Bookmark this site!Teeth of the Horse
Considerable variation exists in the development and wear of the incisor teeth of the horse, not only in the different breeds, but in the same breed under different conditions of life. Country-bred horses, which get a greater variety of food, with good rations of gree food, show less wear than do city-bred horses. The following illustrations show the state of the teeth under fairly average conditions.
(A) Represents the "Deciduous" or Milk Teeth between the first and second year; they have short fangs and the "mark", or depression, is not well developed. At two years there is a full set of Milk Teeth.
(B) At two years and six to nine months the permanent Central Incisors are well up. The Median or Middle Incisors and the Corner Incisors of the Milk set are still retained.
(C) At three years and nine months the Central Incisors show wear; the Median Incisors are well up; the Outer or Corner Incisors still remain, but are loose, and the Canine Tooth, or "Tush" (+) appears.
(D) At five years the horse has a full set of Permanent Incisors; and the mark in the Central and Median Incisors is well seen. The tush is fairly developed in the horse, but is absent or rudimentary in the mare.
At about six to seven years the mark is worn out of the Central Lower Incisors, but is retained in the corresponding tooth of the upper jaw.
At eight years the mark is retained in the Median Incisors, and is very plain and deep in the Corner Incisors.
(E) At nine to ten years it has almost disappeared, and the teeth have become somewhat triangular in section, and in the centre is seen the "yellow spot". The gums have contracted a little, and the Canine Tooth, or Tush, is long.
(F) From five to eight or nine years, the teeth fit well, and the muzzle is obtuse or rounded.(G) With advancing age, the muzzle becomes acute, the groove extends down to the cutting edge, the teeth fit irregularly, and the Canine Tooth, or Tush, grows longer.
(H) is a section of a Permanent Incisor at about two-and-a-half years, in which the infolding of the enamel (a) forming the mark is worn through; (b) is the dentine, (c) the hollow cavity in which are bloodvessels and nerves, and (d) is the "cementum" or external covering of the fang.
Irregular Teeth
The teeth of the horse, from a variety of causes—bad bits, bad habits in the stable, gritty food and accidents—grow irregularly or are broken. In the skull shown at (A), the molars or grinding teeth (a) and (b) have developed sharp points which cut the inner surface of the cheek. The front teeth or incisors, which are shown at (c) in their natural position and form, become with age or by a broken or fractured tooth overgrown, or overshot as in (B).
Crib-biting is a common but bad habit, causing the "rounding off" of the cutting edge of the teeth, as at (C); a horse with such teeth would have difficulty in grazing.
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Teeth of the Horse was published by The Horse Scene on 20 Mar, 2006. © All rights reserved. You may download and print this article for personal or non-profit use only. Please feel free to link to this article.
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20 Mar, 2006 (Edited 29 Aug, 2006)
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