Rawhide, good or bad?

[Gus]

Hi there, i heard the other day that rawhide is horrible for dogs. It's news to me if it is, ive worked in multiple pet stores and have always given rawhide to my dogs. I was told that it isnt digestable and wraps itself around their intestines, basically tying them in a knot. Any truth to this? My boxer pup loves rawhide, especially for his teething, but i dont want him having any if its that bad!

[jw]

http://www.talkpets.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2440

[Prajna]

Originally Posted by Gus

Hi there, i heard the other day that rawhide is horrible for dogs. It's news to me if it is, ive worked in multiple pet stores and have always given rawhide to my dogs. I was told that it isnt digestable and wraps itself around their intestines, basically tying them in a knot. Any truth to this? My boxer pup loves rawhide, especially for his teething, but i dont want him having any if its that bad!

lots of stores sell lots of things that arent good for us or our dogs..... rawhide is one of those things. While many dogs eat rawhide without occurance, many dogs have significant issues wiht rawhide. The problem is that all it takes is one problem and you have a serious health issue on your hand. Rawhide is not generally digestable..... it wont go around their intestines tying them in knots BUT if your dog was to bite off a small piece and have it become lodged in their intestines and then eat a piece of fabric or dog hair..... or grass or whatever else follows, it can easilly become stuck on that undigested piece of rawhide and form a blockage in the intestinal tract. If your dog eats a large piece of rawhide that could also turn into a blockage by itself in the intestinal tract. I know a person who recently lost an 18 mos. old golden due to a blockage of rawhide.

If you feel you must give your dog rawhide despite the concerns about its safety then I would suggest compressed rawhide. I am sure you have seen them they look like little pieces of rawhide all pressed together to make the shape of a bone or whatever. I don't like this product because a vigorous chewer will have those little pieces strewn all over your carpet in no time.

I personally prefer to NEVER give my dogs rawhide..... they have never had any, and they are none the worse for wear. Sometimes we have to make unpopular decisions (unpopular to the dogs) about only giving them things that are safe. I would suggest a plain old beef marrow bone or knuckle bone, a sterilized bone filled with peanut butter perhaps, or a nylabone (under supervision only).

hope this helps
s

[Birdmanmontana]

Question. If a rawhide can swell up when it gets wet and get stuck in a dogs throat, does the same thing apply to say sticks? Peanut will chew up any stick she can find. Give her a month and she will clear a small forest of any downed limbs.

[Prajna]

Originally Posted by Birdmanmontana

Question. If a rawhide can swell up when it gets wet and get stuck in a dogs throat, does the same thing apply to say sticks? Peanut will chew up any stick she can find. Give her a month and she will clear a small forest of any downed limbs.

I dont see the problem as a problem with the rawhide swelling, although I imagine that could be part of the issue, but more that it can have sharp edges when it goes down and become lodged in the intestinal tract, and yes, the same thing can happen with sticks.... sticks can become lodged in the upper pallette (spelling) of the dog or in the throat and again in the intestinal tract. The problem is that if you live in an area like mine, it is virtually impossible to rid your lawn or yard of sticks..... you can try and teach your dog that there are other things to play with but that doesn't really work. The key thing for sticks is to be aware of the potential hazard and watch for symptoms that something could be wrong. If you live in an area where you have a small yard and can keep it clear of sticks, then of course that is the safest thing to do.

s

[belle]

Originally Posted by Gus

Hi there, i heard the other day that rawhide is horrible for dogs. It's news to me if it is, ive worked in multiple pet stores and have always given rawhide to my dogs. I was told that it isnt digestable and wraps itself around their intestines, basically tying them in a knot. Any truth to this? My boxer pup loves rawhide, especially for his teething, but i dont want him having any if its that bad!

my dog likes rawhide too. As far as i understand, rawhide is undigestable.
It is advised to be given only once per week. Once i thought he was being choke by a rawhide but in fact, he was down with a cough. Dogs wont get choke on rawhide.

[jw]

Originally Posted by belle

. Dogs wont get choke on rawhide.

That is not true. Rawhide looks like a great tool to satisfy the puppy chewies, but dogs CAN choke on it.

I know first-hand. I had to remove a piece of rawhide deep from my dogs throat before I knew better - he was gagging and choking and I could have lost him if I didn't supervise.

It does look like a wonderful chew-toy, but it turns into slimy-rubber after some dog-gnawing, and is a choke hazard. Nylabones are much better IMO.

[Labman]

I was doing a search on rawhide chews when I found this forum. I was hoping to find some hard facts on their safety. I don't think many dogs die from rawhide. I am sure none of them die from not getting rawhide. I haven't given a dog any rawhide in years. Most of the dogs in my care actually belong to a dog guide school. They have experience with thousands of dogs. They absolutely forbid giving either the young ones or the trained ones any rawhide, pigs ears, or other such treats. They warn of choking or intestinal blockages. My vet tells me larger dogs can gulp the little squares down whole and the sharp corners tear their throats. I can really see a Lab doing that.

They also forbid wood. I do a good job of keeping cured wood away from them. Dawn did manage to chew the corner off a window sill, but if I caught her, I would have stopped her. I concede the point and do allow them to chew sticks they find outside. They are old and soft, and do not splinter like a board would. The only bad incident from that was when I kept my friends Joey. He had a soft trachea. I let him and my Gretchen play outside all day. That night I took him to hear Ollie North speak. My friend told me Joey will moan if you make him lay on a hard floor. they had chairs set up in the carpeted aisles, so I grabbed one. Half way through, when Ollie started talking about Hollywood and Apocalypse Now, Joey threw up. Then I remember she also told me he throws up if he eats sticks.

[JinJu]

imo i think each dogs are different just like each human are different when it comes to eating something. My mother in law gave her dogs rawhyde for years with no problems. My parents give their dogs rawhyde also, and they don't have any problems. I might be wrong but it seems like the bigger dogs can handle it better than the little dogs. I won't give Casey rawhyde just because i know he has sensitive stomach. I used to have a miniature poodle that i'd give a rawhyde to and she didn't do well, she actually had to go into surgery, so since then I never given my present dog any rawhyde. Go with your instinct, if you don't trust rawhyde then don't give it to them. I just give Casey some greenies ( he goes nuts over those) and a big nyla bone to chew on. I always supervise him when he's chewing on the nyla bones, when they start to get small I throw it away just because im paranoid about him choking on it. I also give him a knuckle bone to chew on too ( supervised) and he goes nuts over those.