Best Type Of Bones To Get

[aussielover]

I have been told the femur (thighbone) of a cow or sheep is one of the safest. They are quite large and thick bones though so there is the risk of cracked teeth. There is not much meat on them though. I also can't imagine a very small dog eating one of those!

[cazxxz]

My favourite teeth cleaning bone is a beef chuck bone as it has lots of angles and is a good challenge.. I take away whatever is left after an hour or 2 so it doesn't get buried for later LOL

Excellent, I will buy some next time I visit the butcher. I don't think I've bought chuck bones before

The only bones I really avoid are pork bones as they seem very sharp and brittle.

My dog's diet is mostly pork bones! I agree the fragments left behind are sharp, but Jake can eat the whole bone (shoulder blade or leg), so I am happy with them, and I just pick up the fragments from the yard. Pork bones helped him lose weight. He was chubby from lots of lamb when he was a pup.

[toughgirl27]

For various reasons (too tedious to go into now) my dogs haven't had raw bones from me before. The are going to have to, as I have conceded that I'm not going to be able to keep their teeth as nice as I would like any other way.

I'm confused as to what type to ask the butcher for.

They have to be red meat bones, as I cannot do raw chicken necks/wings/frames (many reasons, none of them really worth mentioning)

I have a 10 year old 22kg Staffy with jaws of steel, and a 4 year old 6kg SWF with the jaws of a baby duckling

What's the most appropriate type of bone to ask for??? Would giveing them three to four times a week be enough to have any benefit???

I know my friend who has had a few staffies over the years usually gives them marrowbones whole (not cut in half).

They seem to enjoy them and haven't had any probs with them. it's great for their teeth too.

Hope this helps. :D

XXtoughgirlXxxx

[wotan]

You'll probably find that there are no difficulties whatsoever with a complete frame. Because they are such an irregular shape, it is difficult for a dog to just sit down and chomp through one without at least pausing a few times to consider the next mode of attack.

I find that gulpers have no problems literally inhaling chicken necks, and not much more of a problem with wings. I can slow this down marginally by freezing them and puppies get necks crushed.

Yep my 7 month old SBT has been inhaling chicken necks & wings almost since day one They are simply too small and uninteresting for him. I find large frames & maryland are great, good portions of Lamb flap & turkey have plenty of flesh and bone to crush.

[Kirislin]

I try to only give mine lamb bones, either necks or ribs. I dont like leg bones as they never have much meat on them. My dogs like to eat all the bone. They also get chicken, either carcasses or whole limbs. Tonight they get their usual cooked loaf with a chicken drumstick chaser.

I dont like giving them beef bones, I think they're too big for my size dogs.

Howie loves oxtail Kirislin.

The poodles handle it fine too.

actually I have given them ox tails and they love them, I find more it's a price thing with them, our butchers charge quite alot compared to the lamb bones where I can get a big heavy bag, I would estimate around 3-4kgs for $3.

I dont like giving mine sawn in half beef bones because Penny scrapes and scrapes the cut edges and wears her teeth away. I suppose I wouldn't mind them just having the big meaty knuckle only if I could get it but the bare long leg bones, I dont see any good in. Not for my whippets anyway.

[Adnil444]

Turkey necks are great too - huge and last much much longer. They are a meal in themselves.

[Kajtek]

Da Babes, one of them is in my avatar, are major chewers .

They get either lamb necks that require some effort or turkey necks that are almost "inhaled". They get their bone treat 1 or 2 times per week. Even their wonderful vet is impressed with the pearly whites. BTW, my eldest Babe is 5.5yo.

[princess_nat_88]

My pup just loves RMBs. He is a 9 month old pug. Being a pug, he is a real guts. Chicken necks he scoffs down with little chewing, meaty beef bones he chews on for ages, but he thinks that he is supposed to eat the actual bone. To minimize danger, should I be looking for bigger bones that he cant swallow, or is eating smaller raw bones not so bad?

Often, he tries to swallow a too-large chunk of muscle, fat etc and it makes him gag and throw up everything again. The vet nurse just said "Oh well, he will learn eventually". Im worried he might choke himself.

I really like raw feeding but am new to it so all this information you guys are posting is so helpful!

[Dagmar]

For various reasons (too tedious to go into now) my dogs haven't had raw bones from me before. The are going to have to, as I have conceded that I'm not going to be able to keep their teeth as nice as I would like any other way.

I'm confused as to what type to ask the butcher for.

They have to be red meat bones, as I cannot do raw chicken necks/wings/frames (many reasons, none of them really worth mentioning)

I have a 10 year old 22kg Staffy with jaws of steel, and a 4 year old 6kg SWF with the jaws of a baby duckling

What's the most appropriate type of bone to ask for??? Would giveing them three to four times a week be enough to have any benefit???

It really depends on your dogs' chewing habits. Make sure, whatever bones you are feeding, you should be there and watch them. Not only bones can cause injuries, but they are also considered 'trophies' in dog world and can be the cause for serious fights.

If they were my dogs, I would not get different sized bones for the dogs as there is always the possibility that the larger dog gets one of the smaller bones which might cause him harm.

When going to the butcher I always have a close look at the so called 'dog bones' as I do not believe they are all suitable for dogs. Well, again it depends on the dog. Some dogs just nibble off the meat and leave the bone, others chew down the bone, and the greedy ones (like mine) would try to swallow the bone or large fragments of it.

You have to experiment and see how your dogs eat bones. Make sure, you do not buy bones with mainly fat attached (or cut it off) and start with reasonable large bones to see how they eat them. Weight bearing bones like marrow bones are harder than a dog's tooth, if your dogs would not think of chewing them down, fine. In my experience the butchers do not leave a lot of meat on them, hardly anything. And the marrow is very fat, so I would not feed them too often.

I found a butcher who has dog bones, which are basically parts of the spine (the cannot cut out the meat between the vertebrae, so there is still lots of meat on them). The other bones I am buying are lamb pelvis, but I always have to cut away the fat that is attached.

I never ever use ribs, they splinter, can get stuck in the roof of the mouth, in the airway or cause an internal blockage. If they are in a bag of bones which I like, I buy the bag and prepare a nice broth out of the bones which I am not feeding to the dogs. My dogs love it, when I pour that broth over their food!

I hope that helps.

Dagmar