What type of raw bone to feed?

[Cali Mae]

So I want to start feeding Cali a raw type bone a few times a week to clean her teeth.. since her teeth are starting to look a little yellow around the top however my mom talked to the vet who said never feed a dog any type of chicken bone even if it's not cooked. Yet, on the raw feeding forum, people recommended chicken necks and chicken backs, even drumsticks. But of course, my mom is listening to the vet on this one although I've read that many vets don't support raw feeding to begin with so I'm wondering if that affected their thoughts on it. My mom was going to talk to Mo's groomer (who also does flyball classes, rally classes, etc and breeds JRTs) about it, so hopefully she'll be a bit more helpful.

And just as I was writing this, my mom had called Mo's vet and he was going on about the risk of salmonella and suggested a "dental diet"... so my last hope is the trainer. If not, I told my mom we'll just have to go pick up some bully sticks and try out antlers then look into a dental scaling soon. I think I've gone crazy with Cali's dental health.

 

[SaraB]

The digestive tract of a dog is much more equipped to handle bacteria such as salmonella than a human's. So the risk of salmonella is reserved solely for the humans in your household unless your dog has a suppressed immune system. My rule with feeding raw bones/meals/whatever is that they are fed in crates only. That way I can sanitize daily and don't run the risk of the dog dragging gross raw meat everywhere. I also wash bowls daily.

To help with tartar buildup on a small dog like her I would offer soft, small bones such as chicken necks, feet or wings. Feed these whole so that she has to chew them rather than just swallow. Always supervise to ensure that the dog is correctly chewing and not attempting to swallow pieces that are too big.

 

[Cali Mae]

Thanks! I was thinking that was the case, with the digestive tract but of course, "the vet knows what's best" as my mom unfortunately said.

That'd likely be the plan, or I'd at least designate a towel to it since she normally takes her food and sets it on a blanket to eat it. She'd definitely be supervised, although she isn't the type of dog to try swallowing things whole... she'll stuff about three pieces of kibble in her mouth and then run off to eat them one at a time.