Star had the dentist this week and I'm pleased to report everything went very smoothly. Her mane is getting lots of attention lately, the dentist said exactly the same as the vet did last month, that it's extraordinarily long and how do I manage to keep it that way? Canter mane and tail spray is our secret, shhhhh! Anyway he said Star was an angel compared to a lot of horses he deals with. I can't help feeling it's because a lot of people seem to expect their horses to just cope with stuff without any prior preparation at all. When I changed to this dentist a couple of years ago I knew he used power tools and didn't hand rasp. Although dentistry with all the gags and tools is nigh on impossible to prepare a horse for thoroughly, I tried the best I could over the course of a couple of weeks to prepare Star for being in the shelter with the bars up, and the sound and vibration of power tools. That preparation really paid off and it's something I re-visit in training every now and then as a refresher.
Due to the fact Star's teeth were in such a state when I got her, and she was quite young, she had quite a few six monthly visits and I've decided to keep this even though she could probably go a year now. The reason for this is for the sake of an extra £35 I'd rather she have two shorter visits than one longer more stressful one. I'm there all the time with her but because the gag is at my face height I have to stay outside the bars and touch her over the top. He's very good with her and lets her have frequent breaks, which I think is brilliant. Too often with some equine professionals I've felt a bit like we were on a conveyor belt with them rushing to get the job done at the expense of allowing the horse to have a rest. I only stick with the ones I feel treat Star right and that she's comfortable with these days, after all I'm the one that's footing the bill and if Star's not happy neither am I!
I really need to get Chrome's teeth done. I wish I knew of a good dentist around here . . .
ReplyDeleteThis is the third dentist I've had! The first two that came I was sure there was a problem because she used to grind her teeth a lot, both told me she was fine and I just *knew* she wasn't. I got this one by recommendation from someone and I think that's a good way if you know any other horse owners in your area :)
ReplyDeleteNone of them hurt her though right? I just don't want one to make a mistake that results in injury or loss of a tooth. I always think worse case scenario lol. :) I'm going to start sending emails to my horse friends and see what names I come up with.
ReplyDeleteNo none of them ever hurt her. In the UK only vets and qualified eqiune dental technicians are allowed to do horses teeth. A lot of people seem to go with the EDT's because tooth rasping is only a tiny part of veterinary training and to be honest I'd rather have a specialist doing my horses teeth the vet I used didn't do a great job. If the horse needs sedation though a vet must be administer it. I am just like you, I always think of worst case scenario too and I'm very fussy about who I have now :)
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