S4 Dentition as indicative of ilte Aqe 



crown, added to the continued absorption of the alveohis, goes on, 

 it follows that the groove will finally be worn out and the tooth 

 be left round and smooth. Fig. 25 shows the upper part of the 

 incisor next the gum in this condition, while the groove com- 

 mences near the middle of the tooth. 



By the age of thirty the groove is nearly worn out, only a 

 small portion remaining at the bottom of the incisor, the whole 

 of the upper part of the tooth being smooth. 



The author of the system by long observation acquired great 

 skill and accuracy in judging the ages of old horses, from ten 

 years to thirty, but the stock-owner is not likely to devote 

 enough time to the subject to master all the difficulties. He 

 will, however, be interested to know that by an ingenious and 

 comparatively simple method of observation the age of the horse 

 may be judged up to an advanced period of life. 



Dentitiox of the Ox. 



In the front of the mouth of the ox thei'e are eight incisors 

 or cutting teeth in the lower jaw only. In the front of the 

 upper jaw there is an elastic pad of fibrous tissue, covered with 

 mucous membrane. The incisors may be distinguished as 

 centrals, or first pair ; middles, or second pair ; laterals, or third 

 pair ; and corners, or fourth pair ; the same terms being equally 

 applicable to the temporary and permanent organs. 



Temporary incisor teeth are easily distinguished from the 

 permanent by their size. The fangs of the temporary teeth 

 are much shorter than those of the permanent, but this fact is 

 not to be recognised until the teeth are removed from the jaw. 

 No question is likely to arise in the mind of the examiner 

 as to the distinction between temporary and jjermanent 

 organs in the ox ; in fact, the common term " broad teeth," 

 as applied to the latter, sufficiently indicates their prominent 

 feature. 



Molar teeth are named according to their position. In the 

 temporary set there are three molars on each side of the ujDper 

 and lower jaw, and in the adult these teeth are changed for per- 

 manent organs ; while three additional teeth, the fourth, fifth, 

 and sixth in position, all of which are permanent teeth from the 

 first, are added, making the full set of permanent molar teeth 

 Sis on each side of the upper and lower jaws. 



From the illustration of the incisors of the ox, originally 

 published in Girard"s work and afterwards copied by Youatt 



