Ouch! The Goldendoodle puppy teething stage can be challenging for our adorable puppies and for us too.
If you’re the parent of a Goldendoodle, you may be wondering, “When do Goldendoodles lose their puppy teeth?” And also thinking, “Hopefully soon!”
I get it! I’ve been in your (slightly chewed?) shoes!
Sadie, our family’s Goldendoodle puppy, recently chewed her way through the puppy teething stage. From the time she was about 12 weeks old until she was six months old, chewing was her thing.
Yes, that’s our Goldendoodle puppy, Sadie, in the photo below chewing on the frame of her three month milestone sign.
But I’m happy to report that once her adult teeth came in, it got better!
So what does the journey through the teething process look like for a Goldendoodle puppy? For you? For your shoes and the chair legs?
As part of our continuing series on bringing up a Goldendoodle puppy, we’re chronicling our puppy’s first year.
By the end of this article, you’ll have the nitty-gritty on when Goldendoodles lose their teeth, how to manage the teething process, and even some dental care suggestions for good oral health.
As a Goldendoodle mom with 10 years of experience and as a research hound, I hope to share some strategies with you that I’ve learned along the way.
So, let’s get started.
When do Goldendoodles lose their puppy teeth?
Much like human babies, Goldendoodle puppies go through a teething stage. During this time, the adult teeth begin to erupt through the puppy’s gums and the puppy teeth become loose and then fall out.
Typically, Goldendoodles start the teething process around 12 weeks of age and lose their puppy teeth through six months of age. By the end of six months, most puppies have lost all their puppy teeth. However, every puppy is unique and timing can vary.
In theory, losing puppy teeth sounds easy-peasy enough. Adult teeth erupt and puppy teeth fall out. But in reality, puppies are chewing and gnawing nonstop to get through the process.
Before we get into more about teething, let’s start by learning when puppies get their teeth and how many teeth they have.
How many teeth do puppies have?
Like all puppies, Goldendoodle puppies don’t have any teeth when they are born. By around five to six weeks of age, the baby teeth grow in. Puppies have 28 baby teeth along the top and bottom gum lines of their mouth.
Puppy teeth are also called milk teeth or deciduous teeth. Types of puppy teeth include incisors, canines, premolars, and molars.
Goldendoodle puppies, like other breeds of puppies, have all their baby teeth (28 total) by around five to six weeks old.
Understanding the teething process
As the adult or permanent teeth start to erupt through the gums, the puppy teeth start to fall out. Puppies lose their deciduous teeth gradually, and the adult teeth come in gradually too.
The photo below shows our 3-month-old Goldendoodle dog’s baby teeth.
Much like human babies, teething can be a challenging time for our puppies. Teething coincides with the time the baby teeth are coming loose. During the teething process, your Goldendoodle may feel some discomfort, and can’t find enough things to satisfy that need to chew.
For dog parents, it can be challenging to provide soothing chew toys that will withstand chewing and still help your puppy through the process. (More on chew toys a little further down in this article.)
Our puppy’s teething experience
At our Goldendoodle’s three month veterinary well check visit, our veterinarian commented that Sadie had eight adult teeth.
It was a “don’t blink” moment for me. Just like that, our puppy had already lost teeth and had eight permanent ones! Yes, our 3-month-old Goldendoodle puppy had been chewing everything in sight, but I hadn’t even noticed she was getting her pearly white adult teeth.
So, over the next few weeks, our family started watching for signs Sadie was losing teeth. In doing so, every once in a while, we’d find a tiny tooth.
In fact, I even fished one tooth from her mouth thinking that it was something she’d found on the floor.
To my surprise, I found a slightly blood-tinged puppy tooth that she’d been rolling around in her mouth like it was a pebble.
Next, let’s look at some signs that your puppy may be teething.
Signs your puppy is teething
If your Goldendoodle puppy has gone from being a teddy bear to Chewy-bacca (or even Sharknado), it could be a sign of teething.
To help relieve some of the discomfort that goes along with teething, puppies chew. And chew. And chew.
It’s one of the biggest signs of teething. Your puppy may gnaw on all sorts of items—from something as soft as the corner of a pillow to something as hard as a chair leg.
Another sign that you may notice? Dog toys or other items your puppy has chewed may have a tinge of blood on them.
Or you may even find a baby tooth that’s fallen out and lying on the floor or couch. (Yes, in the photo below, I’m holding one of our Goldendoodle’s tiny puppy teeth that I found on the couch.)
Puppy teething progression
Here’s a timeline showing how our Goldendoodle puppy’s teething progressed between three and six months of age:
- Three months— As mentioned above, at three months our puppy had already lost puppy teeth and had eight adult teeth.
- Four months —As much as we tried redirection, the corners of decorative pillows were a favorite teething “toy” for our 4-month-old Goldendoodle who was actively teething and losing many puppy teeth at this age.
- Five months—By the end of five months, our Goldendoodle was losing fewer teeth and we noticed her insatiable need to chew had subsided…somewhat. During our Goldendoodle puppy’s fifth month, we found two puppy teeth on the floor.
- Six months— By the end of six months, our puppy had beautiful, pearly white adult teeth and her constant chewing had lessened considerably.
With a better idea about “when” puppies teethe, let’s move on to some strategies we used to help make the teething process easier for our Goldendoodle puppy.
5 tips for helping your puppy through the teething stage
During this stage, we noticed that our puppy seemed to have a hard time settling down, would chew anything, and needed plenty of chew toys. Here are five tips based on our experience:
- Provide a variety of puppy-safe chew toys. (BTW…always supervise your puppy. No dog toy is indestructible.)
- Get in the habit of picking up your shoes and belongings. We ended up putting away our decorative pillows and even our area rug because both were attractive “chew toys” for our fluffy-coated T-Rex.
- Redirect chewing away from off-limits items and quickly offer up a dog chew toy.
- Offer plenty of mental and physical enrichment. Goldendoodles are smart. We kept our Goldendoodle occupied with sniffari walks, dog enrichment games, and physical play.
- Have realistic expectations and be patient. Even with our best efforts, our puppy stilled chewed on things that looked like toys to her but not to her humans. Having realistic expectations is a helpful part of the parenting plan.
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Now that we’ve gone through some tips, let’s talk dog chew toys for teething pups.
Note: Happy-Go-Doodle is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
Choosing chew toys for teething Goldendoodles
Chewing helps puppies relieve some of the discomfort that goes along with teething. You can help your puppy satisfy his or her need to chew by offering plenty of puppy toys made from a variety of materials and textures.
One of my favorite tips? When our puppy was settling in to chew on something off-limits, I redirected her to a puppy chew toy made of a similar material (i.e. Fabric couch cushion? Redirect to a fabric dog chew toy). (Note this tip does not apply if your puppy chews on something ultra hard. See the kneecap smack rule a little further down in this article.)
In the photo below, Sadie is chewing on a Playology puppy teething toy. This was one of the dog toys that we found could both satisfy her need to chew and stand up to her chewing!
At our puppy’s well check visit, I brought a couple of dog chew toys along with me to get our veterinarian’s expert opinion on what types of toys puppies can and cannot chew. Our veterinarian shared these two helpful guidelines about dog chew toys:
- Thumbnail press rule: Press your thumbnail into the dog chew toy. Does your thumbnail leave a slight impression on the toy’s surface? No? Then that toy is too hard. However, if you press your thumbnail into the toy and it does leave an impression, then that toy is not too hard.
- Kneecap smack rule: If a chew toy is too hard to smack against your own kneecap, it’s too hard for your dog to chew on.
So what’s the risk of giving your puppy a toy that doesn’t pass these two tests? It’s a good question and one that I asked my vet.
If you give your puppy a dog chew toy that’s hard, you run the risk of hurting your puppy’s baby teeth or even permanent teeth. By following these guidelines above, you may reduce the risk of your puppy suffering from the pain of a broken or cracked tooth.
What are some toys and chews that don’t pass the kneecap smack rule and the thumbnail press rule? Here are a few to avoid:
- Deer antlers
- Cow hooves
- Hard nylon toys
- Bones
If you’re unsure about which toys are safe for your puppy, your veterinarian is always a great resource. Additionally, Dr. Julie Buzby’s article, Are Antlers Safe for Dogs offers more in-depth information on the kneecap smack rule along with photos of dog tooth fractures.
The Kong puppy binkie pictured above was one of Sadie’s favorite chew toys when she was three and four months old.
Frequently asked questions about teething
What does a puppy tooth look like?
A puppy’s tooth is white and varies in shape depending on the type of tooth. If you find a puppy tooth that’s recently fallen out of your puppy’s mouth, the tooth may be tinged pink from the blood that’s part of tooth loss.
You can look at pictures of puppy teeth throughout this article to see what our puppy’s baby teeth looked like.
When do puppies stop losing teeth?
By the end of six months, your puppy may have stopped losing teeth. This means that puppy teething should start subsiding!
But the reprieve from chewing due to puppy teething may be short-lived. Often, at around eight to ten months puppies begin a second chewing phase when the adult teeth are settling. So keep the chew toys coming!
Also, it’s important to mention that your veterinarian is your partner in your puppy-raising journey. If you have any questions about teething or your puppy’s adult or baby teeth, please reach out to your vet.
How many teeth do adult dogs have?
Like most dogs, full grown Goldendoodles have 42 adult teeth. By the way, that’s 10 more teeth than humans have. Adult canine teeth, also called permanent teeth, consist of incisors, canines, premolars, and molars.
Should I brush my dog’s teeth?
If you’re wondering whether or not to brush your dog’s teeth, here’s what the experts say..
- The Veterinary Oral Health Council: “Brushing is the gold standard.”
- The American Veterinary Medical Association(AVMA): “Regularly brushing your pet’s teeth is the single most effective thing you can do to keep their teeth healthy…”
And here’s why I wanted to include a shout-out in favor of toothbrushing…
When our now senior Goldendoodle was a young adult, I learned the value of toothbrushing the hard way. I was discouraged when our veterinarian gently explained that our Goldendoodle, who was two at the time, had the teeth of a 7-year-old dog. My half-hearted, inconsistent toothbrushing was not winning the battle against tartar buildup.
It was a lesson that stuck with me.
To this day, I brush my senior Goldendoodle’s teeth daily. The result? Knowing proper brushing techniques and brushing consistently put Chloe back on track to excellent oral health!
For all the tea along with helpful brushing tips, please read my story on how to brush your dog’s teeth.
Goldendoodle teething
Finally, as a dog mom, I want to encourage you on your Goldendoodle puppy’s journey. You’re doing a great job helping your doggo through puppy teething. And it does get easier!
By looking for the signs, implementing some of these tips, speaking with your veterinarian, giving yourself some grace, and parenting your puppy with an abundance of love and patience, you’re well on the way to helping your puppy through the T-Rex stage. And soon everything will be back to those “teddy bearable” days again.