Meet Kaylin Collins, EqDT
My name is Kaylin and I graduated from Midwest Equine Dental Accademy in 2017. I learned a less is more approach, focusing on balance & comfort between the TMJ, molars, and incisors.
I am a single mother of two young boys and they are my focus for building my career and business in equine dentistry. I have lived in Tawas, MI my entire life. I spend my spare time with friends, family and enjoying my personal horses & my kids.
I have owned, ridden and shown horses for 20+ years. I have always wanted a career in the horse industry and thoroughly enjoy the path I've chosen as an equine dentist. You know what they say, you never work a day in your life if you truly love your work!
My inspiration for focusing on a career in equine dentistry came from my late horse, Go To Win Mikado, or Vinny.
Vinny was my heart horse, I broke and trained him myself. He was sent to slaughter as a 5 year old due to dangerous behavior. Luckily he was rescued and then sat the next 8 years until I came across him.
I was riding him within a week, and was looking to make him my next barrel horse. He was bred and built for it, his potential to be a top performer was overflowing.
Unfortunately, issues soon started to arise. He started displaying discomfort with bits, hackamores, even a halter. He couldn't seem to keep a correct lead, no matter how much training went into him.
This started a lengthy two year process through many vets, chiropractors and dentists. He finally was diagnosed with TMD (temporal mandibular disorder). This is an issue presented with the TMJ (temporal mandibular joint), aka the main joint for chewing.
An issue with the TMJ can directly influence the horse's entire overall being. They have difficulty with balance, eating comfortably, and display dangerous behaviors when ridden as they are in constant pain.
A horse chews 25 thousand to 55 thousand times a day, the TMJ is arguably the most used joint in the horse's body.
Treatment for TMD is injecting the affected joint, accompanied before & after by maganawave, and massage. A knowledgeable dentist is important as well. A horse with TMD should never have their teeth done unsedated and the dentist should be conscious about how far the mouth is opened and how long they keep the mouth open at a time.
Unfortunately treatment for Vinny came too late. Two months after being injected and additional treatment, Vinny was a completely different horse personality wise. A once stand offish gelding, he'd run to meet me at the gate for the first time since owning him and became a very loving, in your pocket type horse.
While his treatment was going well, because he'd lived with this condition likely his entire life, the joint was too far gone and it shattered. Vinny was put down within a week.
As an equine dentist I cannot "fix" TMD, however, I can help to diagnose it in other horses before they become too far gone like Vinny. TMD is commonly misdiagnosed, as well as under diagnosed. Having an equine dentist educated on the condition helps immensely when it comes to the intervention of this disorder.
My business is named after Vinny. I have him to thank for the inspiration to build a career in equine dentistry.
I am a single mother of two young boys and they are my focus for building my career and business in equine dentistry. I have lived in Tawas, MI my entire life. I spend my spare time with friends, family and enjoying my personal horses & my kids.
I have owned, ridden and shown horses for 20+ years. I have always wanted a career in the horse industry and thoroughly enjoy the path I've chosen as an equine dentist. You know what they say, you never work a day in your life if you truly love your work!
My inspiration for focusing on a career in equine dentistry came from my late horse, Go To Win Mikado, or Vinny.
Vinny was my heart horse, I broke and trained him myself. He was sent to slaughter as a 5 year old due to dangerous behavior. Luckily he was rescued and then sat the next 8 years until I came across him.
I was riding him within a week, and was looking to make him my next barrel horse. He was bred and built for it, his potential to be a top performer was overflowing.
Unfortunately, issues soon started to arise. He started displaying discomfort with bits, hackamores, even a halter. He couldn't seem to keep a correct lead, no matter how much training went into him.
This started a lengthy two year process through many vets, chiropractors and dentists. He finally was diagnosed with TMD (temporal mandibular disorder). This is an issue presented with the TMJ (temporal mandibular joint), aka the main joint for chewing.
An issue with the TMJ can directly influence the horse's entire overall being. They have difficulty with balance, eating comfortably, and display dangerous behaviors when ridden as they are in constant pain.
A horse chews 25 thousand to 55 thousand times a day, the TMJ is arguably the most used joint in the horse's body.
Treatment for TMD is injecting the affected joint, accompanied before & after by maganawave, and massage. A knowledgeable dentist is important as well. A horse with TMD should never have their teeth done unsedated and the dentist should be conscious about how far the mouth is opened and how long they keep the mouth open at a time.
Unfortunately treatment for Vinny came too late. Two months after being injected and additional treatment, Vinny was a completely different horse personality wise. A once stand offish gelding, he'd run to meet me at the gate for the first time since owning him and became a very loving, in your pocket type horse.
While his treatment was going well, because he'd lived with this condition likely his entire life, the joint was too far gone and it shattered. Vinny was put down within a week.
As an equine dentist I cannot "fix" TMD, however, I can help to diagnose it in other horses before they become too far gone like Vinny. TMD is commonly misdiagnosed, as well as under diagnosed. Having an equine dentist educated on the condition helps immensely when it comes to the intervention of this disorder.
My business is named after Vinny. I have him to thank for the inspiration to build a career in equine dentistry.