overshot jaw

my vet told me alfie has one of these is it out to be worried about

Can you post a pic?

Its just where the lower half of the jaw over shoots the upper jaw causing an incorrect bite. Its not something to worry about unless it starts to effect his eating but to be honest i feel your vet would have indicated if it would.

Your lad will look slighty different in the face from other dogs but that aside he will be perfectly normal. So i wouldn't worry about it

eating fine its not by much maybe a couple of mm

Hi Paul

I am no expert - but I think an overshot jaw if a couple of mm shouldn't really cause any problems - the only thing you may be unable to do is show Alfie as it may be classed as a fault - the other thing is not to breed from him either as they may pass the fault to the pups.

What did your vet say?

Hopefully another member / MOD may have more info for you on this - try not to worry - I would have thought if it was a problem for ALfie - then I would like to think your vet would have spoken to you about it.

As Maistaff said a undershot jaw causes problems. My Xan has a overshot jaw and is fine. He just looks like he has a longer nose.

so an overshot jaw is where the bottom jaw is longer than the top

Is your puppy 15 weeks old?
Then its normal for his age because the bottom jaw grows slowly and wont be finished until he is much older.
I would rather see an overshot jaw than a level bite or undershot mouth at this age.
Unless there is a big difference in top and bottom jaws then I wouldnt worry. Look again when pup is 6 months old and you will get more idea then.

shed wrote:so an overshot jaw is where the bottom jaw is longer than the top

No that's undershot

[quote="Maistaff"]Its just where the lower half of the jaw over shoots the upper jaw causing an incorrect bite.



this is not correct.....this quote above describes the UNDERSHOT bite, not the overshot one....

As the bottom jaw is the last to grow, it is usually not as 'forward' as the bottom jaw, and this means that there is disparity between upper and lower jaws which is usually temporary.

Most puppies that have a slight overshot bite end up with a correct bite as the bottom jaw grows the gap closes between the lower and upper jaw.

The correct bite for a staffordshire bull terrier is a complete scissor bite, where the top teeth are just in front of the lower teeth and this makes for a very strong bite, like a pair of scissors.....

Incorrect Bite Structure - Malocclusion

Malocclusion is the deformation of a dog's jaw structure,
leaving either the mandible (lower jaw)
or the maxilla (upper jaw) out of line.

Overshot Bite:
Also known as parrot mouth or brachygnathism :
the upper jaw extends beyond the lower jaw,
causing the upper teeth to overlap the lower teeth, preventing them from aligning snugly as they should be. An overshot bite can create difficulty grasping with the jaws and in severe cases, the growth of adult teeth can cause significant injuy to the soft tissues of the roof of the dog's mouth. This makes it difficult to chew and often causes a reluctant eater.

Undershot Bite:
Prognathism, or an underbite is common and expected in brachycephalic breeds (Boxers, Bulldogs, etc...),
where the lower jaw protrudes out past the upper jaw.
It should be noted, however,that as common as this condition is, in a breed where the jaws are not formed to accomodate this condition, problems can arise resulting in needed corrective surgery.


Incorrect Bite Structure - Malocclusion
by Krista Mifflin
for About.com

thats wonderful....very helpful indeed....