Teething

Question
Hi Patti.  Just a little help needed. Up until tonight, our 4-month-old (female) pug hadn't seemed to lose her puppy teeth.  Tonight she seemed more "mouthy" than usual, and then I found a couple of traces of blood on the carpet.  Sure enough, there was a bit of blood on her upper gums, and later on I found a tiny tooth on the carpet.  She seems to be in quite a bit of pain, so I gave her an "ice bone" which is a stuffed canvas bone-shaped chew toy that you keep in the freezer for this purpose.  She never wanted it before, but tonight she loved it. My question is that since she is still obviously very uncomfortable, and the chew toys don't seem to be enough, what else can I do for her?  I've read that Baby Orajel is a no-no, and a friend told me she gave her puppies frozen mini-bagels to chew on.  Any input would be welcome.  Thanks.!

Answer
Hi Elise,

The ice bone was a perfect remedy. Losing teeth is perfectly normal and your puppy is not in pain much at all. Chewing on a cold or frozen toy is a simple natural solution to help soothe the pain and eases the swelling associated with teething.

When my dog was a puppy and was teething, I used a clean white cotton sock, or wash cloth and tightly tied a few knots in it, wet it with water (wring it out a little) and then freeze it. The frozen sock/ wash cloth will be cold and comfortable for your puppy to chew on. If you have Lavender or Chamomile essential oils, add a few drops of the oils to the water before soaking the sock. The oils have calming effects on your puppy.
The good thing about socks is, they come in pairs, so you'll always have a fresh frozen sock in your freezer at a moment's notice.

Luckily, the time your puppy will be teething is short. On bad days, you can give your puppy a baby aspirin. For an 8lb puppy, give 1/2 a baby aspirin. A 16 lb puppy would get a whole baby aspirin. Aspirin is best give with food. Stop if it causes an upset stomach.

By the time the pup's permanent canine teeth are a quarter of the way in the gum inflammation ceases. In toy breeds, puppy canine teeth sometimes do not fall out and the permanent canine teeth sprout out just ahead of them. These "retained deciduous" (puppy) teeth should be removed when a female is spayed or a male neutered.

I hope I've been a help!
Best of luck,

Patti