Two minutes, 20 seconds (a question too)

[gritsar]

Two minutes, 20 seconds is how long it takes our puppy to finish a Healthy Edibles Nylabone (wolf size!).

I think it's time for a trip to the butcher shop for some knuckle bones. Silly question, do I prepare the bones in any way or just give them to him?

 

[ChickensInTheNorthWoods]

I like to freeze mine first - they will last longer and it helps keep them cool in thier gnawing frenzy! I am a deer hunter and we keep all the bones for our dogs - it makes me feel good that almost nothing goes to waste.

 

[()relics]

this may sound like alot of work but this is the method I use....I buy the knuckle bones or something similar....I on that day or the next cook a roast in the crock pot for the family...after the roast comes out the bones go into the liquids/fat/clumps in the bottom of the crock pot...Turn it to high it will boil after awhile...I let it boil for an hour or so then take the bones out and give them to the dogs....I KNOW everyone is going to say "but you are supposed to make gravy with the crock pot liquids"....I say " the dogs need a treat more than I need the gravy"

 

[gritsar]

()relics :

this may sound like alot of work but this is the method I use....I buy the knuckle bones or something similar....I on that day or the next cook a roast in the crock pot for the family...after the roast comes out the bones go into the liquids/fat/clumps in the bottom of the crock pot...Turn it to high it will boil after awhile...I let it boil for an hour or so then take the bones out and give them to the dogs....I KNOW everyone is going to say "but you are supposed to make gravy with the crock pot liquids"....I say " the dogs need a treat more than I need the gravy"

Okay, I can do that. I'm baking his cookies and his chicken to go on top of his dry food anyhow, what's a little more work for the super pup?

 

[Akane]

You should not give cooked bones to the dog. Raw bones will not splinter and will digest if swallowed. Cook bones can splinter and do not digest well. With few exceptions you should avoid giving cooked bones unless you really know your dog and what those exceptions are. Give bones completely raw. If they finish them too quickly you can freeze them but you should observe your dog the first few times. Dog's new to fresh foods and bones may chew hard enough to break teeth or try to gulp down too large of pieces. Once they get some experience and build up the muscles required for chewing bones most do not have those problems.

My akita can turn a raw knuckle bone the size of her head into a 2" piece within the hour when she feels like it. Usually though she prefers to nip all the meat off with her front teeth and then steadily work her way from the edges in so it takes a little longer.

 

[KDbeads]

Quote:
The 'mammoth' or cow femur bones they sell at the butcher shop.... about 20 minutes with Tesla.

 

[fldiver97]

Quote:
I sometimes feed raw to my dogs. Meat and bone. I never cook or bake bones ... too worried about splintering, raw bone is safer. My female malamute - that has destroyed 3 giant crates (plastic and metal), eaten a few dogbeds and comforters (took no time) and can make confetti out of the "tiger-tough" and therefore expensive dogtoys in a couple of minutes - takes a lon time to chew them up. My ever gentle greyhound that keeps a plushtoy intact for years (till I kill it by too many washes) makes short work out of any bone...... I would be very cautious with any cooked or baked bone....JMHO....

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

For my labs, I give calf femurs. I leave the goodness on there. They prefer the deer bones though...

Is there something I can give my shih tzu that will last longer than her edibles? I also gave her a small nylabone....we can't find it.

 

[KDbeads]

Quote:
Mom's shih-tzu loves these, so do my hounds:
http://www.bestbullysticks.com/home/bbs/page_23/6_inch_standard_bully_sticks.html

Last awhile for smaller dogs but for powerful/aggressive chewers or big dogs they last for about 20 minutes for the thicker ones.

 

[Akane]

Rib bones work great for smaller dogs and as treats. We've been giving beef rib bones to the shibas since they were puppies. Haru was chewing up small rib bones and round bones when we got her at 8weeks and less than 10lbs. They only last minutes for my akita so she generally gets the larger bones out of the mix. Our local locker just gives us boxes of mixed bones free whenever they butcher something and we have a small stand alone freezer just for the dog bones and food. Usually we ask for mid to small size bones but have occasionally gotten entire full size beef femurs. My akita couldn't carry it. Which was a good thing. I feed them their bones on blankets in the house but I didn't want that giant bone in the house thawing and draining blood. Since she couldn't carry it she couldn't drag it back into the house when I sent her outside. I didn't really see her for 3 days though.

For something besides raw bones Natural Balance rolls make great treats. I buy a large roll and slice it into chunks the size I want. Then freeze them all in ziplock bags. They can be given frozen or cut up into training treats. You can also buy mini rolls for $1 if you don't want to cut them up. I get mauled when I take them to puppy training classes. Everyone wants my treats. Since the rolls are designed to be fed as a complete diet they are healthier than most treats you can buy and there isn't much worry of them over eating. Personally I wouldn't feed them as the sole diet since they are not as healthy as the grain free kibble and raw foods my dogs get but for treats they aren't as bad as most things people use. The only thing to watch out for is like any food they can get an upset stomach if they aren't given time to adjust to it or are fed it infrequently.