There is no need to explain how great importance In the life of the body, dogs have teeth. Animals use them to chew food, and they can also use them to protect themselves and their offspring from enemies. Not all owners of four-legged friends know the answer to the question of how many teeth a dog should have normally. But it is necessary to know it, because it depends on the state oral cavity animals, including the presence of a full set of teeth, their health largely depends. For example, a serious delay in appearance, irregular shape, their deformation may indicate such dangerous disease, like, which can turn a young animal into a disabled person. Timely detection dental pathologies allows you to solve health problems initial stage their occurrence, preventing them from becoming chronic and latent.

A dog's number of teeth is determined by its age, as well as its breed characteristics. Naturally, small puppies, who eat only milk and non-solid food, and do not yet eat, have much fewer teeth than adult dogs. Owners who care about the health of their pet should know exactly how many teeth they should have. adult dog. Basically there are 42 of them - 20 teeth at the top, two more at the bottom. At normal development a puppy, including with a sufficient amount of calcium in his body, a full “set” of teeth should be formed by 6 months. A deviation of a couple of weeks - a maximum of a month is considered acceptable. If by the age of 7 months the puppy’s baby teeth have not yet changed or they are smaller than normal, you should take your pet to the veterinarian so as not to miss some serious pathology that could cause serious harm dog.

The number of teeth a dog has determines its age.

So, we found out that you can determine the age of a dog by its teeth. So, in very young puppies, who are barely a month old, milk teeth erupt, but they are not too strong - just like children. At this tender age, dogs still do not eat too hard food; they should not be given rough bones. Therefore, what is the need for big teeth at this time, not yet, they are erupting much less than the “adult” norm - only 28.

After six months, as already mentioned, the dog’s mouth should already have a complete set of strong and healthy teeth. This is especially important to know and take into account for those who are planning to buy a puppy. Based on the number of teeth and their condition, you can easily determine whether the puppy is at least as young as its owner says. To do this, just look into the dog’s mouth, and everything will immediately become clear.

By the way, the process of changing teeth in puppies is approximately the same as in children. Thus, dogs' milk teeth grow in the first month of life. In general, puppies are born toothless. First, they develop incisors, with which babies tear food into pieces so that it is convenient to absorb it. Next comes the turn of the incisors, then the premolars (false molars). The young dog lives with them for the first six months of its life. Then the temporary teeth begin to fall out. This process begins around 4 months of their life. Usually it proceeds quite unnoticed and painlessly: a young dog, gnawing on a favorite bone, suddenly loses one baby tooth, then the second, third, and in their place stronger incisors and canines and molars appear. In some cases, when changing teeth, it is necessary to resort to the help of veterinary orthodontists. Fortunately, this doesn't happen often. The molars of a dog that is well fed and well cared for will remain strong for the rest of its life.

How many teeth a dog has is a question that in some cases does not have an exact definition. This is due to the fact that during the growth of the animal, their number may change due to the change of molars, and also due to the fact that each animal has its own individual characteristics development.

Thus, it is very important to carefully monitor your puppy’s teeth, as he must develop correct bite and according to this indicator it is possible to produce enough precise definition dog's age by teeth. A dog's healthy canines are one of the most accurate indicators of its physical health, which in most cases is important when choosing your potential dog.

Healthy molars of a dog indicate that it does not have any pathologies. gastrointestinal tract, and also that she eats a well-balanced diet. The number of teeth and the correct bite of a pet helps to accurately determine how old it is, this is especially true if you picked up a pet on the street or adopted it from a shelter.

As for the exact number of molars in a dog, it may differ due to differences in the breed of the animal. However, in most cases it is as follows:

• top twenty;
• twenty-two bottom.

Of these, it is necessary to distinguish twelve incisors, four canines, sixteen premolars and ten molars. Thus, if we make a conditional division into two parts total number, then the arrangement will be approximately as follows: three incisors, one canine, four premolars, two molars on the top left and right. The lower jaw contains the same number, but the molars for the most part are located three on each side.

Dog teeth such as premolars differ significantly in size. Those that come immediately after the fangs are considered the smallest and they gradually increase in size, going deeper into the jaw. The very last false root premolar is considered the largest in size and is popularly called a carnivore tooth.

The correct structure of the molars in a dog:

• roots that are located under the teeth and go deep into the animal’s jaw bone;
• formation in the form of a neck, which is located on the border between the soft tissues of the jaw;
• The crown is a superficial formation, for the most part it is very hard and is used by animals to properly chew meat and bones.

How do teeth and pets change in the first year of its life?

At birth, the puppy comes out completely without teeth; in most cases, the dog’s teeth begin to grow after three one month old. At the same time, the animal’s bite is formed, which must be correct and remains for the entire life of the dog.

Thus, it is necessary to correctly imagine the periodicity of growth of the dog’s first teeth:

• the incisors begin to erupt starting from the fourth week of the pet’s life;
• fangs appear from the third to the fifth week;
• premolars begin to appear from the fifth or sixth week, this mostly depends on the breed of the animal.

Thus, when proper development a pet, just like a wolf, by about two months of its life the main number is twenty-eight units.

The teeth of a wolf are in most cases comparable to the premolars and canines of a dog, since in a wolf and a dog the permanent molars grow permanent at about four months of age, at which time the pet’s correct bite is formed. If it has formed incorrectly, then the pet should definitely be shown to a veterinarian dentist, who will tell you what ways to eliminate this problem, which is not only an aesthetic one. This is due to the fact that if a pet’s bite is not formed correctly, this can bring him a lot of problems, since the dog will not be able to eat properly, which can often cause major problems with its health in the future.

As for the premolars, which are located after the fangs, they, just like molars, grow on a permanent basis.

After all the units have appeared in the pet, their replacement with radical ones begins partially. This change in most cases occurs after the animal is four months old. Thus permanent teeth, which fill the jaw, are gradually replaced in an adult dog by permanent molars.

The formula for such displacement in most cases is as follows: initially the incisors are replaced, then the canines, and only after them the premolars change. However, the latter continue to grow along with the fangs or a little later than them.

As mentioned above, the change of premolars and the position of teeth is an exclusively individual process, which is characteristic and may differ from person to person. different breeds. Thus, on average, complete permanent teeth end by the seventh month of a pet’s life, which ultimately results in a complete set of forty-two permanent molars.

In most cases, the process of changing crowns is a phenomenon that the owner may not even notice; this is due to the fact that we learn about what the animal has only when we accidentally stumble upon it on the floor. A dog performs a dental change when it chews hard objects and they fall out on their own.

However, every owner must monitor this process, since it is imperative to know how many teeth the dog has in order to control full compliance as accurately as possible this indicator with the age of your pet. Such a comparison will help to exclude as much as possible the presence of any pathologies and abnormalities in your pet’s health. All types of molars must exactly correspond to the age and breed of the dog.

If you notice that your pet has not yet experienced growth, but at the same time permanent growths have already begun to grow, then in this case it is necessary to consult with a veterinarian, who will come to a certain conclusion and diagnose correct diagnosis the reasons for this pathology. If this abnormal growth occurs, this may indicate the presence of a disease that has a frightening name - rickets. Of course, in most cases this diagnosis is not confirmed, but it is still necessary to compare the growth pattern in order to exclude as much as possible the presence of this pathology.

While a certain change of teeth occurs in a dog, its immune system. Thus, during this period, a variety of complications called this process become noticeable, so the pet should not be overcooled too much, as it may simply get sick.

Should be as balanced as possible, and walking in places where large cluster Dogs, especially yard ones, should be limited as much as possible.

Dependence of the condition of a dog’s teeth on its age

Many breeders sometimes ask themselves this question: how to determine the age of a dog by its teeth? It is worth saying that this is really possible if you know what condition your pet’s teeth should be in at a given age.

How many teeth dogs have is far from an idle question. It is especially important to control their growth and change in a puppy. By their number, you can determine whether the puppy has any diseases or pathologies. For an adult dog healthy teeth– an indicator of excellent functioning of the digestive organs, balanced nutrition and health. By quantity and condition, you can almost accurately determine the age, which is important when the dog is found on the street or taken from a shelter.

The amount may vary slightly depending on the breed of dog. But, basically, there are 42 of them - 20 teeth on top, 22 below.

If the jaw is roughly divided in half, then the diagram will look like this: 3 incisors, 1 canine, 4 false roots (premolars), 2 molars per upper jaw left and right. On the lower jaw, the arrangement is the same, but there are more molars - 3 of them on each side.

False roots (premolars) differ from each other in size. The premolar, starting immediately behind the canine, is the smallest. The next ones increase. The last premolar is the largest. Another name for it is “predatory” tooth.

Structure permanent teeth following:

• the root that is in bone tissue jaws;
• neck - it is located at the very border soft fabric jaws;
• crown – is a continuation of the neck of the tooth. It consists of very hard enamel, which makes the dog's teeth strong and allows you to tear off pieces of meat and chew bones.

Change of teeth in the first year of a dog's life

Puppies are born completely toothless. The first teeth grow after three weeks.

1. In the period from the fourth to the sixth week, the incisors appear.
2. Fangs begin to grow from the third to the fifth week.
3. Then, in the fifth or sixth week, false roots (premolars) appear. They grow only 3 from the left and right side, on the upper and lower jaws, respectively.

By two months, the puppy should have 28 teeth, 14 on top and bottom.

It should be noted that a dog’s molar teeth immediately grow permanent after 4 months. They don't come in milk. The same applies to the premolars, which are located next to the canines.

After four months, teeth change begins. Dairy ones are replaced by permanent ones and fall out. This happens gradually. First the incisors are replaced, then the canines. False roots can change along with the fangs or a little later.

For some puppies, the shift period lasts about three months. By 7 months this process should be completed. Full set – 42 pieces.

Usually the change of teeth goes unnoticed by the dog's owner. Teeth fall out when the puppy chews hard objects, plays or eats.

The task of each owner is to control this process. It is necessary to visually check how many teeth dogs have lost, how many have grown, and whether this is appropriate for their age.

If the teeth are growing in the wrong order, if the milk teeth have not yet fallen out, but the permanent ones are already showing through, you need to contact a veterinary clinic. Impaired tooth growth may indicate a disease such as rickets. This is not always the case, but it is better to identify the disease early and treat it than to let the disease progress. Rickets is a serious pathology that can lead to disability for your pet.

During the period of teeth change, the immunity of puppies decreases. Try not to overcool, do not introduce new foods into your diet, and do not walk in places where dogs are walked on a large scale. Consult your veterinarian about vaccinations. It often happens that vaccinations given before changing teeth have to be repeated after this process is completed.

Dog’s teeth and age – what’s the connection?

People who adopted a pet from a shelter often have a question: how to determine the age of a dog by its teeth, how accurate will this be.

Determining age using this method is possible, and it will be accurate if the dog lived in good conditions, ate well, and did not get sick. Poor nutrition, hunger, exhaustion, illness can distort the result.

The age of dogs can be determined by grinding down their incisors:

• 1.5 years – anterior on the lower jaw;
• 2.5 – medium on the lower jaw;
• 3.5 – front top;
• 4.5 – middle on top;
• 5.5 – extreme bottom;
• 6 years – extreme from the top.

The front incisors are located to the left and right of the conditional line dividing the jaw into two parts. The middle ones are the second incisors from this line. The extreme ones are the third ones from the middle, they are located next to the fangs.

• 8 years – fangs become dull. They may get sick;
• 9 and 10 years – the front incisors wear down and become oval;
• 10-12 years – the front incisors fall out;
• 12-16 years – the rest of the teeth fall out, except for the fangs;
• 20 years old – fangs fall out.

It should be noted that dental plaque is not an indicator of age. He either talks about poor nutrition dogs, lack of solid food in the diet, or violation acid-base balance in the gastrointestinal tract.

The following factors can also be taken into account to determine age:

• At the age of 6, the first gray hair appears on the ears and beard.
• At 7 years old, gray hair increases. Gray hair is added to the cheekbones and muzzle.
• At 8 – a lot of gray hair around the eyes.
• 9 years old – individual gray strands on the forehead and neck. The first signs of senile blindness.
• 10 years – senile blindness progresses.
• 12-16 – clouding of the cornea of ​​the eyes, severe blindness. The head turns gray almost completely.

“Terrible wolf, click with teeth” “A little gray wolf will come and bite you on the side...” This is how they used to scare kids with the teeth of a wolf in fairy tales, sayings, and sayings. This is if there is something to scare. And if a wolf has no teeth, he simply lost them while walking along the difficult road of life...

Hi all. I'm big shaggy dog, Mishka. I’m 8 months old and my mouth is still full of gorgeous, big, white teeth. I'm big, shaggy, gray - just like a wolf. Looking at me, everyone immediately understands who my ancestors are. I was taken from the street good people into the family and now I live in fullness and warmth. I'm very smart and that's why I think about a lot of things.

My teeth are my pride. I like to protect my masters. I love smiling at people, blinding them with the shine of my teeth and scaring scammers with them. And if I lose them, oh horror... But, anything can happen.

Every morning and evening I watch people brush their teeth, but why? A lot of questions are spinning in my head. So, let's figure it out. How many teeth do I, a dog, have and how do they differ from human teeth, how are they structured? What should you do to avoid losing them? Should I brush my teeth or will this do?

How many teeth does a dog have?

I never counted how many teeth my 8 month old dog has. Now I counted, standing in front of the mirror - 42: 20 - above and 22 - below. I’m already on my second set, the first one fell out, it was milky. I remember that I constantly wanted to chew something. And I did it diligently, damaging the furniture, my owners’ slippers and all my toys. As a result, I lost all my baby teeth and was very scared by this, but the owner reassured me and said that the new ones would grow better than the old ones. And so it happened.

I, like all puppies, was born toothless. I remember because I had many brothers who tried to offend me and I wanted to bite them, but there was nothing. And I just pushed back. But, by the month, the front teeth - incisors - began to cut in, then on the sides of them sharp, like knives - fangs appeared, and after them others arrived, it seems premolars, called. And by 2 months I had 28 beautiful teeth, arranged in 2 rows, 14 in each. Oh, now I was having a blast, biting all my offenders.
But I wasn’t happy for long. At 4 months they began to wobble and fall out. I helped this assiduously - I gnawed everything that caught my eye. They also bought me delicious chewing bones. A lot of my teeth got stuck and stayed there. But by 6 months I had already acquired a complete new, white set of permanent ones.

But what about people’s teeth?

Adults should have 32 teeth - I heard a toothpaste commercial on TV, but children should have only 20. Wow. We are dogs, nevertheless, we are more developed and adapted creatures than people, we have something to stand up for ourselves. And people have to adapt, invent and invent weapons. Teeth are the best personal weapon, everyone understands that.

I walk with my friends in the yard several times a day. We recently got a new friend - a dachshund. This is such a small, long, short-legged and very angry dog. She swears all the time and tries to bite me and my friends on the legs when we play. But, apart from the noise, there is no hassle from it. She bites as if she were kissing, because she has almost no teeth, they have fallen out. This makes her even angrier. We feel sorry for her.

And my retriever friend has 50 teeth, can you imagine? Everyone in the yard is afraid of him, although he is very kind, but as soon as you smile at him, everyone runs away. It just so happened that his front teeth both at the bottom and at the top grow in 2 rows. This is because the milk did not fall out, and the owner did not think to remove them.

Does this happen to people? I didn't see it, did you? I know why this doesn't happen to people. People can take care of themselves, they have money to go to the dentist, but we cannot tell them about it.

I know how to write on the Internet, so I take this opportunity to remind people and dog owners: “Our dear owners, look into our mouths more often, starting from 3 months. If you see that our baby teeth are not falling out and new, permanent ones are already starting to grow, help us, remove the extra ones yourself, or take us to the dentist! We don't want to be afraid of us. It’s also inconvenient and sometimes painful.”

If you are wondering, the phenomenon of extra teeth in a dog's mouth is called polydontia, and if there are not enough teeth, it is called oligodontia. Many people think that baby teeth dissolve on their own, providing calcium for the nutrition and growth of permanent teeth. But, I read on the Internet that this is not so. If a baby tooth simply breaks and the root remains in the gum, then it will remain there for life; it can be seen on x-rays in adult dogs. It can cause inflammation of the gums - periodontitis. And then good permanent neighbors will get sick. The mouth will begin to stink, and the teeth will become loose and hurt. A friend of mine had this and he suffered greatly until he had surgery.

Now I know, I read it of course, what is my dog's tooth made of?.

I understand it this way: the base of the tooth is dentin, porous calcium; below, where the root is, dentin is covered with cement; on top, where all the beauty, or crown, is, dentin is covered with enamel, which can be either white or yellowish. Very important person - doctor distinguish between enamel and smelly, bacterial plaque. Inside the tooth there is a cavity filled with blood vessels and nerves; this is the root canal. The neck of the tooth (the space between the root and the crown) is tightly covered by the mucous membrane of the gums, which fuses with the bone. All this (gums, bone socket - alveolus, where the tooth root lies) forms the periodontium. When bacteria grow there, during an injury, for example, it becomes ill, the mouth begins to smell unpleasant, the gums become redder and swell, the walls of the alveoli are destroyed and the tooth becomes loose, it may fall out, and a new one will not grow. I think that our friend the dachshund lost his teeth, and the owner did not pay attention to it. Sorry for the dachshund.

To avoid all this, my owner promised that every weekend, at least once a week, he would help me brush my teeth, although he brushes himself twice a day. But okay, at least this way rather than nothing at all. We bought a nursery especially for me toothbrush and dog dental gel. This gel turns out to be delicious and smells pleasant - like liver. And I love liver. The owner now brushes my teeth every Saturday night, after a walk and dinner.

On a walk, I looked into the mouth of each of my friends and oh, horror - 5 out of 8 had stinking breath, their teeth were yellow with growths, this is tartar. I sent everyone to the groomer. I have a groomer friend who understands such matters. It’s not far from Mishka’s pet salon. You noticed, right? The pet salon is named after me. I work there as a dog translator. The master cleaned the dogs' teeth and returned them to their former whiteness and shine. True, someone had to be sent to a veterinary dentist because only extraction could save the remaining teeth or anesthesia was needed.

Cleaning a dog’s teeth with ultrasound without anesthesia, polishing them is necessary and important procedure. It protects us from tartar and diseases such as gingivitis and periodontitis. I have already briefly told you how dangerous they are, friends. We dogs cannot brush our own teeth, and our beloved owners often forget about it, or they simply don’t have time. Therefore, I decided to remind them of this problem. Oral hygiene will help for many years save our health. Don't be afraid to ask a groomer for help, it's safe.

Now it’s hard to imagine, but all domestic dogs descended from wild carnivores - the wolf and the jackal. Over the millennia, a lot has changed - size, coat color, behavior, but the teeth have not changed at all. They remained the same as they were among distant predatory ancestors.

It will be interesting to know how many teeth dogs have. More than a human! 42 molars (permanent) teeth and 28 milk (temporary) teeth. Teeth vary in appearance and function. Fangs – 4 large, sharp teeth, bearing the main load when hunting, as well as tearing prey. Incisors - small teeth between the canines, 6 in each on the upper and lower jaws - teeth with a cutting surface that help to bite off a small piece of food suitable for swallowing. The teeth behind the canines are premolars - 4 on the upper and lower jaws on each side and molars - 3 on the lower jaw and 2 on the upper on each side. Interestingly, in dogs, only the molars have the chewing surface that we are so accustomed to, similar to human teeth. Therefore, dogs generally do not chew food, but tear it apart or bite it into pieces. Or they simply swallow it.

Once in a dog's life, a change of teeth occurs. To a caring owner It is important to know how many years (or months) teeth change. At the age of 3 to 6–7 months, baby teeth actively fall out and their permanent counterparts grow in their place. Not all teeth have temporary predecessors; molars and 1st premolars immediately grow into permanent (molar) teeth. At an age when teeth change, the owner may notice a change in the smell of the animal’s mouth; this is normal. But if your dog has both permanent and baby teeth in his mouth at the same time, you should consult a doctor. Dogs of small and medium breeds are prone to such a phenomenon as false polydentia - a delay in the loss of temporary teeth while the permanent teeth have erupted and grown.

The reasons for the retention of baby teeth in the jaw are heredity (especially predisposed small breeds dogs), incorrect location of a permanent tooth (when it does not push its temporary predecessor out of the jaw), features of mineral metabolism.

There is a myth that baby teeth have no root. That is why permanent teeth are called *molars*. The spread of such a myth is due to the fact that people remember their fallen milk teeth; they really are hollow crowns without roots. Normally, the root of a baby tooth is absorbed by a certain age (the age of teeth change) and only the crown easily falls out. The process of changing teeth in dogs also occurs.

But if a baby tooth lingers in the jaw, this usually means that its root has not undergone resorption (has not resolved). When such a tooth is removed, it may turn out that the root is 1.5–2 times longer than the crown! The owners note that the temporary tooth does not even wobble, although a permanent analogue has already grown nearby.

Lost baby teeth must be removed. It is better to carry out this procedure before 7-8 months or even earlier if there is a possibility of an incorrect or traumatic bite. When teeth are crowded, when baby teeth are very close to permanent teeth, plaque accumulates faster between them, food debris and hair get stuck. As a result, the gums become inflamed in this place, and then the deeper tissues. It’s a shame to lose a permanent tooth due to a milk tooth that was not removed on time!

From puppyhood, you need to accustom your dog to brushing its teeth. Any training and education that begins at a young age will be easier and faster. The puppy must be introduced to a toothbrush and toothpaste, and this must be done gently and persistently every day. hygiene procedure. So that by the time the dog grows permanent teeth, brushing its teeth has already become a habit and does not cause negative reactions in the pet.

By 6–7 months, the dog, as a rule, has a full set of *molars* teeth. Teeth grow quickly and you may notice that an adult dog has small or medium breed they are disproportionately large compared to the size of the animal. It happens that because small size jaws, some of the teeth *do not fit* in the mouth and are missing, sometimes the teeth are turned out or arranged in a checkerboard pattern, there are variations malocclusion in dogs with a long or, conversely, too short muzzle.

A dog of any breed must be shown to a veterinary dentist once a year in order to notice the problem in time and prevent it from developing. pet suffered from toothache.

Most common dental disease in dogs - periodontitis. Only on initial stage this disease can be treated. IN advanced cases teeth have to be removed. Home care- This necessary condition for the prevention of periodontitis! Dogs, like humans, need to brush their teeth daily. Only timely removal of plaque can slow down the development of periodontitis, which means loosening, tooth loss and toothache.

Modern functional treats come to the aid of owners here. Purina ® DentaLife ® Chewable Sticks are a tasty and enjoyable addition to your toothbrush! Thanks to its special edges and porous texture, this delicacy helps clean the furthest teeth that the owner may not reach with a toothbrush. Soft sticks massage the gums without the risk of injury. Purina ® DentaLife ® have pleasant smell, dogs like and give fresh breath. These sticks are indicated for daily use, thanks to Purina ® DentaLife ® teeth brushing becomes not only effective, but also tasty and enjoyable!