Last updated October 25, 2026
Puppies start losing their baby teeth at about 3 to 4 months old, beginning with the small front incisors. The baby teeth first come through at 3 to 5 weeks, all 28 are usually in by about 8 weeks, and the adult teeth start pushing them out from around 4 to 5 months. By 7 months a dog normally has its full adult set of 42.
Most puppies swallow their baby teeth as they go, so you may never find one. The owner's real job comes at about six months, when you look for a baby tooth that hasn't let go. A retained baby tooth is one of the first dental problems a small dog can have, and the crowding it causes can set up periodontal disease and the other dental problems adult dogs get.
Puppy teething timeline week by week
The ages below are typical for a medium-sized puppy. Toy breeds often run a few weeks behind, and a week or two either way is normal.
| Age | What happens in the mouth | What you may notice |
|---|---|---|
| Birth to 2 weeks | No teeth yet | Smooth gums |
| 3 to 5 weeks | Baby teeth come through, front teeth and canines first | Needle-sharp teeth, more mouthing |
| 6 to 8 weeks | All 28 baby teeth are in. There are no baby molars | A full set of small, very white teeth |
| 3 to 4 months | The baby incisors loosen and fall out | A gap at the front, a tiny tooth on the floor, a spot of blood on a toy |
| 4 to 5 months | Adult incisors come in, then the adult teeth behind them start | The most chewing, sometimes smelly breath |
| 5 to 6 months | Adult canines and premolars arrive, the baby canines should drop out, the first molars appear | Bigger, creamier teeth. Watch for two canines side by side |
| 6 to 7 months | The last molars come in. All 42 adult teeth are in place | Time for the six-month check |
The start and end points come from the Merck Veterinary Manual (baby teeth at 3 to 5 weeks, adult teeth from about 4 to 5 months, all present by 7 months). The middle rows follow the usual order of incisors, canines, premolars and then molars.
Small breeds lose their baby teeth later
The calendar above stretches in tiny dogs. Researchers checked the mouths of 61 Yorkshire terrier puppies every four weeks from 12 to 28 weeks old (Wallis and colleagues, Vet Sci 2023). In the puppies that ended up over 5 kg, the baby incisors fell out at about 21 weeks on average and the baby canines at about 24 weeks. In the smallest group, 3 kg or less, those same teeth went at about 26 and 28 weeks, so the whole swap ran roughly a month late.
The adult teeth came in the usual order, incisors, then canines, then premolars, with the molars last. In dogs of 3 kg or less the canines came last of all, after the molars. Those tiny dogs were also the ones most likely to keep a baby tooth too long.
Did my puppy swallow its baby tooth
Probably, and that's fine. Most baby teeth come out while a puppy is eating or chewing and go down with the food, which does no harm.
If you do find one, it will look like a tiny hollow cap with almost no root. The root dissolves as the adult tooth grows up underneath it, which is why the baby tooth gets wobbly and drops out.
A little blood on a chew toy or in the water bowl is normal while teeth are changing. Steady bleeding, a swollen face or a puppy that refuses even soft food is not, and that puppy needs a vet. Don't pull a loose baby tooth yourself. Baby teeth have long, thin roots, and one that snaps off can leave a piece behind in the gum.
Two teeth in one spot means a retained baby tooth
A baby tooth should fall out before its adult replacement comes through, so two teeth should never be sharing one place in the mouth. When they are, the baby tooth is retained, or persistent. It happens most with the canines. You'll see a thin baby fang sitting right next to the thicker new one.
A retained baby tooth crowds the adult tooth. Food and plaque pack into the narrow gap between them, which makes gum disease more likely in that spot, and the baby tooth can push the adult tooth into the wrong position so that it hits the gum or the roof of the mouth when the dog closes its jaws (Merck Veterinary Manual, Mulherin, 2024). The usual advice is to have the baby tooth removed once its adult replacement has started to come through. That's done under anesthesia. The baby tooth's root is long and thin, and the vet has to get it out without harming the adult tooth growing beside it.
How common is it? In records from almost 3 million dogs at a chain of US vet hospitals, 7% had at least one retained baby tooth. In breeds under 6.5 kg it was 15% (Wallis and colleagues, Res Vet Sci 2024). In the Yorkshire terrier study, 69% of the puppies kept at least one baby tooth past its time, and 89% of the dogs at 3 kg or less kept a baby canine, against 12% of those over 5 kg. About three in four of the puppies with a stuck tooth needed it taken out surgically, under anesthesia.
The timing of tooth loss runs in families, so a dog with retained baby teeth shouldn't be bred from unless an injury caused them. To see what each adult tooth is called and does, here's the anatomy of a dog's adult teeth.
The six-month check
Around six months, when most of the adult set is in, lift your puppy's lips in good light, or ask your vet to do it at the next visit. You're looking for four things.
- Any spot where a baby tooth and an adult tooth sit together, most often beside the canines.
- A gap where a tooth should be. Count along each side. The tooth that most often seems to be missing is the small lower first premolar, the first little tooth just behind each lower canine. Any such gap is a reason for a dental X-ray. Some terriers are simply born without certain premolars, but only an X-ray can tell a missing tooth from one stuck under the gum.
- Lower canines in the wrong place. When the mouth closes, each lower canine should slot into the gap in front of the upper canine. If one presses into the gum or the roof of the mouth instead, the puppy needs to see a vet soon, because removing the baby teeth early can sometimes help the adult teeth come in better.
- A broken baby tooth, or adult teeth with patchy, brown or pitted enamel. Enamel that formed badly during a high fever, distemper or parvovirus stays that way for life, and a vet may seal those teeth to protect them.
A tooth that never comes through can form a fluid-filled sac in the jaw called a dentigerous cyst, which can slowly destroy the bone around it. At one dental referral practice, 213 unerupted teeth were found in 136 dogs, 69% of them lower first premolars, and 29% of those teeth already showed a cyst-like lesion on X-ray. Boxers, Pugs, Shih Tzus and Boston Terriers had them most (Babbitt and colleagues, J Vet Dent 2016). That was a referral practice seeing problem mouths, so the rate in all puppies is much lower, but it explains why a vet will X-ray an empty spot rather than wait.
When teething needs a vet sooner
Book a vet visit before the six-month check if you see any of these.
- A broken baby tooth, especially one with a pink, red or dark spot in the middle. Bacteria can get into the tooth through the break and reach the adult tooth forming underneath.
- Bleeding that doesn't stop, a swelling on the face or gum, or pus.
- A puppy that won't eat, even soft food, or seems flat and feverish.
- Lower canines digging into the roof of the mouth.
- A baby tooth still in place next to its adult replacement.
Pawing at the face, dropping food or chewing on one side can also be signs of dog tooth pain, and they mean the same in a puppy.
While the teeth are changing, give soft rubber or cold toys rather than very hard chews, which can break a new tooth. It's also a good time to get your puppy used to having its lips lifted and its mouth touched for a few seconds a day, with a treat afterwards. That makes the six-month check easy and every check after it.
For the cold toys, frozen washcloths and safe foods that ease sore gums while the teeth come through, and the hard chews to keep away, see our guide to soothing a teething puppy safely.
Questions owners ask
How many teeth do puppies have?
Puppies have 28 baby teeth, made up of incisors, canines and premolars, and no molars. Adult dogs have 42.
When do puppies stop teething?
Most puppies finish at about 6 to 7 months, when the last adult molars are in. Very small breeds can take a few weeks longer.
Is bad breath normal when a puppy is teething?
A slight smell while teeth are coming through is common and should pass within a week or two. Breath that stays bad, or comes with swelling, pus or a puppy that won't eat, needs a vet.
References
- Babbitt SG, Krakowski Volker M, Luskin IR. Incidence of radiographic cystic lesions associated with unerupted teeth in dogs. J Vet Dent. 2016;33(4), 226-233. doi 10.1177/0898756416683490
- Wallis C, Solmi F, Pesci I, Desforges N, Holcombe LJ. Development of Yorkshire Terrier dentition. Vet Sci. 2023;10(7), 406. doi 10.3390/vetsci10070406
- Wallis C, Ivanova A, Holcombe LJ. Persistent deciduous teeth, association of prevalence with breed, breed size and body weight in pure-bred client-owned dogs in the United States. Res Vet Sci. 2024;169, 105161. doi 10.1016/j.rvsc.2024.105161
- Merck Veterinary Manual. Muylle S. Dental development of dogs (pet owner version, updated June 2025).
- Merck Veterinary Manual. Mulherin BL. Developmental abnormalities of the mouth and dentition in small animals (reviewed February 2024).