Becca’s going to begin training under saddle soon so we needed to address any dental issues beforehand. It’s not nice to put a bit in a horse’s mouth if there are owchy teeth in the way. She hasn’t actually lost any of her baby teeth, yet, but she did have what’s known as Wolf Teeth.

“Wolf teeth are very small teeth located in front of the second premolar and do not have long roots that set them firmly in the jaw bone. They rarely appear in the lower jaw A horse may have one, two, or no wolf teeth. While not all wolf teeth are troublesome, veterinarians routinely remove them to prevent pain or interference from a bit.” (http://dclahdvm.com/articles/dental.htm)

Yes, the horse needs to be heavily sedated for this and any dental procedure. Much safer for them, much safer for us and you can really get in there and work without the horse having any memory of it. There are those that claim “no sedation equine dentistry” and don’t use the head gear for support – I don’t buy it. Becca is so loopy because we had to double dose her, I’m holding her up. My Fjords are tough, tough girls!

Can you see that pointy thing in front of her premolar? That’s the Wolf Tooth. Cass still has hers but they’re flush to her gumline so shouldn’t cause any problems. Becca’s were another story.

The tools used are actually tools, picks, pliers, etc.

She started seriously wobbling around so we moved her to where she could lean into the barn a bit.

Dr. Roberts had to use a lot of muscle to get these teeth out. She was wiped out when we were done.

Left side out…

Working on the right…

Yep, it’s bloody in there…

Right side out!

After pulling the teeth it was time to file down any sharp points,

and remove any built up tartar.

Rinse & spit, Becca – good girl!

Smile for the camera!

Becca did well. She turns two soon and she’s shown maturity in these past months. Leslie (our trainer) thinks she’s gonna be a breeze to train to ride. I try to do my best by these big girls and we all have to keep up with our teeth. I took advantage of the drugs and trimmed Becca’s mane while she was out of it. I liked her wild look but our unbearably hot weather’s right around the corner and she needs to look like a respectable Fjord, anyway.

After about an hour’s rest in the stall she was back out in the pasture with her mother. There’ve been no repercussions and now we can start working for real. It’s very exciting! 🙂