So, I was wondering if knuckles and cooked bones, and etc. are really bad for huskies? Or dogs in general. I have a friend that tends to lecture me about letting Ruby and Paisley nibble and chew on knuckles, which they love. I hear that it gets stuck in their stomachs sometimes? But I don't know if that's necessarily true. I was giving Ruby compressed rawhide, but I know that isn't great either. So would be a good treat to give them to chew on to keep them occupied? Ruby doesn't care for nylabones, and she tends to get bored of antlers easily.

Cooked bones are definitely dangerous. When cooked they dry out and can splinter. They can get through raw bones just fine as long as it isn't a choking hazard. Some people buy marrow bones. Have you tried bully sticks, trachea, filled kongs or other food puzzles/toys? Rawhide can cause blockages due to dogs being unable to digest them.

ccurran07 wrote:

"Cooked bones are definitely dangerous. When cooked they dry out and can splinter. They can get through raw bones just fine as long as it isn't a choking hazard. Some people buy marrow bones. Have you tried bully sticks, trachea, filled kongs or other food puzzles/toys? Rawhide can cause blockages due to dogs being unable to digest them."

-- I haven't tried marrow nor raw bones. I've tried bully sticks but Ruby tends to go through that like nothing! She wasn't too interested in filled kongs, and she goes through food puzzles/toys pretty quickly too. What specific raw bone parts would be good for dogs? I'll give that a try whenever I build the courage to walk into a butcher block. Haha.

Some suggestions out there are hooves, chicken feet, mostly any chicken bones, pork ribs, necks, marrow bones and tendons (not bones but..) .someone suggested soaking antlers in low sodium chicken to be more interesting to dogs.

Mishka barely touched his antler before I soaked it in a small amount of broth diluted in water. After that he chowed on it.

I thought smoked bones were okay for them. I gave him a bull knuckle yesterday but he didn't get any big pieces off of it. He was just scraping it with his teeth.

I guess I won't be giving it back to him. I need to hit up the grocery to see if I can get some marrow bones for a good price.

I'm not 100% on smoked bones Ashleigh. Seems like some people are ok with giving them. If Mishka seems to like it and you're supervising when it's given, I don't see the harm...

ccurran07 wrote:

Some suggestions out there are hooves, chicken feet, mostly any chicken bones, pork ribs, necks, marrow bones and tendons (not bones but..) .someone suggested soaking antlers in low sodium chicken to be more interesting to dogs.

Ahhhh, you see.. I've heard that chicken bones are horrible for dogs because the bones are so brittle that it snaps and is possible to get stuck in their throats. That's why I hate giving them things to chew on! I end up getting so skeptical because I don't want them to get unintentionally hurt. Well, hurt in anyway! I just somehow always hear two sides of a story no matter what.

That's primarily for cooked bones, not raw.

Raw bones are safe, cooked bones are gangrenous because they can splinter easily.

I got Pippa a raw marrow bone yesterday from Publix for $.70! People were super nice and she loved it. I put it back in the freezer and she ate on it a little more tonight.

And definitely try soaking the antler. Sometimes even if I soak it in water, Pippa will start chewing on them again.

withlovejP wrote:

ccurran07 wrote:

"Cooked bones are definitely dangerous. When cooked they dry out and can splinter. They can get through raw bones just fine as long as it isn't a choking hazard. Some people buy marrow bones. Have you tried bully sticks, trachea, filled kongs or other food puzzles/toys? Rawhide can cause blockages due to dogs being unable to digest them."

-- I haven't tried marrow nor raw bones. I've tried bully sticks but Ruby tends to go through that like nothing! She wasn't too interested in filled kongs, and she goes through food puzzles/toys pretty quickly too. What specific raw bone parts would be good for dogs? I'll give that a try whenever I build the courage to walk into a butcher block. Haha.

Try the monster size bully sticks. Dizzy can chew on those for a couple weeks before they get small enough that I have to throw it away. They are 12-18 inches long with about an inch diameter.

With those too, soaking or just wetting them will revitalize their attraction to it. They can maybe get a bit stale/boring if they sit out or too long.

What about cooked oxtail? Oxtail is kind of marrow-y, and i've never see it splinter after it's been cooked. My mom likes to make oxtail soup, and we used to give the cooked bones to our shih tzu. Would that be ok for a husky?

It shouldn't be good for one and not the other on breed alone, I wouldn't think. Is it good for the shih tzu?

haha well I've never seen it splinter off or anything like that. He just kind of gnaws on it and scrapes his teeth against it. If anything, the bone ends up rounding out a bit from all the scraping!

But if you mean "good for him" in terms of health, I have no idea. I don't see how it can be bad for him though We only give it as a treat anyways, not as a regular diet.

I guess as long as it's not splintering off and making sharp pieces, then it should be ok to feed. And I always supervise too in case he breaks off a large chunk! But i'm not a dog+human food expert! So please, anyone chime in if i'm totally off! I'm pretty paranoid about feeding my dogs human food. I usually try to stick to fruits (apples and pears) and veggies, and always just as a treat.

Ok well, experience is a great judge for the most part. There's always a risk with anything. Bone itself is good for them...too much can block them up and cause constipation/hard poop...so it's just a matter of whether or not the type of bone and its physical quality will pose an avoidable danger.

I know nothing about oxtail, specifically. I bet Megan or Valerie would know though.

Here's some of the bones I've given to my two without issue:

This one is a little small. I gave it to Ginger when she was just starting out with bones. It's about the size of an average fist.
http://www.naturalk9supplies.com/Dog-Treats/merrick-corporal-cap.aspx

These are marrow bones I give my two on a regular basis, either the 3" or 5". Just be careful since the marrow is 'fatty' and you don't want to give too much of it often and it can cause pancreatitis.
http://www.naturalk9supplies.com/Dog-Treats/merrick-gi-bone.aspx

I gave this once and it was almost the size of their heads!
http://www.naturalk9supplies.com/Dog-Treats/best-buy-bones-smoked-knuckle.aspx

And then the Mother of All Bones!
http://www.naturalk9supplies.com/Dog-Treats/merrick-the-general-meaty.aspx

Here's a video so you can see just how Flintstone gianormus this sucker is!
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151163913921552&set=vb.823006551&type=3&theater