Age estimation of Arabian mares by incisors morphometry and dentition changes

• DOI: 10.1007/s11259-021-09865-5
• Publication Date: 2021-11-30T19:23:45Z
• Authors: Kaveh Khazaeel; Hamid Pesarakli; Alireza Ghadrdan ...; Mahdi Pourmahdi B...
• Keywords: Age groups

Abstract Accurate estimation of horse's age based on the condition of the tooth status is necessary as a scientific and artistic technique, which has not been performed so far in genuine Arabian horses of Khuzestan (southern west of Iran). The purpose of study was to investigate the age-dependent changes in morphology and morphometry of the incisors in the Arabian mares of Khuzestan in order to age estimation and to compare the estimated dental age with ancestral age. In this study, eighty-four Arabian mares of Khuzestan were examined at a number of equestrian clubs. Then, images were taken with a digital camera from the vestibular and occlusal surfaces of the lower incisors. Parameters of deciduous and permanent teeth eruption and their number, occlusal surface changes in lower incisors including appearance and disappearance of cup, enamel spot, dental star and appearance and changes of Galvayne’s groove in upper corner incisor were investigated. Comparison of clinical crown length of incisors in each group showed that first, second and third incisors (I1, I2, and I3) had the maximum to minimum crown length, respectively. The correlation between ancestral age and clinical crown length was strong in I1 (r = 0.73, p ≤ 0.001), I2 (r = 0.8, p ≤ 0.001) and I3 (r = 0.81, p ≤ 0.001) in the Arabian mares of Khuzestan. The correlation of estimated dental age with ancestral age in the Arabian mares of Khuzestan was very strong (r = 0.992, p ≤ 0.001). Therefore, the dental age estimation in the Arabian mares of Khuzestan seems to be very close to the actual age of the animal.