When you watch a stray cat, do you ever wonder what must be her age? Did you try to determine cat age by teeth?
Well, I was always curious when I was a kid. Do you know when you take a cat to a veterinarian, they can detect cat age by teeth? You also want to know how?
Okay, to kill your curiosity, I have written a blog on how to tell a cat’s age by teeth; you can easily know which teeth occur at what age not just that you can also detect her age by the yellowish color of the teeth, and by her teeth’ tear power too!
How to Tell a Cat’s Age by Teeth?
In this section, I will easily explain to you how to tell a cat’s age by teeth.
The process is very simple. You just have to keep an eye on your cat’s teeth. The very first teeth in your cat’s mouth will be incisors. If you notice the arrival of this, that means your cat is probably 2-3 weeks.
Then after the incisors, the next baby teeth are canines. This generally emerges when your cat has reached 3-4 weeks. Day by day, you will notice the arrival of another set. And, when you see a premolar in your cat’s mouth, which will erupt in the lower law portion, this will confirm that she has entered the 4th or 6th week.
By the end of the 8th week, your kitty will have all sets of baby teeth fit in her mouth.
After that, what? Well, you know cat’s teeth come in 2 sets, right.
So, after 3-4 months, now is the time of permanent incisors teeth. By the 4th month, you will see all eternal adult teeth inside her mouth. She will have premolars, molars, and canines.
When your kitty is 5 to 7 months old, she will be blessed with all sets of permanent teeth.
Now, you are well aware of cat age by teeth, right!
Determine Cat Age Based on Cat Teeth Diagram
As you can see the diagram of the cat’s teeth, you will notice two incisors in the front of their mouth, which are also called fangs which occur when they are 4-5 months of age.
And, when you see the diagram, the picture indicates 12 incisors that will develop by the end of 4 weeks, and you can also see 4 canines in the upper and lower jaw that will also emerge by the same tenure.
You will notice there are 10 permanent premolars, 6 in the upper jaw and 4 in the lower this will come by the end of 4-5 months. And, 4 adult molars will erupt by the end of the 5th or 6th month.
This structure can serve you to explain how to tell a cat’s age by teeth easily, isn’t it?
Determine Cat Age Based on Cat Teeth Chart
In the listed chart given below, we have bifurcated cat age by teeth in two sections. First, in terms of baby teeth which are in weeks, and the other in adult teeth which are in months.
Baby/Deciduous Teeth
| Teeth Type | Teeth Position | Eruption Week |
|---|---|---|
| Incisors | 1 | 2-3 weeks |
| 2 | 3-4 weeks | |
| 3 | 3-4 weeks | |
| Canines | 1 | 3-4 weeks |
| Premolars | 1 (only superior) | 2 months |
| 2 | 4-5 weeks | |
| 3 | 4-5 weeks |
As you can see from the chart, all 12 incisors will develop by the end of 3-4 weeks, and canines will also emerge in the same time period.
Well, a set of premolars in kittens will develop when they are 4-5 weeks old, and only superior premolars will emerge by the 2nd month.
Adult/Permanent Teeth
| Teeth Type | Teeth Position | Eruption Month |
| Incisors | 1 | 3,5-4 months |
| 2 | 3,5-4 months | |
| 3 | 4-4,5 months | |
| Canines | 1 | 5 months |
| Premolars | 1 | 4,5-5months |
| 2 | 5-6 months | |
| 3 | 5-6 months | |
| Molar | 1 | 4-5months |
When kittens grow into older cats, they have adult teeth, and the tenure of emerging adult teeth is different from baby teeth.
They will have all permanent incisors by 5-4months and canines in the 5th month. The premolars are likely to emerge by the end of the 6th month probably. And kittens don’t have molars, so here is the difference. Cats will get their molars by the end of the 4 or 5th month.
Other Ways to Estimate Your Cat’s Age
There are few other tricks that can say how to tell the age of a cat other than teeth.
By Looking Into Their Eyes
You can determine a cat’s age by eyes; if it is bright and clear, then she is younger, and if it is cloudy and hazy, then she is aging, and she has become a mature adult cat.
By the Quality of Coat
If you find the finer and lustrous quality of the hair, that signifies she is a kitten. And, while grooming, if you notice patches in the fur and dark color, well, that indicates she is into the senior cat category.
By Sexuality Maturity of the Cat
When a male feline reaches its early 6 months, he is sexually mature. You can determine this by territorial spraying.
If a female is in heat, that means she is in between 5-9 months of age. Well, she is more active at this age.
Check Pale Yellow Color
In this segment, we will tell you how to tell how old a cat is by looking at her yellow color teeth.
Cat’s teeth also show signs as she grows up. You will notice this by looking at the pale yellow color of her teeth. The degree of yellowness will help you to know how to figure out how old your cat is.
At the starting of one year cat will have bright white teeth. But, eventually, you will notice her teeth getting a bit yellowish when she is 2 years old.
The yellow color shade will become slightly darker when she is about 3.5 to 5 years. The darkness increases with time, and you will be able to see teeth turn into whole yellow color by the age of 5 and 10 years.
The ultimate clear yellow sign of yellow color teeth will be her 10th year.
Determine Cat’s Age by Wear and Tear Power
Next, we will know how to tell the age of a cat by checking her tear and wear powers.
You will determine their age by checking her teeth well-worn teeth. The sharpness of the teeth will be higher when they are younger cats. After some time, a few teeth will become slightly smooth and lose tearing power. They either get fractured or get out of their mouth.
Your feline friend will start to reflect tooth wear symptoms when she reaches her 5th year. And, when she reaches the 10th year of her life, you can clearly see symptoms of wear.
Further, after her 10th year and yonder, breaking down food heavily will be obvious, but she not have all her teeth by this age. This is because older cats are more prone to have dental problems like gum disease and tartar formation.
It is an uncertain method of determining a cat’s age because her dental condition will directly depend on you, what you feed her and how healthy her diet is.
FAQs
Can you determine a cat’s age by her teeth?
Yes, you can easily check how to determine a cat’s age by observing its teeth. You just have to follow the process of their teething. And check the cat teeth age chart.
Determining the age will take time as it is very slow and vague. Therefore, you have to keep an eye on her teeth keenly.
How can you tell a cat’s age by teeth?
The trick to how to tell a cat’s age by its teeth can be divided into 3 sections.
– It starts with counting their teeth from time to time. In this initial 2-4 weeks, she will have baby incisors and canines. Then after 4-8 weeks, they will have a full set of milk teeth. After 7 months, permanent incisors will be clearly visible.
– Next, the yellowness of the cat’s teeth will determine their age. If till is all visible dark yellow, then she has reached 5-10years.
– The tear and wear power also helps how to determine cat age easily.
Yes, cats’ teeth and cat age are connected. You can know how to tell cats’ age by looking at their teeth. A specific tooth occurs in a certain period of time. This will help you to know how cat age is related to cat’s teeth.
When kittens are born, they have zero teeth. The tenure of incisors and canines are different from molar and premolar, and by this, you can easily know cat age by teeth.
Summing It All Up!
You can determine cat age by teeth, undoubtedly. The set of specific teeth comes in a definite period of time. This will help you to know how to tell a cat’s age by teeth.
There are other ways also which can tell you how to determine cat years. You can determine by checking on the yellowness of the teeth and another by checking on the tear and wear stamina of the teeth.
Well, if you have learned new things regarding cat ages in this article, then do share it with other cat owners too!
References
- Telling a Kitten’s Age in Four Steps – ASPCA Pro
- Pet dental care – AVMA
- Top 9 Tips for Keeping Your Cat’s Teeth Clean – PetMD