Equidentistry By Meredith Jefferies

10/31/2022

Happy Halloween!!! Help us with costume development. What else should this costume include?!?!

10/03/2022

Great organization and an AMAZING tack sale!!!

Mark your calendars folks! The Fall Open House is happening October 15 & 16 from 10am - 4pm

09/08/2022

scammers who are super scammy... why fb hasn't taken down idk....

07/28/2022

A colleague wrote this and it's so true. Stop using unlicensed, poorly trained, and uncertified persons. Last week I came across a fractured tooth. It had been that way for at least a year. A bad owner? Nope! A great owner who'd had her horse checked several times and told he didn't need work.

Your dental provider can often make or break your training, feeding or lesson program. Without a well balanced and pain free mouth, your horse will not be able to perform their best (ask a c**t starter who has had a horse come in with wolf teeth and caps 😬) feel their best, or reach their maximum health potential. Their mouth affects the way they carry their bodies (a good chiropractor won’t even adjust a horse until their teeth are done) and the way they wear their hooves!

Before hiring a provider, consider a few things.

How long have they been practicing? Did you know that in Maryland and Pennsylvania the laws regarding equine dentistry are very lax and there are providers going around that have only completed FOUR weeks of training and nothing else?! 🤯🤯 All providers should be seeking apprenticeships after completing a short program like that, NOT working on horses alone.

How much continuing education have they received? As with anything, new information and safety guidelines are always surfacing. Make sure they’re current

Are they certified? Completing a dental program does NOT make them certified. If your horse is insured, your insurance likely won’t cover if something happens and your provider was not.

Is this their full time job? That question speaks for itself

Are they legally allowed to work in your state? Some states require a specific license (Virginia being one of them) that you cannot obtain unless you are certified, up to date on continuing education credits and are in good standing

There are many amazing providers out there who are doing their best to enable your horses are receiving the top level of care. Price for services should be the LAST question you ask

🎤 ⬇️

05/08/2022

Welcome to the world little guy.

04/01/2022

Very rare indeed. APRIL FOOLS!

Our vet Dave had a challenging but once in a career call last night, to help deliver these beautiful triplets!

Fortunately all three foals are doing brilliantly, and are receiving some supplementary colostrum and milk so all three c**ts can stay together with mum!

❤️

**It's past midday so as many of you have realised, this was indeed an April Foals joke! See our latest post for why three healthy triplets isn't possible! **

02/24/2022

This lovely mare is getting ready for the 2022 show season! Showing 4th level dressage. Make sure to schedule your horse's dental ASAP as we are booking up. Remember, every horse every year. We work on everything from pasture pets to FEI competitors to barrel racers. We also have equipment to fit the smallest of miniature horses to the largest warmbloods or drafts and everything in between!

02/18/2022

This 4 year old was having difficulty with the bridle. Any thoughts as to why? This deciduous "baby" tooth needs to come out. Every time he moves his jaw the tooth wiggles. This is incredibly uncomfortable and simply removing this tooth made him so much more comfortable. We also floated and balanced his cheek teeth. And of course removed the other fragment.

06/06/2021

Day 2 of Camp! We rode early to use the shade.

05/26/2021

Limited camp availability. June 5&6 have only 2 spots remaining. Horseback riding, goat milking, fun arts and crafts!

04/30/2021

These photos are of the same 17 miniature horse. The green arrows point to some significant feed packing that surrounded the 207 and extended to the root tips. The red arrow points to a severe laceration due to sharp points. The endoscope image is a better view of the trauma to the soft tissue due to the sharp points. I wish I'd gotten after photos but the little guy's quarter had run out. Today's dental consisted of a balance and float and some extensive perio flushing. The veterinarian Rx antibiotics and we will be rechecking him soon to see if the tooth was able to tighten back up, or if there rid permanent damage. Radiographs (x-rays) will also be taken at his recheck to see what the roots look like. Can your dentist see all this? Do they have equipment small enough to work on a mini? Are they IAED certified? Is their CE current?

04/28/2021

Feed packing and periodontal disease is something that can affect horses of all ages. This particular horse is a well maintained 9 yo. No weight loss issues (except it's hard for him!), Rides well etc. At EquiDentistry we work directly with a veterinarian so they can help us to treat these issues that blur the line between veterinary medicine and equine dentistry. Sometimes the vet will Rx a medicated mouth wash or systemic antibiotics. In this case she recommended adding betadine to our perio-flush treatment and then we will follow up with this horse. Untreated, feed packing like this can lead to severe periodontal disease, bone loss and eventually tooth loss. This is something we want to prevent and stay ahead of.

04/19/2021

I love this horse! Been doing his teeth for at least 10 years. He's 37 years old this year. Flash is such a good boy. Your old horse STILL has teeth. They may be worthless and not functional but in 15 years I've never seen one with zero teeth. That's why routine checkups are still important for the old guys and gals.

04/14/2021

"He was just done." I hear this all too often. Usually from great owners who just acquired the horse. This horse was "Just done in January." If he was someone did this horse a disservice.

"He's too fat anyways" It's so important to remember that proper dentistry isn't just about weight. It's also about the overall health of the teeth. The overall health of the horse. The performance of the animal.

"Oh, yeah, he's really heavy on the forehand and leans into the bit. He's super stiff to the right. Could that be from his teeth?" YES! It's important to remember that the teeth are just one part of the puzzle. He also saw Dr Stanaway from Bridle Creek Veterinary Service to be sure his overall health and specifically his joint health were being properly managed.

We look forward to hearing updates from his rider.

04/03/2021

This tiny tooth is what caused an otherwise reasonable young horse to flip over backwards onto her rider. You read that correctly. Normal wolf teeth are problematic enough, but blind wolf teeth are even more painful to the horse when the bit is introduced. This tooth was sitting about 1.5 inches forward to where the typicall wolf tooth sits. We call it "blind" because it was impacted and not erupted through the tissue. Essentially, it was invisible. So how did we find it? Well, we know where to look! And we know how to palpate for this somewhat less common finding. This tooth and it's mate were easily removed with the help of some standing sedation, and a local anesthetic thanks to Bridle Creek Veterinary Service . Meredith works exclusively with veterinarians to ensure sedation and analgesics are always available.

A bit more on "wolf teeth." Wolf teeth are the horse's vestigial first premolar. These teeth are found equally in mares and geldings. And in my experience virtually 100% of horses will develop wolf teeth by the age of 12 months. These teeth should always be removed. No horse needs wolf teeth and very many horses will be bothered by them at some point in their riding careers. The procedure to remove them is simple and even more so with erupted wolf teeth. They also interfere with proper equilibration so even in non riding horses I generally recommend their removal. There is simply no benefit to leaving them in.

"But I thought only males had wolf teeth?" This is a common confusion. The canine tooth is sexually dimorphic. Meaning it's found mainly in male horses, geldings and stallions. They are occasionally found in mares, but usually are much smaller. Rarely, are full size canines present in mares. Canines do not require routine removal and their long root would actually make this quite problematic. We do routinely file these teeth just to be sure they don't get to sharp.

03/24/2021

This little guy is a super chubby, in need of weight watchers, girth extender needing, adorable and handsome paso fino gelding. He's not a horse you'd look at and think, better get his teeth done.Turns out, somewhere along the way he lost his 302 & 303 incisors and the 304 canine shifted into their space. The opposing teeth had nothing to wear on and erupted unchecked for years. Luckily, Dr Angela Stanaway saw this mouth at a routine veterinary appointment with his new owners and scheduled him a dental. I am so grateful to be able to work with Bridle Creek Veterinary Service . I provide the dentistry and Dr Stanaway provides the sedation and veterinary support. Weight is actually not a good indicator of a need for dentistry. The calendar is your best indicator. If it's been longer than 12 months, it's time to get on the schedule.
(Follow-up will be done on this patient in about 6 months to fully correct this malocclusion)

03/22/2021

"My horse didn't eat for two weeks the last time he was power floated" "I'm afraid you'll take off too much." "He just needs a basic float, can't you use hand tools?"

These are the worries I hear from clients all the time. First, let me say, you are your horse's advocate. Asking questions is great! I'm glad you ask these questions so we can discuss these concerns.

Motorized dentistry has come along way. In the right hands, it's an amazing standard of care that your horse needs. In the wrong hands, any equipment, including motorized instruments, can be dangerous. Are they more dangerous than hand tools? No, I see far more damage done by under floating with hand tools than I have ever seen done by power tools. How do you know if your horse only needs basic dentistry?

How is my equipment different? The most important instrument I have is my knowledge. I am a current certified member in good standing with the IAED. I have completed countless hours of hands on CE with practitioners all over the world.

I also work exclusively with veterinarians so every horse I float is sedated. I utilize a foot pedal so I can control the speed at which I work on any specific tooth. My equipment allows me to work with a level of precision and accuracy not possible with hand tools. The horses I work on are usually grazing before I leave the farm.

Bottom line? Motorized dentistry in proper hands will extend the life of the tooth, and the life of your horse. Let us show you the difference today.

02/10/2021

Special thanks to Marisa Bedron, The Equine Science teacher at Nonnewaug High School’s Agrisicence Center in Woodbury, Connecticut for having me as their guest lecturer this morning. We had a great time discussing the importance of equine dentistry! I found out the kids even had an assignment to Google me. Check out the cool photo I showed them from my endoscope. Ouch!

01/31/2021

In Wellington Feb 3rd-7th. UPDATE adding two more days staying through the 11th. Have some openings earlier on in the trip!! Message me to get on my list. If I can't fit you in this trip, I'll catch you on the next run. Considering adding Ocala to this run, let me know if you need me there.

01/30/2021

Planning a Wellington run sometime in the next few weeks. Exactly when depends on who needs what. Message or call me if you need to be on the list.