Unscientific Poll: Who has had bad experiences with.....

* Rawhides- Indy likes to swallow these whole and then puke them up. That can't be healthy.
* Greenies- a roommate's dog choked to death on one.
* Pig ears - lots of upset stomaches
* Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones, etc. - Never had a problem with smoked bones, but I know a LOT of dogs who have cracked teeth on the choo hooves.
* RMB (raw meaty bones) - upset stomaches
* Bully Sticks - upset stomach once, vomitting once - not the same dog.

Jewlieee

these types of chews. I'm asking for experiences that you and your dogs have had, not what you've heard or what your brothers, mothers, cousins, neighbor down the road has experienced. :)

 So, what has your experiences been with:

• Rawhides
• Greenies
• Pig ears
• Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones, etc.
  
• RMB (raw meaty bones)
• Bully Sticks

 -------------------------

Honestly, the only of the above that I have tried is pig ears, and only with Kenya.  They give her runny poop so I don't give them anymore.  Now, if I need a long-lasting treat, I get a frozen marrow bone and if they clean it off, I save it at restuff it with something else.  They use these for chewing, as I have a few "dried" ones lying around the house. 

I don't use rawhide because it gives Max diarrhea and I don't use greenies because of what I've heard about them.  Everything else on the list - no problems.

Joyce

Cow Hooves aren't the best of chewies...they are hard, especially the commercially available ones.  They can break teeth.

Rawhides:  I use sparingly.

 Greenies:  One every day or two and no problems.

RMBs: One or two per week and no problems.

Bully Sticks: the cost is pretty high and they don't last too long.

Pig Ears: I used to give these all the time but haven't for a while, they make my boy's stool runny.
 

Me!

Rawhides - Had a dog get very aggressive and possessive over them AND nearly choke several times once they got small and gooey.  Yes, I supervised, but he broke off a piece and tried to inhale it before I could get it away.  Once my vet told me the most vicious fights he's seen between dogs have been over rawhide, they don't come in my house anymore.

RMB- 6 hours after eating it, Woobie upchucked a whole vertebrae from turkey neckbones I had fed earlier in the night.  I don't think he crushes or chews and just doesn't do well with RMB.  Fine with raw meat, just not the bones.  I don't think he knows how to eat it properly.  Indie is another story, I think he could eat an elephant with no problem!   

Rawhides  - No problems. I take them away when they get small               

Greenies - Salem bites off big chunks and swallows. I stopped giving them for fear of obstruction

Pig ears - Salem is fine with them. Cheza eats them too quick and they upset her tummy

Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones, etc. - Salem had a smoked knuckle and it first gave him diarrhea and then he yelped while trying to poop out the shards for 2 days after. Haven't used them since.

RMB (raw meaty bones) - No problems

Bully Sticks - No problems, but I take them away when they get too small or the dogs will swallow them.

raw hides i've found are consumed within minutes only to be vomited up later that night along with what ever the dog had for dinner.... usually i'm awakened to the sound of a dog retching.. then i fly out of bed and try to carry him or her outside before they yak all over the clean laundry basket, sofa, bed, rug, or carpet..... however the last time it happened i didnt discover the vomit until i stepped in it while on the way to the bathroom in the dark.

NO MORE RAW HIDES!!

never had a problem with hooves......  when my dad would trim the horses hooves the dogs would wait in line for them. when i lived on the horse ranch my dogs would bring them inside to chew on - stinky! - and the storebought kind seem to last forever but keep my crew occupied...

 i dont buy smoked knuckle bones anymore because i got tired of pulling bone fragments out of my feet......

RMBs are great for outside chewing..... keeps everyone happy for quite a long time.  

never had an issue with pig ears. i used to buy them in bulk when i went to the dog shows.... but then i got scared off from them when someone mentioned some sort of moth or worm that likes to live on them....  

ETA before i got bulldogs... (back when i had "normal" dogs) i used to worry about choking so i would soak the rawhides in warm water until they were soft again and then take the knots out of them. and all because i had heard bad stories about dogs choking on the knots. but that was before i discovered raw hide "chips".... still doesnt do any good for the bullies. they still eat them all gone in minutes... 

Rawhides: Never given, leery of choking problems.                 

Greenies: I tried a sample one once with Honor, researched them on the forum while she was eating it, and took it away half-through her eating it for fear of digestive pyrotechnics.

Pig ears: My collie used to like them, they didn't do much to her.

Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones, etc.: Never tried them.

RMB (raw meaty bones): An exciting treat for Honor.  I'll save them and re-stuff them with tasty edibles.

Bully Sticks: Quite possibly Honor's favorite.  We get them shipped in big packages.

Rawhide - YES.  Had dogs that chew and chew on one bit until it's soggy enough to chew off and then choke on that bit!  Fine under close supervision.

Greenies - Never offered.

Pig ears - No problems, except stinky bums after.  No resource guarding even from children.

Cow hooves - Never offered, often seen tummy upsets from pig feet though.

RMB - No problems.

Bully sticks - Really stinky after and had a couple of hairy nearly choky moments when it gets too small.

 So, what has your experiences been with:

• Rawhides - never had a problem, I use the large retriever rolls, did use the pressed stuff but didn't like all the bits.
  
• Greenies - never tried
  
• Pig ears - no problems, eats them like they are a Pringle potato chip so don't use them
  
• Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones, etc. - ate a cow hoove in about 5 minutes and had gelatinous poop the next day, gross and since he can destroy it fast just too much gelatin.  Never used smoked bones
  
• RMB (raw meaty bones) - difficult due to his allergies so only beef, pork and lamb.  Beef ribs are good but a little too small so too much fits in his giant mouth and have splintered.  Now he gets them but with strict supervision. He has cracked marrow bones so I don't give him those any more as I don't want a cracked tooth etc.
  
• Bully Sticks - blink and they are gone.  Too expensive for him as they disappear.  Never had any problems though
  

Rawhides ~ never had a problem with rawhide bones or pressed hide. Had a dog bite off a large piece of rawhide stick and choke on that tho

Geenies ~ no problems

Pig ears ~ no problems

Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones, etc. ~ no problems but I stepped on a cow hoove once with bare feet -EEK!

RMB (raw meaty bones) ~ had one dog choke on a chicken wing, pork neck piece lodged in throat of young dog, broken carnassal teeth & stress fracures in teeth

Bully Sticks ~ haven't fed them more than a few times, so no problems

Personally:

Rawhides - loves them, gets 1 every once in awhile, never had a problem

Greenies - never had one, they make me nervous, heard some bad stories about them

Pig ears - loves them, never had a problem

Cow hooves, etc - never had one

RMB - loves them!!!!

Bully sticks - loves them, never had a problem, but he does eat them very quickly

All of the above are great.....except for rawhides......in my experience, make sure the dog can handle it, all my dogs love them.........but, my oldest GSD dog being almost 14(passed away last year) was choking on them,........so, no for the elderly.....eh.....

I only feed RMBs. Greenies, never gave them, but heard the horror stories. Pig ears are way to fattening. Has a habit of swallowing rawhides. Cow hooves, smoked knuckle bones and bully sticks never given them.