Puppy Kong To Soothe Sore Gums (Kong Puppy Kong)

Member Name: AJ26

Product:	Kong Puppy Kong
Date:	10/04/07 (1135 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Soothes sore gums, keeps puppies occupied

Disadvantages: Need to keep filling it up and freezing it.

What is it?
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It’s a rubber dog toy in the classic "kong" shape, its quite a unique shape. Difficult to describe but slightly cylindrical with a wider bottom part. Almost like three blobs stuck onto each other, each one getting progressively bigger, its easier to look at the photo! The kong is hollow and has a small hole at the top and a larger hole at the bottom. The puppy kongs come in pink and white or blue and white and have a marbled colour appearance.


What does it do?
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The Kong Company claims the benefits of the Puppy Kong are :

• Assists in teething.
• Aids in healthy development of your dog’s mouth.
• Promotes essential play.
• Encourages proper chewing habits.
• Soothes sore gums.

What does it cost?
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Prices vary from around £3.75 for a small puppy kong to £7.49 for the large puppy kong.

Where can I buy one?
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From any good pet shop! They have them in Pets at Home which is where we bought ours but you can also get them online from pet stores such as PetPlanet but many smaller local pet shops also have them as the Kong Company range of dog toys are very popular.

Are there any safety issues?
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The puppy kong should be inspected regularly for any signs of damage such as a crack or missing piece. The kong should be removed from the dog if damaged as the dog could choke on a piece. If your puppy destroys the Puppy Kong very quickly then it is probably too small for your dog and you should upsize to a larger Puppy Kong. If you have more than one dog in the house be careful to keep smaller dog toys away from larger dogs as they could try to swallow them whole and choke.


What about when my puppy grows?
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Puppy Kongs come in small, medium and large and it is important you choose the correct size. When your puppy matures and his adult teeth are in (around 6-9 months) you should stop using the Puppy Kong and give your dog a stronger toy with more resistance such as the adult kongs.


My Experience
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We rushed out to the pet shop to buy this after our puppy was going through a difficult teething spell. He was just wanting to chew soft things (mainly our arms and jumpers!) and his puppy teeth were coming out and his gums were sore and bleeding. We kept finding teeth lying around the house! We had read about Kongs on the Kong company website and felt this was something that might just benefit him. We of course chose the blue puppy kong as he is a boy - very stereotypical!!

Our puppy is not interested in the kong itself when it is empty. Some dogs will chew on them but our puppy is not keen on rubber toys. However fill the Kong with something tasty, freeze it and he is entertained for ages. We use boiled chicken for treats when we are training our puppy and we saved the water from this and used it to fill the kong. Well it smelled horribly chickeny to me but Oscar was in heaven! He licked and licked and chewed the end and had great fun. The coolness of the rubber and the ice seemed to help settle his gums and make him a little less grumpy. It certainly was beneficial to us that he chewed on the puppy kong and not on our arms or clothes!

A little tip when freezing the kongs. They have a small hole at the top so try and jam a little biscuit into the top to stop the water coming out, then put the kong upside down in a cup and fill the kong to the top. Then keeping the kong in the cup put it into the freezer. I found this the easiest way to fill the kong without liquid spilling.

Oscar now has the adult kongs and you can see the big difference in them. The puppy kongs are much softer and malleable much better for a sore mouth and gums whereas the adult kongs are harder stronger rubber for a good chew.

As well as using the Puppy Kong for teething you can also stuff treats or biscuits in to the kong to keep the dog amused as he tries to get them out by licking, pushing the kong with his nose or paws.

The puppy kong for us was a good buy as it soothed our puppies gums and made him feel better, well worth the money.

Summary: A dog toy designed to soothe puppies gums and keep them occupied