Is bone marrow good for dogs?
Bone marrow contains many nutrients but it is fatty and can lead to digestive upset. If your dog has had digestive issues in the past (especially pancreatitis), tread carefully or talk with your veterinarian first about alternative chews.
HOW TO PREPARE MARROW BONES FOR DOGS
If you choose to give your dog marrow bones, make sure that you can supervise him. As soon as he has licked out the bone marrow from the middle of the bone, throw the bone away. Don’t leave him to gnaw away on it.
Fractured Teeth from Chewing on Bones
We can testify to the fractured teeth: our Irie, a devoted marrow bone chewer, had to have three teeth extracted due to fractured teeth.
The next year, Tiki lost two teeth due to the same reason.
Today our dogs only get marrow bones as a very occasional special treat; for everyday chewing, our dogs have Icelandic+ horns (which are keratin–similar to a fingernail–not bone).
If you are going to give your dog large marrow bones, give the bones as a fresh treat but then, once your dog has chewed out the marrow and the bone begins to dry, discard the bone.
As it dries, the bone becomes more harder and more brittle, more likely both to break a tooth or to splinter into dangerous pieces.
For some dogs, the rich fat of the marrow can also cause intestinal upset. It is also high in calories.
If your dog is new to marrow bones, you may also see blood on his gums (and on the marrow bone) after chewing. Like a person new to dental flossing, chewing bones may cause bleeding at first.
If a bone splinters while your dog is chewing it and your dog swallows the piece, there is a risk of intestinal obstruction. This can necessitate surgery.
Tummy troubles have rarely been the case in our house, but we have seen another down side of bones: resource guarding.
When Irie and Tiki each get a marrow bone, we see them go to opposite sides of the yard (we only give the bones outdoors except during thunderstorm/firework periods when we give them in the house but with an old sheet over the bed and couch).
If you have multiple dogs and they already engage in resource guarding (Irie and Tiki happily share any other time), keep a close eye on them when they have this high value treat.