Giving a bone to your dog-Yes or No?

Amongst the advantages there are in giving our dog a bone to chew on (dental hygiene, an outlet for physical & mental energy, a treat), stand the significant disadvantages which are: health risks and even death.

• Most of the dangers are connected to bones that were cooked before given out. The bone becomes brittle and can splinter and therefore might cause the following problems:
• Injury or perforation to the mouth and any organ along the digestive tract
• Blockage in the digestive tract.
• Peritonitis (inflammation of the peritoneum, a soft tissue covering most of the internal organs)
• Pancreatitis
• Suffocation
• Diarrhea
• Constipation
• Vomiting
• The bone might get stuck on the lower jaw, or on the palate of the upper jaw

If after all the above you still insist on giving your dog a bone, we advice you follow these instructions:

• Only give a beef soup bone -the head of the femur (thigh) bone (NOT: chicken/ham/steak/lamb)
• The bone should be larger than the dog’s mouth to allow gnawing, but not swallowing
• Bone should be thickened all around, not narrow, and with no sharp edges
• Avoid the raw meat around the bone by cooking the bone for NO more than 5 minutes (beyond this time the bone will become brittle, the dog would be able to break and swallow it. This is the dangerous situation we want to AVOID!)
• Give the bone only under your supervision, for a limited time (don’t let the bone get to the point where it’s small enough for the dog to swallow).

Part of the problems we listed in giving your dog a bone can result in an emergency visit to your vet and might cause fatal complications. In the bottom line- it’s just not worth it. Go to your local pet store and buy a quality dental chewing bone (or chewing toy like a kong) and give it to your dog with no worries.