Can teeth show a dog's age?

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jkoch

By Dr. John KochQuestion: I have this stray dog that started hanging around my house. It sort of looks like I am stuck with him. He has a good attitude, lots of energy, and a healthy appetite. Is there any way of telling how old he is? I know in horses you can tell by looking at their teeth. Does this also apply to dogs?

Answer: Horses and dogs are totally different. While the horse may be aged based on a fairly predictable pattern of wear, dogs cannot. Dogs start losing their baby teeth when they are 4 1/2 months old. All of the adult teeth are in by the age of 6 months. After 6 months, guidelines for determining the age of canines are pretty nebulous.

The amount of wear, tartar, accumulation, breed, size of the dog, level of nutrition, genetics, health status and environment are a few of the factors that effect the appearance of the teeth in canines. These factors vary so greatly that precise determination of age is impossible. If you take your dog in for vaccinations and a physical exam, you veterinarian should be able to give you a reasonable estimate of your dog's age.

Dr. Koch is a Cape Girardeau-area veterinarian.