Feeding a Horse with Equine Odontoclastic Tooth Resorption and Hypercementosis

Trooper is a 17.2 Thoroughbred x Suffolk Punch owned by Lucy Makepeace. Lucy contacted Dengie for feeding advice when Trooper was diagnosed with equine odontoclastic tooth resorption and hypercementosis (EOTRH).

When Trooper was diagnosed with this condition at the age of 21 years-old Lucy had noticed that he appeared to be uncomfortable when eating and he was eating less than he normally would. This combined with some digestive issues prompted Lucy to contact her vet.

EOTRH is a progressive disease that affects the incisors and canines and amongst other symptoms the reluctance to bite is common as it causes pain. This can mean that even grazing becomes painful and for those horses that are kept at grass, a reduction in grass intake can result in weight loss and potentially loose droppings and digestive disturbance if fibre intake becomes insufficient.

Unfortunately, complete removal of the incisors is the only effective treatment for this disease and feeding post-operatively and longer term brings its own challenges which is why Lucy contacted Dengie for feeding advice.

The photo below shows Trooper’s mouth pre-extraction. You can see in this picture that Trooper’s gums are swollen and receding, and where feed has been packing between his teeth.

Initially post incisor extraction an entirely soaked ration was advised. For this reason, it was advised that Lucy start a gradual introduction of Dengie Alfa-Beet and High Fibre Cubes in the weeks leading up to Trooper’s incisor extraction to give his digestive system time to adapt. Using a soaked ration makes it not only less painful to eat whilst the gums are healing, but also avoids anything getting stuck in the holes that are initially left post tooth extraction. During this time Trooper was not allowed to graze due to infection risk so this soaked fibre ration was a complete forage replacement for him. Lucy had the great idea of short periods of turnout with a taped up grazing muzzle to allow Trooper to still have some time with his buddies and free movement during this time.

Longer term, once Trooper’s gums had healed and he had been reintroduced to grazing, Trooper could have access to fibre with more structure again. As his teeth were generally aged and he was coping less well with long stem forage, it was advised to mix Dengie Hi-Fi Senior with his Alfa-Beet and High Fibre Cubes to form a total forage replacement that was easier to chew.

Lucy kept a fantastic log of pictures during Trooper’s journey. The photo above shows Trooper post dental extraction. With their incisors’ removed horses are more likely to have their tongue poking out. You can also see a photo of Trooper’s incisors that have been removed. In this picture you can see how the tooth roots have been destroyed as the teeth have started to be resorbed – you can imagine how painful this is as it occurs over a long period of time. Lastly is a picture of Trooper who you can see looks a picture of health even though he can no longer manage to chew long stem forage.