[Raven_the_standard]

Hi,
I have a gorgeous litter of standards at the moment that are 8 weeks. They have had regular vet checks as well as me checking them over regularly and they are all healthy.
However, i've just noticed that all but 2 have their lower canines pushing into the upper jaw... either tilting in a bit or rubbing right up against the upper canines.
Neither of the parents have bad jaws. And the pups all eat well, and chew toys well. I also cannot see any inflammation in the holes in the upper gums at the moment.

I know their lower jaws grow in slower so I am hoping that this corrects itself over time... but the people/breeders I have spoken to haven't really experienced it before, or just haven't noticed it at this young age.
I have read that the jaw is set after about 10-12 months and that its more of a 'wait and see' game with not much you can do until then.

I am after some other people's experiences with this in young puppies... does it correct itself? Have people corrected it with "Ball Therapy"?
I'll be having an appointment with my vet soon but just wanted some poodle-specific experience/advice.

Thank you!

 

[Liz]

Yes, search for "linguoverted" above, and you'll find a few threads on the subject over the years. In general, baby teeth may need to get pulled, but with ball therapy the adult teeth should come in fine.

 

[DogtorDoctor]

To offer some anecdotes, my standard pup and my mother's had linguoversion of the bottom canines. My pup had his baby teeth come in completely vertical. I extracted those. Despite ball therapy and manual pressure, his adult canines are still base-narrow, although the angle is improved from his baby teeth. He will be seeing a dentist in December to correct this.

My mother's puppy had just one canine slightly inside the palate. It was clipped by his breeder before coming home, so it didn't contact the palate. His adult tooth came in with no issues whatsoever.

So, it will depend on how severe the linguoversion is as to if it will need more attention as your puppies get older. This is also the most common malocclusion of dogs, so your vet should be able to give you some good individual advice.

 

[Oonapup]

My puppy had this with one of her bottom canines. I've seen a lot of people online (here and elsewhere, mostly fb groups) say this is nothing to worry about and it usually resolves which may be true, but I suggest consulting and listening to your vet about it because not all displacements are equal. I was not comfortable with leaving my puppy with an open mouth wound for 2-3 more months while waiting for the baby teeth to fall out, and our vet explained that because of where it was puncturing her palate the baby tooth was not going to move on its own since it effectively anchored itself in the hole every time she closed her mouth.

I wish her regular vet could have extracted her tooth because it would have been dealt with sooner and we might have been saved the subsequent complication, but for whatever reason they wouldn't do the extraction and we were referred to a veterinary dentist for it. The vet dentist removed the baby tooth and had us watch and wait on the adult teeth while doing ball therapy (which was really just lots of play with balls). Unfortunately for us, the baby tooth puncturing the palate had damaged and caused the adult upper incisor on that side to come in displaced, which was blocking the eruption of the adult lower canine. So Oona needed a second surgery to have the incisor removed in order to allow the canine to come in and clear her gum. The dentist also put in a dissolvable orthodontic suture to encourage the tooth to angle out. Happily, it's fine now but it was a bit of an ordeal.

 

[farleysd]

I have had several puppies over the years have this issue. As the adult teeth came in they corrected. I have not had an issue as an adult. I have heard of a case or two that had problems, but that is not the norm. What ever you do, DO NOT let anyone, breeder, vet, of anyone clip the top of the puppy tooth! The hole the tooth forms in the roof of the mouth does not hurt the puppy, but I have seen a vet clip the tip of the tooth and an infection developed in the tooth that speed down into the root, "killing " the adult tooth below the gum level.

 

[DogtorDoctor]

I have had several puppies over the years have this issue. As the adult teeth came in they corrected. I have not had an issue as an adult. I have heard of a case or two that had problems, but that is not the norm. What ever you do, DO NOT let anyone, breeder, vet, of anyone clip the top of the puppy tooth! The hole the tooth forms in the roof of the mouth does not hurt the puppy, but I have seen a vet clip the tip of the tooth and an infection developed in the tooth that speed down into the root, "killing " the adult tooth below the gum level.

As a quick response to this, while the contact with the hard palate does itself does not generally cause issues long term to the puppy's health, it can damage the adult incisor before it erupts. Jango's baby teeth punctured the palate before they were removed and he now has a significant (as in noticable) enamel deficit on his most lateral upper incisor. He's going to need dental x-rays to determine if the tooth as a whole is healthy or will need to be extracted.

This is why I recommend letting your vet guide each individual puppy's need for treatment.

 

[Oonapup]

As a quick response to this, while the contact with the hard palate does itself does not generally cause issues long term to the puppy's health, it can damage the adult incisor before it erupts. Jango's baby teeth punctured the palate before they were removed and he now has a significant (as in noticable) enamel deficit on his most lateral upper incisor. He's going to need dental x-rays to determine if the tooth as a whole is healthy or will need to be extracted.

This is why I recommend letting your vet guide each individual puppy's need for treatment.

That's also what happened with Oona. It had to be extracted for sure, because it was also displaced, coming in a little far back and blocking the adult canine we were most concerned about. I learned from the dental vet that the adult teeth in the puppy are protected by little cushiony sacs, and that the baby teeth can puncture these and cause damage to the tooth both from friction and from dirt and bacteria entering the area around the adult tooth.

 

[scooterscout99]

Great input from all. My vet just recommended extracting such a tooth from my puppy, as it is impacting the upper palate. Though surgery (and general anesthesia) are concerning, I'm leaning toward getting this done.

 

[Oonapup]

Another thing is that ball therapy is for helping guide the eruption of the adult teeth. I was warned against trying to put manual pressure on the baby teeth since they can break, plus they aren't going to move while they are anchored by a hole. If they are only slightly narrow it may be different. @scooterscout99 - I was also concerned about the risk of surgery. Talk to your vet or dental vet about the monitoring they do for surgery. When they explained what the process is, how they monitor, and how short the surgery is when uncomplicated (less than 30 mins in our case) I felt a lot better about it.

 

[scooterscout99]

Thanks, Oonapup. We did discuss the risks of (any) surgery. My dog's vet does all of the dental work for the practice. The position of the tooth in question has changed enough to be hitting the top of the mouth, 3 weeks after the initial exam. The hope is to prevent puncture of the palate of the mouth. Another poster mentioned that the baby teeth could damage the not yet erupted adult teeth, something to be concerned about.

I'm grateful to have the experience of those on the PF, and the veterinary professionals and friends in RL.