One Rawhide Bone: $49.50

Somebody gave Tosca a huge Rawhide bone as a gift yesterday. By morning it was snapped in half and she was chomping on it. I have heard all kinds of stories about not letting your dogs chew rawhide, but I stupidly let her have it. By noon she was snapping her jaw like crazy, drooling, and pawing at her mouth. Thank God she lets me do anything to her. I opened her mouth and felt around everywhere, looked and looked and all I could see was that her right molar looked bigger than her left. I figured she had a piece of that rawhide stuck in her gum near that tooth or jammed into the tooth. The problem is, I couldn't tell what was tooth and what was rawhide so I surely wasn't going to start yanking on anything. So.............off to the vet. She drooled a quart in the car, kept clacking/gnawing her jaw during the whole trip. She was stressed to the nines by then.

The vet yanked out a nice size piece of rawhide and I paid a nice sum to do it. However, I left kind of shakey thinking thank God it wasn't caught in her throat, or in her intestines.

This novice's lesson is learned.

Oh boy, glad all is well. I can imagine how scary that might have been.

If you like to give rawhide, you might want to look into compressed rawhide.

Rawhide is terrible to give to dogs, yet they sell tons of it. Guess it keeps the vets busy..... Glad your dog is OK

We were told the same thing.. not to give Binn rawhide or pig ears.

I was going to buy a rawhide bone for Stella... guess I wont be doing that.

Im glad your dog didnt swallow it.

sorry for me being so stupid but besides what happened to your dog what else is bad about it.

Rawhide is not digestible, if a piece is swallowed it could become lodged in throat, stomach, intestines. The dog may be unable to pass it (which would result in a pretty pricey surgery). It's just not safe, nor smart.

Well my vet told me to never give her rawhide. The piece he pulled out of her gums could have easily lodged in her throat instead....or in her intestines. I for one think I learned my lesson in a lucky way. The rest of it is up to you.

Wow - SOO glad that shes alright now!!

That can be scarey.

Riots never had rawhide before - although I"m sure he'd love it.. its just healthy snacks for him now. He does have an obsessed with Bully Sticks.

Another down side to rawhide is that they become a wonderful breeding ground for bacteria...

We *have* rawhide in my store, but I never reccomend them, and usually steer people away from them. I'm just not comfortable selling them for reasons exactly like this

I'd rather sell them a bullystick

My dogs have had rawhide but I will avoid it big time now. I have let them have it but I won't anymore.

Um...is it true that bullysticks are...um...the part of the bull that the cow doesn't have...?

Yes Please Momof2, do that. I was lucky because it was just stuck in her mouth. My vet told me he has done some serious surgeries because of Rawhide bones.

Why don't pet stores post warnings about these things for idiots like me???

Yup. . .That's what I've always heard.

....Gulp...

I recently saw pictures of a rawhide removal surgery (from the intestine) and I can say I haven't let my dogs have rawhide since then. Just too scary. . .and then Tosca. . .

And maybe. . .to make money and sales?

I don't particularly like the thought of giving my dogs a penis to play with.

I don't know, must be the profits, you're right. All I know is I'm lucky.

I'm also thinking what a great dog she is, because I stuck my whole hand in her mouth, messed with her tongue, probed her teeth and she just let me do it...if I lost this girl I would be devastated.

Ughh I know I can't even think of that, I get this horrible chill and a shivery feeling.

Mine always loved them so and if they could just nibble it was fine .... but when it came to chunks .... away to the trash they went ! Just not worth the chance when you can get raw bones .