How Many Teeth Does A Horse Have?

No matter what the species of animal, dental health and hygiene is extremely important.

This is true for horses and is an area of the overall care of your horse that shouldn’t be ignored.

While thinking about this topic a simple question came to my mind that I realized I didn’t know the answer to.

How many teeth does a horse actually have?

Well, I was curious about this and decided to look into it further, and am excited to share it with you today.

So, without wasting anymore time, let’s answer the question “how many teeth does a horse have?”

On average horses have between 36 and 42 teeth. This number can change depending on the sex of the horse and can vary if your horse develops teeth along the bars of its mouth. Just as with humans, your horse will have two different types of teeth throughout its life (baby teeth and adult teeth) that will change as it grows.

Knowing the number and type of teeth that your horse has is very important for ensuring that your horse is getting the proper attention and care when it comes to his oral hygiene.

But what are the different types of teeth that a horse has, should you be brushing your horse’s teeth, and what are some common dental issues that horses face?

We are going to explore all of these questions and more in this article as we dive deeper into the topic of horses and their teeth

Let’s get into it!

What type of teeth do horses have?

As mentioned above, horses go through different types of teeth during their life, and this can vary by age and sex.

In this section, we’ll look more in-depth at the different types of teeth that a horse can have.

 

Baby (deciduous) teeth

The baby teeth (also known as deciduous or milk teeth) are the first set of teeth that your horse grows.

Baby horses, foals, have these teeth when they are born, and they usually have 24 baby teeth in all.

These teeth are then replaced after two years by permanent teeth.

The new adult teeth push the old baby teeth out of the way as they grow.

Foals can have baby teeth for up to about 5 years before they are all replaced with permanent teeth.

 

Permanent (adult) teeth

After a horse’s baby teeth falls out and are replaced by their adult teeth, they continue to grow for most of the horse’s life and is a good indicator of a horse’s approximate age.

When an adult horse becomes very old their teeth growth stops and gaps can begin to develop in their mouths as their teeth begin to fall out.

 

Canine and wolf teeth

As foals get older, around 4 or 5 years old, they can begin to develop extra teeth in their inter-dental gap, also known as the bars of the mouth.

While canine and wolf teeth can develop in all horses, they are more common in stallions (male horses) than they are in mares (female horses).

These teeth have the potential to cause your horse discomfort, however, especially if your horse is used for sport and is required to hold a bit (part of the bridle that goes in your horse’s mouth).

Because of this, it is common for these teeth to be removed in order to make your horse feel more comfortable.

 

Incisors

Incisors are the most recognizable of a horse’s teeth as they sit at the front of the mouth and are the first to come in when baby teeth grow.

They are also the first to be shed as the more permanent teeth push through.

Incisors are the main teeth that a horse uses when it is eating as they are well equipped to clipping grass as it grazes.

Additionally, because these teeth are the easiest to see, they are the main teeth that are used to estimate the age of a horse.

 

Pre-molars and molars

Pre-molars and molars, also known as cheek teeth, are deep-rooted in a horse’s jawbone and sit directly behind the bars in your horse’s mouth.

The main function of these teeth is to help grind down food before it is swallowed by the horse.

Horses move their jaw side to side when they are grinding hay or grains and, because the molars are wider than incisors, they are great at doing this.

This grinding process converts grass or hay into ½ inch long pieces.

This is useful information to know as it can indicate whether or not your horse is having any dental issues based on the size of the grass or hay in its manure.

If the grass or hay in the manure is of a different size this can indicate that your horse is having issues chewing which can be due to a dental issue.

Dental issues that make it more difficult for your horse to chew properly become more prevalent as your horse ages, so it is important to remain vigilant and observe the variations in your horse’s manure and behavior.

 

Do you need to brush your horse’s teeth?

Horse’s teeth are very different from ours and require a lot of special attention to make sure they are in the best condition year-round and don’t have any excess tartar build-up or complications with their gums.

While it is a good idea for you to remove excess tartar between your horse’s dental appointments, it is not necessary for you to brush your horse’s teeth.

Because horses don’t have a lot of space between their teeth it is harder for widespread decay to develop.

Even with top-quality dental health and hygiene your horse’s teeth won’t grow forever and will eventually fall out.

They can also develop decay if their teeth aren’t floated regularly (Floating refers to the filing down of your horse’s teeth to get rid of any painful sharp edges or hooks that can form on their teeth).

 

What do horses use their teeth for?

The obvious answer to this question is for eating; they use their incisors for picking up food and clipping grass and their premolars for grinding up the food before the horse swallows.

Despite this, there are many other things that horses use their teeth for.

For example, horses use their teeth as a weapon for nipping and biting when fighting or defending against other horses and/or predators.

Horses can also play bite with each other (this is especially common with younger horses).

They also use their teeth when grooming themselves or other horses socially to scratch an itch or nibble the back of the neck, back, and hindquarters.

 

 

In conclusion, horses can have between 36 and 42 teeth depending on the age and sex of the horse.

Horses have many different types of teeth, and these teeth change and continue to grow as they age.

They do not grow forever, however, and will eventually fall out and decay.

It is important to perform regular check-ups on your horse’s dental health as this can have knock-on effects for the rest of its body.

While it is not necessary for you to brush your horse’s teeth, you should be taking it to an equine dentist regularly and feeding it the appropriate food.