ABOUT THE CROCODILE
General Information
The crocodile shown in Dr. Rosie Helps the Animals is the West African crocodile. Its scientific name is Crocodylus suchus.
Crocodiles and Teething (meaning getting new teeth)
Do crocodiles REALLY get new teeth?
Fact
Yes! Not only do crocodiles get new teeth, but they also get them continuously throughout their lives.
Fun Fact
Young crocodiles get an entire set of new teeth as frequently as three to four months. New teeth replace old teeth starting at the back of the jaw and moving to the front. In adults, new teeth replace old teeth starting at the front of the jaw and ending at the back.
Causes
The reason crocodiles get new teeth their entire lives is that, unlike humans, their teeth do not have a hard enamel coating. Without enamel, crocodile teeth can break fairly easily, especially because they have one of the strongest bites of any animal in the world. When humans break teeth, it is a big problem. It is not a problem for crocodiles since they are always getting new teeth to replace broken ones.
Symptoms
Getting new teeth is a continuous process in crocodiles. There seem to be no visible symptoms while this is happening. Research has not been done to determine how much pain a crocodile has when it is getting new teeth.
Diagnosis
People have observed that getting new teeth is an ongoing natural process with crocodiles. Since this happens all the time and it is not a disease or injury, there is no diagnosis.
Treatments
Breaking teeth and replacing them with new ones is what happens naturally in crocodiles when they are in the wild. So far, humans have not done research to see if there is a need to help crocodiles in captivity while they are getting new teeth.
Fiction
In Dr. Rosie Helps the Animals, Rosie rubs the gums of a baby crocodile to help it feel better. In reality, people don’t rub the gums of teething baby crocodiles, but THEY DO rub the gums of teething baby hippos!
Teething baby hippo gets gum massage
Learn More
Scientists are learning about how crocodiles replace their teeth to possibly help humans grow new teeth when theirs break or have a lot of cavities.
Reference
Miller, R. E., & Fowler, M. E. (2015). Fowler’s Zoo and Wild Animal Medicine (8th ed., p. 40). Elsevier Saunders.
Image Credit: iStock.com/T.Holman
