Dentists.... Dilemma

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Louby

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Noticed the other day that my boy was picking at the grass, chewing, then openning his mouth as if it was stuck, so thought time for dentist as he is nearly due and for some reason googled the dentist the yard used and now wish I hadnt!! A few really bad reviews :( I know there will always be good and bad but its got me thinking.

I will try and shorten this a bit for fear of boring you to death!

My horse had a fractured tooth removed as a 4 yr old by GA and the vet who removed it did his teeth about every 6 mths up until last year, (he is now 14) with no problems. When I moved yards I decided to use the qualified EDT who had been highly recommended to the yard. I was amazed as my horses slight parrot mouth disappeared, he didnt have to be sedated but the EDT said my boys teeth were a mess!!! and he would have to do more to rectify them. I have always kept on top of his teeth due to the gap from the extracted tooth, so I was a bit shocked but pleased he was going to sort them.
I moved yards last June and my horse did stress and lost loads of weight over the winter despite feeding him more than I ever have had to before, he was always a good doer. He is no longer lean but still doesnt look like he used to. So Im now wondering whether the weight losss was down to stressing or his new dentistry?? I'd never given it a thought until reading these reviews.

Do I get the vet again to do them, he is a modern keep up to date with techniques vet, trust the dentist and try him again or try someone else?? Its not like I will really know whether they do a good job, I will only know if theyve done a bad job and its too late then. I just dont want my poor horse suffering.

Thanks for taking the time to read
 
For me - first thing with any dentist is to check their qualifications - there are 3 day courses that will get you some 'qualifications' while others take many years. Look for qualified in the British Equine Veterinary Association / British Veterinary Dental Association examination and a member of the British Association of Equine Dental Technicians.

Secondly you can see whether they've done a good job. My denist will feel/ look then talk to me about what he has found and gets me to look (over his sholder so I can use his light) and then feel myself before he's done anything - any hooks, gaps, I can see for myself then after he's finished he gets me to look again and feel that the edges are smooth etc. It doesn't make me a dentist but I understand what he's done and why and I know it has been done. Same as I would have a conversation with the farrier about how his feet look and what he's doing.
 
Must admit I've used my dentist for several years and he was recommended by my old dentist who was retiring, he learnt in America and is very good with my animals. Did try my vets once and they did a balls up badly, so had to get Jim out to sort them out, the only time the vets were useful is when Angel had to have her teeth done and that took two of them to sedate and rasp but bless she's now gone.
 
One thing I always look for is if they use power tools. I'm not a fan of hand rasps now, I've seen the damage they can do if a horse moves suddenly and the fact that my spooky lot are a lot better with power tools tells me a lot. I also like it when the dentist shows you inside the mouth as described above. I try not to read too much into internet ranting but if there are a lot of complaints it would put me off. Are there any local internet groups you can ask for a recommendation?
 
Thanks for replying.
He is on the site as a qualified EDT as a freind checked but I will have a look Polos mum at those associations you have mentioned.
He explained everything in great detail, I felt his 'new' teeth and I was really impressed by his new 'straight' mouth. I bought him with a slight parrot mouth and it had gone! I had full confidence in what he told me he had done. The amazing bit was no sedation even though he used motorised rasps as my boy is scared of his own shadow.
Maybe Im reading into the horror stories too much, I just put 2 and 2 together and got 10, re the possible connection between his weight loss and his teeth being done. In all the years Ive had him, he has never had a problem, yet now I think he has.
Thanks again for replying.
 
Just checked their quals and they are all those mentioned so I feel much better now, thanks for the info, I really appreciated it :)
 
Power tools do seem more gentle, one of mine is very spooky and he didn't mind at all. First time I saw them the dentist demonstrated how they work by putting it on my arm and it stopped as soon as it touches something soft - a hand rasp on my arm would have made a big mess!!
 
Personally I would not worry about the teeth a right mess comment I have heard such comments many times from EDTs including one who had a right rant at friend about the condition of a horses teeth useless vets bad owners etc etc not realising he had done the horse three weeks before on my yard .
I never had him back on my yard again I don't like that sort of nonsense.
There are different schools of thought on whether correcting incisors is a good or bad idea so that can account to why a different person left them well alone.
 
Imo you wouldn't go the the doctors to have a filling, the same as you wouldn't go to the dentsit if you had a chest infection. Both are trained to do "their" job. I would look on the sites that polos mum mentioned and go from there. Usually dentists will cover a large area. You could google equine dentists and see who matches up with what qualification and where.
 
nix123 said:
Imo you wouldn't go the the doctors to have a filling, the same as you wouldn't go to the dentsit if you had a chest infection. Both are trained to do "their" job. I would look on the sites that polos mum mentioned and go from there. Usually dentists will cover a large area. You could google equine dentists and see who matches up with what qualification and where.
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And you would not go to a dentist who had trained for a fortnight either.
Most equine vet practices have vets who have specialised dental training that's who I would choose every time.
 
Goldenstar said:
And you would not go to a dentist who had trained for a fortnight either.
Most equine vet practices have vets who have specialised dental training that's who I would choose every time.
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No i wouldn't. But i think the onus is on you, the owner to ask questions like how long have you been qualified/practicing. Have you any clients i could contact etc.
Also you have to take into consideration vets might go on courses but as a rule they dont do dentistry on a horse on a regular basis. You only tend to get your horses teeth done once/twice a year. Not much practice for them and thats if they have a few to go to.
 
I think as nix123 has said it really is important to do your homework on whoever you are using, personally I wouldn't rule either out as long as I felt they were suitably qualified. The vets that I used to work for had a vet that only really worked with horses (he would very occasionally do small animal consults) and he would do teeth pretty much every day, had all the latest equipment and regularly went on courses. He always did mines teeth. Now that I have moved I am using a dentist but this is just because I asked round and she seemed to be the most recommended.
 
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