Why are my dog's teeth chipped or worn? Is his new food causing it?

Hello. The teeth are quite worn down, but without a thorough oral exam, it is difficult to evaluate exactly what is going on. I can tell you that some dogs, out of anxiety, boredom, even an obsessive compulsive condition, will chew on rocks or chain link fencing & can wear down & chip away at the teeth resulting in this. Perhaps being in a forever stable home is what this poor pup needs. Thank you so much for considering adoption & contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Rocko has signs of wear on all his incisors. This could be due to chewing on kennel walls or fencing or it could be due to misalignment of the teeth. These teeth may need to be removed at some point. I recommend to have Rocko examined by a veterinarian to examine the teeth., This will give you a better idea of if there is any pain or other signs of dental disease indicating that they should be removed sooner. Stop him from chewing on crates/fencing as well if that is occurring. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Sometimes dogs wear their teeth down by chewing on things. Such as if he used to chew tennis balls all the time, or was in a cage and chewed and pulled on the doors. It would be very rare that they would have been filed down on purpose. I assume he probably wore them down doing something repetitively. Best of luck I’m glad he now has a great forever home! Thank you for using Pet Coach.

Broken teeth can be prone to abscesses. Bella is very close to the age where she will start shedding her teeth but I still recommend to have her seen by her veterinarian to be safe. Moving forward, do not allow her to chew on very hard objects. As a general rule, if you cannot make an indentation with your thumb nail in a toy, you run the risk that it could break her teeth if she is an aggressive chewer. Also make sure she is not chewing on the bars of her kennel as this will break teeth as well. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

She definitely has some wear on those teeth - often that particular pattern is caused by chewing tennis balls a lot or being really itchy and chewing at the skin a lot. The only way to know if the teeth are healthy is a dental x-ray and exam under anesthesia, so I can't say for sure if it's an issue or not. With a dental x-ray, her vet can look at the tooth roots and also make sure the gingiva is healthy. This is definitely not an emergency, but I would recommend bringing it up at her next appointment.

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It does not look like a broken tooth. However, checking Max's mouth for any fractured or missing teeth would be recommended. Missing or fractured premolar or molar tooth should be obvious when you inspect his mouth.

You are correct that very hard objects can break the teeth and a broken teeth may need to be removed to prevent pain and future infections. The only way to know if there is damage to any teeth is to have Bruno examined by the veterinarian. Plus it will set your mind at ease. Try to get this done within the next few days. Best of luck.