Hi sorry not to have been on here for a while. I've been poorly and in hospital this last month. Just a quick question...Charlie has put a hole in our sofa and in 3 of our walls plus a dining room chair. Any tips on helping with teething? We have done kongs and ice cubes but wondering about bones. He is 5 months now but is that too young? Also what bones are best and where do you get them from? Thanks guys xxx Emma
Re: Bones and Chewing So sorry to hear you've been poorly. We tried those stuffed, sterilised bones, but they gave Merla terrible tummy trouble . Our current favourites are Antler chews, which I think should be ok at 5 months (although might be as well to check the small print). They sometimes have these at P@H but apparently are currently 'out of season'! Can still be got direct through- just ordered a few last week. http://www.antlerdogchews.co.uk They last ages too.
Re: Bones and Chewing There have been many interesting and lively debates on chewing and bones on the forum. If you search, you should find them. Some forum members are happy to feed recreational bones and others not. Some people think bones should only be fed as part of a meal - that is, if you are feeding a raw diet and then that would be things like chicken thighs, lamb necks, turkey wings. I'm going to try feeding a chicken thigh this weekend. I think the differences depend on how a dog chews. My dog is very much a chewer, and give him a hard substance, and he chews harder and harder. So recreational bones, antlers, nylabones and so on represent a very real risk of damage to his teeth. Most vet dentists recommend you don't give a dog anything to chew that you can't make a dent in with your thumbnail. http://www.dentalvets.co.uk/docs/Toys for Dogs from a Dental Perspective.pdf So Charlie gets: a small amount of high quality (eg no horrible chemicals added) rawhide, stuffed frozen kongs, kong goodie bones stuff with chewy dried sweet potato, pizzles, rice hedgehogs, and hard cardboard packaging (that was Angela's idea - an ipad box with a single bit of kibble in it lasts nearly 7 minutes). And I've just ordered an anco root, which Jen tested for us. http://www.thelabradorforum.com/index.php?topic=4013.msg46597#msg46597
Re: Bones and Chewing Hi As Julie has said I've tried the anco root and it's still going strong. Nearly two weeks and still looks no different. All chews pose a risk and I never leave my dogs unattended with a chew. They are both strong, keen chewers. I've used antlers (very popular with the dogs) and nylabones but I do worry about their teeth and also if they swallow a big bit. That's why I don't leave them if they start to look like they are biting I stop them. The anco root softens as they chew and so far only small bits have come off. For a fussy chewer I don't think they'd be much good as they'd probably get bored but for a dog that will chew anything they should be ok. Jen
Re: Bones and Chewing I find ribs (lamb, venison) to be good, not too hard but keeps Pops busy for a while. Also the knobby part of beef hip bones. So sorry you've been unwell Emma, hope you are ok now.
