One
of the most common questions
related to the Boxer's conformation
that new breeders ask is the
one about teeth formulas. Almost
always seen with stud dog's
advertisements or on the web-sites
of various kennels, all of these
letters and numbers appear confusing.
In fact, teeth formulas are
simple and easy to understand,
and this short article is going
to explain what each character
of the teeth formula refers
to.
Teeth formula takes part in
the dog's facial make-up, e.g.
a Boxer with the teeth formula
of 2cM is most likely going
to have a more pronounced chin
than the one whose teeth are
1cM, and a dog with 2aB formula
is the one with more width of
lower jaw and probably wider
muzzle than the dog with 2eE
formula.
How to read the teeth formula?
Any teeth formula consists of
three parts - a number followed
by two letters, such as 1aB,
2cM or 1dE - and is used to
describe the relative placement
of the eight front teeth - two
canines and six incisors - on
the lower jaw, as well as the
width of the bite.
How
to read teeth formulas
The
number (1 or 2) Refers to the line
up of the front teeth
in the lower jaw. 1 - incisors and
canines are located on
the same straight line. 2 - incisors are
placed ahead of canines.
The
first letter (A, B, C,
D or E)
Refers to the placement
of the incisors in relation
to each other. A - incisors are
placed in one straight
line and are evenly spaced. B - two central
incisors are running ahead
of their immediate neighbors. C - two central
incisors are placed back
behind the rest and/or
are set very close to
each other. D - incisors are
placed chaotically or
in a manner of chess board. E - incisors form
a rather rounded line
in between the two canines.
The second letter (B,
M or E)
Refers to the breadth
of the bite, or basically
to the distance between
two lower canines. B - broad, wide
bite. M - medium width
of bite. E - narrow bite.
Is
one formula better than the other
With
a multitude of possible formulas,
there are definite preferences
as to which are more correct and
desirable.
The number
"1" is always preferred
to "2", although latter
appears to be more common.
The first letter
"A" is the most desirable
structure, "B", "C",
"D" are common and acceptable,
"E" is very undesirable.
The second letter
"B" is very desirable,
"M" is common and acceptable,
"E" is undesirable.
Examples
gorgeous
1aB,
wide, straight, huge teeth!
another
1aB,
quite beautiful
excellent
1cB,
very broad and powerful
this
looks like 1dB,
a rather rare formula
good
1aM,
healthy and nice
common
2aM,
very good, but a bit worn out
typical
2aM,
very common formula
standard
2bM,
so-called boat shape
regular
2bM,
quite common formula
standard
2bM,
due to retained milk incisors
classic
2cM,
probably most common formula
unorganized
2dM,
not too attractive
another
2dM,
worn out teeth in a young dog
standard
2dE,
crowded and unorganized
highly
unusual 1cE,
a true rarity
classic
2aE,
straight, but narrow
not
too common 2bE,
very narrow
crowded
2cE,
no breadth of bite
rare
2eM,
very unusual tooth placement
degenerative
2eE,
the worst of all possibilities
might
grow up to be 1cM,
teeth of 8 weeks old puppy
2?E
on a 10 years old,
good luck figuring this one
this
is classic 2aM one year
after a lower jaw fracture
Age
matters
In
this case of an 8 years old Boxer
male who spent much time on a
SchH sleeve, the teeth are so
worn out that it is very difficult
to guess the correct formula.
Two central incisors have totally
disappeared under the gum overgrowth
making it impossible to tell if
this bite was 2a, 2B or 2c.
This
is a mouth of a 20 days old Boxer
puppy - his milk canines have
started to come in, but the incisors
haven't hatched through the gums
yet. We can speculate that this
puppy will have teeth formula
that starts with 2, but we cannot
know the width of the bite nor
the final placement of the incisors.
