ARK Bite Tube

A hollow oral motor tool designed for controlled biting and chewing practice, with two different diameters to vary the challenge.

ARK’s Bite Tube is a versatile chew tool for individuals working on biting and chewing skills, jaw strength and stability, or those who simply benefit from oral sensory input.

Unlike a solid chew tool, the Bite Tube is hollow, allowing it to compress and collapse more easily when bitten. This provides less resistance to the jaw and can make it a useful starting point for individuals with limited jaw strength.

At either end you’ll find a different tube diameter. These provide two different jaw heights, allowing biting and chewing to be practised at different levels using the same tool.

And for feeding therapy? There’s another clever feature. The hollow ends can be dipped into purée for tastes or filled with a small amount of runny purée, combining biting and chewing practice with the experience of food.

Why we love it

It’s simple, but gives us lots of ways to grade biting and chewing practice.

The hollow design provides less resistance than many solid chew tools, which can be particularly helpful when someone is just beginning to work on biting or has limited jaw strength.

We also love having two different diameters on one tool. Changing the diameter changes how open the jaw needs to be when biting down, giving practitioners another way to adapt the activity to the individual.

And being able to add a taste of purée makes it especially useful in feeding therapy, where we may want to start connecting the movement of biting and chewing with food.

Great for

• Early biting and chewing practice
• Individuals with limited jaw strength
• Building jaw strength and stability
• Practising repetitive biting and chewing movements
• Working at different jaw heights
• Individuals who prefer a hollow, more collapsible chew
• Introducing tastes during biting and chewing practice
• Dipping into purées or filling with runny purée during feeding activities
• Oral sensory input and sensory chewing
• Feeding and oral motor therapy

Choose your toughness

Standard – Softest
The softest and easiest level to compress. A good starting point for individuals with very limited jaw strength or those who need less resistance.

Medium Firm – More resistance
Firmer than Standard while still retaining plenty of chewiness. A good progression when more resistance is appropriate.

Very Firm – Most resistance
The toughest option, providing the greatest resistance and feedback to the jaw.

A feeding therapist’s note

What I particularly like about the Bite Tube is how many variables we can change with one seemingly simple tool.

We can choose the toughness, select between two different tube diameters and decide whether we’re using it purely for biting practice or incorporating a taste of food.

Because the tube is hollow, it collapses more readily when someone bites down. This can make it a useful place to start for an individual who isn’t yet ready to work against the resistance of a solid chew tool.

The two diameters are also useful when we’re working on biting at different jaw heights. And when appropriate, dipping the tube into purée – or placing a small amount inside – allows us to pair the biting movement with taste and begin making the activity more food-based.

As always, how the tool is used should be guided by the individual’s skills and feeding goals.

Product details

• Hollow tube design that compresses when bitten
• Two different tube diameters
• Allows biting practice at different jaw heights
• Can be dipped into puréed foods for tastes
• Hollow tube can be filled with runny purée for feeding practice
• Available in three toughness levels
• Approximately 12.5 cm long
• Suitable for oral motor, feeding and sensory applications

Important

This product should be used under appropriate adult supervision.

No chew tool is indestructible. Inspect regularly for signs of wear or damage and replace when necessary.

When used as part of feeding or oral motor therapy, activities should be appropriate for the individual’s skills and needs. If you, your loved one or your client has significant feeding or swallowing difficulties, seek individual guidance from their treating speech pathologist or other appropriately qualified health professional.

We send Australia-wide. Delivery costs and timings, and how to arrange a return, are set out on our shipping & returns page.

If something isn’t right for you, get in touch and we’ll sort it out.