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Antlers

Zara

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Does anyone give their dogs deer antlers?
Curious what breeds like them, and do they eat them?
I hear they are good for teeth..
Seen them often and wondered about them for Jacob. He is good with bones, will grind them down slowly before swallowing, loves rib bones the most, but also enjoys beef kneecaps. Though we had a to do with him guarding a really heavy bone once for about two weeks before finally eating it, he did eat the entire thing within half an hour once he got round to it.
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I also saw buffalo horns... had never seen those before sold for dogs.

Would love to hear from anyone who has bought either of these for their pooches :)
 

Chomskypom

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My dog broke a tooth on an antler once! Sheared a molar right in half and had to have it pulled. We were visiting family, it belonged to their dog who’d been chewing them for years with no issue.

The water buffalo horn is a much different texture- it almost flakes apart. It’s very soft comparatively. It has a definite odor but I don’t mind because my dog can enjoy it without breaking teeth (though he does sometimes cut his gums or lips a bit, I see a little blood on it occasionally).
He’s got a good sized one that he’s been working on for about a year- most evenings he drags it out of the toy bin and gnaws on it companionably while I read. It seems to be too sturdy for him to eat all in one go, which is great because he used to do that with chews and make himself sick.

ALSO, your dog is gorgeous! Both sides of my family had chows when I was a kid and I miss being around them.
 

NightOwls

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My dogs do not like antlers.
The Buffalo horns they will sometimes chew on but will quickly loss interest.
 

budgieluv3

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We always used rawhide chew sticks or bones for our dog. I’ve never tried antler....
 

Zara

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My dog broke a tooth on an antler once!
Aw sorry to hear that! Thanks for sharing. Is he a large dog breed?
Jacob had a big head and really thick large teeth.

Thanks @NightOwls Good to know!

We always used rawhide chew sticks
I steer clear of all those sort of things. I choose dehydrated things (dried like jerky), and humid treats usually, as well as bones (except little chicken bones).

Maybe he would enjoy the buffalo horn more then :chin:
 

Chomskypom

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Aw sorry to hear that! Thanks for sharing. Is he a large dog breed?
Jacob had a big head and really thick large teeth.
Not huge, I guess- blue heeler/american staffordshire mix, he’s around 45 pounds. I really wonder if he got it at a bad angle, or if he just has weak teeth.
 

Zara

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Ah OK. Jacob is around 70lb
I ordered a buffalo horn so we'll see if he's interested and how long it lasts... :)
Still curious about the antlers though ...
 

Shezbug

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Years ago my dog used to love the off cuts from horses hooves. Never tried antlers though.
 

Jas

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I've heard antlers chip and break teeth.

I give my dog chicken wings and drumsticks (uncooked, otherwise cooked bones will splinter), chicken feet are also good too!
 

Zara

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No antlers or horns or bones here.
Have you ever tried them, or do you mean you have no interest in trying, or that Roxie didn´t like them?

Those raw-hide alternative chews look great :)

I've heard antlers chip and break teeth.
Of which dogs?
I know some humans give unsuitable treats to their dogs, like big bones to little dogs.

I give my dog chicken wings
See, one bone in a wing is smaller than the other, I only give the larger bone, even then, sometimes that is too small too for my Jacob. He likes leg bones, and the thigh bone :)

chicken feet are also good too!
Jacob has never had those. I have given them to my previous dog in the UK. I did just buy one today for Jacob to try, it´s getting delivered next week with a new bird cage and the buffalo horn :bliss:
 

taxidermynerd

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Have you ever tried them, or do you mean you have no interest in trying, or that Roxie didn´t like them?

Those raw-hide alternative chews look great :)
I'm not sure if my dad had given them to previous dogs, but none of our last 4 dogs have been given them. Don't want to chance busted teeth or choking or anything. Plus Roxie has nylabones she likes to chew.
 

Jas

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Have you ever tried them, or do you mean you have no interest in trying, or that Roxie didn´t like them?

Those raw-hide alternative chews look great :)


Of which dogs?
I know some humans give unsuitable treats to their dogs, like big bones to little dogs.


See, one bone in a wing is smaller than the other, I only give the larger bone, even then, sometimes that is too small too for my Jacob. He likes leg bones, and the thigh bone :)


Jacob has never had those. I have given them to my previous dog in the UK. I did just buy one today for Jacob to try, it´s getting delivered next week with a new bird cage and the buffalo horn :bliss:



Big dogs, small dogs, antlers are tough bones to chew on.

my dog is only small, but do be careful if you are feeding leg bones from large animals like cows, they are very dense (they have to be to carry the animal) and do cause teeth to chip and break a lot more frequently. :)
 

fluffypoptarts

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We don’t give antlers to our greyhounds (they are 70-75 pounds) because of possible broken tooth or other issues. We do bully sticks and uncooked turkey necks for them to chew on (considered safe for them to ingest).
 

Zara

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but do be careful if you are feeding leg bones from large animals like cows
He's had a couple of cow leg bones, but now I just get him kneecaps as they are a little smaller but still a good size for him. He's doesn't get many, they really are just odd time treats :)
 
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Zara

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We don’t give antlers to our greyhounds (they are 70-75 pounds) because of possible broken tooth or other issues. We do bully sticks and uncooked turkey necks for them to chew on (considered safe for them to ingest).
Thanks, I did see turkey necks listed. We haven't had those before.

I think it's best we steer clear of the antler bones then, there's plenty of other things he can have and enjoy without risking broken teeth.
 

Chomskypom

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Omg- the chicken feet! A store near us has duck feet, and King Dingo will do ANYTHING for one of those. They last all of 15 seconds and the crunching and horfing sounds he makes are... really special :depressed:
 

MnGuy

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My vet says no chews or bones of any type that don’t give when you press a fingernail into it. One of my dogs broke a tooth on a bone.

Although I previously loved giving my two dogs raw bones and antlers, I now only give them pressed dog chews or dehydrated skin chews (not raw hides).
 

Shezbug

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Wow- I’ve honestly never heard of anyone’s dog breaking a tooth on foods that would be totally natural to scavengers such as wild dogs- I have heard of pet dogs swallowing and choking on a stuck bone or breaking teeth on rocks though.
One of my old dogs used to get a small handful of biscuits and raw bone with some meat, frozen bones (with meat) in the summer which she did totally ingest and fully digest and her two vets had no issues with her mainly bone and raw meat diet.
Another older dog I had basically mainly ate anything she scrounged from dead (often stinky and gross) animals on the farm including cow and goat horns, horse bones and hooves and regular whole kangaroo tails or carcasses- she preferred this food to anything she was ever offered from the store or butcher.

Every dog I’ve had other than the two mentioned have been fed a diet like most feed- formulated foods and careful selections of treats.... funny thing is, the only dogs I have had with absolutely perfect health and not one costly vet issue were the two that were fed mainly foods that many say to avoid as they’re dangerous- they ate a more natural diet for a scavenger which dogs are.

Zara, I say still give them to him if he enjoys them- just be aware of what his personal habits are with that sort of thing.
 
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