Horses have what are called Hypsodont teeth, which means they are long crowned and they erupt throughtout the horses life. As they erupt they are ground down by the chewing of food (forage) which wears them down.

In order to give you an idea of how far back the teeth go and to introduce you to what they are called, I have picture below.

Front teeth- these are known as Incisors, there are 6 in the upper arcade and 6 in the lower. The purpose of these teeth is to gather food and cut it to begin the breakdown of the food.

Canines - Canines are generally found in male equines (usually there are four (two in the maxillary (upper jaw) and two on the mandibular (lower jaw), but sometimes females can have small canines, sometimes just two maybe found. They are found in the gap (interdental space) halfway between the incisors and first premolar. They generally don't have a purpose far as eating is concerned, they were used to fight in the wild in previous years.They can become sharp and overlong which can damage the tongue or the person who is handling the horse or trying to put the bit in, so they are shortened and blunted to stop this from happening.

Premolars - These are the first four teeth in the molar arcades (upper and lower), the first premolar is known as a wolf tooth, these are not always present, and usually if present are removed, as they are known to cause discomfort when bitting. The reason for causing discomfort is due to the fact that they are very small and as they don't actually have a purpose in the mouth. When a horse is bitted the bit can irritate the wolf tooth, which in turn causes pain to the equine, so in order to sort the problem, they are removed, the gum heals and then the problem has usually gone. The second, third, and fourth premolars are used to break down food, and the second premolar is rounded off to make a bit seat, as described on the 'Reasons for a dental checkup' page.

Molars - These are the last three teeth in the molar arcades and there purpose is to masticate (chew/breakdown) food.

As the food is cut by the incisors it is chewed in a circular motion and as it works its way to the back of the mouth in this circular motion it gets broken down by the molars, and is then shallowed.

To review there are 12 incisors, 4 possible canines, 4 possible wolf teeth (1st premolars) and 24 molars. Totalling 44 teeth, most mares have 36, most males have 40.