Dental problems are among the most common causes of chronic pain in horses, yet remain significantly underdiagnosed and undertreated in many equine management systems.
Horses are prey animals that evolved to mask pain and disability — behavioral survival strategies that create significant challenges for welfare assessment in domestic settings. Dental pain is a prime example: horses with sharp points causing mouth lacerations may continue to eat and even perform under saddle, giving owners no obvious signal that an animal is suffering. The welfare implication is that dental disease — extraordinarily common in domestic horses — is causing chronic pain in a large proportion of the equine population without owners being aware. Regular professional dental assessment is not a luxury but a welfare necessity. The equine industry's inconsistent standards for who can legally perform dental procedures create additional welfare risk.