A pediatric dentist who began using dental bite impressions as a way of safeguarding his own child and young patients developed Toothprints™in the 1980’s as a safe and simple method of identification.

How it works - when the dentist softens the thermoplastic Toothprints™ wafer, the child bites into the wafer to record the size and shape of the teeth, positioned within the arch and in relationship of the upper and lower jaw. This provides a reliable record of unique dental characteristics and captures saliva for DNA analysis and scent dog tracking.

Note: It will vary in each case as to how long the scent from the saliva on the Toothprints™ will be useful to any given dog over any given time. Yearly updates of Toothprints™ bite impressions are ideal. In lieu of that, the following schedule is recommended:

Initial impressions: Age 3 (or after all primary teeth have erupted).

Update: Age 7 or 8 (or after the upper and lower incisors and the first permanent molars have erupted).

Update: Age 12 or 13 (or after all permanent teeth, excluding 3rd molars, have erupted).