Can you think of one thing that’s cuter than a new puppy? Really, we can wait. While you think about it, we need to talk to you about choosing the best chew bones for puppies. Just as with human babies, a puppy’s teeth can suffer from sore gums. This can be incredibly painful for your young pup, and you’ll notice them want to bite down on anything and everything in order to soothe their poor gums. That means, unless you provide them with toys that are both comforting to their teething mouths and entertaining, you’re likely going to find your shoes, your fingers, and other things in your house with little gnaw marks in them.
Not only do puppies chew on anything they can get their paws on to soothe their gums and loosen their baby teeth, but they also use their mouths to explore. This means, it’s going to be difficult to prevent your pup from chewing up everything in sight, unless you’re prepared with the right toys. The right toy doesn’t just mean a toy that your puppy may find soothing. It also means toys that are appropriately sized and won’t cause choking.
We’re going to take you through our process on choosing the best chew bones for puppies, from why your puppy gets the urge to chew in the first place, to what to look for in a chew toy, followed by our picks for the best toys to soothe those aching teeth and gums.
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When Does My Puppy Start Teething?
We hate to break it to you, but your puppy goes through a long teething stage – which is why that nibbling and gnawing seems to go on forever. Puppies start teething around 3 weeks of age, going to about 6 months or longer, depending on the size of the breed. A fun fact about dogs is that they actually have 28 baby teeth and will end up with a total of 42 permanent teeth.
You may end up finding your puppy’s baby teeth on the floor, or in their food, but it’s more likely that your pup will actually have swallowed the teeth while they were eating. This is absolutely no cause for concern, so you don’t need to be worried about your puppy choking on them. You may also see a tiny amount of bleeding to their gums when their baby teeth fall out, which is also perfectly normal!
Should I Let My Puppy Playfully Bite?
The very vast majority of puppies will want to bite everything that they come into contact with – including your hands, fingers, toes and clothing! This may seem cute and harmless and it’s certainly not a sign of aggression. After all, your puppy explores with its mouth and biting is often their way of discovering the world around them. However, this is also the time that bad habits are formed and letting this continue can become more difficult to correct as your puppy grows older. It’s important to teach them manners and let them know early on that not everything is a chew toy.
So, how do you deter your puppy from biting your fingers and toes? It’s important to remember that puppies get their initial training from their birth mom and their very first interactions are with their brothers and sisters from their litter. So, the very best way you can start off your puppy training is by doing what their littermates would do in the same situation – yelp. This is a puppy’s way of telling the others that they’ve gone too far in their play fighting and that enough is enough! Make sure you yelp in a high-pitched voice as well, to mimic the sound a puppy would make. Although this may sound silly, it’s been proven to be incredibly effective.
What Can I Do for My Teething Puppy?
At the end of the day, you can’t stop your puppy from biting and chewing altogether, and even if you could, you shouldn’t! Teething puppies need to chew. Not only to soothe their aching gums while teething, but also to maintain their dental health, alleviate boredom, soothe anxiety, exercise their jaws and to keep them generally entertained.
While your puppy grows and learns, it’s also important to allow them to experience the world around them in the only way that they know how – with their teeth. Unfortunately, this intense behavior of chewing that they’re currently taking part in is largely due to the pain of their gums.
So, what can you do to help your poor pup? By providing them with a gum soothing chew toy! Providing a chew toy is the best possible way to make sure your puppy has enough of their own dog toys to keep them occupied, so they don’t chew up your prized possessions (including your fingers). Plus, they will get a sense of what’s theirs and what’s yours and hopefully start drawing a hard line between them.
How Do I Pick the Best Puppy Chew Toy?
No puppy is exactly the same and that includes their chewing preferences. Some puppies will prefer one material over another and may easily tire of one toy and want to move onto the next, before going back to the original toy. This is why there’s no one-pup-fits-all toy when it comes to your puppy. It’s important to keep a selection on hand that include different materials, sizes and features to suit your puppy’s different needs.
It can be helpful to choose a toy that is similar to an object that your puppy already likes to chew on that doesn’t belong to them. However, you don’t want to replace a stuffed toy with a similar stuffed toy if what they like to chew on is your child’s favorite stuffed animal. There are wonderful alternatives available for plush toys that are meant for teething puppies or tougher chewers. If your puppy enjoys chewing the edges of all of your tables, getting them a puppy-safe bone can definitely be helpful.
Which Chew Toys Are Unsafe for My Puppy?
It’s important to remember that no toy is ever considered indestructible (despite the manufacturer’s claims) and that your puppy should always be supervised when chewing on a toy. The last thing you want is for your pup to swallow a small piece of toy and have it do damage to their digestive system. To minimize this risk as much as possible, it’s important to start off with an appropriate chew toy.
One important factor when choosing a chew toy is size. While it’s tempting to choose a tiny bone for a puppy, a bone is considered a choking hazard if the puppy can fit the whole thing in its mouth. There are also a number of materials and types of toys to avoid when purchasing a chew toy for a teething puppy.
When choosing teething toys for your puppy, you should avoid the following:
- Hard, brittle plastic toys
- Cheap, dollar-store toys
- Brightly painted/colored toys
- Fire or stain-resistant toys
- Mass-produced factory-made toys
- Rawhide toys or bones
- Balls with single air-holes
These toys all have the potential to either be a choking hazard, contain toxic chemicals or ingredients, be generally harmful to your dog’s health, or all of the above. They’re also not going to do anything at all to soothe your puppy’s aching gums. No matter what toy you choose, it’s also important to keep your puppy’s toys clean to avoid the spread of bacteria. Toys are generally easy to clean no matter what the material and can often be thrown in the dishwashing or in the laundry machine, depending on the material.
The Best Chew Toys for Teething Puppies
Looking for some great chew toys for your puppy’s poor teething gums? You’ve come to the right place. While we should again stress that there is no one toy that is going to be equally adored by all puppies out there at all times, these toys are definitely popular. These toys are able to stand up to the toughest puppy bites, are non-toxic, and can provide soothing relief to gums.
1. Kong Binkie
You’ve likely never seen such a cuter chew toy than the Kong Binkie. This toy is actually shaped like a pacifier and comes in a baby pink and baby blue. This chew toy has everything going for it. First of all, Kong is a brand that everyone knows and loves and is known primarily for their treat dispensing toys. The Kong Binkie is no exception, as it is truly a treat dispensing, teething pacifier.
Kong toys are made out of a natural, non-toxic rubber, with the Kong Binkie being a little softerthan the standard Kong chew toy. Your puppy will be able to chew on this toy for hours, while enjoying the benefits of the soothing rubber. Kong toys are also locally made in the USA and help promote positive chewing behavior.
2. Flossy Chews Ropes
This toy is not specifically meant for teething puppies – but that doesn’t mean that it’s not absolutely great for teething and soothing gums! Flossy Chew Ropes are long, which will provide any dog, big or small, with tons of entertainment as they drag these toys around! There is absolutely nothing wrong with playing a good game of tug-o-war with your puppy and their very own rope toy is the ideal tool for this. Plus, rope toys are great for your dog’s teeth and gums and essentially work to floss your puppy’s teeth while they’re playing with them. In order to take this toy to the next level for teething puppies, you can soak it in water and put it in the freezer – the cool rope will help soothe your pup’s aching gums.
3. Nylabone Puppy Teething Pacifier
Looking for another adorable soother? Look no further than the Nylabone Puppy Teething Pacifier. While still referred to as a “pacifier”, this teething toy couldn’t look anymore different than the Kong Binkie. Nylabone are known for their textured chew toys, which contain massaging nubs to clean teeth and gums, while removing bacteria around the gumline. This toy is specifically designed for teething puppies who have not yet formed their adult teeth, with a soft, flexible material. One of the other perks of Nylabone toys is that they’re flavored, with this particular toy being flavored like bacon.
4. Beco Pets Hoop
If you’re looking for an all-natural, eco-friendly choice for your puppy’s chew toy, then a Beco Pets Hoop may just be for you. Knowing that your puppy’s toy is entirely made from green materials and is made using an eco-sustainable production process is definitely comforting when it comes to your furbaby. Plus, it’s interesting to know that you can make an all-natural rubber out of rice husks.
The Beco Pets Hoop gives off a natural, non-toxic fresh vanilla scent and is soft on sensitive teeth and gums. The all-natural rubber is stretchy, yet durable enough to play tug of war with and stand up to tough puppy bites. Plus, Beco Pets Hoops come with a manufacturer’s lifetimeguarantee.
5. Nylabone Chill & Chew
If you’re looking for a teething toy from a trusted company that is meant to go in the freezer, then you’ve come to the right place. The Nylabone Chill & Chew is made with material that is designed for teething puppies and is in Nylabone’s signature super shape. It also features textured dental nubs to help clean teeth and prevent plaque and tartar and contains a delicious lamb and apple flavor throughout.
An interesting feature of this toy is that it contains color changing technology. This means that the bone turns from yellow to orange when completely frozen! The only negative about this bone is that it’s meant for soft chewers – so definitely keep an eye on your pup when they’re playing with it.
Are You Ready to Choose Your Pup’s Next Chew Toy?
We hope you’ve learned a little something about how to choose the best chew toys for your teething puppy’s gums. At the end of the day, teething hurts. Your puppy needs a toy that is safe for them to chew and can provide relief to their poor, aching gums. It’s important to keep these aspects in mind to avoid the potentially harmful toys that we’ve discussed above. Consider trying one of our picks for the best toys for a teething pup!
I grew up in a household that was filled with animals. I believe that my fate as a dog-loving person was sealed in early childhood since my parents owned several dogs of varying sizes and breeds. There was no choice but to take care of and learn about dog habits and the best animal care practices — otherwise, I’d be clueless about how to go about the creatures I was surrounded by day and night.
As a life-long puppy lover, I know a thing or two about dogs and how to go about caring for them in the best way possible. Although I’m not a professionally trained dog behaviorist, trainer, or veterinarian, all of my knowledge and experience with canines comes from a place of love and a deep-rooted passion for dogs and animals in general.
Seeing as dogs kept me company throughout every stage of my life, I decided to follow a different path in my academic life and obtained a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Marketing Management and Digital Advertising, which ultimately allowed me to combine my professional training and personal experience by creating the ultimate dog lover’s resource website! Along with my husband, Dave, I run MySweetPuppy for like-minded dog lovers who want to have a single, clear, and reliable information source about anything and everything related to dogs and their well-being.
