Puppy teething can be one of the most testing times of owning and looking after a dog.
It can be incredibly annoying and frustrating; their quest for comfort leads them to destroy furniture and even nip you.
This, mixed with a puppy's sharp and pointy teeth is not pleasant at all.
This article will give some background information on puppy teething and ways of helping the process to be a more pain free one for both sides.
But the one thing I think is the important lesson you can take form this article, and indeed any pet related article, is patience.
Patience is incredibly important, and ultimately the sign of a loving and caring owner.
It is the ability to weather out the negatives and bad parts of something for the finish line at the end of it: the loyalty that a dog has for you and their uncanny ability to bring joy and happiness into your life.
Anyway, back on to puppy teething.
Dogs are equipped with two sets of teeth; a 'temporary' set (called milk teeth) which appear around the first month of their life, followed by their 'permanent' set of teeth which push out their milk teeth and replace them around month four.
Whilst this does introduce a considerable about of discomfort and slight pain for the dog, which they relive by chewing things, any pain that seems out of the ordinary - pain that would cause your dog to stop eating for example - needs to be looked at by a vet immediately.
But the discomfort is something you can help, and ultimately you can lead your dog away from nibbling on you or the furniture you love.
You can do this by giving them chewing treats, that are not only tasty but designed in texture to stimulate the gums.
They're actually pretty commonplace and can be found in most supermarkets.
Another way you can distract them is by plastic toys, a 'Kong' ball filled with a liver paste being a favourite of my dog.