194 



ANIMAL DENTISTRY. 



ence there is simply to guide the float and not to open the 

 mouth. Injury to the hand is prevented by keeping it where 

 it cannot be squeezed when the mouth is closed. Resistance 

 is usually provoked in this manner by forcibly attempting to 

 prevent closure of the mouth in fear of being bitten. The 

 operator must learn to place the hand only where it cannot 

 be bitten or squeezed, and the horse must be permitted to 

 use its jaw ad libitum. The dental operation must not be a 



Fig. 134. 



Position of Hands to Float the Left Superior Molar Arcade. 



fight for superiority in strength between the dentist's hand 

 and the patient's jaw. The following position of the hands 

 to guide the instruments will serve the purpose . 



For the right superior arcade place the tips of the fingers 

 of the left hand palm upwards, into the interdental space, 

 just in front of the commissure, or, in other words, in front 

 of the first superior molar. Work the' float with the right 

 hand and guide its shaft with the palmar surface of the 

 fingers of the left. In this position the finger tips are not 



