I am getting a bit frustrated with finding safe chew bones for my girl. I feel like every time I pick something up after researching that it is safe, then I find research to the contrary. One source says that rawhide is safe, then another says it is absolutely not safe. One says that antlers are safe, another says they are not. I have a Kong and Zoey loves it, but I can tell she is already getting a bit bored with it and needs more to chew on than just that. I did end up buying her a rawhide this last week and she LOVED it, but I ended up throwing it out soon after giving it to her after reading how dangerous they are.

So far I have been giving her the Blue Buffalo Dental Chews and she does like those, just not as much as she liked the rawhide. They also don't last very long. After reading through some of the threads on this forum, it seems that antlers are a popular choice, and I didn't find any horror stories about them being dangerous on here. I also came across bully sticks and Himalayan Dog Chews as possible options, but then found research saying those might not be great options either...

I think I am probably just being ultra paranoid, but it would be helpful to hear from others as to what some safe chew bone options might be. It would be great if I could find something that is in the pet stores rather than something I would have to order online.

I hope people respond to this post. Its something I'd really like to know as well. My dogs love the rawhide too, but they can be so dangerous. I havnt tried the antlers yet because they just look like they would become really boring, really fast and from what Ive seen, theyre not inexpensive. Some other chews Ive tried, are like that movie... "Gone in 60 seconds", its like I hand them one and POOF, theyre gone

Personally antlers are the way to go in my opinion. Rawhides are the opposite. There are many opinions however, and some may think opposite from me. You really can never find the right answer in this topic, you just need to make the best educated guess and roll with it.

That being said here is my opinion on both.

Antlers (always buy naturally shed btw, non-naturally shed ones could have been cruely obtained and that is sad )
They are extremely hard compared to most anything you will ever find. This can be both advantageous and disadvantageous. Advantageous, because it will last longer than most anyother thing you could purchase. Disadvantageous, because there is a possibilty of damaging teeth. It is really how much of a chewer you think you dog is. The way to know? Test drive by buying one. If it disappears within a week or less, you shouldn't use, because your dog would be considered an aggressive chewer. If it lasts longer than a a few months, antlers are perfectly fine. But I strongly recommend, do not under any circumstances (with any chew toy) let unsupervised chewing occur. Can lead to many issues. You know your dog best, so you should be able to say when enough is enough.

Rawhides. I personally hate them. I have heard way too many horror stories. Cuts in the intestines, blockages in the intestines... very costly surgeries. I don't really have more to go on other than that, but as I stated, you know your dog best, so you would know better if it is the right chew observing a trial.

Kongs are great, if bored with them fill them with different things and alternate each time? Should keep for an interesting switch.

Good luck!

I give Miya a rawhide once in a blue moon, made in USA/Canada only, she has no problems with them, but again it's like once every couple months, because she does love them. I'm not a hundred percent sure on how safe they are as well, heard some bad stuff, so test and see. Pig ears go quick, and cow ears she adores and takes a while (few days) to eat. She enjoys antlers, but gets bored so it does lay around forever. Hands done favorite is raw meaty bones, mine and Miya's. Nutritious, fairly safe, yummy to her. On a hot day I give her frozen, in fact 95% of my freezer is Miya bones   I get them at my local grocery store meat department, they save them for me. If they don't have any I'll buy a t-bone, or short ribs and give her some(never give any type of bone that is cooked). Everything I give my girl I can buy at local stores, just read the package. FYI with cow ears most are made in South America and seems to be good safety wise(haven't heard of anything bad coming from there). Forgot to mention with young dogs, pups, I would stick with short ribs they are smaller and softer, watch to make sure they chew and not try to swallow, excellent for cleaning teeth.
Renee