rawhide with pup?

[Zumie05]

I supervise my dog chewing anything whether it be rawhides or a bully stick. Rawhides can be dangerous in the aspect that it can cause a blockage, but anything else can be choked on!

The only toy/edible thing I let my dog have unsupervised is a stuffed Kong while he is in his crate and I am gone. Otherwise he has done fine on rawhides and all sorts of other chews, but I never let him chew on things unless I'm watching.

I still think rawhides can be okay if they are supervised though. A tiny piece swallowed isn't going to cause a blockage, but a larger piece (lets say something the size of a dime or larger) has a higher chance that it will, and that is something you can easily catch if you are watching.

[Skip]

Originally Posted by Zumie05

I supervise my dog chewing anything whether it be rawhides or a bully stick. Rawhides can be dangerous in the aspect that it can cause a blockage, but anything else can be choked on!

The only toy/edible thing I let my dog have unsupervised is a stuffed Kong while he is in his crate and I am gone. Otherwise he has done fine on rawhides and all sorts of other chews, but I never let him chew on things unless I'm watching.

I still think rawhides can be okay if they are supervised though. A tiny piece swallowed isn't going to cause a blockage, but a larger piece (lets say something the size of a dime or larger) has a higher chance that it will, and that is something you can easily catch if you are watching.

Your choice. Like I said..it only takes a second for the dog to swallow them. If you want to have to sit there and stare at the dog the whole time it's chewing that's your call, and your dog, and your time. I see no reason to take such a chance (and to intently have to watch the dog the whole time) since there are much safer alternatives. Another factor is that many rawhides are made in places like mexico and use formaldehyde, and some dangerous dyes (coloring), and other dangerous ingredients. It was an easy decision for me not to use them.

[lblax]

every dog ive ever had has eaten plenty of rawhides ive never had a problem with any of them(i only buyamerican made chews)in my life alkthough i have heard many horror stories about choking and blockage ive not known anyone that has personally ever had that happen(and i train with 2 working clubs). ive also asked 3 differant vets if at anytime in there practice have they ever had a dog die/bloat/ or block from rawhides and all three said no. the thought that a rawhide swells in the stomach like they do in a pail of water is a myth. get a pail of the strongest acid one can buy and see what it does to a rawhide

[lengel]

An earlier poster mentioned a frozen washcloth but I didn't understand what the use of that would be. If it was intended to be a chew toy, please don't go that route. One of my dogs had obstruction removal surgery because she ate a dish towel at daycare when she was nine months old. Washcloths would go down much easier than that IMO.

That said, I don't trust rawhides as chew toys. I very closely supervised my pup with a rawhide toy (a gift from a friend) and took it away after a couple of minutes. Zooey had torn off a strip which could have caused problems if it went down as a whole. She is an extraordinarily powerful chewer and clearly cannot have this kind of toy.

[lblax]

Originally Posted by lengel

Zooey had torn off a strip which could have caused problems if it went down as a whole. She is an extraordinarily powerful chewer and clearly cannot have this kind of toy.

we have chew toys made from several differant article on the market nylabones(made from a nylon that never deteriates) smoked bones(brittle and hard) rubber(dont last long) cornstarch bones(last 2 seconds and are expensive). by far the best products are the nylabone they dont wear teeth and usually come apart in small pieces although they can break apart. the problem with these is out of all the dogs ive had in my life none would chew them. bones both smoked and raw. raw femur bones being the best break apart in point pieces and i know personally several dogs that have broken teeth on bones. the bottom line is a rott can demolish almost any toy you give it. sotake a chunk of every available toy and put it in a container of acid simular to what is in the stomach(although there are no acids available that are as powerful as stomack acid) and see which ones actual disove or break down considerably after a few hours

[Skip]

Originally Posted by lblax

every dog ive ever had has eaten plenty of rawhides ive never had a problem with any of them(i only buyamerican made chews)in my life alkthough i have heard many horror stories about choking and blockage ive not known anyone that has personally ever had that happen(and i train with 2 working clubs). ive also asked 3 differant vets if at anytime in there practice have they ever had a dog die/bloat/ or block from rawhides and all three said no. the thought that a rawhide swells in the stomach like they do in a pail of water is a myth. get a pail of the strongest acid one can buy and see what it does to a rawhide

Well, you know me, and it almost killed a rott I used to have. When I was growing up, we gave our dogs rawhide, and we had no problems then either, but I was a kid and I hadn't really known much about them, and we were lucky. I know MY vet has had emergencies where the dogs died due to rawhide. It's not that a dog's stomach CAN'T break it down sometimes, part of the reason is that it breaks down very slowly, and large pieces can be swallowed while they are wrapped, but then can unwrap and be bigger, and cause some serious blockage. An animals hide is meant to be stronger and tougher than it's insides. I've seen it firsthand, and like I said, I think it's silly to take the chance. There are much better choices.

[Jaidann]

The frozen washcloth post was from me. I should have added a caveat to that and said it wasn't something I personally would leave alone with a pup. The use of it is to use them when it's obvious teething is bothering them. Not something that should be tossed in the crate with them and leave it. No, you don't want them eating/swallowing it ;). It's also not something I use on older pups. The OP didn't really say how old his pup was.

[Kawakaze]

A friend of mine's dog had to have surgery for an obstruction that turned out to be a huge chunk of rawhide.

Besides the safety issue, rubber toys last a lot longer and are cheaper in the long run.