We’re sometimes asked, “Do cows have teeth?” and “Can they bite you?”

Teeth are extremely important for a cow because they need to be able to chew grass so they can digest it.

Cows do have teeth but they can’t bite you. Here’s why —

Do cows have teeth?

Yes, and it’s by their teeth that you can tell their age.

Since we’re a cow-calf farm, we usually know exactly when our cattle are born. But if for some reason we’re not sure, we can estimate their age by looking at their teeth. When estimating age, we look at the number of incisor teeth, the type of teeth (“baby teeth” or permanent teeth), and the wear and overall appearance of the teeth.

Cows have a total of 32 teeth and they’re three types of teeth: incisors, premolars and molars. Only the incisors (bottom front teeth) are used to estimate their age.

Here’s a short video of Matt checking a cow’s teeth. (And don’t worry — this doesn’t hurt the cow at all!)



Can cows bite you?

No. Cows can’t bite because they don’t have any upper front teeth.

When cattle are eating grass, they press their sharp bottom teeth against the top of their mouth, which is a hard palate. This then cuts the blades of grass so they can chew the grass.

Since there are no top teeth, a cow may “gum” you, but it won’t bite you.

Random fun facts about cow teeth: