we do!) and the only facility with the staff, equipment, training and experience to be able to provide dental restorations (‘fillings’) and endodontics (‘root canal’ treatments) so you will have all available options. We also have significant training and education (and have published peer reviewed papers in international journals) in treatments for advanced periodontal disease. The research done at Dental Vet is at the forefront of modern equine dentistry and has helped horses all around the world. Dental Vet also happily offers referral and advisory services for other veterinarians and dental technicians. Our staff are passionate about dentistry and keep up to date with the latest advances (human and equine!) to ensure our patients receive the best dental care the world has to offer.