Dog owners - Careful with those chews!

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bbq engineer

Master of the Pit
Original poster
OTBS Member
SMF Premier Member
Feb 26, 2009
1,034
16
DeSoto, KS
First off, Here is a picture of my two cattle dogs. I got both of them at the shelter, and couldn't possibly love them anymore than I do...same goes for Mrs. Engineer.




Both are cattle dogs, and if you have never had a cattle dog, they are amazing creatures...tough as nails, fast as lightning, strong, agile, protective, but territorial, and with a focus that is unwavering. Not a good dog for a first time owner, or someone that cannot be the leader. They also have jaws like a vise...it comes in handy when they go after grumpy cattle. Since I don't have cattle, I have a lot of other ways to keep the dogs active, exercised, and I also give them plenty to chew on so they don't decide the coffee table looks tasty. Both of my dogs are voracious chewers, and will destroy anything but hardened steel and concrete bunkers. I give them the hard "durable" nylabones, and they love them...no kidding, I would buy them by the dozen. They have shiny teeth, too! The other day, I noticed that my strawberry blonde had a bit of blood in her mouth, and upon investigating, one of her rear molars was broken. A trip to the vet revealed that 2 of her molars were broken and that my next stop would be at a veterinarian that specialized in canine dentistry (CHA-CHING!). And by the way, those durable Nylabones are not veterinary approved! You could have knocked me over with a feather. You can buy those things in every store in the United States, and I had no idea that my Vet suggested that I NOT give these to my dog.

Long story short...I just dropped $2,000 getting 2 of my dog's teeth worked on. I know a lot of people wouldn't spend even a fraction of this on their pets, so call me crazy if you must, but those are not the people that I am writing this for. They specialty vet did have some recommended chew appliances for dogs, so I guess what I am saying is this. Consult your vet, and do what is right for your dog...give your best buddy chews that are approved, it may save you some cash in the long run.
 
Thanks for the post BBQ! I spent a ton on my cat's broken fang, and I appreciate another animal lover's concern.
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BBQ Engineer
My Golden Retriever loves Nubs. They are a small green premanufactered bone that are designed for and advertised as good for canine teeth. The word nylabone is in the description. Are these what you are posting about?
 
85% of the stuff sold to us in the stores is not approved by your Vets. It is up to us to siff thru it all for the 15% that is.

Blue Heelers aren't they?
 
Hey MossyMO,

I used the "Durable" nylabone products, that are (from the Nylabone website) "Specifically made for powerful chewers, these chews are made of durable nylon".

I wanted to also post a link to the Veterinary Oral Health Council website, where they have a list of products that are awarded the Veterinary oral health seal of approval.

http://www.vohc.org/accepted_products.htm

Certainly I have to plead ignorance that the nylabones weren't approved by the vet council for my dogs (as viewed from the VOHC). I really feel bad that my dog had broken her teeth due to my lack of knowledge. Please don't make the same mistake...do your research, and take care of your pets. I no longer have any nylon chews in my house.
 
Two words: Pet Insurance. After draining my bank account on doggie medical bills over the years I will never not cover a new pet. The coverage is totally reasonable and the one time you need it it makes it worth while.
 
Bummer man, that really stinks. Beautiful dogs, btw.

I noticed greenies and rawhide chews on that list. Dogs have died eating greenies and my labs always end up eating rawhides and puke them up later for a nice surprise in the morning. They just don't seem to digest well, as I've seen evidence of both in their stools...needless to say, they don't get either chew toys now. I don't care for nylabones because the way my dogs wittle them down, I know they have to ingest some of that plastic...but they do last a good long time. I normally just use cow bones from the butcher shop or a "hickory" bone from the store.
 
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