Equine Dental Disease

Equine dental developmental abnormalities can involve tooth number, morphology, or position in the dental arcades. Abnormalities of dental development and eruption occur quite commonly in the horse and result in a wide range of clinical conditions. Some developmental dental abnormalities of a young horse may not cause the animal to exhibit clinical signs of dental disease until it reaches middle age. A congenital/developmental problem present at the time of tooth eruption often leads to acquired dental problems as the teeth continue to erupt and wear. Consequently, several different dental abnormalities, the origins of which are inter-related, are often present by the time the horse shows clinical signs of dental disease.