Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1857-04-30
Gbr farHler.
Judging Of Horses Age BY the Teeth.

iheIe are no certiln marks by
winch we Can judge truly O the age
OF horse but his teeth; and these
only for a certain time; aft,r that
time, there is no method to be DEEPEN
ded upon; but We may form a good
guess by the front teeth of his up |
Pet Jaw, until he is about twelve or
thirteen; esp c.ally if we take into
consideration The countenance of the !
horse, with seme other marks which |
we shall point out. A horse has for
~ teeth. tweniy-three called grinders,
from which We learn nothing of his
age; then six above and as many be-
low, IN the fore part Of bis mouth, call
ed gatherers or cutting teeth, and it
Is from these ne know bis age; then
four tlsks, two above and two below,
sometimes named bit teeth. making
in all forty. Mares generally have
no tusks-their teeth are, therefore.
only thirty-six. When a colt is foal-
ed, he has no teeth in the front of lis
mouth. In a few days. two above
and two below make their appearance.
Soon after these, four others appear:
after these, it is usually three or four
months before the corner teeth make
their appearance These twelve colts
teeth in the front of the mouth con-
tinue without alteration til the colt is
two or two years and a half old. He
then b. gins to lose Lis colts teeth
fer permanent ones. sooner or later.
according to the manner in which he
his been i'd.
As it's from Tie front teeth of the
lower jaw horse s sge is known, IN
tllhe is in bis eighth year;itis TO those
only we shall coniine our attention.-
At about two years and half old. he
sheds the two middle teeth ofthe six;
(as these first appear in the colts
mouth, so are they first to disappear,)
these are succeeded by two perma-
nent or horse teeth, stronger, of a
deeper color; and grooved or huted
frcm top to bottom, with black cayi-
ty III tins Centre. He is nov rising
three.
His mouth continues thus till
sometime III the latter part of the
fourth year, when the same process
takes place with the teeth on each
side Of the two in the. centre; so that
at four years old, be becomes possess
cd of four horse teeth in the middle.
vi b their natural black marks in the
centre, and one colts tooth only on
each side.
The next he sheds are the two re-
lmaining, or the corner teeth. When
has got the successors to these, his
tn is full. He is then called a
horses five years old; he has the black
mark, roy in all the six front teeth.
During athe course of this year, the
tnsks, Situated beyond the corner
teeth. upoA the bars, appear he is
row FIVE years old, of; and through
the whole of the year he is "rising
SIX" we say, she viii be six years old
pext grass" Sometime in the last
six months of the sikh year, the
black cavities of the two middle teeth
are gradually filed Up; and when he
is turned six years old, they are near-
ly or quite smooth upon the surface.
In the latt part of the seventh year.
when the horse is termed "six Off"
six past, or rising seven, the teeth
on each side Of the two centre ones
become gradually possessed of the
same appearance; and when be is sew
en- years old, the two outside or cor
rer teeth only are marked with The
black cavity
After this period. the horse is said
: to be aged; and from this time to the
completion of his eighth year, the
mark in the corner teeth continues
gradually to disappear ill it is quite
gone. when the age by the teeth is no
longer known. He is now "past the
mark Of the mouth"
After this period, you may judge
Of the age by the marks or cavities
10 the upper teeth. At about ten,
the two front teeth have lost their
marks; the two next them have but
little left, but in the corner teeth
these marks may be readily seen;
these gradually wear out, and during
the twelfth year are entirely erased.
The tusbes, like the teeth, are gradu-
ally changing their appearance; they