Under normal circumstances, pet doctors will advise you not to give bones to dogs, because bones are a substance that is difficult to digest, can supplement very little nutrition, and can easily cause obstruction of the dog’s digestive tract. However, dogs eating bones can grind their teeth and relieve boredom and greed. There are many benefits. So should dogs eat bones? How is it safe for dogs to eat bones?
1. The benefits of dogs eating bones
1. Can grind teeth
For puppies in the teething stage, bones are natural teeth grinding tools. They can not only help dogs relieve the itching and pain caused by teething, but also promote the loss of deciduous teeth and the normal growth of permanent teeth, and prevent the occurrence of double rows of teeth in dogs. . If the pet owner gives the dog some suitable bones to grind its teeth during the teething period, it can also prevent the dog from chewing and damaging the furniture.
2. Can kill time
Most dogs have to stay at home alone for a whole day after their owners go to work. If there is nothing to kill time, dogs will also become depressed. Therefore, pet owners can also give their dogs a bone to chew on to help them pass the time.
3. Can clean teeth
Many pet owners do not brush their dogs’ teeth regularly, so their dogs’ teeth can easily accumulate tartar and form tartar. For dogs, bones are natural tooth cleaning tools, which are more palatable than dental gels, chews and other products. Moreover, bones have no additives and are safer.
4. Can supplement calcium
The dog’s physical development should pay special attention to the calcium-phosphorus ratio. Because dogs’ food is mainly meat, and the phosphorus content of meat is relatively high, so dogs are prone to calcium deficiency. Eating bones can help dogs supplement calcium .
2. Disadvantages of dogs eating bones
1. Damage to teeth
Because many bones are extremely hard, frequent chewing on bones can easily cause your dog’s teeth to loosen, gradually wear out, or directly break.
2. Scratch the intestines
Some bones are relatively brittle, such as the bones of chickens, ducks and other poultry. When bitten into pieces, spikes will form, which can easily scratch the dog’s mouth and intestines. Bacterial infection can easily lead to enteritis or oral ulcers.
3. Blockage of intestines
Many dogs don’t like to chew when eating, and often swallow it in one bite. In this case, it is easy to swallow some small and medium-sized bones. These bones can become blocked in the intestines and cause intestinal obstruction. In serious cases, surgery is required to clean them.
4. Stuff between teeth
When a dog eats some hollow bones, it will easily turn into flaky or spiky debris after chewing them. These debris can easily get stuck between the dog’s teeth, causing the dog to be unable to eat normally and keep bleeding. saliva.
5. Cause constipation
Because the minerals in bones will absorb water in the intestines, it can easily lead to dry stools in dogs. If the pet owner often feeds the dog bones, or feeds the dog a large amount of bones at one time, it can easily lead to constipation in the dog .
3. How is it safer for dogs to eat bones?
1. Choose raw bones
Because cooked bones are more brittle and harder, they are more likely to scratch your intestines or get lodged in your teeth.
2. Don’t eat hollow leg bones
Because the leg bones of chickens and ducks are harder than the bones in other parts of the body, but they are hollow, the bones after being bitten into pieces are sharper and more likely to scratch the intestines. Although the leg bones of cattle and sheep are not easy to break, dogs will bite very hard to eat the bone marrow inside, which can easily damage their teeth.
3. Choose bigger bones
Generally speaking, the larger the bones, the safer it is for dogs to eat, because small pieces of bones can easily be swallowed by dogs in one bite, causing intestinal obstruction.
4. Avoid overfeeding
If a dog eats too many bones, it will cause the dog’s feces to be dehydrated and lead to constipation. In severe cases, it can also scratch the dog’s anus and rectum, causing the dog’s stool to be bloody.
4. Which bones are safer for dogs to eat?
1. Cartilage
Cartilage is a relatively safe bone. Dogs like to eat it and can chew and digest it easily. There is basically no risk. The only disadvantage is that the cartilage is relatively soft and cannot grind teeth.
2. Various bones crisped in a pressure cooker
Bones cooked in a pressure cooker are easy to chew, so they are very safe. There is no risk of scratching the intestines, but there is no teeth grinding effect.
3. Fish head and tail
Smaller fish heads and tails have no sharp spines and are particularly easy to chew, so they are safer than poultry bones. However, because of their low hardness, they do not have the effect of cleaning and grinding teeth.
4. Chicken and duck necks
Chicken and duck bones are not that hard, so they are relatively safe. They can be eaten whole by dogs. They must be large enough for the dog to chew slowly, so do not chop them into small pieces.
5. Tail bones of cattle and sheep
The tail bones of cattle and sheep are similar to the necks of chickens and ducks. They are a bit hard but not particularly hard, and are not easy to form spikes. However, these bones must be large enough to prevent dogs from swallowing them in one bite.
6. Rabbit and chicken and duck skeletons
Frozen rabbit, chicken and duck skeletons are also suitable for dogs to eat, but these bones have a lot of fat and need to be cleaned off in advance to avoid intestinal discomfort or excessive obesity caused by excessive fat intake.
7. Pork fan bone
Pork fan bones are relatively large in size, have more bone marrow, and are not very hard, so they are very suitable for dogs. However, if you are feeding pork fan bones to small dogs, be careful not to let them eat them all at once to avoid constipation.
To sum up, it is not completely impossible to give bones to dogs, but there are many things that need to be paid attention to, and there are also certain risks. Therefore, pet owners should pay more attention when giving bones to their dogs. Once they find that their dogs have adverse reactions after eating bones, they should be sent to the doctor for examination in time.
