80 THE VETERINARY SCIENCE. 



teeth, which can be easily done by leaving" the twitch on and run- 

 ning- a float or tooth rasp along the outer edge of the upper row of 

 teeth and the inner edge of the lower row of teeth. It is not best 

 to file them too much, just enough to take off the sharp edge of 

 the teeth so they will not cut the tongue and cheeks, for if vou file 

 them too much the horse cannot grind his hay so well. 



DECAYED TEETH (CARIES). 



You do not find decayed teeth so often in the horse as you do 

 in the human being. Horses rarely, if ever, suff'er from tooth 

 ache. 



Causes. — it generally comes from biting some hard substance 

 and either breaking or cracking the tooth, which then begins 

 to decay. 



Symptoms. — The horse in eating his feed will be noticed, all 

 of a sudden, to throw his food out of his mouth, fumble his tongue 

 around a little and then commence to eat again. If in drinking 

 sometimes if the water is cold it takes him a long time to drink, 

 having to stop several times in drinking a pailful. In driving he 

 is noticed to hold his head to one side, favoring the side that has 

 the decayed tooth in it. His breath smells bad, and he 

 falls off in condition. If the tooth is in the upper jaw, and the 

 roots affected, there is sometimes a running from the nostril over 

 the tooth. 



Treatment. — Open the mouth with a speculum or any iron that 



will answer the purpose, pass the hand back and examine the teeth 



and find out which tooth it is. Always in examining the mouth it 



is best to put a twitch on the horse's nose as it assists in holding 



him quiet. When you are sure which tooth is affected take 



a large forceps and remove the tooth. After pulling the tooth 



out keep the tooth opposite the one pulled out filed down so it 



will not irritate the gum on the opposite jaw. After the 



tooth has been removed feed on soft food for a few days until the 



gum gets healed up. If the horse is run down in condition it 



would be well to give some of the following tonic powders to 



build him up: 



Ground Gentian Root J pound. 



Ground Sulphate Iron ^ " 



Mix thoroughly and give a teaspoonful twice a day in his 



feed or on his tonguo 



