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The Equine Practice Rounds, October 2013, by Geoff Tucker DVM

“Penny”

My eyes turned to the barn instinctively as I turned into the drive.  Every year for over ten years I had thought Penny would die of old age and so had the owners.  But her head was out the door located next to the barn door facing the road.  With her chest pressed against the stall webbing, she gazed out towards me driving towards the barn.  Her curiosity was piqued and her assurance that it wasn’t someone for her had been successfully camouflaged by the rental car, not the usual vet truck.

Penny’s age is anyone’s guess, but late 30s seems reasonable and 40s would not be argued against.  She’s not a big horse.  Her weight stays at a body condition score of 1 to 2 (very thin).  Her back has become swayed and her waist looks like a wasp.  Her hair coat remains shiny and healthy.  Her attitude has never wavered from opinionated and is hugely loved by her owners and Penny returns this love.

Over a decade has past that I have attended to her dentistry needs.  When we first met, her teeth were loose in their sockets as they struggled to remain in her mouth.  The razor sharp edges had prevented her tongue from freely moving about her mouth and thus she had lost her ability to clean and stimulate her teeth with it.  I have found this to be the primary reason for dental disease and tooth loss in the horse.  Once the sharp points are removed and the tongue goes back to work, the teeth in the horse become strongly attached in their sockets and gum disease is eliminated.  I struggle with the realization that no dentistry text or paper or presentation discusses this essential fact I have seen repeatedly over my three decades with horse teeth.

Penny was not excluded from the benefits of floating and her teeth improved immediately.  However, she had already lost some of her teeth and over my ten years with her, I extracted some more end-stage teeth.  But Penny has proven again my theory that the cheek teeth are necessary only for forming a bolus of food that is comfortable for swallowing.  If the food available is easy to swallow, then the teeth are less necessary.  And Penny’s owners have done a spectacular job caring for her.

This is where the love between Penny and her owners is stellar.  They have provided the best environment for Penny to continue to live.  This includes nutrition as well as all the good husbandry necessary to keep her happy and healthy.

I went to catch Penny and predictably she went to the back corner and put her nose to the ground.  “Come on Penny,” I said with a tone of a parent talking to a child going through their routine of avoidance.  “We’ve done this for a long time.  Have I ever hurt you?”

With that, she brought her head up and turned to me and said with her eyes, “Oh, I guess hiding doesn’t work with you.  Alright, let’s get this over with.”

And this is why everyone loves Penny.  With a mind as sharp as a tack, she keeps you in a conversation. However, the conversation now is only about her.  She’s old enough to deserve ALL the attention.

We love you Penny.  And after 40 years with horses and seeing the end of so many horses, it is my opinion you are not yet ready to die.  Not even close.  And when you do I’m sure you will be at your memorial party stirring up some mischief.

I always want to see your head when I drive up to the barn.

www.TheEquinePractice.com

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