# rawhides okay for puppies?



## thach8 (Nov 28, 2007)

I have a question for everyone.
I've got a friend who is a wee bit paranoid about her dogs. When I asked her for advice about treats etc for puppies, she told me never to give puppies rawhides as it will be terrible for their digestion (or something like that). she said the rawhides would affect the puppies later on as adults.

My dog can't stand nylabones. She won't even touch them if they aren't the eatable kind.
The vet gave my dog this thin piece of something (it looked yellow) and she just loves that.
Can I give rawhide bones to my puppy? I got some from petsmart = denturly (something by that name) that says the bones are okay for pups.

Any help would be great, as the thin piece my vet gave me pup was one of the only things that helped her keep down on her biting issues!
Thanks in advance!


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## Bonnie's Mommie (Mar 2, 2006)

I don't use rawhide. Bonnie tried it once and threw up. There are people on this forum who (I think) use it, no problem. I just won't. I give Bonnie the new greenies (which are advertised as easier to digest), and bully sticks. The ones from Merrick are the least 'stinky'. She loves them, and one lasts her about a week's worth of chewing. And she gobbles up the greenie in minutes.


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## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

The problem with rawhide is that they are able to gnaw off larger-than-safe pieces. They can either choke or the piece may be too large and become lodged in their digestive tract somewhere--very dangerous. Maybe it's not a problem for a large breed dog, but not for these guys.

Do a google search on bully sticks. They are all natural and they are USUALLY unable to take large pieces off of them--but you still have to watch them. Ollie LOVES them. We can't go without them in the house. If you get a large enough one they can last for quite a while, too. We typically buy 7" or 12". Again, don't ever leave them alone with it--they should always be supervised.

The "thin piece of something" that you vet gave him was probably some type of dehydrated meat, like chicken.


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## thinkpink (Sep 25, 2004)

You might want to try bully sticks or flossies instead. I'm much more comfortable giving Bella these.


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## Julie718 (Feb 17, 2006)

I agree with everyone...I wouldn't use rawhides. I would try the bully sticks or the Healthy Edible bones.


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## thach8 (Nov 28, 2007)

thank goodness for you guys on this forum.
My father is rather stubborn and just thinks that anything that says "good for puppies" should be good for puppies and won't listen to a word I say. I'm glad I've got people on this forum to back me up :biggrin: 

I will definitely try to get out tonight and get some greenies or bully sticks. Are they widely available at pet stores? I ask because surely these should be advertised in the puppy section of the pet stores. I don't think I've run across them yet. Perhaps they aren't marketed to puppies?

Anyways, thanks for the advice everyone.
Hopefully our pup will enjoy


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## Bonnie's Mommie (Mar 2, 2006)

> thank goodness for you guys on this forum.
> My father is rather stubborn and just thinks that anything that says "good for puppies" should be good for puppies and won't listen to a word I say. I'm glad I've got people on this forum to back me up :biggrin:
> 
> I will definitely try to get out tonight and get some greenies or bully sticks. Are they widely available at pet stores? I ask because surely these should be advertised in the puppy section of the pet stores. I don't think I've run across them yet. Perhaps they aren't marketed to puppies?
> ...


Greenies, bully sticks and flossies should all be available in most stores. The trick to bully sticks is trying to get those that aren't very 'fragrant' :HistericalSmiley: . I forgot about flossies - Bonnie loves those, too!


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## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

> > index.php?act=findpost&pid=479917
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I typically buy the Red Barn brand bully sticks. They don't advertise as "odor free" but they have very little odor. And we've tried all kinds of brands and I can tell you some of them STINK. I've also tried the "odorless"--Ollie likes them at first but gets bored with them pretty fast. Regular bullies he never gets sick of!


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## jadey (Nov 2, 2006)

we use merricks flossies, merricks toothpicks, and the cnt ones from the vet.
i never knew what a flossies was until a member posted about them.
i currently buy my kids merricks flossies but it gets expensive after awhile,
do you guys suggest any other brand?


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## makettle29 (Nov 12, 2005)

My doggie daycare and boarding won't allow a dog to be alone with a rawhide...only flossies. I don't know why but I trust them. My vet tell me that the rawhides that are rolled long and thin like a cigarette are great for natural teeth cleaning.

mary anna Herk and Theena


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## Desiree (May 29, 2007)

> thank goodness for you guys on this forum.
> My father is rather stubborn and just thinks that anything that says "good for puppies" should be good for puppies and won't listen to a word I say. I'm glad I've got people on this forum to back me up :biggrin:
> 
> I will definitely try to get out tonight and get some greenies or bully sticks. Are they widely available at pet stores? I ask because surely these should be advertised in the puppy section of the pet stores. I don't think I've run across them yet. Perhaps they aren't marketed to puppies?
> ...


I'll be the first to tell you that not everything that says "good for puppies" is safe for them. I once bought Eros a teething toy for puppies and within an hour he had managed to crack it open leaving filling and plastic balls falling out for him to choke on.

I agree that there are better alternatives to rawhide. Eros always has a bully stick & he never gets tired of them even though he always has one available for him to chew on


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## Jenn&Tucker (Nov 24, 2007)

Same here, my vet said that they can break off pieces that may be dangerous. She said that if you closely supervise the pup with a rawhide then you can give it to him. Tucker has a rawhide bone but he only gets to play with it in our lap. Our vet gave Tucker a thin yellow chew toys as well that he loves, on the bag it said "oral dental chew" or something to that effect. I've never seen them at the pet store though.


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## thach8 (Nov 28, 2007)

hey guys,

so, I went to petsmart yesturday to see what options I had.
I asked the sales associates there about the different items discussed on this forum.
the associate told me that there have been issues with greenies and certain lawsuits going on about chunks breaking off the treats and dogs choking on them.

I saw bully sticks that were twisted up. I wasn't sure if these were the ones or not.
I asked the girl about the flossies, and she told me that they had the same issues as rawhides= larges chunks breaking off and choking issues. Are the flossies okay to give to your pup when you are not there (i.e. as a comfort chew for my pup when I or the rest of my family is out).

I ended up getting edible chews made by nylabone from the store at the advice of the associate. She told me that I could give these to my pup and since they are compressed rawhide, it won't become gummy in the pup's belly. She said I could leave these with my pup when I'm gone as a comfort chew. I gave one to my pup yesturday and within 2 hours she had finished half of a regular sized bone. I'm a little worried about that, so I'm not sure if I should give her any more of those edible chews as an option (that and its really expensive if she can go through half of one in under 3 hrs).

Thanks again everyone for the advice. My pup just loves to chew


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## Bonnie's Mommie (Mar 2, 2006)

> hey guys,
> 
> so, I went to petsmart yesturday to see what options I had.
> I asked the sales associates there about the different items discussed on this forum.
> ...



Hmmm-compressed rawhide is what I gave Bonnie that made her throw up. I agree that Greenies DID have problems, but they reformulated and have been given the 'green light' (no pun intended) by my vet, under supervision. Flossies and bully sticks IMO are fine, just take them away when they get too small.


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## Ptarana (Jul 12, 2006)

The only nylabone my will chew on are the little white ones flavored with chicken mine love them and they are very safe. They have never been able to chew a piece off of these. I believe they are the safest out there.


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## tamizami (May 1, 2007)

I recently tried cow hooves for my pups and they love them! They don't stain the carpet, they are all natural and they're very inexpensive - about .99 at Petsmart. My mom and dad have one for their havanese and so I searched this forum and saw a lot of positive feedback on them. Based on my dogs, I would strongly recommend cow hooves (we call them "moo moos").


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## carrie (Aug 24, 2004)

i bought the white chicken flavored nylabones and massimo and mini both mangled both of theirs. so, i don't buy the plastic ones because they are able to chew pieces off and swallow them. i do however give them the healthy edible ones, and greenies sometimes. (yes, the greenies were reformulated due to law suits) i used to give them dehydrated chicken breast, but since i can't trust them anymore i don't. flossies, bully sticks and springs are other of their favorites. i don't get them all that often tho.


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## snowballsmom (Mar 3, 2006)

> I recently tried cow hooves for my pups and they love them! They don't stain the carpet, they are all natural and they're very inexpensive - about .99 at Petsmart. My mom and dad have one for their havanese and so I searched this forum and saw a lot of positive feedback on them. Based on my dogs, I would strongly recommend cow hooves (we call them "moo moos"). [/B]


This is what we give Snowball and Charlie too! They just love them. The only draw back on them is stepping on them in the middle of the night without waking everyone up by yelling! Those things hurt!  Honestly though, both of the dogs love chewing on these.

Bev
Snowball & Charlie


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## ShilohsMom (Jun 25, 2007)

I feed mine Nylabone's Nutri-Dent and they just love them. They are along the lines of a greenie but without any prior controversy.


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## sassy's mommy (Aug 29, 2005)

> My doggie daycare and boarding won't allow a dog to be alone with a rawhide...only flossies. I don't know why but I trust them. My vet tell me that the rawhides that are rolled long and thin like a cigarette are great for natural teeth cleaning.
> 
> mary anna Herk and Theena[/B]


There are some compressed rawhide out there but I still would not use it. There are too many other alternatives. 

I don't mean to offend anyone here but just a concern here. If someone does choose to use a natural product please be sure it is packaged in the USA. Some countries have problems with mad cow disease.


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## mysugarbears (Aug 13, 2007)

I also give mine the hooves to chew on they just love them. I bought them at Petsmart and made sure that they are made in the US.


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