Chews

[Ladybug]

Hi All,

I hope I have the right title for this thread. What kind of chews do you give your dog? Right now, Ladybug has a Nylabone that she is starting to shred on the ends, so I know she is swallowing bits of it and I wouldn't think that it is good for her. She has a store-bought marrow bone but she doesn't really like that either. She doesn't chew a lot, but when she feels the need, she always goes for the Nylabone.

I've heard a lot of negative things about Greenies so I don't want to give her those. I've never given her rawhide.

What does everybody do?

Linda and Ladybug

[Noodle]

This is a tough one with diabetic dogs. Noodle is a heavy duty chewer so it was always hard to find things he didn't instantly destroy and eat even before he was diabetic. He used to eat chunks off of the Kong toys.

You could try some rawhide chews, but I would spot check her BG after she has chewed it for a while. We had to get rid of rawhide because it makes Noodle's BG go up. But he tended to destroy the entire thing in record time, so he was probably ingesting more than the average dog. We also found that beef rawhide made him really gassy, but the pork did not.

He used to have a giant bone someone at Petsmart recommended (cow femur?) and he loved that. But once again, we found it sent his BG soaring after his usual intense chewing session and had to get rid of it. You also have to supervise closely because small pieces can break off if they have rock splitting jaw power, like Noodle.

The big, thick, knotted rope toys are fantastic for chewers and do a wonderful job cleaning their teeth, if they like them. My previous dog loved those and had gorgeous teeth. Unfortunately, Noodle has just never taken to them. They come in many sizes and configurations and are great for playing tug-a-war as well.

Another option is a toy called a "Wubba". It has a body shape similar to a Kong, but it's covered in really heavy duty fabric with wide strips of it dangling off the bottom. They come in several different sizes and now they also have them covered in woolly type fabric as well. Noodle loved these for a while and still plays and chews on them sometimes. He likes to "saw" all of the dangling legs off first and then start working on the body, lol.

Noodle used to have a thing for socks, so we used to give him my husbands old ones. He would run around the house with them, shred them to death, and then we would pitch them. But he then decided that any socks were his and started stealing them...and then progressed to snatching other forms of underthings right out of the hamper, lol. Needless to say, we had to nip that in the bud.

[Ladybug]

Hi Noodle!

After reading your post, it's like you read my mind! LOL! I have been through all those toys with Ladybug and none really satisfy her except the Nylabone.

I used to give her rawhide before she was diabetic, BUT, she would chew off a hunk and swallow it whole! So she stopped getting those because I was afraid of a blockage.

I bought her one of the twisted rope-knot toys, thinking like you said, we could get into a game of tug-of-war or she would just chew. Well, she smelled it, picked it up, carried to the other side of the room and dropped it. That's been several weeks ago and it's still laying where she dropped it! I thought maybe she would go back to it, but I guess she was trying to get rid of it in her own way!

I've been through the sock thing when my other two dogs were still alive, but Ladybug never took any interest. But the other two were like you - getting into the hamper and pulling out everything! LOL!

Maybe I'll just buy a few Nylabones so she can either switch around or I'll give her one at a time. When she really gets it chewed good, I'll replace it with a new one.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

Linda and Ladybug

[eileen]

I know of several who give their dogs antelope antlers for 'chews' and their dogs absolutely love them.
If you live in an area where they are hunted all the better (be sure they are first boiled or frozen to kill bacteria).
If not they can be purchased 'on line'.

Eileen/Mil

[Chloe's Mom]

Originally Posted by eileen

I know of several who give their dogs antelope antlers for 'chews' and their dogs absolutely love them.
If you live in an area where they are hunted all the better (be sure they are first boiled or frozen to kill bacteria).
If not they can be purchased 'on line'.

Eileen/Mil

Hi Eileen,

Do you know if these raise blood sugar levels at all? I have been thinking about trying these. I give Chloe rib bones (all fat removed), but it would be nice to have something different to give her on occasion that I know is safe.

Hugs,
Heidi and Chloe

[eileen]

Heidi,
Of the 3 that I know of who give their diabetics antelope antlers I've heard 2 of them say they have no effect on the bgs at all, the third never reported one way or the other.

All 3 did say that their dogs go absolutely nuts over the antlers with them apparently being a very long lasting 'chew'.

Eileen/Mil

[Chloe's Mom]

Cool, thanks so much!

Hugs,
Heidi and Chloe

[Ladybug]

Hi all,

Well, I bought another Nylabone today and she's already going to town!

antelope antlers

Who is a reputable on-line company to buy antelope antlers from? LOL! I'm laughing only because the only antelope I've ever seen is on TV. The only things we hunt in Maryland are deer and maybe once a year, black bears. Oh, we do have duck hunting.

Heidi, when you say rib bones, do you mean like beef short ribs? I've always been afraid of bones that they would splinter. I know chicken bones are a no-no!

Antelope antlers....learned something new today!

Linda and Ladybug

[Patty]

Smartpak carries deer antlers. http://www.smartpakcanine.com/produc...344#fulldetail I've never tried them and don't know if they do anything to them other than cutting to size. One reviewer said the large was too small for his 50# dog (4" x 1 1/4"). Would depend on the dog I'd think.

[eileen]

Here are two more sources for antlers...

http://antlerdogchew.com/

and,

http://www.elkusa.com/antler-chew.html

I've never used either as my dogs don't like 'chews' but prefer to play with stuffed animals.

Eileen/Mil