# Making rawhide 'softer'



## towsonu2003 (Nov 28, 2007)

Hi,

I bought some rawhide for my (small, 10lb) dog to have fun with - she usually likes rawhide, and especially the uncompressed white ones. But she tries to swallow the white ones too quickly...

But I think this new one is a bit too hard for her to chew. Do you know how to make compressed rawhide softer? boil in water? something else? 

thanks.


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## Annamarie (Oct 14, 2007)

rawhide is a definate no no to feed dogs. they chew peices off and swallow them and the peices then sit in their digestive tract not being digested and create a blockage which can potentially be fatal. if you want to give your dog something to chew try a Kong or a nylon bone. I give my dog big beef knuckle or leg bones that he can't chew peices off. I have also heard of cases where dogs have swallowed peices of "edible" chews but they also create blockages so I would avoid those too.


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## towsonu2003 (Nov 28, 2007)

Annamarie said:


> rawhide is a definate no no to feed dogs. they chew peices off and swallow them and the peices then sit in their digestive tract not being digested and create a blockage which can potentially be fatal. if you want to give your dog something to chew try a Kong or a nylon bone. I give my dog big beef knuckle or leg bones that he can't chew peices off. I have also heard of cases where dogs have swallowed peices of "edible" chews but they also create blockages so I would avoid those too.


I am somewhat familiar with the rawhide debate. But she stays away from anything that's plastic... She has a kong and a nylon bone - she doesn't touch them at all...


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## MegaMuttMom (Sep 15, 2007)

Why do you give the rawhide? If it's just to have fun, there has got to be something better. If your dog doesn't like the kong, you must not be putting anything yummy inside My dog chews his nylabone but then again he is driven to chew. Some dogs don't really need to chew as much as others.


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## Annamarie (Oct 14, 2007)

agreed, my dog had absolutely no interest in his kong until I started stuffing treats in it. if you can jam them in there really well so it's hard for them to get it out it will keep them busy for hours


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## poohlp (Jul 10, 2007)

My dog has no problem with the rawhides as he only chews a very little at a time, but if your dog is a gobbler digestibility might be an issue. 

Why don't you try bully sticks? They are digestible and dog crack, chew wise. Be forewarned, they do stink. They can be kind of expensive in stores, as much as $4-5 a piece but one of the site sponsors, or former sponsors ( don't see them right now), has them for less than a dollar a piece for the 6 inch and only $1.25 or so for the 12 inch ones. I'll try to find the link when I get home. I can't find it right now.


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## cascabel (Sep 25, 2007)

Ditto on the bully sticks and I would add flossies (aka curly q's and all sorts of similar names) to the mix. The bully stix (and curly q's) I have from Jones Gourment Dog Chews don't smell at all. Like seriously no smell and I am someone who thinks rawhide reeks. So there are some out there that won't reek if that's an issue.


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## GreatDaneMom (Sep 21, 2007)

well personally, i dont like regular rawhide, but i do like the compressed rawhide. its tough enough that my girls can chew for hours and only get little pieces off. they get annoyed if i put treats in kongs because they cant get them out and give up, but if i put peanut butter in it, they love them. i dont like nylabones, just for the fact that theyre nylon, and NOT digestable. i just cant trust something like that at all. 
really, the compressed rawhide is supposed to be hard like that. theyre meant to have to work hard at and only get little pieces off at a time. why would you want to soften that...


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## towsonu2003 (Nov 28, 2007)

GreatDaneMom said:


> (...) theyre meant to have to work hard at and only get little pieces off at a time. why would you want to soften that...


Well, this might or might not hijack the post but, I need to get them a bit softer because of a bad habit she has: whatever she is trying to do, she quits it too quickly. That's a major problem with the kong - either she will eat everything in it very quickly, or she'll just leave it alone. 

If I get the bone a bit softer, she might have more cause to 'keep on trying'.

We adopted her a few weeks ago and I suspect she was abused. I try to let her win in games as much as possible so she gets a bit more dominant. If you have any suggestions on that too, I'd appreciate 

PS. I'll look at bully stix. Is this it? http://www.pawpantry.com/images/bully.jpg

PSS. also, she *has* to stay thin due to her breed (dachshund)...

PSSS. Thanks sooo much for all the help so far - this is great.


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## ozzy (Sep 29, 2007)

My dog loves bully sticks! I would definitely suggest those and they can keep him occupied for hours without him really eating too much. Another one that is a little softer than the bully's is steer chews which I think are similar. I give mine rawhide once in awhile but he doesn't get much off and gets bored with it quickly too. Try the bully sticks I think they will help and they are digestable.


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## poohlp (Jul 10, 2007)

Here's the link to the bully stick site I was mentioning. They have the flossies too. 

http://www.bestbullysticks.com/


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## Anela (Sep 8, 2007)

Rawhide bones should really be on the "most hazardous thing you can feed your dog list".

They are dry, very dry. When dog eats it, stomach fluid expands it, if dog eats to much of it, it's gotta come out somewhere, or, cause a severe blockage. This is the basic risk you are taking when you give fido the rawhide. 

A long time ago, I gave my rescue dog a rawhide, on the advice from my vet, dog had issues and I needed to keep her happy. Vet said to buy the biggest one I could find, and let dog go at it. 

The next day (Saturday), off we go to our weekend place in the country, at least 3 hours from anything civil. When we get there dog went at the rawhide, took in almost the whole thing. Around midnight, dog is vomiting severely and just won't stop. Rawhide was coming up, and it was truly the worst vomiting incident I have ever experienced with a dog. Around 3:00 a.m. I was forced to call the emergency clinic in the city, I was fully prepared to load things up and go in. Clinic said that dog should pass everything by morning, which she did. 

The next day I called my vet and told her what happened, then I fired her. 

There are lots of things dogs can chew on besides a rawhide. You just need to look for them.

Anela


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## RBark (Sep 10, 2007)

I give my dog compressed rawhide..

He has no interest in anything else or they go too fast. Kong stuffed with a treat will last maybe 5 minutes before giving up, usually just one minute. Stuffed with peanut butter, he will lick the easy parts clean but makes no effort to get anything deeper in.

No interest in nylabones, and anything edible chews will disappear in 5 minutes. No interest in the natural bones found at petco. No interest in any chew toys whatsoever.


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## Puppies are Great (Aug 28, 2020)

towsonu2003 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I bought some rawhide for my (small, 10lb) dog to have fun with - she usually likes rawhide, and especially the uncompressed white ones. But she tries to swallow the white ones too quickly...
> 
> ...


We have two Yorkies and a Chihuahuas and they all love rawhide bones but they are all extremely aggressive when it comes to chewing their treats. I found Wonder Bones, They look close to the rawhide just a couple shades darker but they are made with chicken and although they still have to work at it they still get to get pieces off that they can digest. They really look forwards to these after supper. Since the topic came up about rawhide and the risk factors I checked again and found a well written article on the bennifits and risks. I always found that the only large piece that had to be worried about was the very end, they want to get done and try to swallow that piece that's usually a bit bigger than they should be trying. So we throw away those pieces before they get swallowed. Hot water will soften the eawhide enough to make it easier to get lots of small pieces off but as it cools and dries it will get hard again and they give up after giving it a good going over. Just let them soak in a bowel of hot water for five minutes instead of boiling.


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## Puppies are Great (Aug 28, 2020)

Puppies are Great said:


> We have two Yorkies and a Chihuahuas and they all love rawhide bones but they are all extremely aggressive when it comes to chewing their treats. I found Wonder Bones, They look close to the rawhide just a couple shades darker but they are made with chicken and although they still have to work at it they still get to get pieces off that they can digest. They really look forwards to these after supper. Since the topic came up about rawhide and the risk factors I checked again and found a well written article on the bennifits and risks. I always found that the only large piece that had to be worried about was the very end, they want to get done and try to swallow that piece that's usually a bit bigger than they should be trying. Hot water will soften the eawhide enough to make it easier to get lots of small pieces off but as it cools and dries it will get hard again and they give up after giving it a good going over.


I don't want to hijack this page but feel the need share something I saw after purchasing a hound puppy. It was 30 below outside and the owner had decided if they couldn't survive the winter outside, then they were just going to die their. Their mother was their with them in a dog house so maybe he was right but I figured I had save one for sure. She sat on the seat beside vibrating severely and after being so cold, then being in the heat of my truck, she threw up. What she threw up shocked the hell out of me, it was a piece of fat or skin of some, 3" x 3" by half an inch thick and hard to chew quick enough that she didn't want to lose it to another of the pups but it was warm and soft so she managed to somehow swallow it. Go figure


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

13-year-old thread. You didn't hijack it. You raised it from the dead.


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