According to Dr Gruebel, who works at the Greenside Animal Hospital, puppies chew when they are teething as it is part of their natural behaviour.
“Many puppies chew for about four to seven months and may stop after a year, once they have all their teeth,” she said.
Gruebel advised dog owners to select the correct toys for their puppies, depending on whether they were ferocious chewers or not.
“In general, the bigger the dog, the stronger toy you may need,” she said.
Gruebel advised that rubber toys were a great choice. “Some rubber toys are hollow and allow you to stuff treats inside,” she explained.
“You get latex toys that I personally don’t prefer as dogs destroy them. Not the most durable of toys,” she added.
“Blocks of ice cubes work very well and you can add dog pellets to the ice cubes before freezing for a treat,” Gruebel said.
For the very ferocious dogs, hanging a tyre onto a tree can keep any dog busy for days.
Dr. Gruebel warned pet owners to not feed their pets bones, small rubber balls or anything small that they could easily swallow.
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