Title: How Do Vets Determine the Age of a Puppy or Kitten?
Headings: How Vets Determine a Puppy or Kitten's Age
How Vets Determine a Puppy or Kitten's Age
Emerging Puppy Teeth
Tricks for Kittens
When Teeth Don't Tell the Whole Story
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Content: Once puppies reach 16 to 18 weeks of age they’re starting to get their first set of grown-up teeth: all of their 12 incisors, one set of four premolars and one set of four molars. Then from 20 to 24 weeks, they’ll get their four adult canines, three more sets of premolars and one more set of molars. Finally, at 24 to 28 weeks, their final set of two permanent molars erupts, only on the bottom. Overall, looking at a young dog’s teeth is a great way to tell his age — at least “in the absence of disease,” Casal says. “ There are diseases that will either delay tooth eruption or prevent tooth eruption, so those things make it a little bit harder,” she explains. “ But in general, if the puppy’s pretty much healthy, you can pretty much tell its age.” There are some breeds, however, that are more of a challenge. Casal finds that in “really tiny breeds ,” like Chihuahuas, “the teeth seem to erupt not as nicely as they do in other breeds of dogs, so it’s harder to see sometimes.” She added that in some dogs with underbites or overbites it can be harder for a vet to tell which teeth have emerged.