How To Choose Safe Chews
By Sarah Wooten, DVM
Most dog lovers know that dogs of all ages have an instinctual need to chew. Puppies chew to explore their world and ease teething pain. Adult dogs chew because it’s fun, it releases feel-good chemicals into their brain, and it helps them cope with anxiety, frustration, and boredom.
While dogs love to chew, they aren’t the best at picking the safest things to chew and can sometimes hurt or sicken themselves by chewing on the wrong thing. Furthermore, it can be extraordinarily difficult for pet guardians to sort through label information, which can contain marketing hype and misleading information, to find safe, long-lasting chews for their furry children.
Unfortunately, many popular dog chews are fraught with potential health hazards that we see in the veterinary industry manifest as a myriad of ills, including broken teeth, lacerated gums, stomach irritation, intestinal obstructions, and diarrhea. Chew injury and illness occurs because regulators do not closely police the industry and dog chews are often manufactured without veterinary insight. This is unfortunate, because we are the ones to get to deal with chew-related injuries and illnesses.
To help pet owners make informed decisions, I have ‘vetted’ the 9 most popular dog chews categories, providing pros and cons of each product, and an over-arching veterinary recommendation regarding that product.
Now, some people might read this list and think ‘My dog has chewed those things his whole life and never had a problem before!’ The thing is, every dog is unique and responds individually. This article is not intended to say that your dog will have a problem with a particular chew type, but that problems have been reported in dogs with specific chews, and doggo parents deserve to be informed consumers.
1. Soft Chews
Pros:
- Inexpensive
- Dogs love them
Cons:
- Many expand within the gastrointestinal tract, presenting intestinal obstruction and choking hazard
- Many are not digestible or degradable, also presenting GI obstruction hazards
Vet Recommendation: Avoid.
2. Uncooked Bones
Pros:
- Natural
- Inexpensive
Cons:
- Can splinter and perforate stomach and intestines, traumatize the gums, or break teeth
- Can lead to constipation
- Difficult to digest
- Choking hazard
- Food safety concerns (parasites, bacteria, etc.)
- Messy
Vet Recommendation: Avoid. Even the FDA says so.
3. Nylon Dog Chews
Pros:
- Long lasting
Cons:
- Too hard, can break teeth
- Not digestable or degradable
- Digestive obstructions, pancreatitis, diarrhea, or choking if a chewer rips off a piece and swallows it
Vet Recommendation: Avoid.
4. Bully Sticks
Pros:
- Dogs love them
- Helpful during puppy teething
Cons:
- Contain high levels of protein, can cause diarrhea in some dogs, should not be given to dogs with kidney issues
- Can be so delicious that dogs swallow them whole, leading to GI obstruction, as they are not highly digestible
- Choking hazard (can get stuck in back of throat)
- High in calories, don’t give to overweight dogs
- Can harbor bacteria (that smell….)
Vet Recommendation: Use under supervision in dogs that don’t have adverse reactions to them. Invest in a bully stick holder that prevents swallowing the stick whole, otherwise these chews can pose a significant GI obstruction risk. Choose high quality bully sticks that don’t smell.
Antlers and Cow Hooves
Pros:
- Natural
- Inexpensive
- Sustainable harvested
Cons:
- Hard enough to break teeth (slab fractures of the upper carnassial tooth are common with these two chew)
- GI obstruction and choking hazards due to lack of digestability or degradability
- Can break/splinter and puncture gums, tongue, stomach, and intestines, can also get stuck in between teeth
- Veterinary dentists recommend avoiding these chews to avoid related injuries
Vet Recommendation: Avoid, except for fresh Grade A antlers which are soft.
Hard Cheese Chews
Pros:
- None
Cons:
- Hard, causes broken teeth
- Expands within the GI tract, is a choking and GI obstruction hazard, as they are not digestible or degradable
- Diarrhea due to lactose intolerance
Vet Recommendation: Avoid.
Rawhides
Pros:
- Available everywhere
- Inexpensive
- Dogs love them
Cons:
- Low digestability and degradability
- Coated with harsh chemicals, including bleach
- Can damage teeth
- Expands within digestive tract increasing choking or obstruction risks (especially rawhide knots)
- Bacteria on wet left-over pieces
Vet Recommendation: Avoid.
Pig Ears
Pros:
- Available everywhere
- Inexpensive
- Dogs love them
Cons:
- Poorly digested and degraded
- Coated with harsh chemicals or carcinogens
- Expands within digestive tract increasing choking or obstruction risks
- High in fat, can predispose dogs to obesity and pancreatitis
- Leave greasy residue
- 2019 pig ear recall due to contamination with Salmonella
Vet Recommendation: Avoid.
Enzymatic Dental Chews
Pros:
- Coated with enzymes and have abrasive texture designed to clean teeth
- Dogs like them
Cons:
- Many are not digestible or degradable
- Many expand within digestive tract increasing choking or obstruction risks
- Contains sugar (dextrose)
- Bacteria contamination on wet left-over pieces
Vet Recommendation: For dental care - let your dog chew for 5-10 minutes, and then take away the chew before swallowing. If the chew gets small enough to swallow, take away from the dog. Avoid swallowing. Don’t forget that it isn’t what your dog is chewing on that improves dental health and reduces the amount of bacteria in the mouth, it is how long the dog is chewing (check out this study to learn more).
So what constitutes a safe chew?
In general, a chew should disintegrate in the digestive tract, but soft enough to not damage teeth or gums, and not cause stomach or intestinal upset, vomiting, or diarrhea. The 6 main factors pet parent can consider when evaluating chew safety include:
- Digestive Degradability - how easily a chew is dissolved in the stomach and intestines
- Expansion risk - the risk of a chew expanding in the stomach or intestines and causing GI obstruction, irritation, or choking
- Chomp Risk - the risk of a chew fragmenting into sharp shards and lacerate gums or the GI tract
- Hardness - the risk of a dog breathing teeth while chewing.
- Pathogen safety - the risk of bacteria or fungus in or on a chew that can sicken a dog
- Ingredient safety - or risk of adverse reactions (vomiting, diarrhea) to ingredients or chemicals used to process the chew
It just so happens that such a chew exists! Check out Chews Happiness’ DigestaBone®. They spent eight years cracking the “chew safety code” and offer a healthy, safe, chewing experience for your precious furry family member.
Happy Chewing!
Sources:
1) S. Bjone, W. Brown, J. Billingham, A. Harris, and P McGenity. Influence of Chewing on Dental Health in Dogs, University of New England, 2005.
2) Gallagher, L. 2013. The effect of dental products and natural chews on canine oral bacteria. Letters in General Microbiology. 1:1-4.
3) Marx, F.R., G.S. Machado, J.G. Pezzali, C.S. Marcolla, A.M. Kessler, Ø. Ahlstrøm, and L. Trevizan. 2016. Raw beef bones as chewing items to reduce dental calculus in Beagle dogs. Aust. Vet. J. 94:18–23. doi:10.1111/avj.12394.
