bones anyone?

[cec]

I am curious to know if anyone gives their dogs real bones to chew on? My "busy beagle", Baxter, does not enjoy chew toys other than a tennis ball--which he rips apart. I wondered if a big ol bone would keep him entertained? Any thoughts?

[pbrdog]

I give Luke bones, but they have to be the big femur or knuckle size ones. Anything smaller it seems he wants to try to swallow. I monitor him sort of close too when he gets one.

[SmoothCollieluver]

We get "busy bones" i believe they are a pedigree product. Any way they keep my pup busy for at least 2 hours. It says up to one hour on the package though. I had one bitch that could finish them in 30 min but she was the exception everyone else takes at least an hour and a half.

[ClarkFarm]

There is some brand of dog bones that are named after dinosaurs (Jurassic something or other) and boy, do the dogs love those! They are a bit expensive though considering the time frame they last.
I give the dogs clippings from the horse hooves and they love those just the same.

[Tori's mom]

Just last week I had to make an emergency vet trip- I usually don't give bones, but for the brindle twins birthday I got them each a "mammoth bone" (smoked cow femur). Well I threw them out when they started to show wear, and the next evening Ty got really sick. He had diarrhea, was rejecting food, began vomiting and by morning his gums were pale and he was lethargic. The diagnosis, after x-rays and a rectal exam (what a birthday gift!) was that he had ingested bone fragments! The vet was kind enough to show me the nicer bits (ewww!). He was on a anti-nausea pill and bland diet for a few days, and will be on steroids to cope with the inflammation for 3 weeks. No more bones in this house EVER!

[cec]

Just last week I had to make an emergency vet trip- I usually don't give bones, but for the brindle twins birthday I got them each a "mammoth bone" (smoked cow femur). Well I threw them out when they started to show wear, and the next evening Ty got really sick. He had diarrhea, was rejecting food, began vomiting and by morning his gums were pale and he was lethargic. The diagnosis, after x-rays and a rectal exam (what a birthday gift!) was that he had ingested bone fragments! The vet was kind enough to show me the nicer bits (ewww!). He was on a anti-nausea pill and bland diet for a few days, and will be on steroids to cope with the inflammation for 3 weeks. No more bones in this house EVER!

OMG--that is enough to deter me from thinking about that again---will have to check out some of the other "chewies"---sorry your poor pup had to have such an awful ending to his birthday celebration. I hope he recovers quickly. I loved the photo BTW

[StarfishSaving]

lol, Tori's Mom, the look on Ty's face in that photo is like "WHAT kind of exam?? Rect-what?"

-Ty's auntie Star

[Tori's mom]

He's doing well, we were very lucky that all the bits were small enough to pass. I was always leery about bones, but I thought if I got the great big ones and kept an eye on them it'd be safe. Poor Ty had to learn the hard way that mommy dosn't always know best! If you like the photo you would have loved his expression at the vets...
I don't reccomend rawhides either, Tasha will bite off great big chunks and I've heard they can cause blockages.
We use alot of frozen kongs stuffed with all kinds of good stuff.

[cec]

We use alot of frozen kongs stuffed with all kinds of good stuff.[/QUOTE]


This sounds good--what kind of stuff do you put in it? I have only used peanut butter--and that doesn't last long enough with my guy. Any suggestions?

[Woof]

Something like a Red Barn Bully Stick is a far better alternative than a bone. However, there are a million stories of dogs having problems with toys, tennis balls, socks, and the list goes on. I think the best solution is to observe your dogs. Afterall we got them so we can enjoy them and interact with them not just throw them a bone and tell them to scram.

[StarfishSaving]

cec, use your imagination! Anything can go in a Kong. We use everything from kibble soaked in water to canned food, veggies, leftovers from the fridge, treats, etc. For a quick treat we smear cheese or peanut butter inside a kong or get "Kong Stuffin'" in a can like easy cheese.

You can find Kong recipes online- we have a page of them on our website from the Kong company. But it's really all up to you! I make a big bowl of homemade Kong stuffin' usually, stuff all of our kongs and even the sanitized white hard bones you can get for the dogs who can't clean Kongs out very well. Then I freeze them (or for dogs who can't clean a Kong out efficiently yet I put them in the fridge or make them when I use them) and they're a great fast treat especially for the crated dogs.

In the summer, I have used beef broth or other meat stock to fill a Kong (stuff the little hole with something first!!) and freeze it for a tasty Kongsicle treat- of course outside! :) I also season my Kongs in beef broth sometimes, by boiling leftover stock and then soaking them for a while when it cools down. This was a tip from my trainer and my dogs really seem to like it!

[cec]

Something like a Red Barn Bully Stick is a far better alternative than a bone. However, there are a million stories of dogs having problems with toys, tennis balls, socks, and the list goes on. I think the best solution is to observe your dogs. Afterall we got them so we can enjoy them and interact with them not just throw them a bone and tell them to scram.

absolutely--I not only observe, but interact with my dogs--was just looking for a better alternative to the tennis ball, since Baxter loves them, but demolishes them! And he is not overly interested in other chew toys. I find during this cold weather (ice storms today!) that I can't safely take him out to run and expend energy the way I can when it is nicer out. I find he looks to do more chewing when we are limited in exercise options---

Starfish--thanks for the suggestions, I will have to look at the recipe website.

[Woof]

Cec:

I didn't mean to imply that you didn't observe or interact with your dog and I hope you didn't take it that way. It was just a general statement. I hope you find something suitable.

[cec]

thanks woof--no offense taken--happy to report Baxter just spent the past half hour working on a kong treat (mixed peanut butter with kibble)--will have to find some other options for the kong.

[Woof]

Another calorie wise option is to put unflavored puffed rice treats in the kong. My wife gives the dogs rice cakes all the time and they love them and relative to their size they have far fewer calories than either peanut butter or kibble.

[Tori's mom]

One of my favorite kong stuffins is really simple. Take a container of plain non-fat yogurt, about 1/4 c. peanut butter, and 2 ripe bananas mix it up and stuff. Another favorite here is 2c. soaked kibble, 1 can canned dog food (or left over healthy meat- chicken, venison, etc), about 1 c. frozen veggies. Just mix and stuff! You can also soak the kibble in the water left over from boiling chicken or cooking a roast as long as it's not fatty- gives great flavor! Bill jacks liver treats are the perfect size to plug the hole in the kong, and loved by all my dogs and fosters. I've also made up kong stuffins with fresh carrots, apples, bananas, any healthy foods that your dogs enjoy. Yogurt, peanut butter, canned dog food, soaked dry food, and cottage cheese all make great "binders". Tori's favorite is probably cottage cheese with pineapple and strawberries- I call that the Hawaiian special. Use your imagination, with common sense you can't go wrong!:D

Oh, and the bones were only allowed when the dogs were supervised, and were thrown away when they started to show wear. I'm still not sure how he got off enough to cause a problem, but he was so sick I thought he had an obstruction!

[Barkley'sMom]

I am curious to know if anyone gives their dogs real bones to chew on? My "busy beagle", Baxter, does not enjoy chew toys other than a tennis ball--which he rips apart. I wondered if a big ol bone would keep him entertained? Any thoughts?


I'v read that if you don't cook the bone and give it to them raw, it is accually good for them.

[StarfishSaving]

I'v read that if you don't cook the bone and give it to them raw, it is accually good for them.

That's very true but only if you make sure the size and pliability/hardness of the bone are a good match for your dog. Too small, they gulp, too hard, they produce sharp pieces.