Chewy the Hippo by Cheeky Chompers

I received this item at no cost to facilitate my review. All opinions are my own.

I’m pretty sure “teething” is the answer to every fussy period a baby goes through during their first year of life. Excessive drooling at 3 months, it’s teething. Your peaceful sleeping baby no longer wants to stay sleeping for more than 15 minutes at a time? It’s teething. Those extra gross acidic poops? It’s teething. Not everything that causes baby discomfort is teething related, but it certainly seems that way sometimes! Because babies are constantly teething (or maybe that’s just Petit Prince), I’m always on the lookout for products that help alleviate some of the discomfort and frustration baby might be experiencing when those little teeth are shifting around in those gums. Recently, I had the chance to try out a new teething toy with Petit Prince, and since I’ll do anything almost anything to give him some relief, I was keen to see what this toy could offer. Meet Chewy the Hippo Teether by Cheeky Chompers! Isn’t he cute? More than just a looker, this teething toy is perfect for helping baby through those awful and never ending teething days.  

The Details:

This adorable hippo is a fun, easy to grasp, chewable toy that gives babies something to stimulate their senses and gnaw away the discomfort of teething. “Chewy” the Hippo is made from natural latex rubber, and is completely safe for your baby to put in his mouth and chew away. It is free of BPA and phthalates, so you can feel confident that it’s the perfect teething toy for your child. Chewy’s arms (do hippos have arms?) form two handles that are just the right size for baby to grip onto. With raised features on Chewy’s face, chest, feet, and rear, this teething toy provides a nice tactile experience for baby. There are lots of chewable features on Chewy too! His ears, mouth, arms, and even his feet are all excellent options for your baby to chew to his heart’s content. Chewy the Hippo has a soothing smell, and even comes equipped with a squeaker so he makes some noise when baby squeezes Chewy’s belly.

Included with Chewy the Hippo is a detachable strap. It is secured with velcro, so you can open it up and attach Chewy to whatever you want! Feel like hanging him from some rings on the Jumperoo or Exersaucer? You can do that! Heading out in the stroller? Chewy can be attached to the straps there too! Wherever you go, you can easily bring Chewy so your child can have his favourite teething toy with him! Don’t worry, he’s not ridiculously massive either! He measures in at 12cm tall (that’s just 4.75″).

Chewy the Hippo is suitable right from birth making it a perfect baby shower gift!

How It Works:

Did Petit Prince go for Chewy the Hippo or was it a flop for him? It was a win! Petit Prince really does enjoy exercising his gums on Chewy the Hippo. The very first time I handed Chewy over, Petit Prince gripped right onto the “arms”/handles and found a lovely foot to gnaw on. The foot seems to be Petit Prince’s chewing zone of choice on this Cheeky Chompers teething toy, and who can blame him? Chewy’s got the cutest little toes.

Let’s talk about the soothing smell of Chewy. It’s hard for me to really describe the smell, but let me try to explain what it’s like. Other teething toys that we’ve had smell strongly of latex rubber. You know the smell I’m talking about. It’s not what I would call pleasant or appealing. Chewy the Hippo does NOT smell like latex rubber and that’s a good thing. Is it a particularly strong scent? No. It’s really more so that it doesn’t smell like rubber.

One feature I really wanted to love was the detachable strap. In theory, this is awesome. This could potentially prevent Chewy from going missing while on the go, and it could keep him from getting dropped onto a dirty floor in a public place (like a public bathroom). The trouble I have with the strap is that the velcro closure just isn’t strong enough. Petit Prince is 10 months old, and I’m pretty sure he’s not Hercules, but he can easily pull Chewy hard enough to open the strap and send Chewy and the strap flying. If the strap were secured with a snap instead of velcro, I’m certain that this wouldn’t happen (or at the very least it wouldn’t happen nearly as often). Unfortunately, that velcro meant the strap was quickly removed and replaced with some rings to secure Chewy to the stroller harness. I also found the strap to be quite short. It was fine if Petit Prince was just going to hold Chewy up to his mouth, but the moment he started flailing his hands (which he does a lot), the strap was just too short.

How about that squeaker? Not all squeakers are created equal. Some are WAY too loud, others don’t stand the test of a baby squeezing it almost constantly. Chewy the Hippo’s squeaker is neither of those things. Not loud enough to drive me crazy before I’ve had my first coffee of the day, but still showing no signs of giving out after a lot of use.

Despite the shortcomings of the detachable strap, Chewy the Hippo is a fun teething toy that Petit Prince really enjoys. I like that it contains no BPA or phthalates, Petit Prince likes that it’s a chewable hippo. Win win!

Pros:

• Made with natural latex rubber
• BPA and phthalate free
• Food Grade paint
• Easy to grip
• Variety of chewing surfaces with different textures
• Doesn’t smell strongly of rubber
• Includes a detachable strap

Cons:

• Detachable strap secures with velcro
• Detachable strap is short

Final Thoughts:

Chewy the Hippo by Cheeky Chompers is a nice, well designed teething toy. It’s really a great item to include as a baby shower gift for an expecting mom! Chewy is safe for baby to chew on, and quiet enough not to drive mom crazy! Chewy the Hippo by Cheeky Chompers will be available at specialized baby retailers throughout Canada, and online at Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby. It retails for $24.99.

If you’d like to connect with Cheeky Chompers or to learn more about Chewy the Hippo, you can follow them on Facebook RIGHT HERE.