It's a great question with a simple answer; puppies start losing their baby (milk) teeth around 3 to 4 months old. The full process of growing in adult teeth typically starts around 6 to 7 months, for context.
Teething itself – the process of new teeth coming in and old ones falling out – covers a wider window than most dog people expect, starting well before any teeth are actually lost.
Here's the full timeline, what's normal at each stage and when a teething issue is worth a vet check.
Puppy Teeth Timeline: Baby Teeth to Adult Teeth
2–4 Weeks
Baby (deciduous) teeth begin erupting.
6–8 Weeks
All 28 baby teeth are typically in.
3–4 Months
Baby teeth begin falling out as adult teeth push through.
4–6 Months
Most of the tooth-loss and replacement happens.
6–7 Months
All 42 adult teeth should be in place.
Remember though, this can depend on your dog specifically and smaller breeds sometimes run slightly behind this general timeline. On average, by 7 months, a puppy should have a full adult set with no retained baby teeth.
When Do Puppies Start Teething?
Teething begins earlier than most people expect – baby teeth start erupting around 2 to 4 weeks old, well before puppies typically go home with a new dog mom or dad.
What most people mean by "teething" – the itching, chewing and discomfort phase – ramps up as those baby teeth settle in during the first couple of months and then again more intensely once adult teeth start pushing baby teeth out around 3 to 4 months.
If you're noticing teething behavior (increased chewing, mild gum irritation, drooling) well before 3 months, that's consistent with the normal early eruption phase – not a sign anything is off schedule.
When Do Puppies Lose Their Baby (Milk) Teeth? The Details.
Baby teeth typically start falling out around 3 to 4 months old, usually beginning with the incisors (front teeth), followed by the premolars and canines, with molars – which don't have baby-tooth predecessors – coming in fresh rather than replacing anything.
Most of this turnover happens between 4 and 6 months.
It's common for dog mom's and dad's to never actually find the teeth their puppy loses – most are small enough that puppies swallow them during normal chewing and eating, which is generally not a concern.
When Do Puppies Get Their Adult Teeth?
By around 6 to 7 months, puppies should have their full set of 42 adult teeth in place, compared to the 28 baby teeth they started with. The extra teeth are molars, which come in without replacing an existing baby tooth. Once all adult teeth are in, the teething process is considered complete.
Still Teething at 1 Year? What That Can Mean
By 12 months, teething should be long finished – a full adult set should have been in place for around 5 months. If a puppy still appears to be losing teeth, has visibly wobbly teeth or a baby tooth hasn't fallen out despite the adult tooth being visible, the most likely explanation is a retained baby tooth: A baby tooth that didn't fall out on schedule, sometimes sitting alongside the adult tooth that's already grown in.
Retained baby teeth don't resolve on their own and are generally addressed by a vet, often through extraction, since crowding between the retained tooth and the adult tooth can lead to alignment issues or trap debris that contributes to dental disease later. If your dog is still showing teething signs at 1 year, it's worth a dental check rather than assuming it will sort itself out.
Helping a Teething Puppy
Teething puppies chew more and chew items are a big part of managing this stage comfortably – but the same caution about chew hardness applies here as with adult dogs.
Developing teeth and jaws are not more resistant to fracture than adult ones, so avoiding very hard chews. See our guide on dog broken tooth causes and prevention.
Softer, puppy-appropriate chew toys and supervised chewing sessions are generally the safer approach while adult teeth are still coming in.
FAQs
When do puppies get their adult teeth?
Puppies typically have their full set of 42 adult teeth by around 6 to 7 months old, replacing the 28 baby teeth they had as very young puppies. The process usually starts around 3 to 4 months, when baby teeth begin loosening and falling out as adult teeth push through underneath them, and is mostly complete by 6 months, with the last few molars sometimes finishing slightly later.
Smaller breeds usually run a little behind this general window, which is normal. By 7 months, a puppy should have a complete adult set with no baby teeth still in place. If that's not the case, it's worth a dental check with your vet.
How long does teething last for a puppy?
Teething spans a wider window than most dog people expect. Baby teeth start erupting around 2 to 4 weeks old, well before most puppies go home with a new owner, and the full process – including losing baby teeth and growing in adult ones – typically wraps up by 6 to 7 months. So the overall teething period runs roughly 6 months from start to finish.
The more disruptive phase, with increased chewing and mild gum discomfort, is usually concentrated around 3 to 6 months, when the bulk of the tooth turnover is happening. After that, teething behavior should settle as the adult set finishes coming in.
Do puppies bleed when they lose their teeth?
A small amount of blood, or blood-tinged saliva, can be normal when a baby tooth falls out – similar to a child losing a tooth, the socket can bleed lightly for a short time before it closes up.
This is usually minor, resolves within a few minutes to hours, and often goes unnoticed since puppies frequently swallow the tooth itself during normal chewing or eating. Heavier bleeding, blood that doesn't stop fairly quickly, or bleeding alongside signs of pain or reluctance to eat isn't typical of normal teething and is worth a call to your vet rather than assuming it will resolve on its own.
Does a puppy's breath smell different when they're losing teeth?
Some change in breath odor during teething is common, and is usually linked to minor gum irritation as teeth loosen and fall out, along with the general bacterial activity that comes with any change in the mouth.
This kind of odor tends to be mild and temporary, settling down as the adult teeth finish coming in and the gums heal. If the smell is unusually strong, persistent well beyond the active teething phase, or paired with other symptoms, it's worth ruling out other causes rather than assuming it's teething-related – see our guide on what different dog breath smells can mean for a full breakdown.
Do puppies lose their appetite when teething?
Some puppies eat a little less, chew more cautiously or eat more slowly during the most active teething phase, since sore or loosening gums can make crunching on kibble temporarily less comfortable. This is usually mild – a change in eating pace or pickiness rather than a full loss of interest in food – and resolves as the discomfort passes.
A complete loss of appetite or a puppy refusing food altogether for more than a day, isn't typical of normal teething and is worth a vet call rather than waiting it out, since it could point to something beyond routine tooth loss.
To Sum Up
Puppies lose their baby teeth starting around 3 to 4 months old, with a full adult set typically in place by 6 to 7 months. Mild gum irritation, increased chewing and a little blood-tinged drool are all usually normal parts of the process.
If teething signs are still showing up at 1 year old, it's worth a vet check for a possible retained baby tooth rather than assuming it will resolve on its own.
