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Antlers As Dental Chews


LaFlaca

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I'm always in the market for safe dental chews for Lola. Do your Greys enjoy antlers? It seems to me that they might be:

 

I) Too hard.

II) Boring. Do antlers have a scent or taste?

 

What say you GT'ers?

Edited by LaFlaca

Irene ~ Owned and Operated by Jenny (Jenny Rocks ~ 11/24/17) ~ JRo, Jenny from the Track

Lola (AMF Won't Forget ~ 04/29/15 -07/22/19) - My girl. I'll always love you.

Wendy (Lost Footing ~ 12/11/05 - 08/18/17) ~ Forever in our hearts. "I am yours, you are mine".

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My previous dogs never cared for antlers; however, my new hound Maggie has been chewing on one occasionally. Maggie has also chewed the leg of a wooden chair while I was sitting in it and has chewed up several slippers so she seems to have more of a chewing need than my previous dogs.

 

 

They do not have any smell that I can detect.

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Ruby showed no interest in them the many times they were offered. She loves Himalayan Yak bones (Amazon or Chewy) and lately she and Jesse have been enjoying Sheep horns. They were recommended by our vet, as they are not so hard as antlers, and they are more like a thick toenail. I bought them on Amazon also.

Karen

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My 2 hounds actually like the antlers chews. I got a large one that is split. It has a hard inner pulp that is still a bit softer than the outer wall of the antler. They seem to focus on that inner pulp. The large antler was fairly costly (Amazon) but is lasting really well. I anticipate months of regular chewing before it gets small enough to need the toss out.

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Lucy with Greyhound Nate and OSH Tinker. With loving memories of MoMo (FTH Chyna Moon), Spirit, Miles the slinky kitty (OSH), Piper "The Perfect" (Oneco Chaplin), Winston, Yoda, Hector, and Claire.

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Dried duck or chicken feet have always been a big hit, as well as slightly frozen ones. They do look creepy, though.

Remember when I bought raw chicken feet at Fiesta? The greys were walking around with them flapping out of the side of their mouths like Groucho Marx cigars. Never again.

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Seamie *loved* raw frozen chikken FEET!

Old Dogs are the Best Dogs. :heartThank you, campers. Current enrollees:  Punkin. AnnIE Oooh M, Ebbie, HollyBeeBop (Betty Crocker).

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:paw Upon reflection, our lives are often referenced in parts defined by the all-too-short lives of our dogs.

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My dogs love them. I get mine on eBay from Peak Antler Company.

Wendy and The Whole Wherd. American by birth, Southern by choice.
"Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!"
****OxyFresh Vendor ID is 180672239.****

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Milo is a big chewer and would love to be a deer chaser, but he no interest in the antler his Secret Santa sent him a few years ago. It may still be lurking in some dark corner of the house.

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Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey

remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter

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Annie wore down her inscisors on a softer marrow bone. I give my voracious chewed wholesome hide super thick rawhide rolls. Check out their website. Amazon also carries them. My chewer came with 2 upon adoption. His breeder is a professional handler, was a vet tech and I trust her.

Edited by cleptogrey
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I bought a package of deer antlers for our two hounds. They chewed them for about a minute. No interest after that. Given the expense of the darned antlers and not willing to give up, I soaked the antlers for a day in fresh chicken broth obtained from cooking a pan of boneless breasts. Then I heated the oven to 200, put the antlers in and turned it off, allowing the antlers to dry thoroughly overnight. Major difference. At first, the dogs were obsessed with the antlers...had to take them away after a half an hour or so. Now, they chew them intermittently but not obsessively. Just a thought.

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I bought a package of deer antlers for our two hounds. They chewed them for about a minute. No interest after that. Given the expense of the darned antlers and not willing to give up, I soaked the antlers for a day in fresh chicken broth obtained from cooking a pan of boneless breasts. Then I heated the oven to 200, put the antlers in and turned it off, allowing the antlers to dry thoroughly overnight. Major difference. At first, the dogs were obsessed with the antlers...had to take them away after a half an hour or so. Now, they chew them intermittently but not obsessively. Just a thought.

The extra effort is well worth it if she’ll chew the antler even if it’s for a few days. Healthy chews are so important for her dental health.

Irene ~ Owned and Operated by Jenny (Jenny Rocks ~ 11/24/17) ~ JRo, Jenny from the Track

Lola (AMF Won't Forget ~ 04/29/15 -07/22/19) - My girl. I'll always love you.

Wendy (Lost Footing ~ 12/11/05 - 08/18/17) ~ Forever in our hearts. "I am yours, you are mine".

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

I have friends that hunt, so when they butchered their deer, I was there to take their thow-aways! I snagged the antlers (if they weren't mount-worthy) and bones, and my dogs were in heaven!!! If the antlers were big I'd cut them into chunks so the didn't poke an eye out while they were chewing on one. They're not too hard, just fine.

 

The antlers and deer bones my dogs got were from fresh kills. If you're buying them - there might be a difference. I know a shed antler has a different composition than one taken from a live animal. The ones sold commercially might be "sheds".

 

I'm sure that a fresh antler is far more appealing to a dog than one that's been processed and packaged and sold.

 

Go to the source, if you can. And, mine were free.

Edited by sobesmom
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  • 3 weeks later...

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