Giraffe Teether

Some little uns are blessed with sailing through the terrible teething stages and then others, like our darling daughter, have an awful time as each toothy peg cuts through the gum.

The market is swamped with teething solutions and we have tried pretty much all of them in an attempt to ease Lily's suffering. Generally speaking when it comes to traditional teethers, even those that you put in the fridge so that they offer something cool to gnaw on, our little girl is having none of it.

The first indication that teething has reared its ugly head – bar the noticeable red cheeks, excess drool and finger biting – is that Lily will start gnawing on various toys. Some are fine – and safe - for her to use as makeshift teethers. Others, of course, could be potentially dangerous and so we have to keep a watchful eye over what she is attempting to teeth on.

This delightful little giraffe has been manufactured since the 1960's specifically to deal with the troublesome teething stages. Made of soft rubber so that it is gentle on the gums while also offering good 'chewability', we decided to give it a go with Lily to see how it fared.

Initially Lily was more intrigued with the fact that she could easily make the toy squeak, whether by squeezing the giraffe's belly or bending its long neck. As she has also reached the 'delightful' throwing stage, she has also found that the toy is quite light and so can be thrown a good distance!  

As Sophie – the name given to the giraffe by its designer – has become a more familiar toy to our little girl she has, however, started to explore its use beyond a toy and as luck – or rather bad luck – would have it she does seem to be teething again despite having just cut her two bottom molars! And so Sophie has had a good old chew over the last few days. She seems particularly pleased with herself when she is able to chew the head or ears while simultaneously making the toy squeak!!

It's a shame I hadn't come across Sophie when Lily was younger as I think it would have had a greater association with teething comfort had I been able to introduce it to her as a baby. I would certainly recommend Mums of younger babies purchase Sophie at the first signs of teething as this friendly-faced toy could then become a constant source of comfort throughout teething. I would have definitely had her in my bag when we were out and about as well as close by at home! That said, I am sure Sophie will still become a firm favourite of my daughter, even at her age. 

Click here for more information about the Vulli Sophie