Increasing global concern about equine dentistry, is mainly due to the introduction of new equipment and trained veterinarians, who have discovered a number of abnormalities associated with complications of various kinds to our horses.

There are four reasons for the recent resurgence of equine dentistry:

- The discovery of the enormous implications that have dental problems in sports performance.

- The current diet of most domestic horses.

- The current criteria for genetic selection.

- Technological advances allow the application of some techniques work very effective and safe.

Under natural conditions, horses chew grass 12 to 16 hours. Today most horses live in stables, pens with no grass or natural grazing. They receive food two or three times a day and their diet consists of a high proportion of feed grains or compounds, so now they chew a lot less hours and do not wear their teeth successfully.

The teeth are worn by friction between them and the high content of abrasive minerals that are ingested mixed with the grass. To compensate for this wear, the horses have very large teeth located in deep dental alveoli, which are erupting at a rate of about 3 millimeters a year.

The horses who live in stables chew much less hours per day, so that the tooth wear is less, and eventually teeth are oversized, irregular and have very sharp points, which limit the ability of mastication and jaw movements.

In order to fulfill its task in an appropriate manner, the pre-moral and molars of the horse should act as a functional unit called “molar table”, which has an effective grinding surface.

When a horse chews, the jaw moves in a circle and the food is crushed between the molars whose surfaces are naturally rough and some sharp edges, to bias the fibrous stalks.

Furthermore, there are naturally not designed to carry a bit.

Bits force the mucosa of the corner of his mouth against the first tooth (usually very sharp) and often they pinch, creating discomfort and often painful wounds. The canine teeth and “wolf teeth” often interfere with the mouth.

Symptoms of dental problems of the horse are:

• Weight loss or difficulty gaining weight.

• Difficulties eating or eating slow.

• Dropping the food from the mouth.

• frequent cramps.

• Chronic nasal discharge.

• Objection to putting bit in the mouth.

• Has difficulty in collection.

• “grabs the bit” or “goes hard on the bit”

• Difficulty bending to one side.

• Tilts the head during workig.

• Moves your head violently.

• Avoids contact with the hands/ reins.

• Is very irritable or apathetic.

• Dislikes being touched around the ears.

• Has problems with balance.

Some of the most frequent problems in equine sports are caudal and rostral hooks, shovels, wheel ends, the presence of wolf teeth, retention and impaction of deciduous teeth.

In horses that are in training, it is recommended at least 1 a year a maintenance treatment.