Dental chews for dogs are designed to help reduce the build up of plaque and tartar on your pets teeth. There are several products on the market including the very popular Greenies but these organic products can soon be consumed by any dog or puppy.
Nylabone products are made from a very durable nylon plastic, normally they come in a typical bone shape but these dental dinosaur chews take the shape of some recognizable prehistoric animals including the famous T-Rex, Stegosaurus and Brontosaurus.
Even though this is called a dental chew it is not really chewy, certainly not like a gummy bear anyway. It is made from tough plastic so if you dog, or especially a puppy, has fragile teeth then this is probably not the toy for them. Puppies should start with a teething ring instead and small animals under 25lb would probably be best suited to a flexible chew or edible bacon bone instead.
Are Nylabones Harmful to Dogs?
It should be noted that these chews are not intended to be eaten, they are only supposed to be used as a chewing aid for your dog. That’s not to say that some fanatical chewers aren’t going to be able to break off small parts of these toys and swallow them.
With concern to these dental sticks it’s more likely that the small bristles will be the first to be removed and because of their size they should pass through your dog without any issues but if you see your dog getting carried away and you think that they may break off larger parts of the toy then it would be best to remove the toy completely.
Although this product is said to be for powerful chewers some owners of large breeds such as German Shepherds and Labradors have reported that their dog soon managed to rip off the head and tail without too much effort.
The Good News
The benefits of using a nylabone chew over other dog chews such as bully sticks is that it has no smell, won’t stain your carpet and is better value for money. This toy is around 6 inches long and is intended to be large enough that your dog has to use its rear molars to bite down on it.
Our Final Conclusion
You can pick up these dog dental chews for just a few bucks over at Amazon.com, that’s about the price of a Bully Stick or Greenie but these chews are not made to be consumed and so should last much longer. Most dogs appear to like chewing on nylabone but it is very hard and can damage teeth on some dogs if they are too small or have weakened teeth, such as in old age.
For the price it’s worth giving one of these toys a try to see if your dog likes it, the fact that it helps to reduce tartar is nice and it helps trying to brush a dogs teeth but you should always monitor your dogs dental health to make sure that their teeth and gums are not being compromised and that they cannot break the chew into pieces.
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