I 
VETERINARY DENTISTRY. 147 
torturing the noble animal with a speculum. We do not want 
veterinary dentists any more than we want veterinary oculists 
or veterinary gynecologists. We want veterinarians in the 
broadest sense of the word; men educated in all branches of 
veterinary science. At one time I thought we needed veter¬ 
inary dentists as well as human dentists, but the field of use¬ 
fulness is too limited. 
Many operations can be performed on the human subject 
that would be impracticable in veterinary practice. Filling 
is sometimes successful, but has to be done early, before the 
pulp has been irritated or exposed ; and it can only be done 
in the incisors and first three molars. We cannot devitalize 
the pulp and fill the root as the human dentist can ; neither 
can we diagnose an acute attack ol pulpitis, and save the 
tooth. We can recognize that the horse is suffering intensely, 
and the jaw the suffering is in, but until the pulp has died, 
and caused an alveolar abscess, we can very rarely tell 
which tooth it is that is causing the trouble. 
. Comparatively lew ol our horses pass through life without 
suffering more or less with their teeth. The most common 
trouble is sharp edges or irregularities on the molars. Caries 
is also quite common. These are conditions with which you 
are all very familiar; but before closing this paper 1 wish to 
call your attention to a disease of horses’ teeth, which, though 
quite common, is often overlooked. I refer to pericementitis, 
or inflammation of the peridental membrane. Before describ¬ 
ing the disease I will refresh your memory by a description of 
the peridental membrane. The peridental membrane com¬ 
prises that tissue which fills up the intervening space between 
the tooth and the alveolus. It is composed of loose connec¬ 
tive tissue, the fibres stretching across from the tooth to the 
alveolus in different directions, forming meshes, which are 
quite large, and allow a large amount of serous effusion, which 
raises the tooth up when engorged. It has a very large blood 
supply, principally from the dental artery, which passes 
through the jaw and sends a branch to each fang of the tooth. 
This breaks up into several branches, some entering the api¬ 
cal foramen to supply the pulp, and others passing up the sides 
