I am wondering if anyone has heard of this issue our (potential) new puppy has?
Her bottom canines are deformed in a way. They each have a little split from about halfway up the tooth to the top. To picture it, draw a tall triangle, then draw a line from the tip halfway down to the base. She is the only one in the litter with this. She was examined by a vet, who may or may not have given a name for this condition-I honestly can't remember. But the vet said it could be something as simple as that's the way her baby teeth are and when her adult teeth come in, they'll be normal. Or it could mean that she has two tooth buds in that position on each side and she would get two adult canines on each side, which means the extras would have to be extracted.
The vet said it could require some extra dental cleanings to make sure the split (it's very tiny) doesn't collect food and grow extra bacteria, causing infection.

Has anyone dealt with this issue before? Any advice? We have not picked her up yet and do have options, although I will admit we are already pretty attached to her....

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L, wife of a soldier, mom to 4 humans, 2 felines, and 1 adorable puppy

Thelma Lou is already 6 months old! Time flies....

I hate to make a human comparison, but my step brother was born with a similar condition. Oddly shaped baby teeth with twice as many adult teeth as necessary. So he had a mouth full of teeth as soon as he started loosing baby teeth. The adult teeth were normally shaped. I should add he also had a cleft pallete (sp?) with a hair lip, so he had a lot of facial problems. He did require a lot of dental surgery to remove those extra adult teeth as they erupted through the gum. But he had to have facial surgery anyway to deal with the cleft pallete and hair lip, so it was all tied together. Does your puppy have any other deformities like nasal problems? My step brother also had serious nasal deformities that also caused him to have additional surgeries to correct. So I would investigate if any other parts of your puppies head has problems. I would think an x-ray would give you some information.

Incidentially my step brother's problems were caused by fetal alcohol syndrome (not of course your puppy's problem). My step mother drank very heavily during pregnancy. She continues to feel guilty 40 years later.

Thanks for your reply! I'm sorry about the diffculties your step-brother has had.

I thought I'd post an update in case anyone else has this problem and is looking for answers.
Today I spoke with the vet who examined her. Here is the deal: she does actually have two extra canines on the bottom-one on each side. It looks like one tooth split on each side because the teeth are so close together. She does not have any other defects or deformities. Because of these extra teeth, she would not be a candidate for breeding or for showing, neither of which we planned on doing anyway.
There is a chance that when these baby (deciduous) teeth fall out, she will grow in 2 adult canines in the same place. In the event that happens, she will have the extras extracted in order to minimize the chances of infection, periodontal disease, gum recession, etc.
The vet would like to spay her between 5-6 months and if the baby teeth are still in, remove them while she is under anesthesia. That will make it easier for her adult teeth to come in , as they won't be pushing out two teeth to come in. And then we will wait and see whether she gets two adult canines on the bottom, or 4, and we will proceed from there. We'll cross our fingers that just two come in, but overall, doesn't seem like its a huge deal if four come.

The vet said the condition is pretty rare in goldens, but that she sometimes sees it in smaller breeds. She didn't think it was extremely likely shed have the extras when the adult teeth come in. She recommended letting her play tug-of-war with ropes and such to help the baby teeth come out on time.
So not the end of the world. We have agreed upon conditions with the breeder and we are looking forward to bringing our sweet little puppy girl home soon.

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L, wife of a soldier, mom to 4 humans, 2 felines, and 1 adorable puppy

Thelma Lou is already 6 months old! Time flies....

She is an adorable girl. I hope you have many years of fun with her.

By the way everything turned out fine for my step brother. He's an engineer for a large firm and has a good life. My step mother doesn't drink anymore. She's a very nice person she just didn't understand the consquenses of her actions back then.