I’m in the north east and it’s going to be cold this week - single digits. Is that too cold for the dentist to come do a dental? I had heard someone say this at my barn. Something about sedation? I googled it and didn’t find anything.
If your horse is otherwise healthy, I would not have a problem with doing a dental.
Do you have a source of heated water for the vet/dentist?
Like anytime you sedate, keep an eye on your horse to make sure they are regulating their temperature OK.
I would say it can be too cold for a dental, but it probably depends on your facilities and what is considered normal winter temps.
I live in Canada and had a dental (plus vaccinations) scheduled for Feb 14. The weather forecast showed -30c so we rescheduled for Feb 7 when it was -15c. The barn is heated to around 0 degrees c in the winter.
As for normal winter temps… well it’s currently -39c before the windchill factor. So -15c is downright balmy for this time of year.
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My vet dentist mentioned at our last visit that she doesn’t like to sedate (and therefore work) much below freezing. I was surprised, since it wasn’t something I’d heard before, and she said the cold has their guts already a little slower + using sedation makes them a little slow for a bit, too. She’d prefer not to “stack” those things.
The vet dentist I use is based in MA, if you might be using the same person.
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Just a thought. I shake so bad in freezing weather that I’d likely injure the horse’s mouth while trying to use powered rasps on his teeth.
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I’d reschedule out of concern for the vet doing the work.
Even with nitrile gloves, extreme cold is going to be hard on their hands & might impact dexterity.
The caution mentioned by @Simkie is also a concern.
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I think it’s more for the human comfort and dexterity than the horse. Our unheated barn stays above freezing unless it’s very cold and there weren’t any horses in overnight. Vets often have to work with bare hands, and dentals make those hands wet, which sucks heat away even faster.
Vets have to do dentals in sub freezing weather here. Some even offer a discount for dentals done Dec-Jan as it’s a slower time of year, and doing them at that time reduces the workload during the busier seasons.
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I’ve had dentals done in February (I’m in MA) and the dentist I use just requests that we have hot water available.
Hmm, interesting.
I certainly hauled to my vet on numerous occasions when it was single digits for procedures that required sedation (dental, injections, etc) but that’s what you get when you live in the frozen tundra (North Dakota) and need winter things for your horses!
My car said -37 * F on my way to work this morning.
Next week it’s supposed to be 45 above.
Crazy.
And my vet is booked solid through May already. I guarantee she’s sedating horses today! (just glad it isn’t mine, LOL).
My dentist cancels if it’s that cold. And before that my vet who I used for dentals also did.
I just had dentals done in the high 20’s and wish I had cancelled. One had complications after needing an emergency call and I was out in the cold that evening for hours getting things sorted out.
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We schedule the dentist for May. Being closer to when we are actually using the horses often, their mouths stay “happy” longer into summer and fall for competition. They seldom need a second visit between yearly checking unless they are quite young with the big tooth changes.
May is better for us standing around in the barn during dental work, not chilling the dentist who may get sweaty working on them during the hours (8 horses, no power tools) it takes to get them all done.
Farriers are also canceling appointments when it is down below 15F. Being that cold makes expensive nippers more fragile cutting frozen hoof wall, breaking the jaws of even the best brands. Horses brought inside a couple hours before trimming lets frozen hooves unfreeze, be easier to cut. Money earned in the cold temps may not be worth the expense of of replacing broken nippers at over $270 or more per pair! Nails stick to your lips when putting shoes on! Plus the whining of frozen horse holders hurts the Farriers ears! Ha ha
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yup not fun being a farrier at minus a gazillion! I wear heated gloves but frozen feet are hard, old horses are stiff, the owners aren’t paying attention cause they are even colder than me (I at least am up tight to a nice warm horse). It’s kinda embarassing when you have a nail stick to lip 
I don’t book dentals unless desperate in this cold - hard on the vet’s hands and yes sedation and extreme cold can be hard on the horse.
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I rescheduled my shoer twice in January.
Waited until we had daytime teens forecast for him & his son to work in my unheated barn.
Stall doors to outside are frozen open, so they’re open to weather even with barn doors shut.
Barn still stays at least 10 degrees warmer than outdoors, but single-digits w/wind chill isn’t conducive to working in the aisle.
All 3 are barefoot, so just trims.
No problem for horse & pony to go as long as 8wks between trims in Winter.
But mini, who considered founder, has been on a 5-week schedule for the last 5yrs (since that flare). This put him at 7-weeks & almost made me a nailbiter 
But all 3 got their pedis on a “balmy” 20-something morning.
Shoer did mention how hard the mini’s hooves were to trim.
Yikes!
I had no idea nippers were so pricy! 
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I rescheduled my mares dental on Thursday because the high at her appointment time will be 1F. One week later and the temp will be 55F.
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Timely thread. Our vet was due for dentals today and rescheduled - we’re in the teens here with windchills below zero. She said she no longer does dentals when it’s much below freezing after a speculum froze open on a horse’s face. 
That sounds like a bad time for all involved so we’ll try again when the weather breaks a little.
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Another thing to keep in mind is that sedation impacts the horse’s ability to regulate body heat, and often horses will get sweaty while sedated. Just something else you need to factor in–blankets should be switched out for a wicking cooler until the sedation wears off and they are no longer sweaty.
