Dog dental chart, your dog has 42 teeth (and why that matters)
An adult dog has 42 teeth. A puppy has 28. Each tooth has a job, incisors for nibbling, canines for grabbing, premolars and molars for shearing and grinding. Below: a simple visual chart of your dog's mouth and a plain-language guide to what's where, when puppy teeth fall out, and which teeth get most of the disease (spoiler: the back ones, where you weren't brushing).
How many teeth does a dog have?
Adult dogs have 42 permanent teeth arranged across the upper and lower jaws. Puppies start with 28 deciduous (baby) teeth, gradually replaced as the adult teeth erupt.
- 12 incisors, 6 upper, 6 lower
- 4 canines, the long fangs at the corners of the mouth
- 16 premolars, 8 upper, 8 lower
- 10 molars, 4 upper, 6 lower
Dog dental anatomy
Upper jaw, 20 teeth
Lower jaw, 22 teeth
Incisors
Small front teeth, six on top and six on the bottom. Used for nibbling, picking small pieces of food, grooming, and gentle holding. Don't take heavy chewing forces and don't develop tartar as quickly as the back teeth.
Canines
The long, pointed fangs at the corners of the mouth. Four total, two upper, two lower. Used for grabbing, holding and tearing. Largest single-rooted teeth in the dog's mouth. The dramatic ones in the photos.
Premolars
Sit between canines and molars. Sixteen total. Used for shearing food. The fourth upper premolar is the carnassial tooth, the largest cheek tooth, designed for cracking bone. Also the tooth most likely to fracture from chewing on something too hard, which is the dental version of "we told you not to give them an antler".
Molars
The flat-topped grinding teeth at the back. Ten total, two pairs upper and three pairs lower (the lower has more, because evolution apparently has favourites). Used for crushing and grinding.
Puppy teeth vs adult teeth timeline
Puppies are born without teeth. Deciduous (baby) teeth come through between weeks 3 and 6, and adult teeth replace them between months 3 and 7.
| Age | Stage |
|---|---|
| Birth | No visible teeth |
| 3 to 4 weeks | Deciduous incisors and canines start to erupt |
| 5 to 6 weeks | All 28 deciduous teeth present |
| 3 to 4 months | Deciduous incisors are pushed out by adult incisors |
| 4 to 6 months | Adult premolars and canines erupt; deciduous teeth fall out |
| 6 to 7 months | All 42 adult teeth present |
During the 3 to 6 month window, you'll find tiny baby teeth on the floor, in the dog bed, or stuck in chew toys. Normal. Some baby teeth (especially the upper canines) can fail to fall out properly, these are called "retained deciduous teeth" and may need to be removed at the time of desexing if they haven't fallen out by 7 months.
Common dental problems by tooth type
Incisors
Wear down over the years, especially in dogs that chew on toys, balls, or rocks. Worn incisors are common in tennis-ball-obsessed dogs. (You know the ones. The ball is their entire personality.)
Canines
Most likely teeth to fracture from a major impact (cars, falls, hard chews). Single deep root makes them painful when the pulp is exposed.
Carnassial teeth (upper P4)
The most commonly fractured tooth in dogs, especially from chewing antlers, hooves and dense bones. A slab fracture exposes the pulp and almost always needs extraction or root canal.
Molars
Periodontal disease accumulates fastest at the back teeth where they're hardest to reach with brushing. The mandibular first molar (lower M1) is the largest and most important grinding tooth.
All teeth, periodontal disease
Plaque and tartar accumulate on every tooth, but the upper back teeth get hit hardest because saliva ducts open near them. Periodontal disease is the most common chronic condition in adult Australian dogs and the main reason for professional dental cleaning.
When puppies lose baby teeth
Most puppies finish teething by 6 to 7 months old. During this time:
- Provide appropriate chew toys (avoid antlers and bones, they fracture adult teeth as they come through). The dental chews guide covers safer options
- Don't worry about a few specks of blood when teeth fall out
- Watch for retained deciduous canines (a baby canine alongside a new adult canine in the same socket)
- Get a dental exam at the time of final puppy vaccinations to catch any retained teeth or alignment issues
Cats have a different setup, see the cat dental chart for the equivalent.
42 teeth, all of them important, most of them ignored until they become a problem. Now you know where they are. Brush the back ones first, they're the ones nobody else gets to. Information here is general; your dog's individual mouth may have minor variations, missing teeth or breed-specific traits. Any dental concern should be assessed by a registered veterinarian.