Puppy teething with an older dog stealing toys

A 10-week-old Border Collie being robbed of its chew toys by an older dog — that's a frustrating one, because the puppy genuinely needs those toys right now. Teething is one of the most intense periods of puppyhood, and having the right chew toys available — firm enough to satisfy, safe for developing teeth, and ideally chillable to soothe sore gums — makes a real difference to how much destruction happens elsewhere. The older dog stealing them just takes that lifeline away. Can you tell me a bit more about what's going on? How big is the older dog, and does the older one actually chew the toys or just take them to guard them?

That's a classic Labrador move — resource guarding without even using the resource. So the problem isn't that he's destroying them, it's that the puppy never gets a look in. Are you able to supervise them together during chew time, or is this mostly happening when you're not watching closely?

Right, so you need something the puppy can use that the Lab is genuinely less interested in — and ideally something small enough that it suits a 10-week-old Border Collie's mouth but not really satisfying for a grown Labrador to bother with. I'd go with the KONG Puppy toy in the small size. It's sized specifically for puppy mouths, the rubber is softer and gentler on developing teeth, and you can stuff it or freeze it with a bit of wet food or puppy-safe paste to keep the pup engaged. Here's the key thing: a stuffed, frozen KONG is much more interesting to the puppy as an active reward than it is to a Lab who just wants to collect idle objects. It won't eliminate every theft, but it dramatically shifts the odds — a frozen stuffed toy is worth defending a bit, which the puppy will start to do, and a Lab is less likely to bother stealing something that requires actual effort. Keep one or two prepped in the freezer so you always have one ready to hand directly to the puppy.

Stick with the KONG Puppy specifically — it comes in a pink or blue softer rubber that's designed for teeth that are still coming in. At 10 weeks a Border Collie's adult teeth haven't arrived yet and the classic red KONG is a bit too firm for that stage. The puppy version is also a slightly different size shape that suits smaller jaws. Once she's around 9 months and her adult teeth are settled, you can graduate her to the classic red one. For now the puppy version is genuinely the right call.

The main thing is to make chew time a separate activity when you can — even just putting the Lab in another room for 10 or 15 minutes while the puppy has her KONG means she actually gets the benefit of it. Border Collies are smart and she'll quickly learn that the frozen KONG is hers if it consistently appears for her and not for him. You don't need to do this every single time, but doing it regularly enough builds the habit. Beyond that, puppies this age also chew partly out of boredom, so short mental enrichment sessions — which Border Collies especially love — will take the edge off the urge between chew sessions.