A generous donation from the Equine Foundation of Canada has allowed the Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC) to purchase new equipment for equine dentistry and laryngeal surgery.

Equine dentistry should be a routine part of preventive health care for horses, says Dr. Wendy Duckett, Associate Professor of Large Animal Medicine at AVC. An important dental procedure for horses is floating, the process of gently filing sharp edges and/or overgrowths on a horse’s teeth. Because a horse’s teeth keep erupting throughout their lives, they need to be filed—or floated—regularly. If not, the teeth can develop sharp enamel points that can cause painful sores in the animal’s mouth, making eating or wearing a bridle painful.

With this grant from the Equine Foundation of Canada, AVC has purchased a Powerfloat, a mechanized dental device for floating horses’ teeth, as well as new hand floats equipped with tungsten carbide blades.

“Mechanized dentistry floats can safely and quickly deal with routine dental procedures as well as problems such as abnormal tooth overgrowth,” says Duckett.

The grant from the Equine Foundation of Canada has also allowed the College to purchase instruments used in equine laryngeal surgery.

Horses may develop a partial paralysis of the larynx, which causes obstruction of airflow, says Dr. Art Ortenburger, Associate Professor of Surgery at AVC. For many horses, the safest treatment is an outpatient procedure performed while the horse is awake. This procedure requires two very long and thin instruments that pass through the horse’s nose to grip the vocal cords, which are then trimmed by a laser under endoscopic guidance.

“This treatment is particularly good for the larger draft horse breeds,” says Dr. Ortenburger. “The relative safety of this procedure for those heavy horses is much, much better, compared to putting them under general anesthesia. As with any better way to treat an animal, students will learn that this is possible for draft horses which have this problem, and all will benefit.”

The Equine Foundation of Canada aids and promotes the health and welfare of horses across Canada. Past support from the Foundation allowed AVC to establish its equine chiropractic service.

Established in 1986, the Atlantic Veterinary College is committed to improving the health and well-being of animals and humans through excellence in education, discovery, professional practice and dedicated service to the four Atlantic provinces. In 2011 the College celebrates its 25th anniversary as the veterinary college serving Atlantic Canada.

Photo: Dr. Art Ortenburger, Associate Professor of Surgery at the Atlantic Veterinary College, and Dr. Wendy Duckett, Associate Professor of Large Animal Medicine, display the new equipment for laryngeal surgery and equine dentistry purchased by AVC with a generous grant from the Equine Foundation of Canada. Looking on is Hooligan the horse.