I am looking for some suggestions as to what to give Billy to chew on. I used to give him rawhide everynite (supervised of course) but the vet suggested that I stop giving him rawhide b/c he was having terrible problems with diarrhea. He has had pancreatitis and was treated for that and he is also early stage kidney failure so I have to be careful how much salt he has. The vet suggested getting him some edible nylabones. He really likes them but with 4 dogs in the house (3 are mine and one is a foster) it gets really expensive to keep buying them.

Billy really, really likes to chew and I like to give the dogs all the same thing to chew. If anyone has suggestions please let me know.

Xena likes dentastix.

Can you talk to your vet about plain uncooked bones? I know cooked bones are bad but as far as I'm aware you can give him just plain beef bones with the same supervision you'd give for a rawhide. Plus there's no salt beyond the natural salt in living animals.

Bullysticks are a huge hit at our house - a 12" portion will last a good hour or two.

Another idea would be to get dehydrated treats, rather than cured. I know that Awesome Paws up here in Canada does beef liver and lung dehydrated treats... you could ask about salt content and chewability. You could also look into getting your own dehydrator.

In this house we give

Bully Sticks
Flossies
Himilayan Yak Chews (from BoomooandDoo)
Dehydrated Sweet potato chews

They are also raw fed so they get RMBs every day.

In our house the only thing that seems to work well are Nylabones. My guys can not tolerate Bully Sticks, rawhide, flossies, greenies, etc. I even have to be careful about treats. I do give the large marrow bones, and fill them in the middle with peanut butter. They seem to all like the Nylabones best though. I get the ones that are for strong chewers... chicken flavor.

Good luck! I know what you are going through. I have tried just about everything to satisfy the chewing urge, and yet keep the tummies in check.

I use the large dentasticks and you can get a bag of 32 for $10.79 at BJ's.

All I give here are bullysticks. I try to take them away when they are about an inch long because Leia will swallow it and it will come out the next day or so. Although supposedly 100% digestable, I guess that assumes they stay in the stomach. I used to give rawhide too, but after having done the heimlich twice, those became banned from here.

How long do the Nylabones last? I have filled marrow bones in the past for the dogs and put them in the freezer maybe I will try that again too.




What would I get for bones if I wanted to go this route? I am not interested in strictly raw feeding my dogs but I would not be opposed to give them bones for a treat. Also, where to you let them eat the bones? I don't have crates for my dogs so would they just end up dragging the bones in the living room onto their dog beds?

Sorry to ask such stupid questions but I don't know a lot about raw feeding.

I give a wide variety, but the every day treat is pig ears, and I just bought some cow ears, and they like those too. I think for dogs with more sensitive stomachs, the cow ears may be just the thing, they're "drier" than pig ears, they last longer, and they are cheaper. Just be sure to buy USA ones.

My dogs get Raw beef knuckle bones. The butcher here in town has them, already cut up and bagged. Smaller ones for the iggies, bigger for Vanilla. Keeps them occupied for a good long while!!! OH, I bought 6 bones the other day and paid $2.75 for them. They get these about 2 times/week. Other times they get bully sticks.

The Nylabones seem to last forever. So far at least 6 months!!!!! *** JUST BE SURE THEY ARE FOR STRONG CHEWERS. I made the mistake of not looking at the packaging, and got the wrong ones... I looked over, and instead of chewing, they were EATING the bone. NOT GOOD!

The bones in the freezer work great too!!

Good luck, I know it's hard with funny tummies...

We can't use beef bones, there is too much fat on them for Chase. I get Bison or Buffalo leg bones and they are much leaner and she doesnt react to them at all. As for where... well that is why I don't gie them often. We either gate her in the back hall on a sheet (cuz its laminate flooring), or she gets her sheet put outside in the summer to chew them on.

Nylabones are nylon so not edible (though they make edible ones as well) Chase wants nothing to do with them.
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2750577

These super-strong Nylabones have been designed specifically for powerful chewers. Molded from virgin DuPont nylon, they are slowly cooled to toughen and reduce brittleness.

Directions for Use:
ASPCA seal of approval. Replace this product when it is small enough for your dog to swallow whole. Galileo can be washed in soap and water or sterilized by boiling. Do not throw in the air for your dog to catch. The impact may injure his teeth.

Made in USA.

We just bought nylabones because we have a bone/food agressive pup in the house. They're working well and my pups are playing with them.

Josey gets an assortment of Merrick chews, which she absolutely loves. Snozzles, Moozles (Pig and Cow snouts), Pig and Cow ears, and occasionally a cow foot. Also Bully sticks, and American made rawhide (supervised). The only Nylabones she likes are the Flexibles. The tougher Nylabones went over like a lead balloon.

She will also get a Kong stuffed with kibble and sealed w/ Peanut Butter, then frozen, but she doesn't really chew on that. In fact it went untouched until I started stuffing it.

The busier she is when we're away from home the better