# Pros and Cons of chews you've tried



## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

I thought this could be a good reference thread to PF members and dog lovers that lurk the forums; what chews have you tried and what results have you gotten from them?

I haven't tried elk antlers, but these are what I've tried

Raw bones from the butcher, cut to about 2-3 inch slabs. My dogs love these, chew the meat off, lick out the marrow, and they last forever. I keep filling the emptiness inside with peanut butter. No issues with splintered teeth, though if the dogs leave them in the middle of a dark room and my feet ram into the edges.. NOT FUN!

Bully sticks, dogs love them, but smelly and don't last long.

Nylabones, no issues with chipping teeth, but also not a fun thing to step on.

Hooves, dogs love them, but Vienna eats them and barfs them up at 4am.


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

Good thread Fluffy, I'll be interested to see what others post. Indy is not much of a chewer but I encourage it with things she likes because I do have to keep up with her teeth whereas Maddy loves chewing and her teeth are pearly white. My two like:

1) Beef tendons; take about 1/2 an hour to chew one, and not as stinky as bullies

2) Hooves; but Maddy gets chunks off with a sharp "snap" sound and I find that alarming (they seem pretty sharp), so I kind of have avoided them the last while

3) Those big nylabones that are kind of flexible and give a bit when you bend them;

4) Elk antlers...someone's husband hunts and gave us lots of elk antlers. The dogs love them, but we have to keep sawing off the ends of the antlers so they are freshly interested again, which is a bit of work

5) Those plastic bones with the biscuit baked into them...used to last a long time but Maddy is better at crunching the biscuit off now so they're less and less of a chew toy and more of a snack, so not getting them much anymore

I have tried lots but the above are the ones I have been getting lately.


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## Carley's Mom (Oct 30, 2011)

bully sticks only last a few mins at my house.
beef tendons are my favorite , last about 30 mins and don't make a mess .
beef ribs last the longest, my dogs love to clean the meat off as well. But they are messy. 
hooves are only something to fuss over, I have to give them to the dogs when they are seperated. They can never just both have one and enjoy... 
antlers are too hard, I fear a broken tooth, so I don't do them anymore.

I have never done the fake bones. My sister kept trying them only to have 2 dogs with broken teeth.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

*Chews Reviews*

Didn't realize Vital Essentials sells prepackaged beef spare rib bones and the price is not bad, so picked up a box and a Himalayan chew. I will let everyone know how they work out.

I have been buying the spare ribs at Jewel and cut most of the meat and fat off and give Sunny the bone and he chomps away. Keeps him occupied and only eats little bits of the raw bone, which his ok. Last night, not having any spare rib bones frozen, I found a short beef rib about 4" long and fat, so I cut the meat and fat off and gave it to him. Now, he was JUST groomed yesterday. He was having a great time and I looked over at him and he had 3 pieces of bloodied bone caught up into his beautifully coiffed ear, blood all over his bell bottoms near his paws and honestly, looked like he was eating a recently butchered animal. I could not believe it!!! First time this happened. Well, for some reason, the bone was shorter and very dense (and the inside of the bone was very bloody as it thawed). Shampoo and brush and we are ok, but that prompted me to pick up this box today.

Also, Chagall's Mom says the Himalayan chews are great so I picked one up. Sunny smelled it and walked away. I'll see if he goes back to it later.


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## ArcadiaX (Sep 17, 2012)

I wondered what the Himalayan chews were, so, I Googled it. Turns out they are Yak and Cow milk, with salt and lime. Basically, a really hard cheese. My pups LOVE, LOVE, LOVE cheese (in moderate amounts, of course). Going to have to try this out. Thanks for the heads up, liljaker and Chagall's Mom.


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## Jacamar (Jun 2, 2012)

My vet sold me a bag of "C.E.T Hextra" chews. They seem to be raw hide with some type of coating thats supposed to be help clean their teeth. I need to find out more because I thought raw hide wasnt good to give dogs? The first several I gave him lasted a week or more, but last night I gave one and he ate it in a few minutes! I wont give any more until I find out more about them.

I bought a "puppy nylabone" and Panda didnt like it that much for several weeks, now he loves it. But it is apparently not a "food" so I may not give that any more because since it is disappearing, I know he is swallowing little bits as he chews.

He loves "nutra dent" chews but they dont last long, maybe 5-10 minutes. I bought him an antler and he likes that but I didnt think about the broken teeth issue. He still has puppy teeth right now though.

Im still looking for a better chew. Where do you get a raw bone? Just ask the butcher? Do you ask for any particular kind or just anything from a cow?


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## Ms Stella (Aug 16, 2010)

Ill stick with my tendon treats called "the claw". Ive posted a lot already about them here but will just say that my dogs love them and they are not messy and they dont have any odor. They last a good half hr or longer at times. 

I have bought beef ribs and pork ribs for rec bones but both my dogs hack a lot after that..so I dont give those any more.

I have never tried antlers or hooves. 

Give bullies if we are out of the tendons..


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## poo lover (Nov 7, 2012)

we use only bullies,raw ribs,turkey necks,and cheese chews dog/cat/ferrets all enjoy


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

I use bully sticks, cow tracea, antlers, and an occasional dried chicken foot. I also give raw chicken necks. Swizzle is calmer and happier when he has a chewie.


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## outwest (May 1, 2011)

The tendon treats called 'the claw' that Ms Stella mentioned last a long time. I was very happy to have tried them until two of my dogs swallowed the tendons mostly unchewed and vomitted them up a couple days later intact, which told me they don't digest those. I suppose it didn't hurt them to swallow them and then vomit them up, but I haven't given them any in a while now. 

I still like the skinny rawhide sticks. They last about 15 minutes, but they are small enough they don't cause an issue. 

Jazz' absolute favorite chew is a cow hoof. It lasts weeks and he gnaws on it an hour or so a day. He also liked the puppy nylabone, but his jaws are too strong for them now and I don't like the adult ones because they can crack teeth. 

I tried an antler, but none of them liked them much. 

nonsmelly bully sticks are okay, but the cost is too high for the chew value with my dogs, so I don't buy them often. 

I have just discovered sweet potato chews. They are rubbery hard and the dogs love them. They last about as long as the skinny rawhides. They are fully digestible, which I like. I have been told I could make my own and save a lot of money, so I may try that. I was surprised how much chew value was in them.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

We stick with bully sticks. Tried the claw that Stella's Mom likes but Millie ate hers in...5 minutes. Crazy dog.

Millie broke her tooth on a Nylabone, so we now avoid those as well as antlers. 

Bully sticks at least last us about an hour and I don't notice a smell. I'm still a little worried about broken teeth, because sometimes I think she tries to crunch it the way she does a chicken leg, but the poor thing needs to chew on something!

Around here, the main source of chewing for the purpose of teeth cleaning is raw chicken legs.


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

The undisputed best chew for Chagall is a bully stick. I get the thick, 12" ones and when the stick gets small, stick it inside a Kong ball or similar toy so he doesn't gulp it whole.

I get locally raised, butchered and dried Buffalo ears which he'll chew on, leave laying around, and go back to when there's no bully stick forthcoming.

He also gets the Himalyan Chews. Sometimes he's more thrilled with them than others. But if I pick it and put it in a different room, or take it away for a day and put it out again, he's generally gnawing on it within seconds.

Dried sweet potato chews interest him sometimes, but they too are a poor substitute for his favorite, the bully sticks. He will chew them once he's quite certain nothing better is coming, and after he's played with them like they're hockey pucks for a while.

A Kong stuffed with a frozen mixture of Greek yogurt, peanut butter, fruit or kibble becomes a chew toy of interest to him for a short while after he's emptied its contents.

He likes to gnaw on 100% cotton rope toys. (In the summer I soak them in water and freezer them.) He prefers them to be a bit grungy; he bats freshly washed ones around the floor to "flavor them up" before chewing them.:biggrin1:

I tried Tendon chews but they gave him the runs. I used to give him marrow bones but got scared off them by other peoples experiences with their dogs. He won't do anything to Elk Antlers other than plunk them down on the tile floors, better to break the tile then his teeth I suppose.


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## caroline429 (Mar 5, 2012)

Bully sticks are my number one favorite for Cali. I like them because they are low-fat, don't stain floors and, for the most part, don't smell too bad.

Second favorite is an antler chew. I buy the ones that are cut in half so she can get at the inside. If it's whole, she just ignores it. The inside is mostly calcium and a few other minerals. It softens up as the dog chews on it, so the inside is edible. I find when Cali gets a little bored with it, a soak in some water renews her interest.


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## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

My Molly isn't interested in too many 'chewy' things except for bully sticks,rope toys, and the one thing I've never given in years, (because of blockage & choking)The dreaded Rawhide chew bone! I feel it's okay for her because she doesn't chew them to 'nothingness' & I buy the really big one that she can barely get her mouth on. I also like that she doesn't get dirty from them...... 









And one will last for weeks!!!!!!


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## Lily's-Mom (May 31, 2012)

Interesting topic. I am still looking for a chew for Lily that I won't worry about. I have given her a beef tendon and that gave her soft stool and was kind of smelly. Also, I took it away when the piece got small so she didn't swallow the whole thing. I gave her rawhide sticks and she was fine with that, but again I was worried that she'd gobble a big piece of it. I still have a couple of rawhide sticks left so I'll give those to her on very rare occasions. I was wondering about dog chipping their teeth on Nylabone products. Are these the hard plastic ones? I was always concerned that my dog would eat pieces of it, so I never bought those. Lily has little to no interest in the rope bone I bought her - not for chewing or for playing tug. So the search continues.


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

I was wondering about dog chipping their teeth on Nylabone products. Are these the hard plastic ones? I was always concerned that my dog would eat pieces of it said:


> Good point made by some in this thread, that dogs chew things differently. I can't give mine rawhide or hooves because they are such eager chewers (well, Maddy is), that the rawhide and hooves are actually consumed. But I do like the brown, chicken flavoured nylabone (the big one). It's hard enough so that they get very little off, but it's not the hard plastic one. It's kind of rubbery, so they love to chew on it. It provides Maddy with a lot of fun and exercise; it costs $11.59 so it's not cheap but it lasts longer than a bully or a beef tendon. Yak cheese is $16.59, so that's only for special occasions! It's kind of the gold standard of chewys though, because they love it,it's 100% natural, and it takes a long, long time to chew.


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## Nathan Pollock (Aug 26, 2012)

Elk antlers! Tried a lot of stuff but can't think of anything that's even comparable. No smell, no stains or mess. Only con is that they are expensive but they last a long time. Buying in bulk helps - I bought 10 lb for $70 and it seems like this maybe will last for a couple of years.


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## katbrat (May 8, 2011)

Lexi loves the claws and they last about an hour and a half. Tried the Nylabone, but took it up after I read about cracked teeth, plus I just don't see how eating "plastic"can be good. Gave her the more edible Nylabones and they lasted about 15 minutes. Not alot of bang for the buck. She gets tons of use out of her Kong. I buy sample sizes of Natural Balance dog food, slice off a thick quarter size slice and stuff it in the Kong. It will keep her busy for about the same amount of time as the claw.


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## MaryLynn (Sep 8, 2012)

Antlers-both Gryphon and Bruce love their antlers, no problems with them. 
Kong toy (original and the extra chewer version) - this has proven to be the most invaluable toy we have purchased, they have seen hours of chewing and fun.

Fresh Butchers bones - I do not purchase these, I gave one to my terrier and he took it to eat on my leather sofa. I asked him to get down, and he started growling at me, I stepped closer to him and he started snarling and snapping. I did the only reasonable thing I could do at that time, which was to put on two heavy duty oven mitts (hoping he couldn't bite through them, I had effectively used oven mitts as kevlar against a few kitties before) and wrastle it away from him. He has never guarded, or acted aggressive with food or toys ever, or since. I never want to see that ugliness from him again lol.
BullySticks - both dogs love them, but some of them really smell and they get devoured rather quickly.


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## liljaker (Aug 6, 2011)

Update: Himalayan chew -- I know everyone raves about them.....Sunny hardly looks at it. Seems uninterested --- however, he has some bullies and other stuff around so it just could be he has too many to choose from. I have not given up yet...hoping if he does meander over to it and pick it up he may find out it's great!


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

liljaker said:


> Update: Himalayan chew -- I know everyone raves about them.....Sunny hardly looks at it. Seems uninterested --- however, he has some bullies and other stuff around so it just could be he has too many to choose from. I have not given up yet...hoping if he does meander over to it and pick it up he may find out it's great!


You might try briefly soaking it in some beef or chicken stock to up his interest. Not long enough for it to soften, just for a few minutes for it to soak up some added scent and flavor. Alternatively, if Sunny is anything like Chagall, you could put a dab of peanut butter on it to attract him. Chagall would go through brick wall for a lick of peanut or almond butter.


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## LegalEagle (Nov 8, 2012)

So, we were a little late starting with chews. When Laszlo was about 4 months and we were sick and tired of having chair legs, bookshelves and moldings chewed up, we decided to start investing in alternative chewing materials, because they are cheaper than replacing the furniture!

1) Nylabones: Loves 'em. We haven't tried the edibles, but he really likes the chicken infused polymer ones. We have to be careful though, because his jaws have gotten a lot stronger from chewing Kongs, and he started chewing through the toys for moderate chewers, so even though he's a little narrow-mouthed mini poodle, we have to get him the strong chewer toys.

2) Kongs: We feed Laszlo exclusively through Kongs (thanks, Dr. Dunbar!). This makes him calm and pacifies him when we have to leave the house, especially when we put wet food inside. When they are empty, though, Laszlo ignores them.

3) Rawhide bones: These are a favorite of mine, though not of Laszlo's. They are cheap, you can buy them anywhere, and they are long-lasting. Laszlo really likes the retriever rolls rolls, because of his narrow mouth, but we finally got him into the bones. The store-bought flavored ones often stain, but when we soak a natural rawhide in unsalted chicken or beef broth, he likes it almost as much and the color isn't as intense. They do seem to make the hair near his front paws sticky though.

4) Pork skins ("Chompz"): He loved these right off the bat. They don't last as long as rawhides and are slightly more expensive, but we don't have to convince him to chew them.

5) Pig ears: AWESOME! We get them individually wrapped for $1.39 from PetSmart. Laszlo goes CRAZY for them and they give him about 5 hours of chewing bliss. They do smell like a barbecue pit, but that could be a pro or a con depending on your perspective. I rather like the smell, to be honest...

6) Deer antlers: Laszlo likes antlers. He didn't when he was a pup, because his jaws were too weak to make much of a dent. Now, though, he likes them and they last for several months.

7) Soft toys: Laszlo likes to chew on his tug toy (Happy Moppy) and his other soft toys. When he was a puppy, we would correct him when he started playing too rough with them (mostly thinking about the possibility of one day having other small pets in the house), so he never got in the habit of disemboweling stuffed toys.


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