A quick question about dogs and roasted bone joints!

[TheCunnyFunt]

They are still cooked bone yes? So very dangerous? Someone has been recommending them for keeping dogs teeth clean and have said they can't be chewed so don't splinter therefore low/no risk. I just wanted to get my facts straight before I put them straight!

Any bone can splinter but cooking the bone makes it more brittle and therefore more likely. Bigger bones that they cant get completely in their mouths reduce the risk, but no bone is risk free - it isnt just the bone breaking and getting stuck that is the problem, a nice (extremely painful) slab fracture of one of the teeth is also possible and also requires surgery to fix. Bones probably help keep teeth clean but I dont think anyone has any scientific evidence that they do and alot of the breeds which can happily tackle bones - retrievers, GSDs have nice teeth naturally. They do have some value in terms of environmental enrichment as they take much longer to deal with than dog food. I think really its a case of choosing the right dog (if you have a pug, then definitely no ^^) and understanding the risks you are taking.

The dog in question is a greyhound, and due to their really poor diet when they are racing (just slop with lots of protein, no roughage at all), they all have really bad teeth.

Nigglenaggle, not a fan of BARF/RAw feeding then?!

OP, you are right, cooked bones of any sort shouldn't be given and the cooked bones you get from pet shops/supermarkets do splinter. There is no regulation of the safety of pet shop products sold for dogs sadly.

Hmm well I think a sensible person can look at a raw food diet and make an informed decision about whether to feed it, however have met a few people who are quite fanatical about raw food diets and have 'sold' them to people who it really didnt suit with unfortunate results. I think some people are unnecessarily opposed to dog food - really its fine. Dogs are living for longer than ever before. Puppies dont get rickets in this country. People with no nutritional knowledge can safely and cheaply feed their dogs. Great. It feels a bit akin to the breastfeeding situation - great if you want to do it, but formula wont kill your baby and neither will dog food kill your dog.

I used to give my Labrador these. She gnawed them and they didn't splinter but she developed an aggressive growth on her gums and had to be PTS. I 've always suspected the bones caused it.