Most puppies go to their homes at 8 weeks. Some smaller breeds are kept by their breeders for up to 12 weeks. Generally puppies are to busy playing with the other puppies to be interested in toys until about 6-8 weeks. He or she may have been introduced to toys by the time you take them home, but this is the perfect opportunity to get them a toy. It’s either that or get ready for lots of furniture chewing.
Translation – it’s important to make sure that the toys you pick can’t be swallowed or break into small pieces. Puppies enjoy pulling things, squeaky things, shaking things and just about anything they can carry around in their mouth. Tennis balls are also a must for some breeds. Certain hunting dogs also really like stuffed animals. You do need to be careful, because they don’t just like to play with them, they rip them to shreds. We’ve come home on several occasions to a Christmas like appearance to our house.
Antlers
A surprising number of chew toys don’t hold up under the constant chewing of even the smallest dogs. We have discovered an alternative that isn’t really a toy, but will provide hours of chewing pleasure for dogs of all sizes – Elk Antlers. You can typically get them in chunks at dog shows. They are practically indestructible, or at least will seem so by comparison to the other toys you have.
Some no-nos are golf balls. They may seem like the right size for puppies but they come apart easily and they generally have a poisonous core. Also try to avoid stuffed animals with plastic eyes, wood toys, or plastic toys unless it is clearly designed for puppies. Avoid toys that look like gloves or slippers or you will quickly find the real thing becomes a toy.
Puppies will teeth from 3-7 months so plan on toys that aren’t just going to get played with, they are going to get chewed up. The more durable they are, the better it will be for your chair legs, stair railings, and power cords. The later can be fatal, so be sure to try and not let them near power cords. They can and will chew through a power cord if given the opportunity. The elk antlers make for a nice challenge for them. Rawhides are a popular choice, but sometimes they will eat to many of them and get sick. Nylon bones are also a must.