Anyone looking for chew wood for the first time faces four varieties and does not know which one. I will keep it short here: there are four levels of hardness, and your dog decides which is the right one. Here is the order from soft to hard, with what I would recommend to everyone.
The four woods at a glance
1. Coffee wood, the starter
Medium hard, slightly sweet, in four sizes. For puppies from teething onwards, for seniors, for everyone who has never had chew wood. If you do not know where to start: coffee wood.
2. Olive wood, the next level
Denser and harder than coffee wood, finished with olive oil so it is not so dry and smells more interesting for the dog. For dogs that take a coffee wood apart in a few days. Olive wood chew stick.
3. Ebony, for power chewers
The hardest wood we have. Only for persistent chewers with healthy teeth. Not for seniors and puppies, please. Ebony chew stick.
4. Chew root, the long term project
Not a trunk at all, but the root burl of tree heath. Even denser than ebony. With most dogs it lasts months, with some over a year. Soaked with olive oil. Chew root.
Chew root or chew wood, which is better?
Neither, it depends on the dog. A chew wood is a stick, the dog chews at the ends and works its way forward. The chew root is a lump, the dog gnaws all around it. Some dogs like one shape, some the other. What sets the root apart from all the woods is durability. Anyone with a dog that reduces everything to pieces within a week ends up with the root sooner or later.
Which dog gets what?
- Puppy during teething: coffee wood S. Nothing else.
- Normal chewer, 10 to 30 kilos: coffee wood or olive wood in the right size.
- Power chewer, whatever the weight: ebony or chew root.
- Senior with sensitive teeth: coffee wood, nothing harder.
- Dog on a diet: all four, because wood has no calories. That is the main reason many switch at all.
- Allergy sufferer: all four, because there is nothing animal in them.
Unsure? Take the set
The chew wood set contains coffee wood, ebony and chew root. With it you see within two weeks which hardness your dog prefers, and buy precisely next time.
Does it not splinter?
The question always comes up, so once more here: all four fray while chewing, soft fibres form, no sharp splinters. That distinguishes them from the stick in the woods, which does exactly the opposite. Still: always give under supervision, and replace as soon as a piece is so small that it fits entirely into the mouth.
Which size?
Longer than the mouth is wide. That is the only rule. When in doubt take the next size, there is no such thing as too big.
You will find all four varieties under chew woods and chew roots for dogs.
