Raw meaty bones--age limit?

[UnconventionalLove]

Would it be ok to give my 19 week old pup, Lars a raw meaty bone or is he too young? He is teething right now too, so would that be too harsh on his gums? Also, where do you people feed these things at? Outside? Thanks!

[sydking]

my girl is 17 weeks atm, shes was getting chicken necks and baby pork ribs at 9 weeks and from 12 weeks chicken wings, now pigs trotters and any other raw bones i get from the butcher.

your dog will be fine, even a more reason to give while teething.

i feed outside, they make a bit of a mess dragging it everywhere, and i also only leave bones for max 3 days, as the ants are everywhere.

[pblove]

you can feed them but PLEASE keep a good eye on him when he is eating the bones
I know of a young dog that almost died last week from eating raw bones. he did not chew them enough and there were very sharp shards shards in his intestines, which cut him internally and also caused impaction.
I would NOT feed any weight bearing bones to your pup to be on the safer side.

[1lila1]

My 18 week old eats the same rmb's as my older dog. He does just fine. But I don't feed big huge bones anyway. Poultry bones, pork ribs, and the occasional pork neck as a treat, are the only bones I serve here. I think anything else is just too big to digest properly and safely. They type of bone you feed is very important, IMO.

I feed my older dog outside in the grass and the puppy is fed in his crate on a big towel so his bedding doesn't get yucky!

[Emma H]

I agree, stay away from the weight bearing bones and no age is too young

[UnconventionalLove]

you can feed them but PLEASE keep a good eye on him when he is eating the bones
I know of a young dog that almost died last week from eating raw bones. he did not chew them enough and there were very sharp shards shards in his intestines, which cut him internally and also caused impaction.
I would NOT feed any weight bearing bones to your pup to be on the safer side.

So I should feed him smaller bones? I would think that bigger bones would be better because then he couldn't get any pieces off to swallow and hurt him? The reason why I want to give him raw bones is because I was told they don't splinter into pieces like the cooked ones do, but now I am being told they can. Thanks for any more info everyone.

[TigerLady]

you can feed them but PLEASE keep a good eye on him when he is eating the bones
I know of a young dog that almost died last week from eating raw bones. he did not chew them enough and there were very sharp shards shards in his intestines, which cut him internally and also caused impaction.
I would NOT feed any weight bearing bones to your pup to be on the safer side.

So I should feed him smaller bones? I would think that bigger bones would be better because then he couldn't get any pieces off to swallow and hurt him? The reason why I want to give him raw bones is because I was told they don't splinter into pieces like the cooked ones do, but now I am being told they can. Thanks for any more info everyone.

Hand him a nice meaty chicken back, a chicken leg quarter, or a turkey drumstick. Any of those will do nicely as teethers with the side benefit of providing a complete meal. All of my dogs were weaned straight on to raw when they were wee little pups. Just be sure to feed raw meals in the AM and at least 8 hours away from a kibble meal.

~Tiger

[Emma H]

Big, weight-bearing bones are VERY hard (they have to hold up large animals) and they can cause problems with teeth. Soft, consumable bones are MUCH safer.

[1lila1]

So I should feed him smaller bones? I would think that bigger bones would be better because then he couldn't get any pieces off to swallow and hurt him? The reason why I want to give him raw bones is because I was told they don't splinter into pieces like the cooked ones do, but now I am being told they can. Thanks for any more info everyone.

What is a "smaller bone"? Smaller than what? Don't give him big beef knuckles, beef legs, or anything like that. Give him the examples you've been given about and you shouldn't have a problem. No, raw bones do not become brittle and splinter like cooked bones do but huge hard raw bones can break their teeth, they can break off too big a piece, and they are just too hard. Not hard in the sense of cooked bone, just due to the sheer size of it.

If you think about in the wild, a wolf will not consume the entire skeletion of a deer, for example, but they will eat an entire rabbit. Think along those lines and you should be fine. Start with raw chicken, bone and meat, and you'll be fine. If it's going to be a significant part of your dogs diet you'll need to research raw to make sure your dog is getting adequate nutrition. If it's every once in a while or a treat, it's fine!

[barbponys]

you can feed them but PLEASE keep a good eye on him when he is eating the bones
I know of a young dog that almost died last week from eating raw bones. he did not chew them enough and there were very sharp shards shards in his intestines, which cut him internally and also caused impaction.
I would NOT feed any weight bearing bones to your pup to be on the safer side.

So I should feed him smaller bones? I would think that bigger bones would be better because then he couldn't get any pieces off to swallow and hurt him? The reason why I want to give him raw bones is because I was told they don't splinter into pieces like the cooked ones do, but now I am being told they can. Thanks for any more info everyone.

Hand him a nice meaty chicken back, a chicken leg quarter, or a turkey drumstick. Any of those will do nicely as teethers with the side benefit of providing a complete meal. All of my dogs were weaned straight on to raw when they were wee little pups. Just be sure to feed raw meals in the AM and at least 8 hours away from a kibble meal.

~Tiger

Turkey legs are big, the bones aren't small. They aren't as big as beef bone but still a bit large for a pup that small. I don't give them to my Pug, they are too big for him to handle safely.

[UnconventionalLove]

Yea, it's just going be a treat like, once a week or so. I am not sure where to find chicken backs and whatnot. I was thinking soup bones from the store but they are huge so I won't do that. Maybe I can ask a butcher or hunter friend of they know of any small animal bones I can have thanks!

[Emma H]

Chicken Backs/necks are usually available at most grocery stores. Really any chicken product with bone is good and most turkey.

[TigerLady]

you can feed them but PLEASE keep a good eye on him when he is eating the bones
I know of a young dog that almost died last week from eating raw bones. he did not chew them enough and there were very sharp shards shards in his intestines, which cut him internally and also caused impaction.
I would NOT feed any weight bearing bones to your pup to be on the safer side.

So I should feed him smaller bones? I would think that bigger bones would be better because then he couldn't get any pieces off to swallow and hurt him? The reason why I want to give him raw bones is because I was told they don't splinter into pieces like the cooked ones do, but now I am being told they can. Thanks for any more info everyone.

Hand him a nice meaty chicken back, a chicken leg quarter, or a turkey drumstick. Any of those will do nicely as teethers with the side benefit of providing a complete meal. All of my dogs were weaned straight on to raw when they were wee little pups. Just be sure to feed raw meals in the AM and at least 8 hours away from a kibble meal.

~Tiger

Turkey legs are big, the bones aren't small. They aren't as big as beef bone but still a bit large for a pup that small. I don't give them to my Pug, they are too big for him to handle safely.

I think his Lars is a pibble. Not a pug. My dogs are pibbles as well - and they were eating turkey legs at six weeks of age quite handily.

You would be surprised at the size of the bones your pug could handle, by the way. My 15 pound Schitzhu was eaisily able to handle turkey legs.

~Tiger

[1lila1]

My 4 1/2 month old pit bull can easily handle a turkey leg!

[barbponys]

I realize the dog is a Pit. I've given my pug turkey legs, he has a hard time with them at meal time. He bolts his food and chokes. He's 12 and been on raw his whole life so I honestly know what he can and can't handle...