This week Bob noticed Sabaka's teeth looking a little "blah" so he suggested we get him a bone from the butcher to chew on. Sabaka's history with bones and other chew things is not good. He has a Nylabone and some split antlers but rarely chews on them (thus the dirty teeth, I suppose). Once we got him a split knuckle bone which he chewed a tad and then began to carry it around while working himself up into a frantic, agitated state trying to find a place to bury it...in the house! We still have two or three of those under beds and in corners around here.

We decided that this raw bone should be eaten on the deck because I don't want nasty meat juices in my house. But once we shut Sabaka outside onto the deck, he just paces around carrying the bone and once again trying to find a place to bury it. I know if we were to allow him to be loose in the yard, he would actually bury this thing. We got this bone to try to help his teeth and now he just seems stressed and unlikely to ever chew it! I even put in in a Ziploc bag and warmed it for 20 seconds in the microwave in hopes of getting its yummy juices flowing (and it did...it was all bloody afterwards!).

Any suggestions to try to get this dog to chew?

Maybe you could just do the edible treat bones that are made for dental health?

(But, can I just say, it's really cute and funny that he wants to bury his bones so badly!)

The vet told us that anything with enzymes helps reduce plaque - there are water additives, chews, toothpaste, etc

We also like these bones from Costco (double-checked review online first - not everything they sell is ok):
http://www.amazon.com/Checkups-Dental-Dog-Treats-24ct/dp/B001T4UMM2