Rawhide - yay or nay?

[JenC]

Retriever rolls and thick chips...my guys love rawhide and have been getting it since we got our first dog in 2001. We don't see any tummy or poop issues because of them. If your dog is a gulper, you may want to make sure they are only chewed with supervision. Jack gulps, and sometimes when he works on the thick chips, he tries to swallow the last bite and it gets stuck in his throat. I have no problem getting it out. He comes and tells me when it happens. I am fine with the arrangement he and I have. Dog NEED to chew. If you don't use rawhides, find something. Raw marrows, antlers, whatever. Mine like rawhide and marrows. The rest is utter crap to them and they'll leave it, even the nice antlers that cost so much. But it's kind of a "zen" thing for a dog to sit down for an hour and chew. And it's necessary that they get to do it from time to time.

[arentspowell]

We do the retriever rolls and chips here too.

[windycanyon]

Nay to rawhide. Not only choking & salmonella/etc danger, but just saw a poster at a vets office on the calories it contains.

[arentspowell]

Forgot to add, we only buy American made rawhide. A few years back the Chinese ones were making dogs really sick.

[JenC]

American only here too.

[PinkDragon14]

Zoey gets retriever rolls and pressed rawhide. The ones with the knots on the end a more of a choking hazard

I always supervise and throw it out once a little more than half is gone. You can find some good deals on Amazon for retriever rolls made in the USA

I prefer rawhide to the hard antlers and bones. Zoey has already chipped a tooth on an antler. My corgi gets bully sticks and slices but Zoey doesnt, its a waste a money, she can destroy one in 2 minutes

My dogs have no interest in nylabones at all so i dont buy them, they lost interest in nylabones when they were still puppies

Do you think that the rawhides last longer/hold up better than the antlers? Last time I was at the store, I thought about getting him an antler, but they were an arm and a leg for one his size. He's never really had a "real" bone yet - just the nylas. (Yes, I know that sounds really sad. I'm just afraid of him getting an obstruction so I'm holding out as long as I can, but the time is coming)

Retriever rolls and thick chips...my guys love rawhide and have been getting it since we got our first dog in 2001. We don't see any tummy or poop issues because of them. If your dog is a gulper, you may want to make sure they are only chewed with supervision. Jack gulps, and sometimes when he works on the thick chips, he tries to swallow the last bite and it gets stuck in his throat. I have no problem getting it out. He comes and tells me when it happens. I am fine with the arrangement he and I have. Dog NEED to chew. If you don't use rawhides, find something. Raw marrows, antlers, whatever. Mine like rawhide and marrows. The rest is utter crap to them and they'll leave it, even the nice antlers that cost so much. But it's kind of a "zen" thing for a dog to sit down for an hour and chew. And it's necessary that they get to do it from time to time.

I don't think he's a gulper, but I could be wrong. If this helps at all, he's the kind that will steal a piece of whatever on the floor and then tries to get you to chase him around. Usually I can get whatever is in his mouth in a minute, but he does swallow the occasional leaf or little piece of woodchip.

The zen thing makes sense - he'll take his nyla and go sit under the coffee table and chew away (or his kong, kong stick, etc.). I read somewhere to provide the dog with different "textures", like a hard bone, a soft kong, something in between those two, etc. I just want to make sure he's able to chew away without getting sick. Anything is better than my pants LOL

Nay to rawhide. Not only choking & salmonella/etc danger, but just saw a poster at a vets office on the calories it contains.

Didn't even think about the calories part. Yikes.

Forgot to add, we only buy American made rawhide. A few years back the Chinese ones were making dogs really sick.

I'll keep this in mind as I search for something - thanks!

[Mudlark]

Nope - never!

[ZoeysMommy]

Do you think that the rawhides last longer/hold up better than the antlers? Last time I was at the store, I thought about getting him an antler, but they were an arm and a leg for one his size. He's never really had a "real" bone yet - just the nylas. (Yes, I know that sounds really sad. I'm just afraid of him getting an obstruction so I'm holding out as long as I can, but the time is coming)

Rawhide is generally a one time thing at least it is for Zoey and Daisee. I let them work on the roll for a few hours and throw it away. Antlers are super hard, rawhide is not

[ckfalz]

I've never had any issues with rawhides, give them in moderation. They like buffalo horns and bones best. Took bones and horns away after my sister's dog broke a tooth on a bone and had expensive work done to fix it. Her vet warns against bones and also warns against several other chew items so that doesn't leave a lot of options. Mine have some Nylabones of different types but rarely chew on them. They love bully springs but those last just a minute or two so are cost prohibitive for the amount of chewing time they provide. They also like Himalayan chews but those last 3-5 minutes so also cost prohibitive for the amount of chewing time they provide.

[Mom4four]

We occasionally do retriever rolls but lately Quincy has been able to destroy one in about 15min so I have backed off. I am leary of his swallowing something and getting a blockage. Quincy does have a deer antler that he was given by the breeder we got him from. Its from a deer he shot so its the entire antler, although its small. He LOVES it! He doesnt have much interest in Nylabones or anything similar.