Which Raw Bones Are Best For Dogs?
“The best raw bones for dogs are usually soft, hollow, and contain any form of connective tissue such as cartilage,” Dr. Murithi said. “Poultry bones are preferable, including the wings, neck, feet, and back bones.” She also listed pork feet, pork tail, lamb, venison, beef ribs, and ox as other good alternatives.
Dr. Choczynski recommends choosing granulated rawhide because it is more likely to break down through chewing and digestion. You want your dogs teeth to be harder than the bone itself to avoid fractured teeth. “I always think about a war between the chew and the tooth itself — the hardest material wins and the other will break,” she said.
The Best Raw Bones for Dogs to Chew On, According to Vets
Want to give your dog a bone but not sure which bones are best? Dogs chew on bones to relieve stress and to combat teething pain when they are puppies. Youll want to give your dog raw bones to chomp on, and some bones are better than others. We reached out to the experts to learn more. Related:
Cooked Bones
Cooking turns bones brittle, making them easy to break and splinter. According to the FDA, giving your dog a cooked bone is associated with risks such as:
Along with the injury risk to your dog, feeding cooked bones doesnt make much sense from a nutritional perspective, either. The cooking process removes minerals from the bone, so they have no nutritional benefits.
Note: After youre finished eating your meal, make sure to dispose of cooked bones in a way that your dog cannot reach them. Closed top garbage cans or disposal in outdoor trash cans may be a good option.
Dog bones: Which are safe for dogs? | Ultimate Pet Nutrition – Dog Health Tips
Dogs and bones go together like peanut butter and jelly, right? Eh, sort of. There are some bones dogs can eat (or technically, chew) and others that could cause serious damage if nibbled or ingested. Bones are meant for recreation, not food. Generally speaking, raw knucklebones from large livestock are safe for dogs to chew. Cooked bones and pieces small enough to be choking hazards are off limits. When and how you give your dog a bone also matters. Keep reading for everything you need to know about canines and bones.
As mentioned above, raw knucklebones are ideal. We scoured The Forever Dog: Surprising New Science to Help Your Canine Companion Live Younger, Healthier, and Longer by Dr. Karen Shaw Becker, the most followed veterinarian on social media, and pet health leader Rodney Habib, for details. The authors encourage dog parents to ask for raw bison, beef or venison knucklebones at local butcher shops. Femurs, tails, feet and ribs are also good options if knucklebones aren’t available. If your local butcher doesn’t have these, check your supermarket meat counter or frozen food section. (Some grocery stores call them soup bones.)
Dr. Becker and Habib recommend larger bones because this eliminates the bone from becoming a choking hazard. “There’s really no such thing as a too-big bone,” the authors write. If a bone is too small, however, dogs can swallow it and get it lodged in their throats or stuck in their stomachs. A bone in the wrong place means a lot of pain, potential surgery and possible infection.
If the idea of giving your dog a raw bone is scary, don’t worry. Raw bones actually provide lots of healthy nutrients to canines. To avoid bacteria from growing, buy the bones frozen and keep them frozen until you’re ready to thaw one out for your pup. Thaw one bone at a time (giving a frozen bone to your pup could result in cracked teeth). It’s also not wise to let your dog bury bones in the yard. They could go back to their hiding spot hours or days later where bacteria has almost certainly started to grow.