THE TEETH 



425 



All of the teeth have short crowns and distinct necks; they erupt rapidly. 

 The crowns are white, being destitute of cement. 



The incisors are placed almost vertically and close together in the jaw-bones. 

 They do not correspond to an opposing tooth, but rather to parts of two teeth of 

 the other jaw. The crowns are trituberculate, the central projection being the 

 largest. They increase in size from the first to the third. The labial surface is 

 convex, the lingual slightlj^ concave, and marked off from the neck by a V-shaped 

 ridge, the cingulum. The roots are flattened transversely. The lower incisors 

 are smaller than the upper ones. One or two supernumerary teeth may be present. 



Fig. 328. — Base of Skull of Cocker Spaniel. 

 11-3, Incisors; C , canine; Pl-4, premolars; Ml-S, molars. Note the crowding of the canines and premolars on 



account of the shortness of the jaw. 



The canine teeth are large, conical, and curved. The upper canine is separated 

 from the corner incisor by an interval into which the lower canine is received when 

 the jaws are closed.^ The lower canine is close to the corner incisor. The root is 

 about an inch (ca. 2 to 3 cm.) long and is flattened laterally. 



The cheek teeth are typically j, but in brachycephalic breeds they are com- 

 monly reduced to y, and in extreme cases even to f . The reduction occurs at either 



^ In the bull-dog, which is very prognathic ("undershot"), the lower canines are opposite 

 to or slightly in front of the plane of the upper incisors, and the upper canines are about opposite 

 to the first lower cheek teeth. In the epignathic ("overshot") dachshund the lower canines are 

 under or slightly behind the upper ones. 



