Equine Teeth- Reserve Clinical Crown

     Heather Bo is an equine dental provider that has been in practice for 10 years now and always works with and equine veterinarian.  We provide complete dental care for all horses and this working relationship of an equine dental provider with an equine veterinarian has proven to be an invaluable resource to all of our clients.  This working relationship is in the best interest of the horse and all needs, whether they be dental or otherwise, can be met with the multitude of services available at our fingertips. The veterinarians I work with provide the sedation that is needed in order to do the work properly, and to keep your horse comfortable and safe.

There is a documented shortage of large animal veterinarians in the state of California and to ask the large animal veterinarian to add to an already burdened practice would jeaporadize the quality of dental health care that the equine would receive.  In most cases the dental needs will be put off, not done and even worse, inadequate work will be performed.  I have seen this, and this statement is based upon fact.  The large animal veterinarians that I work with validate this statement. 

The equine dental needs of horses are specific in nature, and there are numerous procedures other than taking off the sharp edges in the mouth.  Most veterinarians will only take off the sharp edges and then some may address the occlusal surface  of the molars and then they do not do what is called a bite alignment.  The end result is a horse that is left with molar tables that do not meet, they have effectively created a gap between the molars, making the process of chewing nearly impossible.  This will also lead to other anatomical problems with the horse as they begin to compensate for the discomfort they may be feeling.

Dental maintenance should be done every 6 months beginning as a yearling and thereafter.  Due to the eruption of the teeth in horses and due to the fact that different molars erupt at different ages, beginning at age two, the first set of molar caps will need to be checked and thereafter on a 6 month basis. 

Equilibration or "balancing the mouth" is an important component to helping and keeping your horse's mouth healthy and pain free.  Oral exams should be done every 6 months and the equine dental provider should be checking for occlusion, sharp edges on the molars( buccal and lingual), angles of the molar tables, which affect the overall occlusion, wave, ramping (caudal and raustral), steps, cavities, periodonatal pockets, periodonatal gum disease, cracked or broken off molars and incisors, and finally wolf teeth.

Your horse's health and well being is in part dependant upon good oral health.  We have scheduled appointments for the farrier, for vacinations, worming, so it only makes since to have an equine dental provider on that schedule to maintain the dental health of your horse.

 Malocclusion of equine teeth- molars

     This is a great x ray showing the effects of a malocclusion.  This malocclusion will affect how well and in most cases, how poorly a horse with this kind of occlusion eats.The 408 is very high, causing the mouth to be completely out of occlusion.  If a horse with a mouth like this does not receive proper dental work to put the mouth back in occlusion then the probable outcome is uneven wear of the molars, which is already occuring. There is an increased likelyhood of breaking or fracturing a molar due to this type of malocclusion and uneven wear. This could also lead to mobile teeth, food impaction which can lead to periodontal pockets, which can then lead to periodontal gum disease.  There is a cascading effect when proper dentistry is not done on a regular basis.

No on SB 697- Please help the International Association of Equine Dentistry, California Chapter in our legislative endeavor to have this bill amended to be more inclusive of and legally recognize the profession of equine dental care that is provided by the non-dvm 

In my practice alone, I provide dental services to three equine veterinarians who sought my serives because they know how well trained I am..Every horse receives my full attention and all issues of the mouth are carefully addressed with the attending veterinarian that will always be working with me.  I am fortunate in that I have a nice selection of equine veterinarians to pick from to work with and they all fully support what I do. 

Working with the equine vet provides a safety net in the event of an emergency and it allows the non-Dvm dental care provider to do the necessary work at a level that veterinarians are not presently taught. There is a very low percentage of veterinarians that take equine dental courses and attend a school specifically for equine dentistry.  Vet schools do not teach equine dentistry, and those that do are offering elective courses.  Many to this day still minimize the importance of proper dental work, they spend very little time in the horses mouth, and often put off the work that should not be put off. We are professionals in what we do and we are committed to providing the best care possible.

SB 697 is attempting to make it ILLEGAL for the non-Dvm equine dental practitioner to practice in the state of California. They are further infringing upon your right to choose the practitioner of YOUR choice. This bill is being pushed through by the California Veterinary Medical Board under the auspice's of protecting the client from "unlicensed activity". This bill is not about protecting the client or their animals, it is about the CVMB again trying to monopolize an area of equine health care that has historically been provided by the non-DVM.

I am writing all of you as it is imperative that we all come together again and have a clear understanding of SB 697 and its far reaching effects upon the equestrian community in general. SB 697 is a bill being sponsored by the CVMB (CA Veterinary Medical Board) and their "intent" is to increase enforcement of "unlicensed" activity. On the surface that sounds great because obviously as horse owners, we do not want people who are not qualified in a particular area of equine health care working on our horses. Last year this bill went as far as to say they were going to make any "unlicensed activity" a felony and any vets that worked with the "unlicensed" person would be aiding and abetting. This language has been stricken to lessen the sting of their proposal.

Out of a necessity to protect the profession of equine dentistry and to ensure that the best possible care be made available, and protected under the law, the International Association of Equine Dentistry California Chapter has been formed. We are a non profit organization operating under the Bylaws of the International Association of Equine Dentistry.

The International Association of Equine Dentistry California Chapter is therefore working on accomplishing the following:
We feel the following items need to be clearly defined in the bill:
● The practice of “Veterinary Dentistry”
● Provide a clear scope of practice for non-veterinary providers
● Eliminate consumer confusion by clearly defining the designation “Equine Dental Provider”
● Provide accountability through state licensing
● Provide state-mandated professional recognition
● Protect the consumer by requiring the Equine Dental Provider to carry insurance
● Continuing education on an annual basis
● Grandfather clause for the current Equine Dental Providers

There is a documented shortage of equine veterinarians in California. If this bill is not amended this will impact the quality of care your horse will receive in the future. Any dental classes within a university setting of a vet school are purely elective. To me this is alarming. Historically, dentistry has been minimized by the veterinarian community and now within the past few years with the numbers of non-DVM equine dental care providers increasing, the veterinarian community has taken notice and they are claiming these equine dental providers are practicing" veterinary dentistry."

We are working to amend SB 697 to protect the profession of the non-DVM equine dental care provider and to preserve your right to choose the practitioner of your choice. This bill is far reaching and will have detrimental affects on both small and large animal ancillary care. We simply do not have enough veterinarians in this state to handle all of the care that they require. Equine dental work, chiropractors, body workers, acupuncturists and even possibly farriers will be targeted with this legislation. The bottom line is that this bill is not about controlling "unlicensed activity" but about trying to monopolize yet another area of equine health care.

Please view our website at ca-iaed.org which has all the information pertaining to this bill and what you can do to help. I have attached two letters for you to read as well which outlines for all equine dental providers as well as our clients what we all can do together to get this bill amended.



Thank You,

Heather Bo/ Equine Dental Provider