Baby Chewing Crib To Bits - Advice Please!!!

[belle&sebastiansmom]

My son is almost 15 months old. He's a strong, sturdy boy, weighs about 28 pounds.

He's been eating his crib. He's chewed off the paint and down to the wood in various spots. Little teeth marks all over the crib. Those plastic crib teeth guards don't work, he chews around them.

The last straw was when he got a good chunk of paint off and had white flecks of paint all over his mouth and the wood has started to splinter.

So what do I do? He's too big to sleep in a pack-n-play. He's broken two pack-n-play bottoms just by jumping in them.

Anyone else have this problem in a very young toddler? Should I put the crib mattress on the floor and try to let him sleep like that?

He can't eat wood and paint chips, but I think he's too young to be without the crib.

Help!

 

[clarabelle]

Thats what I would do
Just put his crib matress on the floor and completely chid-proof the room.
I would also consider turning his doorknob around so he can't lock himself in.
Good luck!

 

[janette]

My youngest DD started trying to climb out of her crib and was almost successful at 13mths. I took her out of the crib and transitioned her to a regular bed. It was kind of a pain since she could get up on her own but it was better than the alternative. I'd move him to a regular bed.

 

[Bluestars]

Can you put his mattress inside one of those playards that are made out of plastic? Maybe you can hook two of them together. I know they sell expandable ones.

Maybe one like this:
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8457890

 

[sunnyday123]

wow. I had a horse that used to eat the fence to try to get out, but never heard of a baby trying it!

Good luck, my little brother was in a toddler bed a 9 months because he was climbing out of his crib by then. He just swung over and then let go.

 

[Straycat]

I wouldn't put him on the floor on the mattress if you don't have to, at 15 months, he really should be in a crib (just my opinion, of course).

My DD (almost 3) chewed her first crib like crazy when she was that young.

When I started seeing the flecks of paint on her face, I knew it was time to solve the problem. This is what I did to prevent her from eating the crib -

First I used a product called Gummi Crib Rail. Any plastic type rail guard would probably work but I had a sleigh type bed that normal rail guards didn't fit.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00014PLAO

I did try this product on it's own first but my little one found that she could chew near the ends of it and get it to come up, so I bought another pack of it.

I put the new one on and decided to put a cloth rail cover over it. I ended up making the cloth rail cover but if you have a "normal" crib, you should be able to find these via a google search.

Once I had the plastic rail guard and the cloth rail guard over it, the crib was safe and didn't get eaten anymore.

Hope this helps.

 

[Michelle67]

I'm so sorry but I am . There is actually something crazy that my kids didn't do!

Best wishes, OP. I was thinking toddler bed, but it sure is hard to keep them contained that way. If it makes you feel any better, I couldn't get any of my kids to sleep in a crib at all, let alone by 15 months.

 

[Straycat]

I just noticed your user name... your kids names are belle and sebastian? awesome name choices.

My two favorite disney movies are Beauty and the Beast and Little Mermaid. I have a just turned 2 year old named Sebastian and a soon to be 3 year old DD. She was almost given a Bella type name (isabella, arabella, etc) because I love that movie but DH wasn't feeling it. She ended up with Arielle for her middle name, named after Ariel from Lil Mermaid.

 

[Mrsduck101]

My son is almost 15 months old. He's a strong, sturdy boy, weighs about 28 pounds.

He's been eating his crib. He's chewed off the paint and down to the wood in various spots. Little teeth marks all over the crib. Those plastic crib teeth guards don't work, he chews around them.

The last straw was when he got a good chunk of paint off and had white flecks of paint all over his mouth and the wood has started to splinter.

So what do I do? He's too big to sleep in a pack-n-play. He's broken two pack-n-play bottoms just by jumping in them.

Anyone else have this problem in a very young toddler? Should I put the crib mattress on the floor and try to let him sleep like that?

He can't eat wood and paint chips, but I think he's too young to be without the crib.

Help!

My son (now 4) was a crib chewer. I was constantly telling him not to chew on it, but it looked like a beaver was sneaking in his room at night...

His crib wasn't painted, but he chewed a lot of wood off of it. I couldn't put him in a toddler bed either, he wouldn't stay in it.

I never had a solution. I ended up giving that crib away on freecycle to someone who only needed a crib occasionally.

He sleeps in the bottom bunk with big brother on the top now, and it seems like a 100 years ago he chewed on his crib

 

[pooh4evr]

never had that problem but we started with twin bed about that age - yes they get up put a gate at the door- hope for the best! good luck

 

[disney kid at heart]

My son (now 4) was a crib chewer. I was constantly telling him not to chew on it, but it looked like a beaver was sneaking in his room at night...

His crib wasn't painted, but he chewed a lot of wood off of it. I couldn't put him in a toddler bed either, he wouldn't stay in it.

I never had a solution. I ended up giving that crib away on freecycle to someone who only needed a crib occasionally.

He sleeps in the bottom bunk with big brother on the top now, and it seems like a 100 years ago he chewed on his crib

That's funny because i was just getting ready to post when I read yours. My twins sons back in the early 70's did the same thing to their cribs and it REALLY did look like beavers ate it halfway down each spindle thingy.

 

[sdarwkcabemanmy]

Is it possible your son has Sensory Processing Disorder?

I only ask because my DS does and he's also a chewer. He never chewed on his crib, but he's chewed on everything else. The only solution I can think of is to A)put his mattress on the floor and B) re-direct him when you see him chewing on inappropriate things. You can order industrial-grade chewtoys for toddlers on the internet that withstand even the toughest chewers.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

What is he doing in the crib awake for so long that he is able to chew it apart? I'm not being rude but just wondering how he has time to chew so much.
I would switch to a bed. By a year my kids did not want to sleep in a crib. They slept in a bed. Good luck!

 

[BelleBoo&AmisMum]

I would get one of these http://www.amazon.com/Tots-Mind-Cozy-Crib-White/dp/B00014PLAY it's a complete tent that goes between the baby and crib. Otherwise I'd put some of that thumb sucking deterrent on the crib or bitter apple, but I'm not sure that's baby safe, mine got some on her hand and licked it after spraying it for the dog and sputtered for a long time.

 

[Colleen27]

DS did that, and we did what the previous poster suggested - a bitter coating on the parts without the guard got him to stop chewing the wood. I don't remember exactly what we used any more (it's been 10 years!) but it was some sort of lemon or grapefruit extract I think. Whatever it was, it smelled very nice and citrus-y. His pediatrician suggested it and it worked very quickly.

BTW, my chewer is a Sebastian too. Maybe it goes with the name? LOL

 

[clgwli]

I was highly against the idea of putting my child on the floor without a crib. To me that was just asking for trouble even if baby proofed room. I've heard too many bad things happening from others. More or less they had to remove everything to make it baby proof which wasn't practical or possible in my home (no place for the furniture) My child didn't bite but my child would scratch the heck out of the crib with the fingernails. Even when clipped my child could dig in if we took took long to get after waking up.

I made something quite similar to this out of fleece
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3190434

That way I could cover up wherever was being scratched to death.

Good luck.

 

[belle&sebastiansmom]

Thanks for the replies and links. It's nice to know that there are many other beavers out there! Still not sure what we're going to do, since he's so young. Totally makes me nervous!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Thanks for the replies and links. It's nice to know that there are many other beavers out there! Still not sure what we're going to do, since he's so young. Totally makes me nervous!

What are you nervous about? Maybe we can offer some suggestions to help you feel more comfortable?

 

[belle&sebastiansmom]

What are you nervous about? Maybe we can offer some suggestions to help you feel more comfortable?

Thank you for asking.

Nervous about him having free roam of his bedroom, even removing toys, anything that can hurt him, it still makes me a bit scared. I can't take away everything in his room. And nervous about the transition itself.

He's a very good baby, he's so happy in the mornings, that he never makes a peep, which is probably when this chewing habit occurs. I guess I worry about waking up to him screaming because he woke up and started playing with his toys and got hurt somehow. I know, that can happen at anytime with kids, and he will get hurt if he continues to eat paint chips and wood.

I've looked at the crib teething guards and I just don't think they would work. He doesn't bother to chew on the guards that are already on the rails (came molded onto the crib), but rather he gnaws on the head and foot board, which are thicker and curved. I really think he would just rip the guards off.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

If it makes you feel any better all 4 of our kids were in a bed at less than a year old. I did not remove anything from the room. I did not put up a gate. If I had stairs then I would gate those but I don't. I covered the plugs which I do all over the house and that's about it. I am a pretty light sleeper so if they get up I hear them. I have the mattress and boxspring on the floor. It's easy for them to get on and off. I would just do the normal safety stuff that you would do in any other room. I know it's harder on us Moms than the kids because we feel like they are getting so big so fast.