So your adorable fluffball has suddenly become a tiny landshark. Your hands look like you’ve wrestled a cactus, your kids are jumping onto the sofa like it’s shark-infested waters, and your skirting boards are… softer than they used to be.
Welcome to Puppy Teething Season — the natural, chaotic, bitey phase every owner survives (just).
If you’re still deciding what breed of tiny velociraptor to bring home, take the Which Dog Breed is Best for Me? Quiz first. Saves a lot of bitey surprises later.
Pickles’ Aside: Puppy teeth are nature’s way of saying “you didn’t need personal space, right?”
Puppy Teeth vs Adult Teeth — The Numbers Game
Baby Teeth (28): Tiny Needle Razors
Puppies start with 28 baby teeth, all of which are designed to be as sharp as possible so their siblings learn conflict resolution early.
Adult Teeth (42): Fully Armed and Operational
By around 6 months, they replace those razors with 42 adult teeth. More teeth = more chewing.
Pickles’ Aside: Humans have 32. Dogs have 42. Who’s the real apex predator now?
The Puppy Teething Timeline (Realistic, Actionable, Sanity-Saving)
7–12 Weeks: The Tiny Shark Phase
Baby teeth are in, and your puppy is learning how to operate them like brand-new equipment.
What you’ll see:
- “Curious nibbling” that escalates
- Asset-testing your slippers
- Kids running like they’re in a horror movie
Actionable tips:
- Keep soft toys everywhere
- Use frozen washcloths
- Start redirecting ASAP (“Teeth on toy, not on human!”)
insight:
One owner said, “I kept three toys on me at all times. I felt like a chew toy caddy.”
Pickles’ Aside: If you sit still, you become a chew toy.
12–16 Weeks: Baby Teeth Start Falling Out
You may find teeth. You may find none.
A lot of puppies swallow them like snacks.
Expect:
- Bloody drool on toys
- Bitey behaviour skyrocketing
- Gaps and wonky smiles
Actionable tips:
- Frozen carrots
- Puppy Nylabones
- Rotate chew textures (soft → rubber → rope)
Lesser-known tip:
Let them chew on a damp flannel that’s been knotted and frozen.
It hits the sore spots beautifully.
16–20 Weeks: The Big Chomp Era
Adult teeth push through. Discomfort peaks.
Expect:
- Desperate chewing
- Furniture tasting
- Kids being “sampled” by puppy teeth
Actionable tips:
- Offer Kongs stuffed with frozen yoghurt or wet food
- Use long-lasting chews (yak bars, puppy-safe bully sticks)
- Introduce gentle mouthing rules (“If teeth touch skin, play ends”)
Owner insight:
A favourite tip: “Scatter frozen treats on a tray so they lick more and bite less.”
(Teach your kids to do this. It saves ankles.)
Pickles’ Aside: When in doubt, chew the expensive thing.
20–24 Weeks: Molars Come In — The Chaos Peak
The “destroy everything” phase. Puppies get properly frustrated.
Expect:
- Whining
- Dramatic chewing
- Testing the structural integrity of your house
Actionable tips:
- Freeze a Kong layered with wet food + mashed banana + kibble
- Offer rope toys, dampened, frozen, then knotted again
- More brain games (snuffle mats, frozen lick mats, puzzle feeders)
Little-known tip:
Teething puppies LOVE iced broth cubes.
Make puppy-safe chicken broth, freeze it in ice trays, and offer one cube for cooling relief.
6 Months: Full Adult Teeth — Finally
Chewing becomes more hobby than pain relief.
But habits formed now stick for life.
Actionable tips:
- Keep chew options available for months
- Praise calm chewing
- Prevent boredom (exhaustion = fewer crime scenes)
Pickles’ Aside: Congratulations, your puppy now has 42 reasons to chew your furniture.
Yes, Puppies Bite. A Lot. EVERYONE. Including Children.
(And no, your puppy is not broken.)
Let’s drop the stigma right here:
Puppies bite. Puppies bite kids. Puppies bite you. Puppies bite because THEY ARE TEETHING.
And those needle teeth?
They hurt. Badly.
Tiny landshark meets baby gremlin meets sugar-fuelled toddler.
Why do they bite?
- Gum pain
- Overstimulation
- Play instinct
- Exploration
- Relief
This isn’t aggression. It’s biology + discomfort.
Your job:
Redirect like you’re a traffic officer in central Madrid.
Fast. Frequently. Repeatedly.
Actionable redirecting plan:
- Teeth touch skin → calmly stop play.
- Offer a chew toy instantly.
- Praise when they take it.
- Resume giving attention.
Repeated 100 times a day.
This is the process.
This is the phase.
This is completely normal.
Pickles’ Aside: If I didn’t bite my human as a puppy, how else would she know I loved her?
Teething Survival Kit (Owner-Tested)
Essentials:
- Frozen washcloths
- Frozen rope toys
- Frozen bananas
- Frozen carrots
- Frozen broth cubes
- Frozen Kongs
(See a pattern? Cold = relief.)
Extra-chew solutions owners swear by:
- Yak chews
- Puppy-safe bully sticks
- Antler alternatives (soft puppy versions)
- Kong Puppy Binkie (underrated!)
FOR THE LOVE OF PEACE AND QUIET:
Keep toys in every room.
Like fire extinguishers.
But for teeth.
Little-Known Tips You WON’T See in Most Guides
–Teach kids the “Statue Rule”
Running = puppy chase = puppy bite.
Stillness = boring = fewer bitey incidents.
– Have a “Puppy Timeout Pen” (Not for punishment!)
Just a safe space where they decompress when overstimulated.
– Use a silicone baby teether
YES — the kind for human babies.
Many owners say their puppies loved them because they’re the perfect texture.
– Offer a warm (not hot) washcloth for swollen gums
Everyone focuses on freezing stuff, but warmth loosens sore gum tissue.
Alternating warm and cold can be magic.
– Introduce scent-work games
Chewing often comes from boredom and frustration.
Give them brain work, and they’ll bite less.
Scatter feeding is your new religion.
– Teach “Find It” early
It interrupts bitey zoomies like a dream.
Your puppy goes from goblin mode → detective mode.
Pickles’ Aside: Engage my brain, and I forget to chew your furniture. Mostly.
When to Worry
Most teething chaos is normal. BUT:
- Baby teeth not falling out
- Swelling or bad smell
- Reluctance to eat
= vet check.
Thinking of Bringing Home a Puppy?
Grab the New Puppy Paw-rent Planner — it’s essentially your survival manual.
And once you’ve lived through teething (congratulations), reward yourself with Cartoon Pet Portraits.
Don’t need an entire system but want to track your puppy teething, what worked, what didn’t work and what to try next time? Try our Teething planner, get organised and take the guesswork out of your puppy’s shark attacks
Pickles’ Aside: If you survive this phase, you can survive anything—even me.