belgavin Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 hi all, our JRT pup Yoshi is 2 and a bit years old and I have always noticed that his fangs/incisors/canines (whatever the sharp front teeth are called) have been quite blunt from a young age. It isn't until I really looked at them closely recently that I notice there are small dots of brown/yellow in the middle of them where, I'm assuming, the enamel has worn away to expose something. It is quite pronounced on his bottom left fang in particular. It looks as if the tips of all four fangs have had their tips 'chopped off'. Is this common at all or something I should be worried about? As far as I know he has never chewed on anything odd that a regular puppy wouldn't chew on - nothing metal etc and I have never seen him chew on stones. As you can see in pic 1 all four main fangs are slightly blunt, with the lower left one being more so than the others. Had a bit of trouble getting his mouth open, he wasn't in the mood for an in-mouth photo opp! in pic 2 is more of a close up of the lower left where you can make out the dot/discolouring in the middle of the tooth. He doesn't seem to show any signs of pain or discomfort when chewing on toys or when I place a finger on the tip of the tooth and push down or tap it. He is due for annual vaccination in the next fortnight so I will get the vet to take a look but just thought I'd post here to see if anyone had any feedback. The vet has had a quick look in his mouth in the past and hasn't mentioned anything about it so I haven't really worried about it until now. His teeth are quite good and clean all round although they could probably do with a bit of a scrub soon. Anyway thanks for reading Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TigerJack Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 I have a tennis ball chomper with teeth almost as bad as that. Keep an eye on the teeth and stop them chewing things like tennis balls, which have a surface that works a abit like sandpaper to teeth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belgavin Posted March 9, 2007 Author Share Posted March 9, 2007 Damn, really? Tennis balls? He's obsessed with them and spends half the day with one in his mouth. That's the cause? I had no idea. Can you buy any sort of tennis ball that won't harm the enamel? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibi Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 I have seen a border collie with almost no canines at all due to being tennis ball obsessed. Id probably try a rubber type ball instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PebsnMe Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Yes I agree with the Tennis Balls!! My parents JRT has really blunt teeth and again was a tennis ball addict... Vet basically told them to get rid of the tennis balls to save what teeth he has left, so the tennis balls had to go... they felt terrible but slowly got him into other toys, but just mention tennis balls and his ears are up and eyes are looking!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belgavin Posted March 9, 2007 Author Share Posted March 9, 2007 (edited) I've booked him in for a vet visit tomorrow and we'll see what is said. I feel really bad giving him tennis balls all this time and being unaware of the dangers. Edited March 9, 2007 by belgavin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shmoo Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Ive seen a staffy that liked to chew bricks! he had almost no teeth at all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavNrott Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 (edited) . Edited June 7, 2009 by cavNrott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Avanti* Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 I can't leave my dog with tennis balls because he chews them up and could get bits stuck in his tummy. He loves to fetch them but they get put away after the fetch session is over. His teeth are quite worn now but he is also old so they are pretty good for his age. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trisven13 Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 I've also heard, don't know how true it is so don't shoot the messenger , that tennis ball obsessed dogs grind their teeth down quicker because of the glue used to hold the "fluff" stuff onto the rubber ball. I was told never to let a dog have a "normal" tennis ball as it will ruin their teeth because of this. Apparently that is why the dog type tennis balls are soooo expensive. Who knows how true that is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belgavin Posted March 10, 2007 Author Share Posted March 10, 2007 I've taken him to the vet but unfortunately Yoshi wasn't cooperating much with getting his mouth looked at so the vet only got a quick glance. I am going to show him the photos I took above instead. He told me that it is fairly common and there's always the choice to do something about it (getting a tooth capped etc) but that could be around $700 or more just for one tooth. Basically I just have to keep the tennis ball usage to a minimum and get him onto rubber toys or something else. The vet told me not to worry too much as he has seen dogs with their teeth worn all the way down to the gumline and it still doesn't bother them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloss344 Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 I was told never to let a dog have a "normal" tennis ball as it will ruin their teeth because of this. Apparently that is why the dog type tennis balls are soooo expensive. Who knows how true that is? Bob is also ball obsessed and has worn down teeth. I'd be interested to know if the dog type tennis balls are actually different. I'm happy to pay the extra if it saves his teeth. Damn always something new to worry about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daxilly Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Hi, We have two tennis ball obsessed dogs and this now explains their teeth. I had no idea. :rolleyes: Does anybody know if the Planet Dog tennis balls are different to normal felt tennis balls? Also I can't seem to find a stockist in OZ that sells the complete Planet dog range. Has anybody used an overseas site that they can recommend? Is postage very expensive? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloss344 Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 While I in Big W today they had Air Dog squeaky tennis balls in the pet section. It actually said they do not cause tooth wear so I bought the pack. 3 for $10 which I didn't think was too bad. Hopefully Bob won't dismantle them straight away to get out the squeaker. :rolleyes: I figured it was worth a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tibbiemax71 Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Well there you go! that explanes my old dog Zana's teeth, her canines are really worn, I only use tennis balls in training but she did do flyball in her younger days, my other dog Elka loves tennis balls to, but again only use them in training, her teeth are fine but she is only 2 years old. Zana copes fine with hers, still eats bones fine :rolleyes: Will have to see if I can find the doggie tennis balls for Elka. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Clover Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 My old girls canines are worn down from tennis ball chewing aswell, they are not too bad though as we dont have tennis balls just lying around. Tennis balls are the reason i have switched my guys over to rubber balls for flyball, and they seem to like them much better than tennis balls aswell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2tollers Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 Both of my Tollers have worn teeth. Tennis balls are only allowed under supervision, but Lilli will chew anything and the vet said she uses her rear teeth as well because they're worn down a bit too. Her front ones are pretty bad. Todd's are only at the front and he said that is typical of tennis balls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayreovi Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 I am glad my guys arent obesessed with tennis balls enought too sit there and chew them. Have a few tennis balls laying around the yard from neighbours kids LOL Mine do flyball as well, but they arent chompers on the ball like i know some dogs do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now