Night notes
The top rail, and the baby who chews it
Teeth arrive, and the first thing in reach is the rail the baby is standing at. That is a different problem from the one a liner solves, and it wants a different piece.
Why the rail gets chewed
A baby who has pulled up to standing has the top rail at mouth height and both hands free. Sore gums do the rest. The marks left in the wood are the visible part; the part parents mind more is the finish coming off into a mouth that is chewing it.
What a rail cover is
A sleeve that sits over the top edge and fastens underneath, covering the wood along the length the baby can reach. It is not padding and it is not a bumper. It goes on the top of the rail, not the inside of it, which is the whole difference between this and a liner.
The timing runs the other way
This is worth saying plainly, because it catches people out. A liner comes out when the baby pulls up to standing. A rail cover becomes useful at roughly the same moment, for the same reason. The two pieces do not overlap in the crib so much as hand over to each other.
Fitting it
Measure the length of the rail the baby can actually reach, which is usually the long side they stand at rather than all four. Fasten underneath and pull it snug: a cover that slides along the rail is a cover a determined baby will get off.
The pieces this is about
Rail & Teething Covers, most talked about first.
This page is here to explain how our panels are cut and fitted. It is not medical advice, and it is not a substitute for it. For anything about how your baby sleeps, ask your pediatrician.