Roughly from three weeks to six months, in two waves. The 28 baby teeth come in between about two and four weeks old, then from around twelve to sixteen weeks they start falling out as the 42 adult teeth push through, and most puppies are done by six months. The miserable stretch, the one that eats your shoes, is that second wave, and it is shorter than it feels.
We sell chew toys, including one made for teething gums. We will also tell you that a frozen flannel from your own drawer does the job on the worst days for nothing.
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When do puppies teethe, and for how long?
Twice, which is the part most owners are not told. The American Kennel Club's timeline starts early: weeks 2 to 4: your puppy will still be with their mother and breeder when their baby teeth start coming in
. That first set is small: dogs usually have about 28 baby teeth total
, and by the time a puppy arrives home at eight weeks the set is complete and needle sharp.
The second wave is the one you experience. From weeks 12 to 16
, in the AKC's words, you may start to find little crumb- to rice-sized teeth around your home as your puppy's baby teeth start to shed and permanent adult teeth emerge
. That continues for a couple of months. By the time your puppy is about six months old or so, all of their puppy teeth should have fallen out, and their adult teeth should have grown in. In general, adult dogs have about 42 teeth
.
So the honest answer to how long is about three months of active discomfort, from roughly twelve weeks to six months, with a peak somewhere in the middle when the big molars come through. Large breeds often run a little later than small ones. It ends. Everyone forgets that at week fourteen.
How do I know it is teething and not just a puppy being a puppy?
You mostly cannot separate the two, because a teething puppy is a puppy being a puppy with the volume turned up. Dr Mallory Kanwal, writing for PetMD, describes the phase as increased chewing, mouthing, and a stronger desire to gnaw on objects
, which is a fair description of every puppy at any moment. What changes is intensity and target: furniture legs, the corner of the rug, your hands during play, anything with give.
The teething tells
- Tiny teeth on the floor, or none at all. Both are normal. Puppies swallow most of them while eating and it is harmless.
- Small blood spots on toys. A little pink on a chew toy or rope is the gum letting a tooth go. A lot of blood, or blood without a lost tooth, is not.
- Extra drool and a slightly off appetite. Sore gums make kibble less appealing for a day or two. Softening it with warm water usually fixes dinner.
- Chewing that targets cold or soft things. Table legs, cushions, your fingers. The mouth is looking for pressure and cool, which tells you exactly what to offer.
What actually helps a teething puppy?
- Cold first. Kanwal's list runs to chilled or frozen chew toys and cold treats such as frozen blueberries, green beans or carrots. The cold shrinks inflamed gums. A wet flannel, twisted and frozen, is the free version and it works.
- Soft rubber for the pressure. Her recommendation is soft and rubber chew toys, and the word soft is the whole point at this age. Adult teeth coming through are not ready for anything that fights back.
- Food inside a toy. Kibble frozen into a puzzle toy turns ten minutes of chewing into forty, and gives the puppy a legal target that pays better than the sofa.
- Rotate three, not thirty. A small set on the floor, swapped every couple of days, stays interesting. A pile becomes wallpaper.
- Redirect, do not scold. Hand on the furniture leg becomes toy in the mouth, every single time, with no drama. The puppy learns which chewing pays. Punishment teaches nothing except that you are unpredictable around mouths.
The thirty second version, if you would rather read it
- Yes, it is uncomfortable, and the chewing is the puppy managing the discomfort, not misbehaving.
- Baby teeth arrive by four weeks, start falling out around twelve to sixteen, and the adult set is in by about six months.
- Cold and soft are the two words that matter: chilled rubber toys, frozen treats, frozen cloth.
- Hard chews are for later. Adult teeth still settling into the jaw are easy to damage.
- A baby tooth still sitting beside its adult replacement needs a vet, not patience.
What should I keep away from a teething mouth?
Anything hard enough to win. Antlers, bones, hooves, hard nylon and anything you could not dent with a thumbnail belong to adult dogs with settled teeth, and even then with caution. Teething puppies have soft new enamel and loose old teeth, and a hard chew can crack a molar that has been in the mouth for a week. Save the tough stuff for after six months, and read the honest version of what tough means in are indestructible dog toys real.
Two more from the AKC: no human toothpaste, ever, because human toothpaste can include ingredients that are toxic to dogs, like xylitol or some essential oils
; and no ice cubes as a chew, which crack teeth for the same reason antlers do. Cold should be soft.
What do I give them to chew? Our honest answer.
Something soft enough to dent, cold enough to soothe, and big enough not to swallow. That rules out most of what is marketed as tough, and it rules in the cheapest option in your freezer. Of the things we sell, one was actually made for this stage.
Natural Rubber Carrot Chew
From $15.99
Food-safe natural rubber with a milk flavour in the material itself, built for power chewers and, in the supplier's own words, for teething gums. Rubber gives under a bite, which is exactly what settling teeth need, and it goes in the freezer. Honest limits: the fabric leaves come off eventually, it is a supervised chew for a tiny puppy who might get the whole thing in their mouth, and it is not indestructible, because nothing is.
Size it to the puppy. If the whole toy fits in the mouth, it is a choking risk rather than a chew, and you should wait a size.
For the rest of the day
Mellow DuckFrom $31.99 · the soft one for naps, not chewing
Bottle CrunchFrom $18.99 · soft TPR, supervised
ChewAnimal PlushFrom $31.99 · for after six months
When is teething a vet visit?
A baby tooth is still there next to the adult one
The AKC's instruction is simple: if you notice any baby teeth remaining, make sure to let your veterinarian know as they may need to be removed
. Two teeth in one spot push the adult tooth out of line and trap food between them. The canines are the usual culprits. Do not wait for it to fall out on its own once the adult tooth is fully through.
Bleeding that does not stop, or a lot of it
A pink smear on a toy is normal. Ongoing bleeding, a swollen gum, or blood with no lost tooth to explain it needs looking at, because a broken tooth or an infection presents the same way.
Refusing food for more than a day or two
Sore gums take the edge off appetite briefly. A puppy who will not eat softened food, or is losing weight, has something more than teething going on and puppies do not have reserves to wait it out.
Bad breath, a cracked tooth, or pawing at the mouth
Puppy breath is one thing; genuinely foul breath, a visibly broken tooth from a hard chew, or repeated pawing at the face points at pain that needs treating rather than distracting.
Still teething well past seven months
Timelines vary by breed, and large breeds run later, but adult teeth that have not arrived by seven or eight months, or a bite that looks misaligned, are worth an exam. Early orthodontic problems are easier to correct than late ones.
Quick answers
When do puppies start teething? Baby teeth come in between about two and four weeks old, before most puppies leave the breeder. The teething owners notice, when baby teeth fall out and adult teeth push through, starts around twelve to sixteen weeks.
When do puppies lose their baby teeth? From roughly twelve to sixteen weeks onward, with most of the 28 baby teeth gone and the 42 adult teeth in place by around six months. You may find rice-sized teeth on the floor, or none at all, because puppies usually swallow them harmlessly.
How long does puppy teething last? About three months of noticeable discomfort, from around three months old to six months, with a peak in the middle when the molars come through. Large breeds can run a little later.
What can I give a teething puppy for pain? Cold and soft: chilled or frozen rubber chew toys, a frozen wet flannel, and cold treats such as frozen carrot or blueberries. Never human pain relief and never human toothpaste, which can contain xylitol. If the puppy seems in real pain, that is a vet question.
Is it normal for a teething puppy's gums to bleed? A small amount when a tooth comes out, yes. Ongoing or heavy bleeding, swelling, or bleeding without a lost tooth is not normal and should be seen.
What if a baby tooth does not fall out? Tell your vet. A retained baby tooth sitting beside its adult replacement crowds the bite and traps food, and it usually needs removing rather than waiting for.
The chewing does not end at six months, it just changes gear, and the guide for what comes next is the power chewer survival guide. If your adult dog still destroys everything, why dogs destroy every toy explains why. Everything we stock for mouths of all ages sits in the dog toy collection.
Fetch more good reads
Written by the Pet Buckets team. We are hoomans with very spoiled pets, and we read hundreds of reviews and supplier spec sheets before anything earns a place in the bucket. We sell chew toys and we have told you that a frozen flannel is the best thing on the worst days, that our tough toys are for after six months, and that a retained baby tooth is a vet visit rather than a product. Where the guidance belongs to a veterinarian or a breed authority, we quote them and link them rather than paraphrasing them into our own authority. You can read how we pick if you want the whole process.
Teething timeline, tooth counts, retained teeth and the toothpaste warning from the American Kennel Club. Signs and relief methods from Dr Mallory Kanwal via PetMD. Reviewed August 2026. General information, not veterinary advice. If your puppy has a retained tooth, heavy bleeding or will not eat, call your vet.
