Difference between antler types?

Rowan had an antler that stayed in almost perfect shape for over a year. Riff chewed on it after I got him and wore it down a little bit but it was still holding up. Then it got lost. We tried a new one, and I kid you not, Riff demolished it in about half an hour. He chewed it down to a small enough piece that he could've swallowed it (luckily he didn't and I took it away as soon as I realized.) I don't know what type either of them were, deer, elk, etc. Is there much of a difference in durability? I'd like to get them another one but don't want to spend that much money on something that lasts so briefly. I suspect I need to get a bigger size, too, but I thought you guys would know more about the different types than I do!

I know I'm not much help, but I do know that different antlers come in different hardnesses... You can tell by looking at the center. I'm on my idiotPod rn, otherwise I'd give a better answer, but that's the jist of it

We get elk from a local guy. Large sized.

Never cut in half.If it's cut length wise in half they chew it in no time.

I have noticed in stores they are soft and get chewed quicker. I ordered some once in a money raiser for a rescue and they were like stone.

Ours last forever, wonder if he ships? I'll have to find out.

I get deer and elk antlers from the same source, and get varying hardness all the time. I guess it just has to do with the individual animal's age, condition, etc. I'm not sure the scientific reason behind it, but some antlers my dogs can plow through and others last forever.

Definitely don't get one that is split open. Hugo did the same thing and was able to demolish it in no time. We have a whole elk antler that has lasted 6 months with barely any noticeable wear. It's this one off of chewy, but when I looked I don't see them there now. It was similar to this one.

http://www.chewy.com/dog/wapiti-labs-whole-elk-antlers-dog/dp/46390

Normally a lot of "marrow" (the porous center) will cause an antler to be more soft than an antler that is mostly bone.


for instance, these antler have a LOT of marrow and will be demolished quickly.



While these are mostly bone and will take longer

thats interesting! next time I look for antlers (and its almost time to start finding sheds! I hope I can find some natural sheds in our property ... last year I didnt have any luck ) I will make sure to get the ones that have more bone than marrow.