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      Foreword

      I am pleased to write this foreword for Drs. Emily and Eisner's textbook, the first entirely dedicated to zoo and wild animal dentistry.

      Ever since I met Dr. Emily for the first time in the 1980s, we have enjoyed stimulating discussions on comparative odontology and I am grateful to him for introducing me to Osborn's concept of tribosphenic molar teeth. I also share with him and Dr. Eisner a strong interest in oral pathology occurring in animals and a curiosity about natural history in general, and its relation to dentition and dental pathology in particular. Since then, my research and teaching interests have directed me more to comparative dental pathology and odontology, respectively, while the authors have spearheaded clinical dentistry in zoo and wild animals, for which they should be commended.

      Dentistry is, or should be, an essential part of the veterinary care of zoo and wild animals in captivity, both in terms of preventative care as part of their long‐term husbandry, and in addressing dental conditions as they occur. The latter is the focus of this book. Great advances have been made in the practice of dentistry in domestic animals over the past decades. Zoo and wild animals should also benefit from these advances. There is no reason to believe that pain of dental origin, be it acute or chronic, is any less severe and debilitating in animals than it is in humans, greatly affecting their quality of life. The basic premise of being a veterinarian is to prevent and address pain in animals entrusted to our care. The stakes and challenges are particularly high in zoo and wildlife dentistry. Even under the best of circumstances and with the best of intentions of the care‐takers, captivity of wild animals typically is associated with unphysiological conditions in terms of environment and diet. Wild animals in captivity must be housed in safe facilities – unfortunately, the combination of fences and boredom can cause significant dental injury. The human‐animal bond in this case has two components: the zoo's animal care‐taker has a very strong personal bond while the zoo's administration and the public typically would like to see an animal on display with an intact dentition.

      Though the use of non‐evidence based and non‐FDA‐approved materials and instruments should not be promoted, it is an unavoidable fact that procedures on non‐domestic species may require medications and instruments that are not FDA‐approved for use in those species. In addition, some dental materials, such as MTA, are cost‐prohibitive to use in large volumes; hence “Dr. Emily's MTA's recipe”, which I found to exemplify this book: empirical, practical and helpful. The practicality and helpfulness are important, given the fact that getting the procedure done in a timely fashion is especially important in these animals, in order to minimize the duration of anesthesia.

      This is an important textbook and addition to the veterinary dental and zoological medicine literature. While this book is not an authoritative textbook on comparative odontology, like Berkovitz and Shellis' The Teeth of Mammalian Vertebrates (2018), nor a historical treatise on comparative dental pathology, like Colyer's Variations and Diseases of the Teeth of Animals (1936), it is a very practical compilation of the authors' many years of clinical experience treating dental problems in captive wild animals. Veterinary dentists may get called upon to see one of a species once in their career. The authors of this text have seen at least one case of the diseases and species described, and have generously shared their experience with their readers.

      Frank J. M. Verstraete

      DrMedVet BVSc MMedVet Dipl AVDC Dipl EVDC Dipl ECVS AVDC‐ZWD FF‐AVDC‐OMFS

      Professor of Dentistry and Oral Surgery

      Department of Surgical and Radiological SciencesSchool of Veterinary MedicineUniversity of California—Davis

      About Peter Emily

      Figure 1 Ed Eisner and Peter Emily, on Mulholland Drive, Burbank, CA USA, after completing a Dental Rescue in southern California, USA, 2009.

      Peter Emily, a practicing dentist for people, has studied comparative odontology and has a passion for helping improve the oral health of wild, as well as pet animals since 1969. He has dedicated decades of his life to improving oral health and comfort, especially for captive animals; animals that have been rescued from abusive, illegal, or financially unsustainable situations and placed in “retirement facilities,” sanctuaries where they can safely live the rest of their life to the fullest. He was my mentor, providing me with a dental education far exceeding any the finest veterinary schools had to offer in the 1980s and beyond. I will always be indebted to Peter for teaching me the technical nuances of dental practice, but even more so for the many dental insights that help elevate a good dental practice to that of one providing exceptional outcomes. The key to his brilliance and the value of his teachings has, even more than the technical education, been the sharing of the art of case assessment and treatment planning. The technical aspect of good dentistry is a cookbook science, achievable in several years of diligent study. The successful art of case assessment and therapeutic planning is the result of many more years of astute observation and creative application of those technical skills. These skills are never needed more than when dealing with the complex problems of large and small wildlife mammals and birds that are the residents of sanctuaries, zoos, and the natural habitats throughout the world. This is where Peter Emily excels, and this is where he is most comfortable.

1982

      For eight years people who knew of both Pete and my interest in veterinary dentistry kept telling us we should meet and finally we did. It was in November, 1982. Peter was a certified national dog show judge. He performed dentistry on dogs and cats and sometimes on the animals at the Denver Zoo, Denver, Colorado USA. In 1982, at the inauguration of the new animal hospital at the Denver Zoo, someone who knew both Pete and I, spotted us at the soiree and introduced us to each other. That was the beginning of a many‐decade friendship. In February of 1983, Peter and I travelled together to the Western States Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada where the American Veterinary Dental Society was having one of its

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