Alternative to Rawhide?

[lisabethshaw]

Kongs & Hol-ee roller ball! Beef bones?

Hi.

Shiva is a real chewer, too, and has destroyed his Rhino Bone (big black one) and a regular Nylabone (both were supposed to be indestructible!).

The only toys he hasn't managed to destroy are his Kongs (big red one may not last too much longer & small-ish black one is still going strong!)

Also, for some reason Shiva hasn't destroyed his "hol-ee roller" ball. He loves that thing! (http://www.petsmart.com/global/prod...<>ast_id=2534374302023689&bmUID=1105534447722)

We tried rawhide and greenies but he's a gulper, so we had to stop with those. (And only now am I learning about the evils of rawhide!)

Anyone know anything about sterilized beef bones?

Its tough keeping those jaws safely occupied!

Lisa

 

[boxer]

The best thing for your dog to chew on is raw bones. Beef brisket bones (sternum) is the best for teeth cleaning, but a large soup bone is also fine and will provide weeks of chewing. Be wary of the sterilized bones - they're cooked and can splinter.

 

[lisabethshaw]

Bones

Thanks, Debbie.

We've never tried the sterilized bones - I was just curious.

Do you get the raw bones from a butcher? (If so, what exactly do I ask for?)

They will not splinter?

Do you take small pieces away when they break, or do they not break?

Thanks again.

Lisa

 

[boxer]

Yes, you could just ask your butcher for bones for the dog. Most likely you'd get a cannon bone or something like that. If he asks what type you want, just tell him a marrow bone (if you want a large one for recreational chewing). Smaller bones are fine too, just take them away when they get too small and start to be a choking hazard (or supervise, of course).

And no, raw bones won't splinter. Not unless they're extremely (years) old anyway. Raw bones are moist and flexible, it's only when they become dried out (by cooking, sterilizing or extreme age) that bones become brittle and liable to splinter. That's why BARFers can feed raw bones with no problems, but the first warning you get when you ask about feeding raw is to never, ever give cooked bones.

 

[abby's mum]

Shiva is a real chewer, too, and has destroyed his Rhino Bone (big black one) and a regular Nylabone (both were supposed to be indestructible!).

Nylabones aren't supposed to be indestructable. They say that once your dog has chewed the ends off, to throw it out. Abby loves the liver flavour and they last her 6-8 weeks on average. They are kind of pricey but she is worth it. She also loves Bully sticks, which she gets on occasion. She is also a pretty good chewer. Before we knew about the hazards of rawhide and she had it, we had to take it away from her because they would be gone in minutes.

 

[Vela]

Bully sticks on Ebay are about the cheapest best alternative I have found for my aggressive chewer. I also get him those big knuckle bones to chew on, he loves those too. He just doesn't care for kongs, maybe its the rubber flavor I don't know. I dont give him tosy for chewing becaue he can and has chewed through ropes and everything else you can think of. He LOVES to chew and the bully sticks are the safest thing I have found for him to chew on as they are fully digestible and he has had them for over a year with never a problem gulping or choking.

 

[myrocky]

Don't get pet supplies from Pet$mart as they grossly over charge on everything! I order most of my stuff online and my favorite store is www.jefferspet.com . They have everything and it's very well priced. Plus you'll get your package in about two days.

I am so glad for Nylabones. Rocky loves them and he's an aggressive chewer as well. I get the souper ones and they last him for a bit. Marrow (soup) bones are a great thing also. Rhino bone doesn't last at all, he breaks peices off right away.

Those hollow sterilized bones can damage teeth in the dog because they are very very hard. They can also splinter, I would avoid those.

I also like bones with hollow ends that I can stuff treats in. The two bones we have over here are:

This bone that Rocky has had for over three years now. And this bone which he got for xmas. Both bones stand up to chewing and once stuffed you can put in the freezer to freeze the insides to help it last longer.

 

[jtjumpshot]

i dont like rawhides...

i dont let mine have rawhide for personal reasons but i found a substitute for now. i buy huge raw bones from the supermarket meat section. its funny because a butcher actually recommended it to me. the ones that you would use to flavor a soup. i think they actually call them "beef soup bones". they are cheap too. soemthing like .75 cents a pound. my 2 love them. i just make sure they dont get to warm because it does have raw meat on it. my vet actually approved of it so thats what i go with for now. they are huge and they wont break them. i dont even think they can chew through them. but i has lots of flavor and of coarse raw meat. i let them chew on them for about 20 mins at a time then i place them back in the freezer. its good for me too when im not at the park for a long enough time to tire them out. they work so hard to hallow out the bone and get all the meat. they are so tired afterwards. that may be soemthing you can try.

 

[sherri0121]

If your looking for your boxer baby just to chew on I have a few suggestions. The indestructable rings, kongs are always good (if your dog will chew on it), and 4 paws carries some products that are "virtually indestructable" (pimple ball w/bell and bones), and Tirebiters are rubber tires.

I haven't had much luck with the nylabones they get destroyed in a matter of hours, mainly by Sophie. There are also these starch bones, but it seems everytime I gave them out I had to clean up them mess hours later (their tummies didn't agree with them). Another good website with reasonable prices and free shipping (most items) is kvvet.com.

 

[jbbtlr]

One thing that I have found that has saved us from Koda chewing is cow hoofs. Seems gross I know, but let me tell you what, he loves them and we started him on them as soon as we brought him home (recommended by someone at the pet store) and we have 5 of them laying around the house and he has yet to finish one and he's 5 months old. Our Dalmatian likes to chew on them also.

We buy the ones that you can get out of the bin. We bough a package of them and oh my gosh did they stick. I left them outside to air our for about a week and they were fine.

The dogs love them and they can chew and chew. Another thing I like, they don't get slimey or anything like that. I know some people have mixed feelings about them, but Koda hasn't chewed on anything else, and when he is in a real chewing mood, he will find one of those and he's content.

~~Jeanette~~