Teeth. Now I, personally, do not start horses under saddle until 4 and I do not bit them to ground drive until 3. Once they are driving and under saddle they may get chunks of time off coinciding with loosing caps and teeth coming in and no horse is started under saddle until they have been examined by the dentist and floated if needed. I recently had someone question WHY I was having 4 year olds floated and I realized that people assume there is a standard timing for when a horse needs dental work. There seems to be a lose of comprehension that young horses heads change shape and that loosing caps and getting new teeth ant different time can affect the wear of the bite. There also seems to be a gap in understanding the affects a horse's mouth has on them in more ways than weight loss.
Mouth discomfort can be expressed very subtly by some horses. Take for example one Arab gelding who begin to shake his head when bitted. A preliminary check by myself said he had points and needed dental care. When the dentist examined him he was found to have ulcers beginning to form from said points which we can only imagine how painful that would be. Yet, he pushed past it and nearly hid the symptoms.
Some horses may reach a state of severe anxiety and begin rearing, refusing to be bridled, bolting (quite similar to a bit that causes discomfort which is why we always check the teeth first). I had always student with a QH mare who was a sweet girl and easy going. One week I showed up to teach and she was panicking at everything and the students father was trying to "correct" her and of course this only made her more upset. On examination the mare had severe points that were cutting her tongue. She had been pushing past the discomfort for as long as she could and finally became upset. After a float and an few days rest she was back to her old self, better in fact.
Neither of these horses showed signs of weight loss, the go to sign for an horse requiring dental care. So get to know what is out of character and learn how to pull and tongue and do and quick check yourself before jumping to conclusions and correcting your horse for saying OUCH!
Mouth discomfort can be expressed very subtly by some horses. Take for example one Arab gelding who begin to shake his head when bitted. A preliminary check by myself said he had points and needed dental care. When the dentist examined him he was found to have ulcers beginning to form from said points which we can only imagine how painful that would be. Yet, he pushed past it and nearly hid the symptoms.
Some horses may reach a state of severe anxiety and begin rearing, refusing to be bridled, bolting (quite similar to a bit that causes discomfort which is why we always check the teeth first). I had always student with a QH mare who was a sweet girl and easy going. One week I showed up to teach and she was panicking at everything and the students father was trying to "correct" her and of course this only made her more upset. On examination the mare had severe points that were cutting her tongue. She had been pushing past the discomfort for as long as she could and finally became upset. After a float and an few days rest she was back to her old self, better in fact.
Neither of these horses showed signs of weight loss, the go to sign for an horse requiring dental care. So get to know what is out of character and learn how to pull and tongue and do and quick check yourself before jumping to conclusions and correcting your horse for saying OUCH!
As I said at the beginning, every horse is examined before going under saddle. I want my horses to feel the bit is a communication tool, not something that creates discomfort. And so knowing their mouth is ready I know they will not view the bit as something to just put up with or fear but something that is part of how we communicate. This is why we are constantly checking young mouths and happily giving them time off to finish cutting new teeth.
Knowing this, don't jump on the bad wagon against those who start and compete horses at a younger age. If you actually talk to many race trainers, cutting trainers, etc you will learn they are continuously monitoring the mouths of their young horses and spending more money than one care to think about on equine dentistry to keep their horses competition ready. While that is not my cup of tea, these trainers and riders have a solid grasp on how the mouth affects more than weight.
Knowing this, don't jump on the bad wagon against those who start and compete horses at a younger age. If you actually talk to many race trainers, cutting trainers, etc you will learn they are continuously monitoring the mouths of their young horses and spending more money than one care to think about on equine dentistry to keep their horses competition ready. While that is not my cup of tea, these trainers and riders have a solid grasp on how the mouth affects more than weight.
The next time your mount tosses their head or acts anxious seemingly out of nowhere, check those teeth. After all, how would you like to be in trouble for a toothache?
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