Indy & Gypsy get a "float"

Yesterday Indy and Gypsy got their teeth floated. This was new to me... I've never taken any of my horses to have their teeth floated. I know, my bad. In my defense, it was always my understanding that if a horse wasn't having trouble keeping weight on (which is true of ALL my horses), then not to worry about the teeth. However, I've recently been hearing more and more about the importance of equine dentistry and how -- even if they're eating OK -- it can affect how comfortable they are carrying a bit, or how easily they respond to pressure. So I decided to give it a try. Gypsy -- at 12 years old and never been done -- definitely needed to be looked at. And Skittles had her wolf teeth removed at a year old when she was sedated for a completely different reason, so that left Indy and Jake. Since I'm just starting Indy and hadn't put a bit in her mouth yet, I decided to have her teeth done. I'll definitely get Jake done as well, but need to spread out the expenses, so will get his done next spring.

So I loaded up Indy and Gypsy yesterday morning (first time I've taken two of my horses in the trailer!) and took them to the vet. Initially I was planning on having a well-known licensed equine dentist come to my place and do all 4 horses (as well as my boarders and a few others), but it turns out he needed a barn to work in (which I didn't know, having never done this before), so we ended up cancelling. So instead I made the appointment with my vet.

We got there a bit early so I could give both horses a chance to walk around and settle down (Indy, especially, was pretty wound-up). Gypsy went first since I felt Indy needed more time to settle. She never really did; when I put her in a stall while we worked on Gypsy, she neighed and pawed the whole time. In hindsight we probably should have done her first since she would have been sedated! Anyway, Gypsy - in true form - was great. She walked calmly into the stocks, took the needle like a true Parelli pro and stood quietly through the entire proceedure. Turns out -- despite never having her teeth floated -- her teeth are in excellent shape. The vet only had to grind off a couple sharp points and a "ramp" at the back and she was done. No wolf teeth to be removed.

Indy had wolf teeth, so she got the sedative as well as some novacaine (sp??) freezing around her teeth. Indy did extremely well considering how new this all was to her (trailering with another horse, being brought into a stall, then into the stocks and sedated, and having a grinder vibrating in her mouth!). She pulled back a bit and tossed her head a couple times, but really she accepted everything really well. I was so proud of her! Her wolf teeth were so tiny... it's hard to believe something so small should be a concern. But they're out now, so she's ready to try a bit once she's all healed up.

Indy's teeth -- like Gypsy's -- are in pretty good shape. A bit more of an overbite than Gypsy, but still working OK. Good to know! I guess, if my kids haven't inherited my good teeth, then at least my horses have! :-)

The vet's assistant assured me both horses did extremely well... I guess they've had some serious struggles with some horses and have needed multiple doses of sedative. The whole process was really low-key and calm. I was worried... as I always am with something I've never done before... but it all went really smoothly. I credit Parelli with that. I'm so glad I've learned to "take the time it takes". And my horses are so much better for it.