Teething Question

Mdawn · 03-22-2007, 06:09 AM

I have a 6 month old Black Lab. I know he is still teething. I've been looking at his gum and teeth, which look fine to me. Except, he has a tooth that looks like it is coming in in the same spot his old tooth is still in. Almost like he has a double row of teeth in that one spot. I figure that this is normal, but would like others advice. I took a picture of it, though I don't know how well it will show up. It is the spot where it looks like one tooth is coming in right behind the other or on top of it.

Is this normal?

P.S. He was asleep when I took the picture. He could care less what people do to him while he's sleepy.

briteday · 03-22-2007, 09:24 AM

I've seen that happen before with our pups. Usually the baby tooth will eventually (2 weeks?) get pushed out. I just watch for any signs of infection in the meanwhile. But at this age they're usually seeing the vet for vaccinations, and once or twice the vet just flicked it out with a scaling tool. The baby tooth is probably no longer attached by connective tissue but is being held in place by the gum tissue surrounding it. And don't be alarmed if the dog is playing with a chew toy, gives a yelp, and the tooth is laying on the floor. I've had that happen too.
Worse case scenario, if you don't have a vaccination appt coming up and it doesn't come out in a week or two, I'd make a quick visit with the vet to take care of it.

Curbside Prophet · 03-22-2007, 09:36 AM

Elsa had hers removed during her spay appointment, per our vets recommendation. In Elsa's case, it didn't appear that they would fall out on their own. There can be some complications having them all in, but I do know of one dog that never had them removed and he appears perfectly content. I'd follow your vet's recommendation though.

Mdawn · 03-22-2007, 02:44 PM

Thanks for the advice. I'll definitely mention it to the vet when he goes to get neutered, which will be anytime hopefully. I've been a little worried about the rate his teeth are coming in. With my moms dog, it seemed like she got all of her teeth a lot faster than my Lab, but I suppose it just depends on the dog. Also, I have noticed some spots of blood on my clothes after playing with him (we are still working on the biting issue), so hopefully they will be in soon. I know it has to be painful for him. At least it looks like it would be painful.

britishbandit · 03-22-2007, 05:35 PM

I just recently went through this with Maya. Almost every one of her adult teeth grew side by side with her baby teeth. I too was worried at first, but they did eventually fall out. The canines took forever, and I was sure she'd need them pulled, but they did come out. Just keep an eye on them, and look for any infection or redness along the gumline. If you see no issues, leave them for now, but if it really doesn't look like they'll come out, or that something is wrong, off to the vet!

I'm sure they'll fall out by themselves though.