Seven top incisors!

[Roxanna]

Have any of you ever counted your boxer's teeth? Elmo has been loosing his baby teeth which prompted me to check his mouth. To my surprise he has seven top incisors! I then checked Tyra's teeth hoping to figure out how many they SHOULD have and she too has seven top incisors!!!

What's up with that? Does anyone know?

Poor Elmo. As if he didn't have enough faults already. :( He doesn't have an underbite, no slant of nose, and now seven incisors. And to top it off he smells funny. I think I will break all the mirrors in the house so he doesn't see himself. LOL

 

[falkorboxers]

Believe it or not, having seven incisors is not actually a bad thing!

Basically, the more teeth a boxer has (top or bottom) the wider his jaw has to be to accomodate them. Considering that we prize a "wide bite", seven insisors is probably better than six, and certainly better than five, so long as they are appropriately spaced and placed (none behind another).

Most of the puppies from my last litter had at least six, most of them seven insisors, and my male frequently produces puppies with seven to eight top insisors, and consequently VERY wide bites.

As the Boxer standard does not discuss the *number* of teeth, but instead describes the correct appearance of the bite, jaw, muzzle, head, etc., the number of teeth won't matter to a judge in the conformation ring....

 

[gmacleod]

As the Boxer standard does not discuss the *number* of teeth, but instead describes the correct appearance of the bite, jaw, muzzle, head, etc., the number of teeth won't matter to a judge in the conformation ring....

Actually, I don't think this is true. The individual breed standards may not specifically discuss *number* of teeth - but I think that's because all breeds have essentially the same number. None of the written standards state how many toes, either, but I'm pretty sure extra toes would count as a fault

The correct dentition is 6 incisor teeth, and all interpretations of the boxer standard refer to faulty teeth placement as a fault. Some might interpret this a simply meaning not crooked, but IMHO most judges would also penalise a dog for missing or extra teeth.

As a matter of interest, some written versions of the boxer standard do make specific mention of the correct number of teeth. The NZ standard states that "The canine teeth should be as widely separated as possible. The incisors (6) should all be in one row, with no projection of the middle teeth. In the upper jaw they should be slightly concave. In the lower they should be in a straight line." Likewise the English standard: "Undershot jaw, canines set wide apart with incisors (6) in straight line in lower jaw. In upper jaw set in line curving slightly forward. Bite powerful and sound, with teeth set in normal arrangement."

All that being said, as long as Elmo has enough space in his jaw to accomodate extra teeth - why worry? Most boxers have six incisors, but the appearance of seven isn't that uncommon. It's only in the show ring that he'd be penalised for it.

 

[Roxanna]

Elmo and Tyra are not show dogs so I wasn't concerned to that extent but Elmo's upper and lower canines rub slightly as a result of the extra incisor. The seventh incisor is also larger than the rest of the upper incisors. The vet examined his teeth and felt that they are not rubbing enough to justify the pulling of teeth. It was just peculiar that both my boxers have seven incisors.:confused: