“Now I know you’ll find this hard to believe, but your puppy will need between twenty and thirty toys,” declared the scarily intense girl at the petshop. We scoffed of course. Behind her back. With our eyeballs.

And as often happens with scarily intense people, she was right. Living with a puppy is like living with a child with obsessive compulsive disorder. A puppy has to chew has to chew has to chew… if Jack doesn’t have a toy to chew on, he’ll chew on something that isn’t a toy. Like the power chord to my laptop. Or the cat.

It’s about setting his teeth firmly into his jawbone. If dogs don’t chew, they end up with a mouth full of loose wobbly toothy-pegs. Not a good look for a dog.

“All puppies like these,” declared the girl at the petshop, sternly waving a set of Nylabone® Puppy Teething Keys® at us. We squeaked “Yes, Ma’am,” and meekly brought them home. And again, she was right. They’re not Jack’s all time favourite toy, but they’re definitely high on the list.

They’re made of a fancy nylony stuff that “gives” enough for puppy teeth to get the push they need. They’re infused with bacon flavouring to keep the puppy interested. And they come in the kind of bright, cheery colours that babythings love — and when our puppy plays with his keys, everyone goes awwwwww.

They cost around 15 Aussie bucks and come in different sizes for different-sized breeds. The packaging promises all kinds of good things — apparently these keys massage gums, clean teeth and make coffee. And the bits that flake off will pass safely through the puppy — although they come with a warning not to give them to a dog with adult teeth. I’d imagine this is because they could become a choking hazard… but maybe the universe implodes if you disobey the instructions. I don’t know. Just don’t do it, okay?

I’ve heard that more powerful dogs will go through these fairly quickly but they’ve lasted Jack a good three months now so I’m happy with their staying power. Now I just have to come up with twenty-nine more toys as good as this one…
RATING:
BUY IT: Australia / USA
COST: From AUD$15.99 (US $4.17)