My Daughter Hates Her Teethers

Updated on January 09, 2013
S.E. asks from Caldwell, NJ
13 answers

my daughter is a little over 5 months old, for the past month or so she has been furiously chomping away on her fingers. She will chomp down so hard sometimes she will cry.. and its been happening more frequently lately. The first teether i bought her was a round silicone ring that had nubs that stuck out of it, they all had different feels to them -one had small bumps on it, one has a zigzag pattern, one is smooth and the other has a swirl pattern.. well no matter what side she used she hated it. Then i bought her one of those foot shaped teethers with the gel inside it, the ones you freeze.. well wether its frozen, refirgerated, or room temperature shes not a fan. My fiances grandmother bought her a bright starts teether, its honeslty looks like a necklace, it had plastic stars on it.. to be honest with you i wouldve never thought it was a teether if it didnt say so on the package, that thing is hard as a rock plastic... big surprise my daughter wont chew on it. Yesterday i had to go get her some formula and saw yet another kind of teether.. its a rubber ring for them to hold on to and then it has 3 nubs that stick off of the top, its a little squishy but not soft like the silicone one.. out of all the ones we've tried she liked that one the best but she still only chews on it for like 5 seconds and then drops it and shoves her hand in her mouth.
Any suggestions of teethers? .. id rather not buy every kind they make until i find one lol ... and also i was wondering is it possible maybe shes just not ready for one yet.. maybe shes not realizing that it will make her gums feel better, and wont hurt her like chewing on her hand will? should i just keep trying the ones i have and not buy anymore? will she eventually take to one of them

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D.C.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Neither of my kids ever liked plastic teethers. Have you tried a cool damp washcloth? Some babies are happy to chew on that. Cheap and easy.

4 moms found this helpful

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K.H.

answers from Detroit on

I used to put an ice cube in a washcloth for my youngest. He wasn't fond of the other kinds of teethers, either.

3 moms found this helpful
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C.S.

answers from Las Vegas on

She doesn't like them, so I wouldn't waste anymore time or money on them. Gerber makes a teething biscuit that you can try. Just watch her so she doesn't break too large a piece off, but usually they just gnaw away the outside of the biscuit.

She is old enough to know what makes her feel good. Her gums are tender and a piece of plastic doesn't seem it would sooth me either. Have you tried numbing her gums?

Before you know it those teeth will break through.

3 moms found this helpful

L.A.

answers from Austin on

I agree with the baby wash cloths. we would hand them over wet and sometimes we would freeze then.. For a while we kept about 6 of them in the freezer..

3 moms found this helpful

S.G.

answers from Grand Forks on

Sophie the Giraffe from Toys R Us is very popular. The babies I look after all seem to have one and all love to chew it.
http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=2854311

2 moms found this helpful
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R.K.

answers from Appleton on

Don't feel bad about it. None of my 4 kids used teethers, they chewed on other toys but not the teethers.

2 moms found this helpful
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K.L.

answers from Washington DC on

My kids never liked tethers either. But they loved chewing on frozen waffles! Of course that can get messy...

2 moms found this helpful
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K.O.

answers from Atlanta on

The only one my kids liked (all 4 of them liked the same one) was the Bright Starts star that vibrated. When they were little, I'd have to press on it too so it would have enough pressure to start vibrating but they would then sit there in contentment.

1 mom found this helpful

C.V.

answers from Columbia on

My kids never liked the plastic teethers. I did the same thing my mom did for me (and her mom did for her). Freeze damp washcloths.

They don't have to be "baby" washcloths. Just regular, clean washcloths. Run a load of them through the laundry and do a double rinse cycle so there's no fabric softener in them.

Another family trick that some folks might not agree with: Remove all the loose bits and pointy parts...and let her teethe on a chicken leg bone while at the dinner table. I remember my little brother gnawing away on chicken bones at about 8 months, and I did the same with my boys. As long as it's properly cleaned of all loose or sharp parts, it's perfectly fine while you're supervising.

1 mom found this helpful
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A.J.

answers from Eau Claire on

Yea, mine chewed on the little round teether for a couple minutes then moved on to better things. They seemed to really like the frozen wash clothes (already mentioned). Can also dip them in some diluted juice and freeze it for her to suck on.
They also loved the vibrating ones...we have a couple of them. Had to show them at first, but after that they loved 'em!
Even then...the 'new' toy would provide a few minutes off relief then they'd go find better things (pillows, couches, hands, plastic toys, etc)

1 mom found this helpful
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K.C.

answers from Los Angeles on

Not all kids like teethers at all. If she's not hurting her hands or making them raw by sucking/biting them all day, she might be ok.

I do sell one through Discovery Toys that is very popular. It has several different textures, it's easy to hold, and it has a light vanilla scent to soothe your baby. It can be put in the freezer, but can't be filled with water and doesn't have gel, so it doesn't stay cold as long. Here's a link if you want to give it a try: http://www.discoverytoys.com/PUBLICSTORE/stores/karenchao...

It's even on sale 10% off for the next few weeks.

When I work at the counter fair, people will buy it for their own children because they had one themselves as a baby. It's been a popular item for 30 years.

You may also want to look into the amber teething necklaces. I don't know much about them, but a lot of people swear they are wonderful.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.D.

answers from Pittsburgh on

My kids always liked the Gerber Biscuits (already mentioned). They would just chew away happily, you have to watch them closely of course. My kids also loved the pacifier, so we always had one in the freezer. When they got annoyed with the teeth we would give them the freezer pacifier and that was a big hit too.

1 mom found this helpful
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R.P.

answers from Seattle on

I spent a small fortune on teethers since my daughter started at two months per her Ped. My daughter would only chew on one thing consistently which was tags on blankets and a razberry teether. I had to replace the razberry once. It was for my frame of mind more than anything else. When my daughter got to about 6/7 months I got the things that have a little bag on the end for food. I put cantaloupe in it that was chilled and she would nah on that.
If she is in pain I use the hylands teething tablets. My daughter is also teething her 2 year molars right now and we just bought the teether by babies r us call teethifers. She bites down on it more than anything for constant pressure and she has liked that.
I hope this helps
http://www.amazon.com/Razbaby-009-RT-RaZ-berry-Teether-Re...

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