Is it normal for a 5-year-old dog to be cutting back teeth?

Our question this week was:

Dr. Debra – My staffy bull terrier is 5-years-old and seems to be cutting new back teeth top and bottom. Is this normal? Also he is scratching his ears a lot is it connected I did not think dogs got new teeth at this stage of life.

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Tony Crane

Answer

Hi – thanks for your email. You wrote that your 5-year-old dog seems to be cutting teeth. This is not normal and whatever he is doing that leads you to believe that he is cutting teeth is probably due to something else. Dogs have all of their adult teeth about 6 months of age and don't continue to get new teeth.

If he is drooling or his mouth seems painful – see your veterinarian. He could have something stuck in his mouth or a tooth infection.

A couple articles that might be helpful to you are Drooling in Dogs and Dental Cleaning.

Best of luck!

Dr. Debra

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