# What bones and toys are safe?



## Aidan0311 (Jun 12, 2019)

There was a recent thread about obstructions and now I’m paranoid that my pups going to eat something that will hurt him. He got sick and had diarrhea after swallowing some rawhide. I wasn’t aware rawhides weren’t safe. I went online to look look for safe options and I’ve read conflicting advice on what’s okay to give them. My pup wants to put everything in his mouth, rocks, sticks, etc. At this point I’m considering getting him a muzzle for when he goes outside or is at my in laws farm. I’ve read most bones are bad. Ive taken up or threw out the ones I read that were bad. Right now Im left with the benabone wishbone, Kong, Kong qwest starpod, a couple different nylabones, rope toys (I’m now only using for tug of war) and the Holle roller ball. I know some of the other durable rubber Kong type interactive toys are ok. I’ve gotten conflicting advice on the benabone/nylabones, and the rope toys. I know on the other thread a rope toy caused a fatal obstruction. I can’t give him even the most durable stuffed toys as he destroys them within an hour. He doesn’t play with his Kong after he gets the stuffed treats out of it. He loves bones and toys so I hate to take them away, but most importantly I want to keep him safe. I was just wondering y’all’s thoughts and recommendations? What to keep on hand for emergencies, etc? Almost every time something happened to cause me to worry sick its late at night or on the weekends when everything but emergency vets are open. I know there are a lot of people like I was that don’t do the research or realize how dangerous some of these things are until there’s a problem. I know several people that give their dogs rawhide, etc. I read this 2019 list of safe/not safe that was helpful, but I see some things on the list are listed unsafe are safe on other articles. Also, on the other thread a couple folks recommended feeding a can of spinach or some bread if your pup does eat anything that could possibly cause an obstruction. I’ve also bought a super size bottle of hydrogen peroxide in case the pup eats something poisonous to induce vomiting. 

https://www.preventivevet.com/dogs/popular-dog-chews-that-are-actually-dangerous-to-dogs


----------



## Andythom (Jun 20, 2009)

How old is your dog? Regular nylabones (not the puppy ones) are generally pretty safe. However, Most toys will need to be monitored for the reasons you described. My pup LOVES antlers. I started giving them to him early on (10-11weeks) and now at 6 months its the first thing he runs and gets in the morning. If you order from Michigan antler (you can find them via google) you can specific the hardness you are looking for. So far I’ve stuck with medium or medium-soft as I don’t want to put too much stress on his teeth. He chews on them constantly and goes through a large antler about every 1.5 weeks or so. You can also check out yak cheese sticks. They are great but a heavy chewer can get through them fairly quickly.


----------



## Emmdenn (Jun 5, 2018)

Antlers are great. We buy cow knuckles from chewy (red barn brand) and Denver LOVES them...plus they last forever. Red barn also has good empty femur bones that we love to fill with peanut butter, pumpkin or greek yogurt and freeze them. We have been giving beef trachea every couple of weeks. Those don't last very long however they are digestible. Bully sticks are by FAR Denver's favorite. We buy the 12" braided ones....and we make sure to take them away after he's chewed for 10-/15 minutes because he could finish the whole thing if we let him. Bully sticks are also digestible, however you have to be diligent that they are not swallowing big/long pieces whole because that could lead to choking or obstruction.

All of them can be purchased on Chewy. Good luck!


----------



## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

We loved antlers - until my vet told me that every broken tooth she sees in the clinic is from chewing on antlers. She recommends against, so we scratched them off our list. 

She told me my very dedicated chewer would be okay with Nylabones or the like. They have a bit of give. I get the extra large that are made for super chewers or dedicated chewers (can't remember how they describe them). My dog will chew on one for an hour at a time.


----------



## davmar77 (May 5, 2017)

we stopped giving amber antlers as she was breaking off sharp pieces. she destroys anything soft so these days we try to give her toys for tough chewers like nylabones. of course she likes to make her own.












(not really her  )


----------



## OscarsDad (Dec 20, 2017)

davmar77 said:


> we stopped giving amber antlers as she was breaking off sharp pieces. she destroys anything soft so these days we try to give her toys for tough chewers like nylabones. of course she likes to make her own.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Not specifically related to the thread but what a great picture!


----------



## OscarsDad (Dec 20, 2017)

We give Oscar marrow bones from a local beef farmer. We try to keep them around 1/2 pound in weight as the larger bones seem to really exhaust him. We NEVER leave him unattended when he has a bone.


----------



## CCG_FDL (Sep 23, 2019)

I give No Hide bones they come in different flavours and actually take some time to chew so keeps Fletch happy. They are made of brown rice flour, banana powder and eggs but they feel very much like rawhide! No digestive issues either. I have given Better Belly’s which he loves but eats way too fast—the really are rawhide but I believe they are granulated. I bought a Whimzee bone which is hard but made of veggies—have not given it to him yet. Soft toys that have survived months of play are now being chewed so I throw them away ? Fletch is almost 8 months


----------



## CCG_FDL (Sep 23, 2019)

PS he prefers the Pet Qwerks BarkBones over nylabones/benebones. I get them off amazon and also find them at HomeGoods! There’s one that is shaped like a stick that he really likes.


----------



## ceegee (Mar 26, 2015)

Another vote for Nylabones. I only buy the very hard ones, because Duster is able to rip pieces off the softer ones. However, the hard ones last for ages even though he uses them daily. I throw them out when he's chewed the ends off. He also loves the dogwood stick-shaped chews, but they don't last as long. I have Kongs, but he has no interest in them unless I stuff them with something.


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

Toys... None are technically safe. All toys are to be supervised (interactive) and when done really should be picked up. Some dogs aren't destructive chewers and maybe be ok to leave some things down and you know your dog best but for absolute certain, never leave toys down when you're not there.

For bones, I give bully sticks, frozen raw bones (for dogs, not from a butcher) dura chew Nylabones (never the flexible style). I also do something called a forever bone, it's an ostrich let bone. Insanely hard and can only wear it down and not eat it. Never ever ever rawhide, it's indigestible and can ingest large pieces.

Keep in mind any cooked bone even femur bones can and will usually crack and can splinter. Raw bones will not.


----------



## puddles everywhere (May 13, 2016)

I would never suggest using a muzzle! Go out with your pup on a leash and teach the leave it command. He's getting to be a big boy and hope you are involved in obedience training class. My pups never go out in the yard unattended, tennis ball or frisbee toss, teaching recalls and formal retrieves and tricks. If I walk back into the house to get a bottle of water they just lay on the patio and wait. Being out is so much more fun if you are there to play with. Gives them something else to do besides making up their own games to entertainment themselves like eating sticks sticks or digging.
I do have a covered dog run (with floor) so they can be contained if needed. This is for their safety, like a kid in a play pen.


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

Muzzles that keep the mouth closed enough that they can not ingest or pick things up is too restrictive to be on a dog for anything more then 5-10 min at a time. Dogs can not sweat to cool the body, that is why they pant and if they can not pant easily and without restriction they can EASILY over heat and even heat stroke. Even indoors as they lay around I'm quite certain you've seen your dog pant just laying around the house. Imagine if they are on a walk or moving around at all. That is why they make cage or basket muzzles so there is no restriction in panting as they walk or get excited.


I wanted to add this. This is something most people do not think about. There are 2 things you must know or decide when giving chews/toys. Anything you give your dog to chew/play with goes in the mouth and they only thing they can really do is shew on it. SO you have to think of 2 things, Is it digestible? and can you control the size of what they are ingesting (the pieces they can get off the item)



Things like the hard Dura chew Nylabones are designed that only very small pieces or rice or so come off, never giving a chance for blockages. Same with hard bones and antlers. and they chews you give them but me digestible, unlike rawhide and such. Those are the 2 things you must answer.


----------



## rabernet (Feb 24, 2015)

I make fleece tug toys that are very durable that the boys like to play tug with each other. We also have a lot of West Paw toys. The boys also love the Hartz Dura Play balls and bones. They are soft, but they don't tear them up. They LOVE to make them squeak. We pick a few up at Walmart or local grocery store every few months - only because they'll take them in the back yard and lose them, and we find them later and throw them away. I keep trying to tell them that they are "inside" toys, but they con the pet sitter all the time! LOL

We do give raw and frozen marrow bones we get from the Publix butcher. We go every other Saturday and the butchers see me coming and go "yes, we just got a box in, go shopping, we'll get it together". I buy every large bone in the box and then put them in freezer bags. Apparently there's another lady that comes every Wednesday and does the same thing. 

However, Moses did manage to break off a piece of bone recently and I did discuss in the obstruction thread - as he did have to have obstruction surgery last week. My vet and the ER vet both said it was a fluke thing that happened, that they both give the same bones to their dogs and have never had that happen. Even went to a second Emergency vet a few days later when Noah started vomiting (thankfully - no obstruction, no pancreatitis, just an upset tummy - I joked he was having sympathy pains for his brother). That vet ALSO said that they give the same bones to THEIR dogs. 

Neither of them have had one since Moses' surgery - we're waiting for bellies to heal - Moses at least two weeks from surgery and Noah to get over his gastroenteritis.


----------



## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

A puppy sired by my Bourbon just had to have obstruction surgery for a nylabone. I had previously considered that a safe chew I didn't have to watch every second- but she was really really sick and they got recognizable nylabone out of her gut which had some necrosis around it and she lost a bit of intestine to that. 
I dk if anything is safe unsupervised.


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

Prism Goldens said:


> A puppy sired by my Bourbon just had to have obstruction surgery for a nylabone. I had previously considered that a safe chew I didn't have to watch every second- but she was really really sick and they got recognizable nylabone out of her gut which had some necrosis around it and she lost a bit of intestine to that.
> I dk if anything is safe unsupervised.


I would ask if it was a flexible or soft type of Nylabone? The puppy and flexible Nylabones I would never offer to a puppy above 16 weeks (when their jaws are getting stronger and the adult teeth are really coming in) they can actually start taking chunks of those Nylabones which leads to the obstructions. The dura chew versions of the Nylabones are the ones that should be safe, and ones that are 1 solid piece and not ones that multiple pieces are screwed together either.

If any dog can chew off a chunk of the dura chew Nylabones, then that was defective. That should never happen, I don't care what kind of chewer they are and of course always supervise.


----------



## rabernet (Feb 24, 2015)

Prism Goldens said:


> A puppy sired by my Bourbon just had to have obstruction surgery for a nylabone. I had previously considered that a safe chew I didn't have to watch every second- but she was really really sick and they got recognizable nylabone out of her gut which had some necrosis around it and she lost a bit of intestine to that.
> I dk if anything is safe unsupervised.



I hope that she's going to be ok - so scarey.


----------



## jomiel (Feb 15, 2019)

Tomo loves Himalayan cheese chews but my vet said that her dog cracked her teeth on both sides eating those  She said to only give chews that I can make a dent with my fingernail, and said no plastic chews and no raw hide. So right now he gets bully sticks, raw marrow bones, beef trachea, beef knuckle bones (Red Barn), and No Hide chews. 

I bought one of these bully stick holders to prevent Tomo from eating that last bit of bully stick. He is 8 months now and goes through one in half an hour. The L size seems to be good, and he likes using it as a holder or to carry the stick around, and it has so far survived being chewed on occasionally.

I also will stick in 2 chicken jerky sticks or a toothbrush chew into a West Paw Qwizl to so they last longer. 

Tomo also likes to work on a Hol-ee Roller ball with duck jerky or a sweet potato chew inside - it's not a chew per se but does keep him entertained for half an hour!

I'm still trying to figure out what are the best treat combo to put in a Pickle Pocket. If I stick in solid treats, it seems to be too hard to get out, and plain peanut butter seems too easy haha.


----------



## Aidan0311 (Jun 12, 2019)

Thanks so much for all the suggestions and advice! Today Aidan’s been looking all over, searching for all his toys and chews. They have such sad eyes sometimes and I felt pretty bad for the little guy! I’m going to make a list of all the things mentioned and go shopping. He’s definitely an aggressive chewer so will the bones I like the ones that last longer and keep him occupied for awhile. I tried the bully sticks, but I got the small skinnier ones that are about as big as a jerky stick. I need to try the bigger twisted ones! A lot of what y’all mentioned I heard of, but haven’t tried. I did get a frozen bone at the pet store and he loved that, but I threw that out with all his other stuff I was concerned about! Good to know they aren’t bad as long as you are supervising them. I’m so paranoid over the obstruction thing I won’t buy anymore raw hide. When he was little, he didn’t chew off chunks of it. Puddles thanks for the info. I’ll not get the muzzle. We go outside with him and watch him, but sometimes he’ll pick up something, and run away with it in his mouth. The leave it works in the house, but we’ve got to work on outdoor training. Until he gets it down I’ll leash him.


----------



## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

Maggie'sVoice said:


> I would ask if it was a flexible or soft type of Nylabone? The puppy and flexible Nylabones I would never offer to a puppy above 16 weeks (when their jaws are getting stronger and the adult teeth are really coming in) they can actually start taking chunks of those Nylabones which leads to the obstructions. The dura chew versions of the Nylabones are the ones that should be safe, and ones that are 1 solid piece and not ones that multiple pieces are screwed together either.
> 
> If any dog can chew off a chunk of the dura chew Nylabones, then that was defective. That should never happen, I don't care what kind of chewer they are and of course always supervise.


It was one of the nubby ones that looks like a bone, with rolled ends. The kind I have like 20 of. That's one chew I had always felt ok about til this happened.


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

Prism Goldens said:


> It was one of the nubby ones that looks like a bone, with rolled ends. The kind I have like 20 of. That's one chew I had always felt ok about til this happened.


Yeah those are the blue dental ones if it's the ones I'm thinking of. If you can bend it at all then it's the flexible style and I would never recommend that style after a pup is 4 months. That's the kind of thing that can happen


----------



## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

no, they are white or beige- I had both - never so shocked when that was what they pulled out-
I should have just pasted a link in the first place-
but it keeps picking up a fleece throw even though it is the dura bone original I am trying to link.


----------



## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

Prism Goldens said:


> A puppy sired by my Bourbon just had to have obstruction surgery for a nylabone. I had previously considered that a safe chew I didn't have to watch every second- but she was really really sick and they got recognizable nylabone out of her gut which had some necrosis around it and she lost a bit of intestine to that.
> I dk if anything is safe unsupervised.



Was it like a sizeable piece that he had bitten off and swallowed or the smaller sliver pieces? That's scary.


These are the Nylabones Shala loves:


https://www.nylabone.com/products/product-type/chew-toys/power-chew/power-chew-pro-action-chew-toy

https://www.nylabone.com/products/product-type/chew-toys/power-chew/power-chew-chicken-chew-toy


She chews them for hours and they stay pretty well intact.


----------



## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

I might have the pics- will look. It was the end that looks (to me) rolled over, like a disk almost w a rise on one side. 
Owner never noticed it and she said she picked them up daily -has 4 dogs- and washed most days in sink... about 4 years ago I had a piece come off but I kept buying them because I really do feel like Nylabone is one of the best/safest/least likely to be problematic. Plus had washed all mine in the DW so I thought perhaps that one years ago lost a tip because of heat.. but this gal says she only rinses in lukewarm dishwater and rinses. The biggest issue is once there is necrosis, all the other systems start reacting so it wasn't just losing a piece of intestine but a huge vet bill and almost losing her due to the necrosis. She is only about 9 mo old.


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

Very true, once there is necrosis you must act and leave nothing to change.


----------



## DblTrblGolden2 (Aug 22, 2018)

Question? My sons friend owns a butcher shop and brought us a bag of beef bones (frozen) last night. I've never gotten any directly from a butcher shop. Are they safe to give? They are the kind I normally buy but these appear to have a little meat left on them. Do you cook them? Do you clean them? I've always bought the femur bones and stuffed them, but these are knuckle bones and femur bones right from the butcher shop. What do I do with them? 

LOL this seems like a ridiculous question but I just looked at the bag in my freezer and thought "what am I going to do with those"


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

I'm not a fan of getting them from a butcher. They aren't handled the same way as they are expected to be cooked for soups and such. Much much more likely for pathogens to be able to grow on raw bones from a butcher. This compared to raw bones being tested for pathogens from companies like Nature's Variety or bravo who package raw bones for dogs to eat raw. They usually test before and after freezing and before packaging.

In most cases a dogs system will kill the pathogens like salmonella and E. Coli but why chance it and risk the pathogens in the house potentially infecting people in the house, especially kids.


----------



## debbie624 (Aug 10, 2018)

I have heard from my health food pet store that cooked bones will splinter so best to give raw. And raw ones that are designed for dogs because they are treated like Maggie's Voice is saying. The other benefit of raw bones is the live enzymes they have which are beneficial to the gut. Coco is a big chewer and I worried and still do about obstructions. I give her No Hide chews but they can get expensive if you're buying them all the time. I have given her the Mint A Breath bones from Trader Joes which are digestible. I have recently gotten her Himalayan cheese chews. I will likely get her a raw bone from our health food pet store but in the summer when she can chew on it outside bc of the mess. Godog plush toys Home | Go Dog Fun are great too in terms of a toy. Our previous golden Callie had a few of these and they never came apart. Coco plays with these passed down from Callie and despite her being a pretty aggressive chewer, has not destroyed any. They are double stitched to withstand the chewers. I bought her a West Paw quizl but am at a loss as to what to put in there to make it last long. I was going to try a twisted bully stick. Would love some ideas if anyone here has these too. She too had a clear flexible nylabone that I just threw out bc she was biting off pieces of it. She has a red one, not sure if nylabone brand, it is super hard but has been able to chew down the ends. But not actual pieces. I was going to throw that away too bc she has worn down the end. I assumed this is a problem but am wondering now bc she hasn't actually chewed off chunks of it. I also soak her kibble in hot water untl it becomes mush, mix with a bit of plain greek yogurt, stuff a kong and freeze it. I feel safe leaving her with this in her crate when I leave for work. It takes a long time for her to work this out of the kong. I watch her on the puppy cam


----------



## Rion05 (Jan 4, 2016)

I had a young golden with a molar slab fracture when chewing a Nylabone. He was chewing it right near me when I heard a sudden "crack." Ugh! One root canal later, the dental vet actually recommended...rawhide (yes, I know there are other reasons to avoid rawhide, but that's what she used for her own dogs and recommended).

These days I am paranoid about Nylabones, so we use a ton of stuffed Kongs, Redbarn bones, No Hide chews, Better Belly chews...it's really a balancing act between satisfying the need to chew (and the chewing damage if it's not satisfied) with the risk of a broken tooth.


----------



## DblTrblGolden2 (Aug 22, 2018)

Maggie'sVoice said:


> I'm not a fan of getting them from a butcher. They aren't handled the same way as they are expected to be cooked for soups and such. Much much more likely for pathogens to be able to grow on raw bones from a butcher. This compared to raw bones being tested for pathogens from companies like Nature's Variety or bravo who package raw bones for dogs to eat raw. They usually test before and after freezing and before packaging.
> 
> In most cases a dogs system will kill the pathogens like salmonella and E. Coli but why chance it and risk the pathogens in the house potentially infecting people in the house, especially kids.


Thank you! I knew you would know and it would save me the time to research. I'll just stick with the ones I buy.


----------



## debbie624 (Aug 10, 2018)

a lot of you are referring to Red Barn bones. Are those the white ones in petstores? And stuff them with peanut butter for instance? Will these crack a tooth? I was considering trying these too.


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

Red Barn is a brand and they have a HUGE section of treats and chews for dogs. Just look then up and I would doubt if the are least 50 types or more


----------



## jomiel (Feb 15, 2019)

debbie624 said:


> I bought her a West Paw quizl but am at a loss as to what to put in there to make it last long. I was going to try a twisted bully stick. Would love some ideas if anyone here has these too.



Yeah I am also trying to figure out what to put into the Quizl since it's such a stiff and long shape. I've shoved in 2 chicken jerky sticks stacked side to side so they fill the middle, a rolled up gullet taffy jerky (esophagus), and have also put in dental chews.


----------



## jomiel (Feb 15, 2019)

debbie624 said:


> a lot of you are referring to Red Barn bones. Are those the white ones in petstores? And stuff them with peanut butter for instance? Will these crack a tooth? I was considering trying these too.


I've bought the knee caps and the big knuckles . They're the brown ones with a bit of tendon and meat bits still on them. Would also like to know what others get.


----------



## Aidan0311 (Jun 12, 2019)

Debbie the 1st pic is of the bone you’re thinking of. Seems like they have a lot of different types of other bones as well. The 2nd pic of the hambone is similar to one I had gotten Aidan a while back thinking it would keep him busy. It was a huge bone and He loved it, but he kept tearing skin type stuff off of it and had little bits of nasty stuff all over the floor! I took it away from him because of the mess and I began questioning if it was safe.


----------



## debbie624 (Aug 10, 2018)

jomiel said:


> Yeah I am also trying to figure out what to put into the Quizl since it's such a stiff and long shape. I've shoved in 2 chicken jerky sticks stacked side to side so they fill the middle, a rolled up gullet taffy jerky (esophagus), and have also put in dental chews.


I bought a bully stick today to put inside the Quizl and Coco of course pulled it out pretty quick and she likes to throw her head back when she has a bone and I worry now about giving her bully sticks. They are narrow and can easily slip down her throat I think. So far, the No Hide seems to be the best option for a bone. These Red Barn bones look interesting but when I felt them, they seem so hard and I wonder if it could chip or break a tooth. This certainly isn't easy trying to satisfy her chewing need and keeping her safe. I have spent about $80 dollars in the last week buying various treats and bones to satisfy this need. I wish I could find something that will be long lasting. Her chewing habit is burning a hole in my pockets, lol.


----------



## jomiel (Feb 15, 2019)

I was at Trader Joe’s yesterday and found these beef roll sticks that fit perfectly in the Quizl.


----------



## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

Red Barn- they had cases on sale a couple years ago, the ones stuffed already w PB or such. I bought a case. My dog Edward now has no left top canine, it broke it in half. I used to use those bones, but raw from the grocery or pet store for dogs or Blue Ridge Beef, more typically. These were the first cooked ones I had ever used. Thankfully, he had a really narrow pulp cavity so we didn't lose the place-saving function of the roots, the UF dentist packed the tiny entrance to the cavity (prob describing this poorly) and then sutured over the area she'd removed the canine that shows. 
I seem to have a disaster for every treat and chew lol. Comes with the many decades and multiples of tens of dogs I guess...


----------



## Maggie'sVoice (Apr 4, 2018)

That's why I try and stay with Raw Bones and shews like Bully Sticks. I really don't let my dogs chew on the cooked bones. Once you cook a bone you dry it out and make it a bit brittle and extremely hard. Raw bones are a bit more chalky and sifter so much easier on the teeth but still hard enough to scrape/scale the teeth. I do have an elk antler but she only gets to chew on it a couple times a week and only for 5 min after a meal. It's just enough to get some scaling on the teeth.


----------



## Emmdenn (Jun 5, 2018)

These are the ones we've tried with Denver since he was about 12 weeks: https://www.chewy.com/redbarn-peanu...aF_JAQL-BrFMGXNnDoFT0akli0cjU8GxoC_WAQAvD_BwE

We haven't had any issues with them. They last a long time, he's gone through two of them in the year we've had him. If we notice his teeth bleeding (more when he was teething) we take them away. He will chew on them for 5 minutes at a time throughout the day.


----------



## jomiel (Feb 15, 2019)

Just updating how the TJ beef roll sticks are going - the annoying thing is that it dries out rather fast, so after a few hours when I go to push the roll a bit farther out of the Quizl, it’ll start shredding the roll inside instead of pushing out easily. So I think I’ll need to assist Tomo every few min so he can eat the beef roll before it goes all crumbly (he’ll still happily eat it, it’s just that I’m annoyed at the mess on the floor!).


----------



## debbie624 (Aug 10, 2018)

sounds pretty frustrating. I feel there is no real easy answer regarding a completely safe bone or chew. The manager at Pet Supplies Plus suggested something I hadn't thought of. He said whatever bone you're buying, the larger, the safer. He said if its large and the dog can barely get its mouth around then there is less chance for breaking a tooth bc cannot dig the teeth into the bone. That makes total sense to me. So an antler, a Red Barn bone, or a nylabone would be ok if its large enough.


----------

