Canine tooth

“ Usually with this weakness of the canine goes a smaller or lighter build of the lower jaw which is what would be expected. The points by which the various species were differentiated were, beside the size of the canine, the presence or absence of pit 3, and the variation in the foldings on the outer sides of the lower molars, which I find on sectioning a tooth appear deeper or shallower according to whether the tooth was more or less worn. ”

“ The other animals are born with233 teeth, whereas man has them only at the seventh234 month after his birth. While other235 animals keep their teeth to the time of their death, man, the lion, the beasts of burden, the dog, and the ruminating animals, all change them; the lion and the dog, however, change none236 but the canine teeth. The canine tooth of the wolf, on the right side, is held in high esteem as an amulet.237 There is no animal that changes the maxillary teeth, which stand beyond the canine teeth. ”

“ In man the canine teeth are perfectly efficient instruments for mastication. But their true canine character, as Owen178 remarks, “is indicated by the conical form of the crown, which terminates in an obtuse point, is convex outward and flat or sub-concave within, at the base of which surface there is a feeble prominence. The conical form is best expressed in the Melanian races, especially the Australian. The canine is more deeply implanted, and by a stronger fang than the incisors.” Nevertheless this tooth no longer serves man as a special weapon for tearing his enemies or prey ”

“ There is a prevalent idea amongst the settlers that the natives have no canine teeth; but this is a mistake. Amongst the children I have observed the pointed character of the true canine tooth, though as they grow up the point wears away, and, in . ”

“ The first maxillary tooth is small, the second and third gain quickly in size, the latter (fig. 5, a) assuming the character of a canine; the fourth tooth (ib. b, and fig. 6, b) is a still larger canine; the fifth (fig. 6, c) and sixth (d) decrease in size somewhat suddenly, but in length rather than breadth of crown, and terminate the series projecting from the convex part of the alveolar border of the maxillary; the tooth c or d may be said to terminate the laniary series. Beyond d the teeth lose length and slightly gain in breadth ”

“ The enamel is restricted to the front of the incisor, so that in gnawing the softer dentine is worn away at the tip faster than the enamel, thus keeping the tooth sharp. There are no canine teeth. Rodents are mostly herbivorous in diet, are usually small, and have clawed digits. ”

“ The teeth and claws are the principal instruments of the destructive energy in these animals. The incisor teeth are equal; the third tooth behind the large canine in either jaw is narrow and sharp, and these, the carnassial or sectorial teeth, work against each other like scissors in cutting flesh ”

“ Dental Caries, such as affects our own teeth when they decay and have to be stopped, occasionally, though luckily not often, distresses dogs. They may bruise the dental pulp inside a tooth by biting very hard on a bone, or by playing too roughly, and more especially by carrying stones, a very bad practice. The only thing to be done is generally to extract the tooth under chloroform, since it is difficult to find dog-dentists who will stop a decayed tooth. A dog with toothache, rubbing his face on the ground and crying, is a pitiable sight. ”

“ The lower canines are much more slender, but follow the same curve; except on the posterior surface, their crowns are covered with enamel; both pairs of canines are large in the two sexes. The third or last molar tooth of both jaws is of great size, and presents a structure at first sight unlike that of any other mammal, being composed of numerous (22-25) parallel cylinders or columns, each with pulp-cavity, dentine and enamel-covering, and packed together with cement. ”

“ SMOOTH MOUTH.—In old age the tables of the molar teeth may become so smooth that the horse cannot grind or masticate the feed. When all of the molars are in this condition, a rubbing sound may be noted when the animal is masticating hay. After attempting to chew the hay, it may be dropped from the mouth. Innutrition always occurs.
The treatment consists in feeding chops and soft feeds.
DENTAL DISEASES.—Inflammation of the alveolar periosteum is a common dental disease in domestic animals. This is an inflammation of the alveolar dental membrane that fixes the tooth in the tooth cavity. ”

“ The poulder of the teeth of Dogges, maketh Children’s teeth to come forth with speed and easie, and, if their gums be rub’d with a dog’s tooth, it maketh them to have the sharper teeth; and the poulder of these Dogs teeth rubbed upon the Gummes of young or olde, easeth toothache, and abateth swelling in the gummes. The tongue of a Dogge, is most wholesome both for the curing of his owne wounds by licking, as also of any other creature. ”

“ The canines, though smaller than the incisors, are large and sharp; but the cheek-teeth, so well developed in other bats, are very small and reduced in number to two above and three below, on each side, with laterally compressed crowns rising but slightly above the level of the gum, their longitudinally disposed cutting edges (in the upper jaw) being continuous with the base of the canine and with each other. The lower front teeth (incisors) are small, bifid, in pairs, and separated from the canines, teeth (incisors) , with a space in front. ”

“ The enamel is derived from the outer layer of the embryonic dog-fish, the epiblast, which also gives rise to the epidermis; while the dentine and bony base arise in the underlying mesoblast, the dermis. A mammalian tooth has essentially the same structure: an outer coat of enamel, derived from epiblast, overlies a mass of dentine, resting on bone, but the dentine is excavated internally, to form a pulpcavity containing blood-vessels and nerves. Most land animals, however, have teeth only in their mouths, and have lost altogether the external teeth which constitute the armour of the dog-fish. ”

“ We think we make the operation easier by giving him for a plaything some hard substance, such as ivory or coral. I think we are mistaken. Far from softening the gums, these hard bodies, when applied, render them hard and callous, and prepare the way for a more painful and distressing laceration. Let us always take instinct for guide. We never see puppies try their growing teeth upon flints, or iron, or bones, but upon wood, or leather, or rags,—upon soft materials, which give way, and on which the tooth impresses itself. ”

“ They are called “incisors.” The back, lateral or cheek teeth, on the other hand, have broader and more complex crowns, tuberculated or ridged, and supported on two or more roots. They crush or grind the food, and are hence called “molars.” Many mammals have, between these two sets, a tooth at each corner of the mouth, longer and more pointed than the others, adapted for tearing or stabbing, or for fixing struggling prey. From the conspicuous development of such teeth in the Carnivora, especially the dogs, they have received the name of “canines.” ”

“ The chisel-like incisor teeth of the rodent animals need to be rubbed against each other, in order to preserve their edge and shape, and if perchance such friction should be wanting to a tooth, as, for example, by the breaking of the opposite tooth, it becomes greatly elongated, and sometimes grows to such a length as to prevent the animal from eating. ”

“ Thus in many parts of the world it is customary to put extracted teeth in some place where they will be found by a mouse or a rat, in the hope that, through the sympathy which continues to subsist between them and their former owner, his other teeth may acquire the same firmness and excellence as the teeth of these rodents. For example, in Germany it is said to be an almost universal maxim among the people that when you have had a tooth taken out you should insert it in a mouse's hole. To do so with a child's milk-tooth which has fallen out will prevent the child from having toothache. ”

“ When a dog is fed on bread and gravy or meat, the teeth will show little or no signs of wear when he is two or three years old, while the incisor teeth of another dog of the same age will commence to become blunted if biscuits form the staple food. The teeth become still more worn if a large number of bones are given as a part of the diet. And again, dogs who are always playing with and carrying stones often [295] wear the incisor teeth right down to the gums, and the tusks become worn in the course of a few years. ”

“ The points of the strong canine teeth, which in many individuals are from thirty-eight to forty millimetres long, and twenty millimetres wide, diverge a little from each other, and stretch the upper lip in an oblique direction, so that this part of the face takes the form of a triangular, beveled surface, with its prominent base-line between the canine teeth. ”

“ If this is not from time to time removed, it continues to increase, until at last the whole tooth becomes thickly encrusted, and to such an extent, in old pet dogs particularly, that the mouth is unable to be closed. ”

“ On the lower jaw the villiform teeth in front are more uniformly small, and there is an acute row of subulate teeth, which are tallest in the middle of the limbs of the jaw, beyond which, towards the corners of the mouth, there is an even row of very small teeth. At the end of the jaw there is a small canine on each side exterior to all the others. ”

“ In teeth which persistently grow throughout the lifetime of the animal, as for example the incisors of the Rodents, there is a wide intercommunication between the cavity of the tooth and the tissues of the gum; only a narrow canal exists in, for instance, the teeth of Man, and in fact in the vast majority of cases. The three constituents of the typical teeth are not, however, found in all mammals; the layer which is sometimes wanting is the enamel. ”

“ For the present purposes it must be enough to say that bears and dogs have forty-two teeth in the complete set, of which four on each side above and below are premolars, and two above, with three below, are molars, but these teeth in bears have flatter crowns and more rounded tubercles than those of dogs, and the sectorial teeth are much less blade-like, this style of tooth being better adapted to their omnivorous food habits. Bears, furthermore, have five digits on each foot and are plantigrade, while dogs have but four toes behind and are digitigrade. ”

“ When a tooth is loose, it should be drawn at once, and never suffered to remain a useless source of irritation. If suffered to continue in the mouth, it will ultimately become tightened; and the food or portions of hair getting and lodging between it and the permanent teeth, will inflame the gum, and [Pg 184] cause the beast considerable suffering. The extraction at first is so slight an operation, that when undertaken by a person having the proper instruments, and knowing how to use them, the pup does not even vent a single cry. ”

“ I observed it was something soft which you should teach your dog to fetch. Probably you have seen a retriever taught to seek and bring a stone, upon which, in a delicate manner, the tutor has spit. Does it not stand to reason that the stone must have tended to give his pupil a hard mouth? And what may, later in life, cause him much misery, in dashing at a bounding stone, he may split a tooth. Dogs of an advanced age suffer more in their mouths than most of us suspect. ”

“ There are four canine teeth; and there are twelve molar teeth in each jaw, six being false molars. These teeth are very crowded, and there is scarcely any space between them. The ends of the fingers and toes are well supplied with pads, which assist the animal in its jumping and clinging, and the second and third toes have short, sharp, and pointed claws, which stand nearly erect. The nails of the hands are scale-like and triangular, and this is the case with those of the great and outer toes. ”

“ The teeth of a dog, boiled in wine until this is reduced to one-half, thus, furnish a mouth wash which can be advantageously used against toothache. In the cases of difficult dentition, benefit is derived by rubbing the gums with the ashes of the teeth of a dog, mixed with honey. Such ashes are also used as a dentifrice. In hollow teeth it is useful to introduce the ashes of the dung of mice, or of the dried liver of lizards. It is the opinion of some, that in order not to be subject to toothache, a mouse should be eaten twice a month. ”

“ They are inserted into two movable jaws, and incisors are so placed that their sharp edges may easily be brought in contact with the food, in order that its fibres may readily be separated. Next to these, on each side, are situated the canine teeth or tusks, which are longer than the other teeth, and being pointed are specially adapted for tearing food. In the back of the jaws are placed another form of teeth, called molars, or grinders. Their use is to masticate the food; in animals that live on vegetables the molars are flattened at the top ”

“ The hair gradually diminishes in length upon the leg, but the upper part of the foot is still amply furnished; teeth, incisores six, the lateral one with a tubercle on the lateral side; canines large, robust, prominent; a single false molar behind the canine, remaining molares four, of which the anterior ones are very small, that of the upper jaw particularly, that of the lower jaw resembling the second false molar of the common dog ”