The baby teeth
Like humans, dogs have no teeth when they are born. They don't need them at that time, because at first they only drink milk from the bitch. After about two to four weeks, the first milk teeth start coming through. This is obviously a lot faster than in humans, because dogs stop drinking milk sooner and therefore need teeth sooner. When the first teeth come through, puppies will also start chewing solid food. Of course, milk is still the main food then, but puppies will start eating more and more of the food offered. The full milk teeth are formed in about 3 months. Usually, the incisors come through first, followed by the canines and finally the molars.
Learn your puppy now that it is normal to open its mouth.
You can monitor the process of teeth coming through very well yourself, by gently sliding the lips up the side of the mouth or by opening the whole mouth. It is highly recommended to do this in a gentle manner from the very beginning, so that the pups get used to the mouth being opened. You can even start by gently touching the teeth and gums to teach them that brushing teeth is normal too. Young learned is certainly old done in this case.
Your dog will start molting after about 3 months.
When the dog's head grows, there is more space for the teeth and the milk teeth will be exchanged for the permanent teeth. The new teeth then push out the milk teeth, as it were, because they cause the root of the milk teeth to dissolve. The milk teeth fall out easily without this root. Often this happens without any problems and as an owner you don't notice much of it. Sometimes the puppy will have a day or so that she is less eager to chew the food or toy on offer, or you may see just the opposite and they like to chew on everything. There are special puppy chew toys for sale that are not too hard but are firm. These include the
Kong Puppy or the Kong puppy Traxx.
The permanent dog teeth
Eventually, after about seven months, your dog will have its full permanent teeth. The dog's permanent teeth consist of 42 teeth, while the milk teeth consisted of 28 elements. In the upper and lower jaws, there are eventually 6 incisors, 2 canines and 8 premolars. The number of morlars is 6 below and only 4 above.
The eruption proceeds abnormally: the baby tooth does not fall out, so what?
However, if you notice that the baby tooth is not coming loose, while the new one is already visible, it is always wise to have your vet take a look. Milk teeth that remain in place can in fact cause a deviated position of the new tooth, which can cause the dog to develop symptoms. It is also wise to consult your vet in case of other abnormalities such as colour differences, broken elements or failure to change teeth.
-This is an automated translation- |
