Suggestions for longer lasting but softer dog chews

[123dogdog]

I’m looking for a dog chew that is on the softer side but still will last 5 minutes ish.

obviously rawhide is an absolute no for obvious reasons, so I am absolutely no considering it or have considered.

dentastix, I’ve always heard pedigree dog food/treats are not great, like the lower end of the dog food quality scale, but I don’t know whether that has changed in the last 15 years.

i will never give my dogs antlers, yak chews or similar things that are that hard, as I’m concerned they will accidentally break their teeth.

i got some whimzees rice bones to try but listening to the dogs chewing them, i was just thinking oh Jesus 😂 also, the pack were all the same size, they said medium and large on the pack and me being me did not read the page properly and assumed there were medium and large size ones in the bag 😂 they’re all the same size. And as one dog is 11kg and the other about 24kg, doesn’t quite work. Whimzees, I feel, are just not great, they just seem a bit too processed. I’m willing to be corrected on that though.

and there’s all those rabbit ears, pizzle sticks and puffed pig snouts, which seem great but they are not coming in my house as they just give me the ick 😂 I can’t even pick the packet of those up let alone manage to give them to the dog 😂

so anyone have any suggestions for something that is suitable for an 11kg terrier and a 24kg lab, whether that’s the same item or items in different sizes.

also, the wee one is allergic to fish and sensitive to chicken, so anything with them in it are totally out too, which complicates things as chicken seems to be in so much dog treats and if there’s no chicken in it, there’s some type of fish in it 😬🤣

thanks if anyone has any suggestions.

attached picture of the criminals to satisfy dog tax.

Stuffed kongs? Smart Bones? Freeze dried ostrich bones? (My dog had an ostrich leg bone when recuperating from a cruciate repair op, it was odourless but a bit messy - also huge so could be stored in the fridge in between chewing sessions)

My dog likes wood root chews. Literally a lump of wood which doesn't splinter and any sharp bits can be sanded down

https://www.greenandwilds.co.uk/collections/chewroots?srsltid=AfmBOooxAXG3BOuDS6FpmX8a8dncoWI3dyfcO86RYY_eULHE7exYznU1

My dog loves whimzees! They were recommended to us when he was a puppy because are made of 100% vegetables (? I think)- he absolutely loves them and people always comment on the fine state of his teeth! They come in medium and large so you could try different sizes for your pups.

Ours (50kg Rottweiler and 10kg Vizsla puppy) both love buffalo ears. Very low in fat and seem to last a while... well, relatively speaking. Not as hard as pigs ears and don't have an offensive smell either.

Yak chews. Mine absolutely love them. Especially the Strawberry ones.

Oh shit, I've been giving mine dentastix as I've had dogs for 30 years neighbour told me to.

Apparently I need something better for my golden retriever who would be sick if she had anything too rich.

Dried fish skin.

thanks

We have a few kongs but I was hoping for something they can finish in one sitting and something I can just get out of a packet and also a bit of variety. We don’t have the freezer space to prefill a few kongs, so they’re ready to go. Yeah our freezer is that full 😬😂

unfortunately the smart bones almost all of them have chicken, which is not suitable for one dog.

we had a dried ostrich bone but I couldn’t pick it up or anything as it gave me the ick.

Thanks.

i will look into them.

can i ask, how hard are they? I’m just wondering about the potential to break teeth.

Buffalo ears are a hit in our house.

Ddog likes braided lamb skin. It's reasonably non-disgusting.

She also likes beef tendons, which are sort of medium disgusting.

And hairy goat ears which are top level disgusting.

My dog is OBSESSED with cheap shit dentastix. There's definitely a gap in the market for good-quality chews. I'd like a meal in a chew type thing.

www.millieswolfheart.co.uk/buffalo-ears

My dog is a big fan of yakkers generally, but nothing sees her hopeful backside hit the ground at my feet quite like spotting a strawberry one coming her way.

OP are pizzles really a non-starter? Mine adores them, they take her around 15 minutes to demolish, which is a good 10 minutes longer than any other chew. This is as about as long as she's prepared to chomp in a single sitting.

She's also partial to the occasional doe leg. She spends ages licking and stripping the fur off. She's not fussed with chewing on the bone left behind, although she will parade around with it for a bit like she's just won the World Cup.

Why is rawhide a no? Not looking for an argument, just curious because it's the only thing that has ever worked for my dogs.

Rawhide is incredibly dangerous as it is not easily digested. It frequently causes blockages and tears to dogs intestines.
It can also break teeth and the twisted type is made with a horrible, toxic glue. There have also been cases of it carrying ecoli and salmonella.
Wish the stuff was banned. Hopefully this thread will give you ideas. My dogs love fish skins.

@123dogdog Collagen sticks/rolls might be worth a try, if you're squeamish? Anco also do an excellent collagen waffle. They're non-smelly/gross and they don't look like anything too specific either if that also puts you off. Earth Animal's No Hide rolls go down well here too and are available in various flavours – also non-smelly and crucially rawhide free. Lamb/goat twists are good too and don't smell, and you can get odourless pizzles now from JR which I really recommend.

I'm not fussed by smelly or visibly animal part-like stuff so we've tried virtually every natural chew there is on the market for my extremely discerning spaniel, for my/my bank's sins.

Thank you. It's interesting. My dogs have all had rawhide chews and we've never had any issues with it. They all had amazing clean tartar free teeth right up to old age.

I have to be very careful with other chews, she can't have bones because her jaws are too strong. A family member who's a vet told us to avoid the wood or antler chews also. We tried fish sticks, not a success but aside from anything else I need something that will last her more than 30 seconds anyway 🙄

I'll do some research on the rawhide but I really don't see any alternatives at the moment. Most of the things mentioned here are not safe for giant breed dogs.

Hard to tell. Softer than an antler, sounds disgusting but their salvia softens the wood.

i brought it for her when she was a puppy as it’s one of the few chews which was suitable for small puppies. But it’s still substantial.

Our previous dog was a border terrier and judging by your photo you have a gorgeous border too, and ours would have loved it if I had know about them then.

@PyreneanAubrie buffalo ears are very similar to rawhide texturally but are completely naturally and non-toxic. Rawhide shouldn't even be sold IMO. But then again, nor should the likes of dentastix, absolutely full of sugar.

Thanks.

I will have a look at buffalo ears but I need to be very careful because her jaws are so strong that things can splinter. I also want something that lasts her more than a couple of minutes. The problem with giant dogs is they don't just nibble at stuff, they really lay into a chew.

Agree about Dentastix though, we tried them for our previous dogs and it always upset their stomach.

Please never feed rawhide - a dog I walk almost died when he swallowed and massive chunk of it and it blocked his intestines. I honestly can't believe it's still legal to buy, it's like giving your dog processed leather to eat.

Buffalo ears, collagen rolls, buffalo skin rolls, ostrich bones and paddywhack all go down well here. Ostrich bones are especially good as they're light and don't splinter - they have kind of a honeycomb texture inside so don't damage teeth in the same way "normal" bones would.

My German Shepherd loves to chew, she regularly has beef head skin, beef hide, buffalo ears, pigs ears and marrow bones. I don't find any of them too disgusting. Someone bought her a dried cow snout once and I couldn't bring myself to give it to her, it was truly disgusting and smelled terrible.

Oh she quite likes an antler too.

Thanks.

I will look at buffalo collagen but am not convinced that the other things are safe for power chewers of 50kg. Some of the reviews about buffalo ears being covered with mould etc makes them sound even more hazardous than rawhide tbh 😨

Maybe I'll just have to let her eat all the furniture instead 🙄It's probably safer.

(Sorry for derailing thread somewhat with my question, it is clearly something people feel strongly about)