URBANANIMAL: Age-appropriate dog-friendly toys can help teething puppies and their owners

Dear UrbanAnimal,

My puppy is teething and I was told to give him frozen carrots to take his attention away from munching on my fingers. He's eating six or eight small carrots every day. Is that too much?

Ebby

Carrots are a nutritious addition to a dog's diet and they're often used - cooked then shredded, mashed or cut into tiny cubes in the manufacture of many types of commercial dog food as well as in recipes used by people who cook for their dogs at home. Along with other types of safe-for-dogs vegetables, they're included as part of a well-rounded diet.

Many dogs enjoy carrots as a treat, but if you're concerned that pup is "eating too many carrots," you're probably feeding him too many carrots. Please ask your veterinarian for help in choosing a good diet for a growing puppy.

Let's look at the teething process to understand why pup is so intent on munching on frozen veggies and human hands.

At around four weeks of age, a puppy's baby teeth - 28 in total - begin cutting through the gums. For the next eight months or so, those baby teeth emerge, fall out and are replaced with adult teeth. This is the time when many puppy owners wonder if their hands, feet and furniture will survive the arrival of all 42 adult teeth.

Teething is an uncomfortable time for a puppy, too, and gnawing helps relieve the pain. Cold also adds relief. You're using frozen carrots which, at first glance, sound like the perfect solution, but along with similar soothers such as ice cubes and frozen chunks of meat, they can create a choking hazard if they lodge in puppy's throat.

Toys and any food item given to a puppy or dog must be sized appropriately in order to avoid this danger. There are safer alternatives including:

- A good quality chew toy that can withstand a teething pup's enthusiasm is a much safer bet and some are designed to be stuffed with puppy-appropriate treats to add interest. Or soak a clean washcloth or towel (depending on pup's size) in water then freeze just as you would a popsicle or, in this case, a pupsicle. You can also up the ante by substituting beef or chicken broth for water prior to freezing;

- As always, always supervise pup when he's playing with a toy, whether it's something you've constructed at home or bought at a store. Inspect it often and remove it from pup's reach immediately if the toy breaks or shreds.

I asked veterinarian Dr. Tara Sermer for her recommendations on a safe product to relieve teething pain and she suggested a line of products marketed under the name Orka.

All of the toys in this line are made of super-durable rubber designed to withstand the most voracious chewer, but our reader, Ebby, will be most interested in one called Petstages Cool Teething Chew for Puppies.

It comes in a variety of shapes and colours, can be frozen and is sturdy enough to be tossed around or used as a tug toy.

When I mentioned to another new puppy owner that this column was all about teething aids, she mentioned the idea of massaging pup's gums to help provide relief. While it seems a little silly to intentionally insert your fingers into the mouth of a baby canine vampire, the idea is good as long as pup and you are game.

Thinking back at the teething pups I've lived with, I can't imagine subjecting my digits to the same mouth that can chew through a city telephone directory like a chainsaw. But if you and pup are game, it would be a dandy introduction to brushing pup's teeth in the future. Ebby, if you need more ideas to help you and pup through this stage, your veterinarian or professional dog trainer should be consulted.

Email jacque-newman@rogers.com with a question, comment, or suggestion you'd like to submit to UrbanAnimal.