Nipping VS Teething — The Truth and The Difference

Hello and welcome to another ‘truth about’ post! I’m always happy to attempt to demystify another myth in the industry and this one is very near and dear.

I remember the feeling of being lost and resentful of my very first puppy. I remember the feeling of overwhelm that quickly took over once I realized my puppy was a land shark!

Today, we’ll talk about nipping, and we’ll also talk about teething because they are most definitely NOT the same thing. They have different action, different intention and different results.

First, in case you are a skimmer, let’s define both — then we’ll get into why pups do each!

Teething — This happens! It’s a definite thing. As dogs grow, they lose their baby teeth. They will chew (and chew and chew) to stimulate the exchange from baby teeth to adult. The age this happens can vary from breed to breed and even from dog to dog, but the approximation is that pups will lose their ‘milk’ teeth and grow their adult teeth between 3–6 months of age.

Nipping — Nipping is a whole other animal…. Nipping is grabbing at, biting at, tearing at and often putting pressure behind. Nipping is not done with the same intention of aiding the growth of new teeth. It is not done to soothe gums or remove baby teeth. It is done with the intention of…