Diseases of the Teeth. 219 



Wolf teeth are evidences of evolution in the horse, 

 showing his relation to the tapir and other animals, the 

 reasons advanced for their removal, namely, danger to 

 the eyes, is not tenable, as the eyes are never directly 

 affected by them. They are usually removed as a matter 

 of policy, by the veterinarian ; they might, if very large, 

 interfere with the bit; as the wolf tooth has a fang, it 

 should be pulled, not knocked out, if their removal is 

 decided upon. In the chapter treating of the construc- 

 tion and arrangement of the teeth, the differences in 

 width of the upper and lower jaws of horses were com- 

 mented upon, and the effect such differences, together 

 with the natural slope of the molars (grinders), would 

 have upon the process of chewing. The commonest 

 trouble that the veterinarian is called upon to treat in 

 horse dentistry is the presence of projections of the 

 grinders, such projections causing sore mouths, slaver- 

 ing, the passage of undigested food in the feces, unthrift- 

 iness, sometimes very marked, indigestion, wounds of the 

 tongue and lining of the mouth, side pulling on the bit, 

 the manger often covered with saliva. 



The treatment is simple, calling as it does for the use 

 of the float (dental file) and yet is not simple enough to 

 warrant the trusting of this work to the travelling quack 

 or the majority of owners, the veterinarian should be 

 employed and after the removal of the projections soft 

 feed should be given for a few days. The average work 

 horse will need this attention once a year. 



Decayed teeth often cause symptoms in horses which 

 have in the past been mistaken for Glanders, Nasal Gleet; 

 such symptoms as a stinking breath, together with a 



