Sometimes baby teeth just will not go away

Hurley

I saw a very sweet mixed breed dog today named Hurley (not sure if he was named after one of my favorite characters on Lost - I really miss that show).  He served as a good reminder that some baby teeth (aka deciduous teeth) do not fall out like they should.  Most dogs start losing their baby teeth around 4 months of age.  In most breeds all the baby teeth are lost and all the adult teeth are present by 6 months of age. 

Hurley is 7 months old and was still hanging on to several of his baby canine teeth.  The general rule is that two teeth should not occupy the space where only one tooth belongs.  The crowding caused by the retained baby teeth can cause problems with the adult teeth so they needed to be extracted.  The right upper jaw of Hurley's mouth looked like this:

The baby tooth is the short tooth directly behind the large canine tooth.  Of particular interest is that this baby tooth is fractured.  The fracture has resulted in an infection at the root of the tooth.  If you look closely at the image you may be able to notice a small tract that looks like a pimple just above the first premolar.  I have treated quite a few puppies with fractured baby canine teeth and infected tooth roots are common when the tooth pulp is exposed.  Fortunately removal of the tooth will usually allow for complete healing.  Hurley did great today and was a real pleasure to treat.