Bully Sticks - Do They Clean Teeth?
I had Ellie at the veterinarian's office yesterday and, at the end of the appointment, I asked the vet about what I can use to help with teeth cleaning. Ellie likes to chew on her antler and her teeth look great, but Yuki has given up on antlers, it seems, and his teeth and breath are less than pleasant. I do brush his teeth, but it doesn't seem to be quite enough for him.
Anyway, I asked about using raw bone as a chew to aid in cleaning his teeth because he needs something that he is motivated to chew on. The vet, of course, told me that all bones are "bad" and I shouldn't feed any to the dogs. It was a bit disappointing, as I had been hoping she would say ribs or other non-weight-bearing bones would be worth a try. She did, however, recommend bully sticks, greenies and soft nylabones. I don't like the idea of feeding my dogs plastic (no matter how safe they say the plastic is...) and I've known too many dogs who have had problems digesting greenies. I also refuse to feed my dogs rawhide, as a personal choice, so she didn't bother to add that to the list.
So...has anyone ever tried using bully sticks to help with cleaning teeth? I know Melissa feeds bully sticks to Franklin and so far his teeth have stayed great. How about cleaning teeth that are already getting some plaque on them, though? Has anyone seen bully sticks make an improvement? Yuki isn't at the point where he needs a professional cleaning, yet, and I'd like to try to keep it that way. Also, what sort of bully sticks do people recommend? I've seen all sorts of them (braided, straight, knotted, etc.)
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Lemmy Winks on
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I'm not sure what a bully stick is, but I feed my dogs apples and carrots; they're plenty motivated to chew on those!
They get chunks of carrot every 1-3 days and when I have apples, I slice them up and use them as treats. It keeps teeth clean, and it's healthy!
My vet was impressed with how clean the teeth were on my boys, and was pleased when I told him it was because of carrots.
A bag of carrots is cheaper then any toy or dog treat ( that's decent) and it lasts longer! ( From my experience anyways haha).
Best wishes!
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Permalink Reply by Natalie, Lance &Tucker on
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cool!!
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Permalink Reply by Yuki & Ellie on
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That does sound neat, but both of mine are heavy chewers. :/ They each can chew through something like a carrot in no time at all, even if it is left whole. And I also feed them fruits and vegetables regularly. They make out particularly well when we have friends over and there is a veggie platter on the table. ;)
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Permalink Reply by Shanna Lien on
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My dog is a heavy chewer too and I have given her carrots but she always chokes on them and coughs a lot after eating, so be careful on this one. I opted to pass on the carrots just because I didn't want to have any sort of issue.
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Permalink Reply by Cathie on
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Bully sticks (aka "pizzle") are made from bull penises. So now you know. ;)
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Permalink Reply by N a t h a n & L u f f y on
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hmm.. i think i'll stop sniffing them now before giving it to my guy...
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LMAO!!!! Oh goodness! Haha my brother in law got his mastiff one of those! Haha! Thanks for letting me know :) Made my night lol!
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Permalink Reply by Ingrid & Ein on
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Bully sticks are dehydrated bull penises haha :)
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so what did the vet say about the limp ?
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The vet took a ton of X-rays, tested range of motion, felt for hot spots/tender areas and everything else she could think of. She thinks Ellie has strained/pulled something and just needs some rest and a bit of medication. She sent me home with Rimadyl, which I won't be giving to Ellie until tomorrow because I won't be home today to see how she reacts.
The vet did note, however, that Ellie has a lot of knots in her muscles. She's thinking that Ellie pushes herself a bit too hard.
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Permalink Reply by Sarah C. on
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Mine get a bully stick every day and their teeth stay great. I recommend getting them online because they are pretty ridiculously priced in stores. They have them in extra thick sizes but if your dog is a heavy chewer like my Didi, you need to get braided so that it will actually last. They smell really not good, but it's not as bad if you get the smoked ones.
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