Meat Bones

My beagle mix is on a raw meat diet (40% raw meat/raw bones, 40% slightly cooked veggies and 20% overcooked grains) and I give him raw meaty bones all the time. I started him on this diet when he was 6 months with the help of a homeopathic vet. I'm not sure if I'd give him too much at such a young age without first asking a vet...because going from puppy food to his diet took a several weeks of slow modifications to his diet until his system could handle the raw meat/meaty bones. But if you are talking about occasionally giving him a raw bone as a treat I don't think it would hurt.

Please do not give chicken bones, they are too soft. I think an occasional bone is great....esp for teeth.

I used to give meat bones to my dogs but then they recommended against it. There's too much chance of bones and such, and it's not worth it to risk that.

Too many bones can cause impactions in the stomach, as they cannot be digested properly An occasional bone is usually ok.

...and all along I had this "brilliant" idea that giving bones to our dogs will help make their teeth strong...but I am guilty of giving bones to my pet however I only give bones of the leg (pork or beef NOT chicken). the dog is unable to swallow these bones and I assume they use it to sharpen their fangs =D

my dog gets bones every time we eat meat with bones in it, but never chicken bones. one got stuck in my lab's throat and we had to take him to the vet. it had punctured his windpipe too.

we live out in the country and he eats small animals anyway, like small rabbits and stuff that happen to cross our front or back pastures. surely bones wont hurt a dog at all because they were born to be predators and use their jaws to crunch bones anyway. right?

yeah I totally agree with you there, I also give my dogs some bones but only those non-sharp ones that they cannot swallow whole

This is one of the reasons why they say not to let the dog be unattended when chewing the bones.

Yes, in the wild a dog would catch small animals and be able to chew the bones. I am curious casey-do he eat the entire animal or just part?

Bones are a primitive treat to dogs in the past yet as they become domesticated bones pose a threat to them particularly the smaller ones. I don't give chicken bones, I request the butcher to give me the pork's shoulder blade. it's really a weekly treat for them during grocery day.

I stick to bones of the leg (beef or pork)...never tried chicken or even thinking of giving chicken bones to my dogs

I like to get the beef soup bones from the grocery market once in awhile I will roast one and give it to him. Its a special treat he gets once in awhile, he loves it.

I'm just too paranoid now to ever give my dog one. We used to get them regularly at the store for free. I just couldn't risk it now.

I think it is ok in moderation. Esp. the bigger bones. Good exercise for teeth and jaw.

I give Fiona raw dog meat to help prevent plaques and tartar build-up. so far I never had a problem with her teeth or gums

thanks for your suggestions although I haven't really gotten around to giving hanna her "first bone". I'm giving her rawhide bones for the meantime. I might start giving her the biggest bone I can find at the butcher later. (chicken bones are a no-no for me)

History shows that dogs hunt down prey for food thus bones are a part of their daily diet. The notion that bones are not good for dogs arise from the fact that there are dog owners that give bones which have been cooked. Cooking softens the bone and increases the risk of splintering when eaten. This is quite true with chicken bones.

I give raw bones to my dogs. They view it as one of the week's highlights after a trip to my the butcher