I think I have talked briefly about Tanta’s nose lump on here, but I haven’t really gone into detail. In late 2017 while Tanta was pregnant with Raven (she did not belong to me at this time. She lived next door at my coach’s place and I rode her), she acquired an odd lump on the right side of her face. It was fairly large, but she did not seem to find it painful. My coach had it X-Rayed, and it turned out to be a tooth with a bad root. The vet said it was probably a good idea to remove the tooth. Apparently it’s quite the procedure to remove a horse tooth, The vet said it can take all day! Anyway, it couldn’t be it removed while Tanta was pregnant because so much sedation wouldn’t be good for the foal. The plan was to get it removed once Tanta’s baby was weaned. It was fine, because she didn’t seem uncomfortable.
Until it could be removed, I just rode her in a rope halter which she was quite comfortable in.
when Raven came along and was nursing, her nose lump mysteriously got way better and much smaller. And she still had the tooth. The lump was still there, but it was basically a non issue. The vet was happy it had improved so much, and thought that it might not have to be removed right away anymore. But to play it by ear. It stayed small and didn’t cause any problems for awhile.
Last winter when Tanta was getting her leg X Rayed, we had her mouth done as well, just to check up on it because we had the machine out already. This wasn’t our normal vet, as she doesn’t have a portable X-ray machine.
The new vet said that dental X-rays are hard to read, but she thought it all looked fine, and as long as Tanta was feeling good, she didn’t think there was any need to remove the tooth at that point in time. If It ever flared up or became an issue or concern, the images could be sent to a vet who specializes in dental stuff. Awesome.
BUT, on Wednesday I went to get Tanta to ride… and her nose lump. Was. HUGE! Even bigger than when she first got it a couple years ago! Uh… so sudden too. It was “normal” on Tuesday. It did have good timing, though. Our vet was booked to come float teeth and do vaccinations on Friday (a couple days ago now)
When the vet got here on Friday she palpated Tanta’s lump and it was sensitive:( she then had a look at the X-rays from last year, and thinks she can see something in one of the roots still… Tanta is now on antibiotics and bute, and she will probably need that tooth removed. Unless it will go back to being stable. Although we might as well just remove it… no point in avoiding the inevitable, as the vet said. Apparently it’s not a question of if, but of when. She did say that this is a pretty good time of year, if Tanta had to get a tooth removed. No flies and it’s not getting in the way of any shows! Poor Tanta:( so far, after a couple days of antibiotics, she seems about the same. she hasn’t been off her food or anything, although I suspect it would take more than a bum tooth to put Tanta off her food! I am hoping this is all sorted out by next month as we are supposed to be going in the local humane fox hunt! I am not sure how long after they have a tooth removed before that can be ridden? I need to do some research!
