First chew toy for Shar Pei puppy

A 2-month-old Shar Pei is a brilliant first-time chewer situation to get right — that breed has a naturally strong jaw even as a puppy, but at 8 weeks their milk teeth are still delicate and anything too hard will do real damage. The right chew toy for a serious chewer needs to be durable enough to last but not so hard it risks cracking teeth, and that balance matters even more with puppies. For a Shar Pei pup specifically, I'd want to know: is this about giving them something constructive to mouth on from the start, or are you already seeing early signs of destructive chewing or teething discomfort?

Smart thinking — getting ahead of it at 8 weeks is exactly the right move. A mouthy Shar Pei pup that discovers furniture first is a much harder habit to break later. How big is she at the moment, and do you know roughly how heavy she's likely to get as an adult? Shar Peis vary a fair bit — some stay around 20kg, others push 30kg — and it affects which size to go for.

Perfect — that gives me everything I need. For an 8-week Shar Pei puppy who's already mouthy and headed toward a solid adult size, I'd go straight to the KONG Puppy in Medium. It's made from a softer pink rubber formula specifically designed for puppy teeth and gums, so it won't crack her milk teeth or hurt her jaw, but it's still robust enough that she won't destroy it in a week. You can stuff it with a little soft puppy food or yoghurt and freeze it, which does double duty — it satisfies the urge to chew and soothes the teething discomfort she's about to hit hard over the next few months. Medium is the right call now; it'll see her through the teething phase, and when she's closer to 6 months and her adult teeth are coming in, you move up to the KONG Classic in Large. Don't go straight for a hard nylon or rubber toy — her jaw isn't ready for that yet regardless of how determined she seems.

With the KONG Puppy, supervised for the first few sessions is sensible just so you can see how she interacts with it — but it's one of the safer unsupervised options once you're confident she's using it correctly rather than trying to tear chunks off. If she's chewing and licking at it normally, you're fine to leave it with her. The one thing to avoid is leaving any chew toy with a very young puppy if she's in a crate for a long stretch — not because the KONG is dangerous, but because you want to be around the first few times to build the right association with it.

You're set. KONG Puppy Medium, stuff it with something soft, freeze it overnight before you give it to her — she'll be busy for a good while and your furniture will thank you. When she hits the 5–6 month mark and you see her getting bored of it faster, that's your cue to step up to the Classic. Good luck with her — Shar Pei puppies are a handful but absolutely worth it.