Clumber Spaniel teething & drool-slippery toys

Clumber Spaniels are famously drooly at the best of times, and during teething that drool goes into overdrive — so toys becoming slippery and hard to grip is a really common frustration with this breed. Teething is one of the most intense periods of puppyhood, and having the right chew toys available — ones firm enough to satisfy but safe for developing teeth, and ideally chillable to soothe sore gums — makes a genuine difference to how much destruction happens. Before I point you in a specific direction: how old is your pup exactly, and is the main concern the drool making toys unsafe to chew, or is there also destruction happening around the house you're trying to get ahead of?

That makes complete sense — if she can't grip it, she'll lose interest fast and go looking for something with more traction, which is usually a chair leg or a skirting board. The drool issue with Clumbers is real and most standard rubber toys are too smooth once wet. Can I ask — is she chewing more on soft things like fabric, or is she going for harder surfaces? That'll help me confirm the right firmness level for her stage.

Perfect — that tells me she's in the early teething phase where the gums are sore and tender, so she's seeking pressure rather than hardness. At 14 weeks you don't want anything too rigid anyway; puppy teeth are fragile and can crack on dense nylon or hard rubber. My recommendation is the KONG Puppy toy — the classic red one, sized Small for now given she's still young even if she'll grow into a big dog. The KONG Puppy is made from a softer, pinker rubber compound specifically designed for puppy teeth, but crucially it has a ridged, textured exterior that gives her something to grip even when it's soaked in drool. You stuff it with a bit of wet food or cream cheese, freeze it overnight, and that cold centre soothes her gums while keeping her engaged long enough that the tea towels get ignored. The texture is the key thing here — it's genuinely different from smooth toys and holds up much better when wet.

Yes, it matters more than people think. The puppy-specific KONG uses a softer rubber blend — the standard Classic is too hard for 14-week teeth and could cause micro-fractures in the enamel before the adult teeth come through. On size: go Small now. It's the right fit for her mouth at this age and gives her a proper grip. When she's around 6 months and her adult teeth are coming in, move up to Large — Clumbers end up as substantial dogs and the Large will suit her long-term. Buying two Small ones is worth it so you always have a frozen one ready while the other is being cleaned.

Easiest options: a small spoonful of plain cream cheese, a scrape of peanut butter (make absolutely sure it contains no xylitol — check the label), or just her regular wet puppy food. Mix any of those with a little water, pack it loosely into the KONG, and freeze it for a few hours. The frozen version lasts much longer and the cold is genuinely soothing on inflamed gums. At 14 weeks keep the portions tiny — it's a distraction tool, not a meal. And rotate two or three of them so there's always one ready to go; that's really the trick to staying ahead of the tea towel situation.