338 LIVE-STOCK RULES AND RECORDS 



MONTHS 



First, or middle pair 18 



Second, or first intermediate pair 27 



Third, or second intermediate pair 36 



Fourth, or outer pair 45 



If there is any variation from the foregoing, the animal is likely 

 to be older rather than younger than the teeth indicate. After the 

 teeth are up and in full wear, there is comparatively little change 

 in their appearance for several years. The teeth are broad, flat, and 

 white in color, and their edges should almost or quite meet. They 

 are never firmly fixed in the jaw, as in the case of the horse, but 

 rather loosely imbedded in a thick, cartilaginous pad or gums. The 

 looseness of the teeth should not therefore be taken by the novice 

 as an indication of unsoundness or of advancing age. 



After the animal has reached an age of eight or nine years, the 

 teeth become narrower through wear. They shrink away from 

 each other and often become more or less discolored and finally 

 drop out one by one. A vigorous old cow will often do very well, 

 especially if fed liberally on grain and succulent food, after the last 

 incisor tooth has disappeared. And so long as the teeth are all 

 present and reasonably close together, the animal is said to have a 

 good mouth. This condition may remain up to ten or twelve years 

 of age, and occasionally even longer. 



The horns also afford a means for estimating the age of cattle, 

 especially of cows. During the first two years, the horns grow 

 rapidly and the greater part of the total growth is made in this 

 time. Afterward, the growth is slow from year to year, and each 

 year's growth is marked by a more or less distinct ring. The first 

 ring appears when the animal is about three years old, and the age 

 may be reckoned by adding two to the number of rings present. 



Sheep. 



Sheep have two sets of incisor teeth, on the lower jaw only. The 

 first or middle pair of temporary teeth is replaced by permanent ones 

 when the lamb is thirteen to fifteen months old, and thereafter the 

 succeeding pairs of permanent teeth appear at intervals of a little less 

 than a year. Most shepherds reckon a year for each pair, so that 

 when the last pair is fully up and in wear, the sheep is four years old. 



