What You Can Do To Help Your Teething Puppy

Indiana at 9 weeks teething

Last night I ran into Petsmart really quickly to pick up some new treats for the girls. Well it was supposed to be really quickly but I bumped into a lady holding the absolutely most adorable Bull Terrier puppy. Of course I had to say hello and so we started talking. She told me that he was chewing on everything and they just didn’t know what to do. They had already bough him all sorts of chew toys and stuffed animals to play with but it wasn’t enough.

I asked her if they had tried baby carrots. When Indiana was a puppy and she was going through her teething phase my hands took the brunt of her puppy teeth. I was literally crying when I walked into the pet food store and asked the trainer there for help. She suggested baby carrots because they gave Indiana something to chew on that tasted good and was good for a developing puppy. I ran across the street to the food store and bought a giant bag. From that day forward Indiana chewed on my hand a lot less often. If she did go to chew on me I gave her the baby carrot instead and my hand was saved from her tiny little shark teeth.

Over time I have heard of several other remedies that are a step up from baby carrots which might be necessary for a bigger breed puppy that I want to share. I was told that frozen bagels from the freezer section at the grocery store work as well for puppies as they do for human babies. The puppies will manage to get pieces off unlike the human baby but the puppy is capable of chewing and swallowing on their own at this point so there is no cause for alarm. Obviously you don’t want the puppy to eat the entire thing but the cold against their little teeth will help ease the pain from their new teeth. I was told to take the bagel directly from the freezer and give it to the puppy. You don’t want to use a bagel from the bagel store because they are denser and thicker then the ones that come in the bag in the freezer section like Lenders bagels or similar. You will want to monitor your puppy with the bagel so they don’t consumer the entire thing or it will result in a tummy ache and bagels don’t have enough nutrients on their own to be a meal for a puppy.

Another option is to take an old hand towel (for itty bitty puppies you can use a washcloth) soak it in water squeeze it out and put it in the freezer in this shape. Once the towel is frozen you can give it to your puppy to play with. The cold towel against heir teeth and gums will help sooth the pain from their teeth coming out and will give them something to chew on that isn’t your body or your furniture. Obviously you will want to monitor this playtime as bigger breeds could chew through the towel. You don’t want your puppy swallowing the towel so if you see they are tearing it apart even though it s frozen take it away and throw the towel in the garbage.

Along with these home remedies a good supply of chew toys and stuffed animals is important to keep your puppy healthy and occupied. Make sure to check the stuffed animals for holes from puppy teeth and if necessary sew them back together. I promise your puppy will not be grading you on how even your stitches are or how perfect the toy looks. In fact the stronger you make the area the happier your puppy will be. Make sure to wash stuffed animals regularly in non toxic detergent during this time your puppies teeth could bleed onto the toys.

Hopefully these puppy teething tips will come in handy with any new puppies you bring into the house now or in the future to help them grow their teeth nice and strong without bite marks all over your hands or chew marks on the furniture.