Not logged inChampdogs Information Exchange
Forum Breeders Help Search Board Index Active Topics Login

Find your perfect puppy at Champdogs
The UK's leading pedigree dog breeder website for over 25 years

Topic Dog Boards / General / Durable Chewies
- By Drai21 [ca] Date 15.01.04 17:23 UTC
Kirra loves to chew on rawhide bones.  The problem is that the time span to when I give it to her and when it is gone is sometimes a matter of a half hour.  She is a little dog and I didn't think it was possible for her to go through them that fast. 
I guess my question is, does anyone know of something other than rawhide that is edible that would keep her interest, but would not be so easily destroyed.  She has a kong but that only is interesting sometimes.  The bones she'll find and chew on when ever she wants.  A person can only spend so much on rawhide at the store without looking funny.
Drai
- By tohme Date 15.01.04 17:27 UTC
IMPO rawhides are potentially dangerous; their country of origin means you cannot even be sure that they are sourced from beef!  I would also ask what are they bleached with as well never mind the other chemicals that go into their production.  They have been implicated in many cases of intestinal blockage etc.

Why not try stuffing a kong with lots of yummies; you can freeze or microwave them and they can last a long time.  Alternative a buster cube or similar filled with some treats or, if she is fed dry food, some of her daily rations.
- By Drai21 [ca] Date 15.01.04 18:14 UTC
The catch with freezing Kongs is that when they melt you end up with a puddle of whatever it is you froze.  I'm not a huge fan of stepping in puddles all over the house.  It would work for keeping her occupied in her kennel, I supposed.  She sometimes chews on her rope bone, but that doesn't hold her attention for to long.
What is a buster cube? 
- By tohme Date 15.01.04 18:20 UTC
You could soak your rope bone in stock/gravy, wring out and freeze.

Buster Cubes are those things with holes in that you put food in and the dogs have to spend ages trying to figure out how to get the food out :D

Or in my case the dog just eats the cube :D :D :D
- By digger [gb] Date 15.01.04 18:27 UTC
But doesn't it rather depend on what you freeze?  I stuff my girls Kongs with naturediet.  One of the best value chew toys I've found is a plastic bone (not 'Nylabone') which comes in different colours (red for chocolate, blue for aniseed and white for vanilla I think).  I have a Springer and a Springer x Collie and they are still chomping on one they must have had for 6 months - used daily!  Another hard to destroy toy is the Dog Pyramid -  http://www.dogbasics.co.uk/shop/toys.html
- By Drai21 [ca] Date 15.01.04 18:38 UTC
What is that plastic bone called?  That one might work.  I usually put her food in her Kong when I leave her in her Kennel.  She just sticks her tounge in and scoops them out.  (she has a frog like tounge, it is so long).  What are some other things I could put in and freeze that wouldn't make a mess?

Also, She has a ball with holes in it that she has to roll around to get the treats out.  It really doesn't take long.  She is just to smart.
- By tohme Date 15.01.04 18:41 UTC
http://www.takingthelead.co.uk/2/Health/kong_stuffing.htm
- By kath_barr [gb] Date 15.01.04 18:29 UTC
This is a Buster cube
http://www.volsung.co.uk/BusterCube.htm

I got a Havaball for Bess and she loves it. I got the extra tough one, have had it about 4 or 5 months now and it's still like new. :)
http://www.havaball.co.uk/

Don't get this one though. I got one for Bess and it has a dipensing mechanism which she broke in 5 minutes and the ball was chewed to bits in a week. :(
http://www.b-js.co.uk/acatalog/JOHN_BLAKE_Various_Dog_Toys_168.html

Kath.
- By Drai21 [ca] Date 15.01.04 19:08 UTC
Thanks everyone.  I'll give it a shot.
Drai
- By Stacey [gb] Date 16.01.04 16:59 UTC
The compressed rawhide bones tend to last longer, not the ones that look like they are made up of little bits of rawhide though.

I have never yet owned a dog that would touch a plastic bone, unfortunately.

Stacey
- By staffmad5 [gb] Date 17.01.04 00:39 UTC
hello
       there you can not beat NYLOBONE dog chews jmho
                                     good luck
- By dogueboy [gb] Date 16.01.04 23:27 UTC
What's the general consensus on rawhide these days? - I also thought that they were potentially dangerous but they still seem to be widely available and selling well in all the pet shops. My dog totally ignores his plastic bone.
Rawhide - good or bad?
- By Jeangenie [gb] Date 16.01.04 23:57 UTC
Rawhide - bad. Doesn't stop it being sold though.
- By digger [gb] Date 17.01.04 08:58 UTC
A lot of people don't realise that stuff for dogs (apart from food) isn't covered by the same legislation that human stuff is - ie toys can come apart and chews can contain nasty chemicals and they can still be sold in the shops.
- By Stacey [gb] Date 17.01.04 10:18 UTC
Rawhide - better than wooden furniture, skirting board, electric wiring, shoes, ripping wallpaper off the wall, eating plasterboard, sterilized bones .. and a whole lot of other things for dogs who are not interested in any other type of dog chew.  

There is a risk in absolutely anything you give a dog to chew, including the plastic Nylabones and Kongs. 

You need to use common sense. If your dog is an aggressive chewer, do not leave them alone with anything chewable that could make them choke.  Do not buy the rawhide products which contain a lot of unnecessary ingredients, like colourings and flavourings.  If you can afford it, stay away from the cheap rawhide products that pet stores sell in big bins.  Look for rawhide from a reputable manufacturer, preferrably where the hide is identified, eg, beef hide.   Some hides are bleached, but I believe the bleaching agent is peroxide (not dangerous) and it is thoroughly washed out. 

My vet recommended rawhide a few weeks ago as useful for keeping teeth free of tartar.   I know a lot of people on this forum reject anything a vet tells them if it happens to disagree with their own views - and I can understand it to a certain extent.  Lots of dog owners have more practical experience with dogs than some vets.  However, dogs have been given rawhide for decades and there is no evidence that it is harmful. 

Again, literally anything a dog puts in its mouth or swallows is potentially dangerous.  Dogs have chocked on dry food.  Dry food from so-called reputable manufacturers has been tainted with bacteria and made dogs very ill.   Dogs have had to have Kongs removed from their intestines.  Dogs have contracted and become ill from bacteria in raw foods and perforated their intestines from raw bones - even though raw is infinitely better than cooked. 

That said, if my dog was the least bit interested in Nylabones I would give her those over rawhide. However, even though I got her as a young pup, and did not offer her anything but Nylabones, she would not touch them.  She also has no interest whatsover in Kongs - chewing them or playing with them.  Hence, I give her rawhide.

Stacey
- By pauly [gb] Date 17.01.04 12:10 UTC
Hi,everyone. i've been viewing this board for a while and today decided to become a member and would just like to introduce myself. I have a 13month old brindle staffy called bailey who adores his nylabone,nothing else seems to withstand the attention of his jaws and believe me i've tried many toys and chews. My problem now is i can't seem to get them as much as i used to,i live in oxford so would be grateful if anyone knows where i can buy them as i've tried many places recently.   Pauly...
- By Stacey [gb] Date 17.01.04 16:43 UTC
Hi Pauly,

Have you tried ordering them online. Petplanet should have them.  Pets at Home, if you have one near you, also sells them.

Stacey
- By pauly [gb] Date 17.01.04 19:00 UTC
Hi Stacey, i am new to all this computer lark, thanks for your advice i have just ordered 4 new nylabones from petplanet, that should keep bailey boy happy for a while, thanks again.  Pauly..
- By tohme Date 19.01.04 09:10 UTC
Just because something is available to purchase is no indication of safety :D  Eg Guns, cigarettes, etc etc

I personally would never feed a dog rawhide preferring raw bones, or real food from a source that I KNOW.  The hide used in these is just as likely to come from animals other than beef just as much as the fur on some garments comes from sources other than farmed/trapped wildlife! 
Topic Dog Boards / General / Durable Chewies

Powered by mwForum 2.29.6 © 1999-2015 Markus Wichitill

About Us - Terms and Conditions - Privacy Policy