# Better than bully sticks?



## oatmilk (Jun 24, 2013)

Is there anything your dog loves just as much as bully sticks? My puppy is so obsessed with his bully sticks, so I only give it to him during crate time. If I left it out, he would probably spend his whole day chewing on it! Would love to find some alternatives to mix things up a little (also because bully sticks aren't the cheapest thing).


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## LadyB (Mar 7, 2013)

The only thing I've tried so far that seems as interesting are raw marrow bones.


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## mrgoodkat (Oct 21, 2012)

I found deer antlers to be a good alternative. 
They are durable so the price is pretty sure if you calculate it over the time. I bought some 6 months ago and although both dogs chew on them almost everyday there is still plenty left.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

I haven't found anything he loves as much that actually lasts more than 5 minutes. Bully sticks only last 20min anyway. When he was a pup they would last for hours, but once his adult teeth came in they didn't stand a chance.

Antlers are probably the best, though he doesn't chew on them that much. His sister came over and found one and she loved it though.


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## Kayla_Nicole (Dec 19, 2012)

elrohwen said:


> I haven't found anything he loves as much that actually lasts more than 5 minutes. Bully sticks only last 20min anyway. When he was a pup they would last for hours, but once his adult teeth came in they didn't stand a chance.
> 
> Antlers are probably the best, though he doesn't chew on them that much. His sister came over and found one and she loved it though.


Agree with this. She finishes a whole bully stick in 15-20 mins now. She likes the cut antlers with the marrow showing, but still not as much as bully sticks.


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## taquitos (Oct 18, 2012)

All of my dogs go crazy over raw meaty bones... way more than over bully sticks lol


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## rich_2212 (May 13, 2013)

Our dog LOVES bully sticks. Where do you buy yours from? Best Bully Sticks are pretty cheap and they've got some braided ones that last a little bit longer (our dog is a mega-chewer). We also give him elk antlers sometimes.


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## oatmilk (Jun 24, 2013)

rich_2212 said:


> Our dog LOVES bully sticks. Where do you buy yours from? Best Bully Sticks are pretty cheap and they've got some braided ones that last a little bit longer (our dog is a mega-chewer). We also give him elk antlers sometimes.


Would love to buy from Best Bully Sticks but they don't post to Australia! Bit jealous of you guys. The ones I bought here have lots of air in the middle... I would feel ripped off if my puppy wasn't so slow at eating it . Will try out antlers but I've heard stories of teeth breaking from them... would the ones split in half be softer?


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## rich_2212 (May 13, 2013)

Ah, bummer!
We've tried whole and split antlers. The whole lasted longer but the split are definitely easier to chew.


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## zhaor (Jul 2, 2009)

I'd say my dog would take a nice ol' rib eye steak over a bully stick. :wink:

Really my dog doesn't care much for bully stick. Never tried antlers but he just doesn't care much for really chewing. Raw marrow bones keeps him satisfied better.


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## JenniferJ (Jul 8, 2013)

I had given my dog antlers but the vet said they are too hard and they might break her teeth.


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## Foresthund (Jul 17, 2013)

I`m kinda weirded out by bully sticks so don't get them.
I also don't like antlers,because he seems to ignore them and their expensive.

Raw bones with meat,and crushed rawhide is liked,although its only for special occasions and under supervision. Purina busy Rollhides are also loved,but they don't last long.


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## Nuclear_Glitter (Jun 20, 2012)

Killian couldn't care less about bully sticks. He sniffs them and walks away. He sure does like knuckle bones though. They last ages for him, too. Like, at least a week. He also likes kongs with frozen peanut butter.


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## Damon'sMom (Aug 2, 2011)

How about a Kong frozen with different stuff inside? I also like Dura Chew Nylabones. My dogs love them and they last a while even for my heavy chewers. Water Buffalo horns are well liked around here as well. My dogs go nuts for them. I buy elk, deer, and moose antlers and the dogs really seem to like those as well.


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## Laurelin (Nov 2, 2006)

I always sound like an advertisement for them but Best Bully Sticks has tons of chews available. We buy their grab bags a lot. The favorites are the twisty intestine chews around here but they are demolished very fast by my little dogs and I hear they don't last long at all for big dogs (though they like them). But they sell all sorts of natural chews there and their prices are amazing. I buy bully sticks from them for around $1 vs the pet store's $4-6 a piece.


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## Kathyy (Jun 15, 2008)

I used to buy plain dried cow ears for chews. At the time they were cheaper than bully sticks and I was able to let the dogs finish them off which I cannot do with bully sticks. They lasted for about 1/2 hour each. Pig ears last for 5 minutes and are really fatty, cow ears aren't fatty.

Beef ribs are a favorite chew and cheap. Last time I got them they were $1.50 a pound and were 1.5-2 ribs per pound. It depends on the dog whether they are a safe chew or not. 38 pound new to raw feeding Max thought he was supposed to just crunch right through them same as he did with pork or lamb ribs so they were off his menu for a while. If you buy bone in lamb, pork or beef roasts you can bone them and give the bone to the dog. 

Ostrich tendons are enormous and delicious and really expensive. I dried my own cheaply bought raw ones and they were a huge hit. The Merrick mixed chew bags I have bought have small beef tendons in there and the dogs liked them fine.

Since my dogs are raw fed and get lots of bones to actually eat usually the poor things only get kongs with a dab of peanut butter smeared inside.


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## Adnamac (Jun 5, 2013)

I picked up Himalayan chews the other day, and so far Wesley loves them. I don't know if he likes them more then bulky sticks, of if its just something new he's excited about. Ether way, he's currently really enjoying it.


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## frillint (Jul 12, 2009)

I give my boy elk antlers I haven't tried bully sticks yet, but I plan to soon.


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## Flaming (Feb 2, 2013)

Adnamac said:


> I picked up Himalayan chews the other day, and so far Wesley loves them. I don't know if he likes them more then bulky sticks, of if its just something new he's excited about. Ether way, he's currently really enjoying it.


Manna managed to shatter her Himalayan chew, so be careful. It can shatter like glass with all the sharp edges and everything.


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## elrohwen (Nov 10, 2011)

Not sure if anyone else has found this, but I have seen a pretty big variation on quality in the Himalayan chews and how long they last. The first one we got was rock hard and took quite a while to work through. The second was quite soft and only took a couple hours for Watson to eat the whole thing. I've have another one now that I haven't given him, so we'll see how it goes.


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## Raggedw00ds (Jul 15, 2013)

I get the Rollhides. With my Husky, they only last an hour or so. But with Izzy, they last MONTHS! (For now atleast since shes only 3 months old.)


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## RitaNg123 (Sep 27, 2012)

I like to experiment with a number of different things that I find in different pet stores.

My dog likes bully sticks, but she LOVES beef gullet. I'm not even entirely sure what that is - I think it's attached to the trachea or something, but that lasts her a solid 5-6 hrs. I will sometimes take it away from her after a couple hours and give it back to her later on so that she's occupied for a few hours at a time. It's my favorite thing to use while I wanna take a nap and don't want to have to supervise her too carefully. SHe also likes this "porky pumper" thing I bought, which is a pig heart, I guess. Looks kinda nasty, but she seems to like it. She likes trachea, but that doesn't seem to do well on her stomach. Her favorite is a prime rib bone, and she eats that thing bare and has a grin on her face while doing so, but that seems to give her diarrhea, so as much as she likes it, she doesn't get it anymore 

I tried variations of bully sticks - curly ones and braided ones, and for some reason those do a number on my dog. I don't know what makes those any different, but she gets bad diarrhea when she consumes those. She NEVER poos inside the house, but when she eats those, and is left confined in the washroom while I go to work, I will find poop in there. So those are a no go....

I thought she would love the Himalayan chews, but she dismisses those and just puts them in random corners of the house and never cares to retrieve them. She also didn't have any interest in the deer antlers.


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