Antlers for 9 week old puppy

[The Food Group]

Happy Friday!  Question for the food experts - I know there are a number of comments and I read through some, but unless I am missing a function on DK, its not possible to just search specific discussion titles and I haven't found one yet that is just on the subject of antlers, only seen it mentioned in other discussions.  Our 9 week old puppy is definitely in the biting stage!  We re-direct and have plenty of toys to give him but he always wants to come over and nip hands, and as of yesterday, has nipped feet or pantlegs a little bit.  Yikes.  I went to Unleased by Petco yesterday and they sold me on a split elk antler.  Its half an antler piece split open so one side has the marrow visible.  I was told they are good for dogs, all natural and won't splinter, but as he gnaws on the marrow section and it gets moist, it does seem to be splitering or scraping off a little bit.  No large pieces, but I didn't expect to see any dents in it and after 15 minutes the marrow was showing signs that it had been chewed on.

 

I called the vet this morning and they said if it doesn't bother his stomach then its fine, a lot of dogs do well with them.  My husband and I only want him to have it maybe twice a day for 20 minutes at a time, of course supervised, but I really want to get some opinions on whether its okay for a puppy to be digesting the tiny marrow bits.  And we don't want him to break a tooth!!!

 

Again, I know comments are out there, but I haven't found one specific discussion on antlers & puppies.

Thank you in advance for any advice!

[Jay, Lola and Colonel Esau]

Karen is really the expert, I think - but why would it be a problem for a dog to ingest morrow?  It's just fat, really.  My guess is when they said it wouldn't splinter, they meant the "bone" part on the outside.  As in, raw bones are fine because they won't splinter but cooked bones are bad because they can splinter.

[jeanne & Lilly]

Hi Kira, we tried antlers for Lilly, both split and whole. She must have shark teeth because she had them split and splintering in no time. But antlers are a favorite for some doodles.
I'd suggest you also post this in the puppy madness forum.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Wow, Lilly is only the second dog I've heard of who did this. She should be fine with the larger whole antlers or rosettes that are meant for bigger dogs, and never the split ones.  See my discussion on this: 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/need-yo...

[jeanne & Lilly]

Thanks Karen, I did read through your discussion. The antlers I bought must have been substandard. I will try again, but order from one of the sites suggested here.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

I always buy Luna antlers meant for much larger dogs - she absolutely demolishes things (even those white "durabone" nylabones) so I don't take a chance.  Weirdly enough though she can't demolish antlers if I buy them nice and thick.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Here is a great discussion on antlers, including the issue of chipping or breaking (which almost never happens):

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/need-yo...

Some others: 

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/antlers...

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/chew-tr...

To search the Food Group discussions, you would click on "Back to the Food Group Discussions" just below your name up at the top of this discussion, then click "View All", and there will be a box where you can type a search term. Here's what I got when I searched antlers: http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topic/search?g...

There is no problem with your puppy scraping at the marrow and/or ingesting some of it. The tiny bits he's getting are digestible and easily passed, and marrow is fine for dogs. As long as you supervise him, you're fine.

That said, we always recommend that you not give your pup any new foods or treats until you have had him for at least two weeks, because it can often take that long for parasites and digestive issues to show up. Giardia has a two week incubation period. If your pup develops diarrhea, you won't know if it's a parasite or illness, or if it's caused by a new food, treat, chew, whatever. And when you do introduce new foods, treats, etc., always do it one at a time. 

[Katie & Roo]

These links are super helpful. Thanks for posting!

[Stephanie and Ragley]

Ragley has been chewing elk antler splits since she came home at 8 weeks old. She LOVES them and has never had any issues. Just a couple weeks ago I had to take her "puppy" antler away from her because she had chewed it so thin that she was able to break a corner off of it. She has a new "big girl" elk antler split now. I love them and will continue to buy them for her. I do get mine from a lady who gets all her antlers from families in the US out west who scavenge for them in the woods so I know they are of good quality and she was able to advise me on a good one to pick for my specific dog's needs. 

[Katie & Roo]

Are you able to buy those online? I was looking at the ones on Chewy.com but it's hard to tell the quality of them

[Brittney & Cally]

I buy mine on chewy and have been very please with them! Both of my girls love them!

[Marie and Hoka]

Antlers (split puppy and medium) were a necessity to get through weeks 9-12 for us! It seemed the safest, most interesting choice for Hoka. He could gnaw off little tiny bits of the marrow.
Spraying my hands with lemon juice when I did not want to be bit also helped! I alternately coated my hands with peanut butter to teaching kissing instead of biting. He learned it was good to lick me when invited, distasteful to nip when not invited. He stopped the stage about 13 weeks or so.