Is equine dentristry different for minis?

[opie7441]

I have a new 4yr old w/ a small underbite, he is a very good weight, I was glad to see him lose a few lbs from when I got him. He has a few points in the back, haven't gotten a dentist yet and was wondering if there was anything that I need to know about dentistry on minis. Any advice would be great, This is what I seem to hear the horror stories about, picking a bad dentist. Any help you have this newbie is all ears, be gentle.

 

[Sandy S.]

All I can say is if you can get him, I love Carl Mitz. My equine vet will not touch a mini without tranquilizing them first to do teeth, I don't like that at all. That's when we found Carl. Which reminds me I need to set up next years appointment.

GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR NEW GUY!!!

 

[opie7441]

Thank you Sandy, Cool wagon on your avatar!

 

[Flyer]

I just had my stallions teeth done by an equine vet/dentist. Make sure in advance that the vet has the proper tools for a mini. For instance, my vet used a speculum to keep my horses mouth open that was designed especially for minis. Make sure if you sedate your mini your vet has an accurate weight estimate for him so he gets the dosage correct--people seem to think they are a lot heavier than they are, especially during the winter--they could oversedate/overdose him. Also, at least in CA, it isn't legal for anyone not licenced as a vet to practice dentistry on horses.

 

[Hosscrazy]

I will only let my vet work on my minis. I also prefer to have my vet sedate my horses, and she uses a small speculum and tools that fit my horses' mouths.

Only DVM's are allowed to use sedation. My only advice is please do not allow anyone but a vet to sedate your horses.

If there was a lot of work done on my horse, I usually will give them a soft dinner (pellets soaked in water). If the work was minor, I let them go back to their hay.

Good luck with your little guy!

Liz R.

 

[Sonya]

All I can say is if you can get him, I love Carl Mitz.

I just met him a couple months ago at a dental clinic. He travels all around, I can't remember where he is from though. According to him - mini teeth are the same as big horse teeth, even the same size, although of course, the minis mouths are smaller.

 

[Dona]

Carl still lives in Texas.....and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE HIM! My vet, at his own admission, simply cannot do the thorough job on the minis, that Carl does. Carl does not need to sedate most minis....but if any DO need sedated, he would insist your vet be present to do that.

Also....just having the proper sized equipment, is not going to guarantee that the person using it has the "needed" knowledge of the unique problems Minis have with their teeth & how to properly treat them. Before finding Carl.....I had a couple minis with "tooth-bumps". My vet, who I adore...but had very little experience with Minis at the time... just said "their just tooth bumps...leave them alone & they'll disappear when their permanent teeth come in." Well...what he (and I) didn't know at the time, was that many times the permanent teeth DO NOT come in on their own with Minis. And, unfortunately, these didn't. By the time I learned of Carl Mitz (couple of years later) & had him out to evaluate these horses....it was too late.

The tooth bumps had calcified & become permanent. If the "caps" had been pulled when the tooth bumps had first appeared....the adult teeth could have come in & bumps would have disappeared. My vet was not aware of this, as he dealt with mostly full sized horses & had never seen that problem.

What I like about Carl is that he is EXTREMELY experienced with MINIATURE

Horses & their head's skeletal & tooth build....and often does seminars about Miniature Equine Dentistry.

I have Carl out a couple times a year....just to be sure to keep on top of these problems that can arise in young Minis.

 

[Sunraye Miniatures]

How much does he charge? Quite interested!

 

[tuffsmom]

My husband is an equine dentist. After spending about $300 in tools, he finally got the "miniature" supplies a few months ago. Last week, he cut out Big Man's wolf teeth, and floated his teeth, and I'm not sure exactly what else. It got gross looking, when he cut out the wolf teeth, and I couldn't handle it, so I went inside.

He did say that doing a mini's teeth is a huge pain in the rear end. I didn't ask why, I just figured that it was because they were so much smaller. He did nearly fall over when he opened his mouth, and there were these HUGE teeth in that little mouth. He's still bewildered at how all of his teeth are going to fit in there, when they all come in.

He had to rig Big Man up in our "big horse" stock, had him crosstied & such. (Big Man did not think the teeth fixing was such a hot idea....he threw a pretty big fit at first)

Hubby did a good job, though. That evening, Big Man was eating his grain and he didn't drop any!!!!. We bitted him up and ground drove him the next morning, no soreness at all. He didn't fight the bit, or throw his head around. It really helped him a lot.