Help Sage Chew Healthily

May 1, 2008 7:15 AM

My Golden loves to chew but has a sensitive stomach. What can she chew that won't have a Super Colon Blow effect?

I have read through this thread and there are many great recommendations for chewing but nothing that mentions sensitive stomachs. Obviously I don't want to use rawhides because they are not safe and they give her diarrhea which is not fun for either of us. Can anyone recommend a good chew that won't cause her an upset stomach?

posted by Silvertree to Pets & Animals (9 answers total)

Sweet potato chews (Dr Chews is the brand I know), Booda Velvets, cow tails ("Texas toothpicks") and beef tendon chews (sometimes called "Texas taffy") all tend to be easy on the stomach. Also, the all-natural non-basted bully sticks are OK for some dogs with sensitive tummies (not all though), as are the "Better Than Ears" vegetarian mock pig ears (don't give real pig ears, they contain all kinds of crap including formalin and are often contaminated with salmonella).
posted by biscotti at 7:26 AM on May 1, 2008

Oh, and the Nylabone "Healthy Edibles" are another possibility.
posted by biscotti at 7:27 AM on May 1, 2008

My labradoodle has the exact same problem, and we give her those huge "knuckle' bones. They last forever and do not give her problems. Just as an aside, we saw a LOT of the diarrhea issues disappear when we started plopping a big spoonful of pumpkin on top of her dry food at mealtime.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 7:33 AM on May 1, 2008

Our beagle can't tolerate rawhide either, so we switched to cornstarch-based bones like the Boodas biscotti mentioned. They come in all sorts of flavors, from bacon to peanut butter, and she lurves them.

We tried nylabones, but she lost interest in those fairly quickly... she acted like they lost their flavor or something.
posted by somanyamys at 7:48 AM on May 1, 2008

Nylabones and kongs are my beast's favorite chew toys.
posted by Brittanie at 7:54 AM on May 1, 2008

Seconding the sweet potato chews. My dog gets diarrhea at the drop of a hat, and these are fine for him. He's not interested in rubbery toys like Kongs, but he loves to chew on hard plastic, too - we get him rope toys capped with plastic on the ends and he'll just chew on the caps. It doesn't seen to hurt his teeth or gums, and he doesn't bite off any pieces, so we let him.
posted by Mr Bunnsy at 7:55 AM on May 1, 2008

BTW Bully Sticks aren't tendons. Their cowpenisskinsticks. Fun!

However...my golden is a machine. She isn't destructive---unless you count socks and chew toys. She weighs 60lbs, and she can destroy a tennis ball in about 20 seconds of unmoderated play. She's destroyed Kongs. She's the dog that is the reason that you don't see "Indestructable" on dog toys anymore. There's one bone that we've had for a while that all 3 of my dogs love that they haven't really been able to damage. It's got some wear, but I think its biggest advantage is how thin it is--it's outside her CRUSHING range for her jaws. It also doesn't stink and doesn't get slobbery...It's the Nylabone Ham Steak.

I recommend it heartily, and she gives it 2 paws way up.
posted by TomMelee at 11:25 AM on May 1, 2008

Response by poster: Thank you for all of the suggestions so far. Sage and I are going shopping tonight. I am sure she would thank you too! And by thank you I mean give you multiple slobbery dog kisses.
posted by Silvertree at 11:34 AM on May 1, 2008

I have heard several bad things about the Nylabones. My vet doesn't recommend them.
My pup is sensitive too. She really likes Dingo sticks. They are rawhide but they are easily digestible.
posted by nimsey lou at 6:11 PM on May 1, 2008