Dentition in Horses

Dr.Razia Kausar
Age of Equine
It’s All in the Teeth
 Determining Age
• Age affects usefulness and value
• Type, number and appearance of incisor
teeth help determine correct age
– 5 years or less – some combination range from all
milk teeth (temporary teeth) to all permanent
incisors
– 6 to 12 years – number of cups (indentations) in
permanent incisor teeth
– 12 years & over – examine cross section and slant
of incisor teeth
 Types of Teeth
• Adult horses typically have 36-44 teeth
– 12 Incisors (6 upper and 6 lower)
– 12 Pre-molars
– 12 Molars
• May have
– Canines (4)
– Wolf teeth (2)
 The Numbers Make the
Difference
• Immature horses – Total 24 temporary
teeth

• Stallions & Geldings – 40-44 permanents

– Most have 4 canines

• Mares – Total 36-38 permanent teeth

– Mares are less likely to have canines
 Types of Teeth:
• Temporary Teeth – small, white, oval
shaped; wider side to side than front to
rear
• Permanent Teeth – yellow, larger than
temporaries with a general round
surface
• Molars – used for grinding on each side
• Incisors – used for cutting
 What’s the Difference

• 3 sets of incisors – Centrals,

Middle, Corner Incisors
– 12 Incisors:
• 6 upper & 6 lower

• Incisors have a cup or indentation

in center of tooth that wears down
with age and ultimately disappears
 What’s the Difference
• Pre-molars and Molars
– 12 pre-molars
– 12 molars
– Often called cheek or jaw teeth
– Used for grinding food
 Wolf Teeth
• Wolf teeth are similar to our wisdom
teeth
– Some horses have them, others don’t
– Some have to be removed, others don’t
– No functional purpose today
• Residual “appendage” from past
• “Wolf” used to mean “bad”
– appears in front of upper molars
• As the horse ages:
– Teeth are worn down
(height)
– Change shape (oval to
triangle)
– Cup is worn away
 The Breakdown
1 year – All temporary incisors present / Cups
gone from centrals

2 year - All temporary incisors present / cups

gone

3 year - Temporary central incisors replaced

with permanent central incisors
• 4 years - Temporary intermediate incisors
replaced with permanent intermediate
incisors
• 5 years – All temporary incisors replaced
with permanent incisors. Horse is full
mouthed.
• 6 years – Cups gone from lower central
incisors
• 7 years – Cups gone from lower intermediate
incisors
• 8 years - Cups gone from lower corner incisors
• 9 years - Cups gone from upper central
incisors
• 10 years - Cups gone from upper
intermediate incisors

• 11 years - Cups gone from all incisors.

Horse is smooth mouthed.
 Extras
• A hook (worn edge) may appear on
upper corner incisors at 7 to 11 years
• Galvayne’s Groove – Line that
appears on the upper corner incisors
around 10 to 11 years, gets longer as
horse ages.
• Angle of Incidence – angle at which
the incisor teeth meet. Increases and
teeth wear down as horse ages.