Deer Antlers

[Sue & Willy Babe]

We were having  a discussion on Thursday evening about giving our dogs deer antlers to chew on ! ! !  I have never heard of that in any of our discussions here on DK  so I was wondering  has anyone tried it?????
   And if so  do u have to boil them to sanitize first , my vet (his daughter is my daughter's friend) said it is okay just watch for large splinters in case they come off.

   Just wanted your advice  so let me know  ! ! !

 Thanks

[Lee Seidman]

We love them, they last longer then anything else that we tried, have no odor, not sticky or messy, and the dogs seem to always come back to them and chew for extended periods. We keep at least five or six at all times in their toybox.

[Sue & Willy Babe]

Awesome are your dogs heavy chewers and did u have to sanitize them or anything like that??? My DH has a guy at work that has some available to us when he goes to his deer camp he would bring some back for us

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Antlers are terrific. I get mine online and have found them for around 10.00 or less. One site is Antlerz.com and there is another I will have to look for in my favorites later for it. They last forever, wear down very slowly. Splinters? I guess it's possible, as they do wear down. I haven't noticed little pieces splintering off or large pieces for that matter. We have several around as well.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I have not heard of anyone that has taken the antlers from a deer killed locally and cut them up and given them to their doodles. I think pretty much everyone here has purchased the antlers on line. What is done to them from the field to the store where they are sold, I honestly don't know but have wondered the same thing. I keep thinking that if all that is happening is they are cut in pieces and then sold that I would be seeing them at every craft fair and store around here because we are in the middle of deer country ....... and I never see them locally, only on line. That leads me to believe that they are somehow cleaned and sanded to become smooth and sanitized (because they are very smooth).

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

I've seen many many discussions on deer antlers. When I did a search 9 pages came up. I think it was Denise and Hunter who just had a discussion about if the antlers needed processed first before giving a fresh antler from the field to a dog. I believe she posted this in the food group. I am sleepy ( just waking up with my coffee) so I don't know the results of Denise's question...but I know it is around here somewhere.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

We probably have at least ten different discussions about antlers in the Food Group, including great on-line sources to get them cheaper, the safety issues, and the merits of elk VS deer antlers.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

My brother-in-law camps and fishes in Southern Ohio weekly. He told me on Thanksgiving Day he GIVES AWAY THE ANTLERS he finds. This led to a long discussion about the costs of antlers. He did not believe me--of course, I am the younger brothers, not so bright, wife. What would I know about antlers.

We then went online and looked up the prices. His face went red but still he said nothing to me :)

I asked if he could get back the antlers he gave away or at least the next time give them to me. Again, no comment.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You can show your brother-in-law this discussion, to further prove your point:
I Just Threw Away $34.00

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Ahhhh :) My dogs have never had antlers. I don't know if they would like them either. Starlit probably would, but Spud is picky and unpredictable. But that was a lot of wasted money.

Well BIL just gave away a 12 point rack! He did mention that his friend was thrilled that he gave him the rack but he had no idea why. Well DUH. You just gave your friend CHRISTMAS I told him. I'm sure now, I will never get the antlers either, $$$$$$$$$$$

[F, Calla & Luca]

What a ......Well, although you didn't get any antlers, he could have made a bundle of money. Send Roger with him and he can saw them up and make the money himself! what did he put in the tree--bones right? He could probably peddle those too. Throwaway parts of animals are big business as dog treats.

[Sue & Willy Babe]

Maybe it would be best if I got some on line to be safe after reading fron the food group Does anyone get them from a certain on-line store???

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here's one that was recommended in TFG:
http://antlerpantry.com/