SolveYourProblem.com Article Series: Dog Care
Dog Care Tips
How
To Handle Your Puppy’s Teething
When most people bring home their cute new
puppies, the furthest thing from their minds is the stressful
time of teething. Just as with babies teething, puppies
will want to chew on everything they can get their mouth on. This
can lead to total destruction of your belongings, but there
are tried and true ways to help prevent this from happening,
and help you and your pup get through the teething period with
ease.
Many people bring home their new pup and leave them out to
romp around the house when they’re not home. Inevitably, this
leads to chewing on shoes, books, socks, the couch, and any
number of other things. The best way to prevent destructive
chewing is to crate train your dog. To do this, you will need
a crate that is just big enough for your dog to turn around
in. Make the crate a safe and happy place for your dog. Provide
him with stimulating toys while he is in the crate. Crate training
your dog will not only prevent destructive chewing, but will
also aid in potty training and create a positive and safe environment
for your dog to be when you’re not around. Some people think
that keeping a dog in a crate when they’re not around is cruel.
This is not the case at all. Dogs by nature like small, darkened
places and tend to feel very safe in crates. Almost all dog
trainers today believe that crate training is a necessary and
positive part of your puppy’s development. If your dog is crated
while you are not home, they will not have the opportunity
to chew on your belongings and other harmful things such as
power cords.
The next most important thing to teach your dog when he is
teething is which toys are his and what is off limits. Purchase
good things to chew on such as Kong toys or Bully Sticks. Kongs
are made of tough rubber and can be filled with goodies such
as peanut butter or cheese. They are excellent chew toys and
wonderful for the teething period. Bully Sticks are 100% natural
and 100% digestible dog chews that are low in fat and great
for your dog to chew on. Other chew toys that could be used
are Nylabones which are made out of solid hard plastic and
have bumps on them to soothe teething gums or other toys made
of hard rubber or plastic. Reinforce which toy is for your
dog by giving him his chew toy and saying something like, “Here
is your toy, good boy!” If your dog chooses something that
he is not to chew on, take it away and replace it with one
of his chew toys repeating, “This is your toy, good boy!” With
persistence, he will learn what is his to chew on and what
he is not to chew on.
Another important thing to train your dog during the teething
period is bite inhibition. In packs of dogs, the mother or
other dogs would teach this to the pups, but in a home situation,
it is up to you. Teething puppies will put their mouths on
you and you must teach them at an early age that this is not
acceptable. Just as mentioned above, every time they exhibit
mouthing behavior, you must redirect them to an acceptable
chew toy. Another important factor in bite inhibition and limiting
mouthing behavior is proper socialization. It is very important
in this stage to take your dog to a puppy class or puppy play
group. Many good trainers offer these services. When allowed
to play with other pups, your dog will learn what is acceptable
play behavior. The other dogs will help your dog to learn that
biting is not appropriate. You must also socialize your dog
to many different kinds of people and situations. This will
help your dog to not be afraid of new things and will significantly
lower the potential for biting.
By following the above advice as well as the advice of your
veterinarian, you can rest assured that the teething period
will be a positive learning period for you and your puppy. #
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SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
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