Puppy Teething Toys: What to Hand Over and When

Puppy teeth come in fast, and so does the chewing that goes with them. Somewhere between three months and six months, most puppies go from mouthing everything to seriously working their jaw on whatever is nearby, including the leg of your kitchen table, a shoe left by the door, or the corner of a rug. Having a few teething toys on hand before that stage hits saves your furniture and gives the puppy something better to do with all that energy, instead of learning that chair legs are fair game.

The early stage: soft mouths, small toys

A young puppy has a small mouth and less bite strength than it will have in a few months. This is the stage for smaller, lighter toys sized for a puppy rather than an adult dog, since a full size adult chew toy is often too big to get a good grip on and can end up more frustrating than useful. Nylon teething rings in a small size give a puppy something to gnaw on without overwhelming a mouth that is still growing, and the ring shape gives them an easy edge to work with paws and jaw at once, which helps them figure out how to hold a toy steady while they chew.

This is also a good stage to introduce more than one toy at a time, so your puppy has options and does not fixate on a single household item as the only interesting thing around. Rotating a couple of small teething rings keeps things fresh without asking a puppy to commit to one shape before you know what they prefer.

The heavy chewing stage

Once the adult teeth start coming in, chewing often gets more intense and more constant, and this stretch can catch owners off guard. This is when a lot of puppies go from a light chewer to something closer to a power chewer almost overnight, sometimes within a couple of weeks, and household items that were never a problem before suddenly become targets. If a toy that worked last month is suddenly getting destroyed, it is a sign to size up rather than replace it with the same thing again, since a puppy that has grown into a stronger jaw needs a toy rated for that strength rather than another round of the same size and material.

This stage does not last forever, but it can run for several weeks at a stretch, so it helps to have a couple of tougher options ready rather than scrambling to replace a destroyed toy every few days. Keeping an eye on how quickly a toy wears down is the simplest way to know when your puppy has moved into this stage.

Matching material to the stage

Nylon holds its shape and gives a puppy something firm to work against, which is useful once the chewing gets more determined and less exploratory. Rubber flexes more and some rubber shapes double as a treat dispenser, which can help redirect a puppy that wants to chew constantly during this stretch by giving them something engaging to work at rather than a plain shape to gnaw. SodaPup describes its teething designs as built for teething puppies and power chewers, sized so a puppy can manage them without a toy so large it becomes a wrestling match instead of a chew session.

There is no rule that says a puppy has to pick one material and stick with it. A lot of owners keep a nylon ring for quiet chewing on the couch and a rubber shape for more active play, and let the puppy show a preference over time rather than guessing up front which one will win out.

What to watch for

Supervise play and size up for strong chewers. A toy that is getting torn into small pieces is no longer doing its job and should be swapped out for something tougher, sized for where your puppy is now rather than where they were a month ago. If something looks wrong, stop and call your veterinarian.

In the Toys aisle

Our puppy teething toys collection gathers the sizes built for this stage in one place, from small rings for a young puppy up to sturdier shapes for a puppy heading into the power chewer range. SodaPup ships these directly from Longmont, Colorado through Shopify Collective.

Between chew sessions, a puppy still needs something to work for during training. Our freeze-dried beef liver dog treats break into small pieces that are easy on a young mouth and useful for keeping a puppy's attention on you instead of the table leg.

Questions

At what age should I start giving my puppy teething toys?

Most puppies start benefiting from a teething toy as soon as they come home, usually around eight weeks, and use them more heavily once teething picks up a few months later.

How do I know when to size up to a bigger or tougher toy?

Watch how fast a toy is getting worn down. If your puppy is going through toys quickly or chewing harder than before, move up to a size or chew strength SodaPup rates higher.

Are nylon or rubber toys better for a teething puppy?

Both work. Nylon gives a firm surface for determined chewing, and rubber flexes more and can double as a treat dispenser. Many households end up with one of each on hand for their puppy.