Bully Sticks?

[diane silver]

Has anyone given their pup Bully Sticks? From what I've read online, they are supposed to be very good in terms of not splintering, etc. I'm just wondering if they are safe or recommended for young puppies to satisfy their chewing/biting needs and if that might be an appropriate substitution for our skin?

[1knme66wzgv4k]

I've never used them, but have heard great things about them, too. We use real bones from the butcher. We freeze them and Puddles gnaws those bones for an hour or more and one bone will last him quite a few days. They are great for his teeth and will keep him occuppied and get a lot of his energy out. The only thing with real butcher bones, they need to be an outside only treat, and when we first introduced them to Puddles we gave it to him and took it away multiple times, so he wouldn't get possessive of it.

Bully Sticks seem to be a favorite of many doodle owners, though.

[Tamara & Giada]

LOL....I did hear what they are made of--ewww!! Maybe we should try them, I really didn't know much about them.

We use the steralized bones Adina recommended, at first Giada didn't care for them, but now she likes them:) Also, we are big Kong users.

[Adina P]

She does? Oh yipee! I felt so bad after hearing she ignored them after my big speech about how wonderful they are!

[Adina P]

Well...after hearing so many rave reviews I too gave in and bought one (despite my hubby's protests against having a giant dried bull penis in the house!). Rosco LOVED it and it helped me be able to groom him while he was busy with his bully stick. But I happened to buy one that smelled AWFUL and never bought one again. It was just too gross. I HAVE heard, however, that some places sell bully sticks that are odor-free. I just can't get over my first memory of them!

[bokhud88hc94]

Yep .. Bear loves them too! And oh yeah .. they are very stinky! LOL! My husband said I can NOT buy them anymore .. haha:-) That's to bad for Bear .. well, he is happy with his marrow bones and stuffed sterilized bones .. I think he'll live ..lol!

[Azure & Muppet]

We had pretty much the same experience as Adina. After hearing so many good things about them, we got one for our puppy when he was 12 weeks old. He loved it! It seemed kind of expensive - but they last forever and are totally worth it. But we also happened to buy one that was NOT odor free and that was a big mistake. Oh boy, the smell was so horrible my husband wanted to throw it away and never buy another one. But because of the cost and because the dog liked it so much, we decided to keep it under the condition that we don't let him chew it indoors, he only gets to chew it outside because it stinks so bad. Definitely look for the odor-free kind.

[bokhud88hc94]

Yes, they are a safe alternative to rawhide. They will not splinter and are easily digestable. However, that said .. they do have an odor:-( It's not very pleasant .. but your dog will LOVE you for it.. lol!

Have you tried a Kong? How about Nylabone? Kongs are nice .. freeze them and they last longer. Try filling a kong with both soft and mushy items. Ideas are an over ripe banana, left over bread, rice or noodles, and mushy cooked carrots. Pack them in the kong but put peanut butter or cream cheese over the top ... takes longer to get the contents out, thus keeping your dog busy longer! Nylabone is also a safe option. There are 3 levels .. gumabone is the softest, then the regular nylabone, and then the Galileo which are the hardest. Nylabone also makes edible bones .. however, Bear has eaten one in a matter of minutes .. what a waste of money! He likes to chew and the edible nylabone doesn't last him.

I am not a fan of rawhide in any shape or form. They can swell when ingested. Some dogs dont' do well with them either .. causing diarrhea, gas, or vomiting. Bully sticks, tendons, pumpers, pig ears, knuckles, hooves, or any natural animal part makes a great treat. I like frozen marrow bones. They keep Bear occupied for hours on end .. I wouldn't give them indoors however. Also, you may try a sterilized bone from the pet store. They are hollow .. fill them with canned dog food or peanut butter and freeze! What a great safe treat:-) Carrot sticks are good too .. but can get a little messy!

Hope this helps!!

[Sue & Willy Babe]

Thanks for the suggestions I will pick up someNylabones Willson is doing well with his items, he does love the Kong

[diane silver]

Just wanted you all to know that I bought Emma two bully sticks last night. These are free range, "Moo" brand and don't have any odor and are stain-free. She really seems to love it and it does keep her very busy. They are expensive, though - I paid $2.99 each, but I'm going to research buying them online. I'll let you all know if I find them cheaper.

[Lynda Kamrath]

We bought bully sticks at Costco for about $10 a large bag. Our dogs loved them and our vet said she thought it was a good use for animal by-products, but we heard there were some problems with bully sticks and dried chicken made in China. Most bully sticks are from Argentina or Brazil, but read carefully. Bully sticks and pigs ears are made from parts of animals that would not be used otherwise, and dogs love to chew, so sounds like a good outdoor chew to me.

[Robin Ramsey]

In my opinion they are worth every penny. that is the one thing we can count on to keep his attention...like someone else said when he was little a stick lasted several days now it lasts about an hour at the most! we're hooked!!
We found several ebay stores (the one i can remember off the top of my head is MuttMart?) they sell them cheaper than pet stores. Just search "bully stick" they have all sizes/odorless/braided/etc. (we've found the braided ones last longer-are a little bit more $)

[Chris & Boys]

My dog broke two of his teeth on a Nylabone. When I took him in to the vet she said if it is hard and his teeth cannot destroy it, it can destroy his teeth. Has anyone else's vet told them that??