Giving them Bones?

[nanci27]

Hi

I was wondering if its ok to give your puppy bones I mean the animal ones fromthe pet shop? and if so at what age?

[boxer]

Yes, it is a very good idea to give your puppy raw bones to chew on. That will help more than anything else with teething, and is the natural way of keeping teeth and gums healthy. The alternative is to brush your dog's teeth yourself every couple of days.

But bones do need to be raw. So it is better to get bones (cheap or free) from your butcher than to get the petstore variety. Most of those will be cooked in some way - be it smoked, sterilised or whatever - and can be dangerous.

I'm not a huge fan of recreational bones (big weight bearing bones, including marrow bones) though a lot of people give those. I don't think they do as much for dental health as the softer types like brisket, and there's a greater risk of chipping teeth too. But just about any raw bone from your butcher will do - just let him know you need something for the dog.

[nanci27]

I did give my last dog bones from the butcher but don't remember what age thanks!

[Alisha Mobley]

Originally Posted by nanci27

I did give my last dog bones from the butcher but don't remember what age thanks!

Our puppies had their first bone at 2 1/2 wks of age...they've been getting them ever since.

[nanci27]

oh great thanks i will get them then

[Alisha Mobley]

I should point out that the only bones our dogs get are raw.

[Taren]

Raw bones do not splinter. cooked bones splinter. when you cook the bones they get brittle and will splinter. i fed my dog RAW theres alot of stuff on this site that will tell you about feeding RAW bones.

[Taren]

i read the site and it looks like to me thats someones opinion of RAW. you have to be able to distinguish someones opinion vs the true facts. dogs have been eating RAW forever. dogs in the wild have to survive somehow and its in their nature to eat RAW. as long as a dog is supervised while eating a RAW bone its fine.
as for your vet goes most vets are not told much about a dogs diet while in vet shcool. vets are always going to agre with kibble bc they make money off of kibble. (example:science diet)
some may agree with RAW some wont its personal opinion.

[nanci27]

Thanks for all your info, I will being giving her raw bones from the local butcher and will be careful as I would be anyway cause you never know.

Thanks again

nanci x

[Taren]

ive never used the dental sticks. i know that rawhides are not safe. im not sure if thts what you are talking about though. i read a thing on the greenies yesterday talking about how they are not safe.