Those Pearly Whites!

  Out and about this afternoon, I spied something bright white in the grass.  Hmmmm?  Now what could that be?  I reached down and picked it up fully thinking it to be a shard of oyster shell that had been thrown by the lawnmower.  As I turned it over in my hand, I realized that this was no shell.  This was a tooth and from the looks of it...a canine tooth. It sure was bright white but, still, I had better check Ms. Ez's mouth. The poor old dog did not need to be losing any teeth!  I was pondering if it was knocked loose while we were playing fetch with the old softball.  

  I called the old Bayou Dog to me and tried to inspect her teeth.  She, thinking that I wanted attention, decided it was better to lick my face. Ugh!  No....I do not need any doggy kisses!  I want to do a dental checkup!  I sort of pried open her mouth and peered inside.  Nope, no teeth missing in there and, as I suspected, her teeth were far from being those pearly whites.  As with any aging dog, her teeth were starting to show their age.  This obviously was from a pup but there are no puppies on the hillside...at least no domesticated puppies.   Hmmm?

  I am assuming that coyote pups lose their baby teeth just like other canines.  This, most likely, came from the group that were out prowling in the yard a few nights ago.  I could hear their ruckus as they were squabbling with each other probably over a fresh kill. I assume Mama and Papa Coyote managed to snag a rabbit to train their little ones to hunt.  Perhaps during a tug-o-war with the siblings, the tooth was pulled free.  Who knows?  I just know it is not from Ms. Ez and that is a relief.  I cannot imagine trying to get dentures for a dog!