Like any doting dog parent, you might be curious or concerned about what gives your pup an optimal, balanced, and healthy diet. I’m no veterinarian; so please do consult with yours before you decide to embark on the raw bone life. But I do research the sh*t out of anything I want to learn more about because I’m a professional educator and a total nerd. Especially when it comes to the health and wellbeing of the love of my life–my Brussels Griffon puppy. And apparently, raw bone is supposed to be part of a dog’s balanced diet.
I also don’t know about other Brussels Griffon owners out there, but my Griffy boy is a major chewer. He won’t chew my personal belongings (anymore), but he has been chewing on rawhide and bully sticks since his puppy quarantine days. My poor hands and arms used to be JACKED up from how much this dog loved chewing on my hands specifically. Full disclosure, he still likes to gently gnaw on my hands like a comfort object. He also retained one of his baby canine teeth which I affectionately call his “baby shark tooth”.
That being said, when I learned that raw bone is supposed to be part of a dog’s natural diet, I began to research this whole raw bone thing. And as it turns out, raw bone also helps a dog’s oral health. My sister has a dog which she ended up spending $3K on in order to repair serious dental damage when he was around 7 years old. I brush Nalu’s teeth on a daily basis (which I’m happy to blog about soon). But I also want him to get whatever nutrients a dog is supposed to have and to keep his chompers wolf-clean (if you have seen the documentary “The Beautiful Truth”, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about).
So I went to our favorite Hawaiian pet store, The Public Pet in Kaimuki, and asked about their raw bone options. After selecting an option (we went with raw beef marrow bones, which came in a pack of about five or so), I realized there was going to be some logistical planning around feeding my dog a raw cow’s bone.
Here is what I learned about feeding your Griffy (or any smaller breed pup) a raw bone. Because I’m trying to help, not harm my boy; and keep this experience as sanitary as possible.
Q: How old is your dog? Is this a safe treat for every dog? A: Nalu is over a year old now. I would not recommend you offer raw bone to a puppy; and always consult with your vet on whether raw bones are appropriate for your dog– based on your dog’s size and the fat content of the bone. Nalu is healthy as a horse and he’s like a cat with nine lives. He has eaten things a dog should never eat, and luckily for me, made it through without incident. But here’s where I was misled upon originally jumping into this raw bone adventure.
The type of raw bone is going to be heavily dictated based on how big or small your dog is. I didn’t know that smaller breeds such as terriers should be eating raw frozen chicken wings and frozen chicken feet. And it is these smaller, tip-of-the-bird bones that not only are they going to be able to digest safely, but which are going to help scrape and floss their chompers, and keep the fat profile minimal. Turns out the amount of marrow inside of a beef bone is so much fat that it could put a small dog at risk for pancreatitis.
Q: What were the noticeable benefits of offering. your dog the raw bone, and would you do it again? A: Most obvious is that his breath smelled better than it ever had since puppy breath, both the day of consumption and the day after. The raw bone is literally mother nature’s miraculous dog toothbrush. Secondly it kept him occupied for a very long time. Thirdly, he friggin’ loved this thing. So yes, I am now a raw and meaty dog mama.
Q: How much did your bones cost? A: $25 for a five pack… maybe 6? Could I get these cheaper directly from a butcher? Possibly. I’d have to look into it next time. But I’m a fan of Public Pet and something about the commercially-bought pre-frozen bones originally made me feel safer.
Now that I know better and realize a small dog has no business eating beef marrow bones, I would source organic chicken wing tips directly from a grocery store, and I would likely source the frozen chicken feet from a pet store. In addition to Public Pet, other pet stores I have since discovered I love are Calvin & Susie in Kaimuki, and anything from Lava Paws (from Big Island but has distributors in O’ahu).
Q: why did you choose the marrow bone cut for your Brussels Griffon? Because the options were rib, marrow, or knuckle. The knuckle was definitely way too big, and something instinctually told me rib wouldn’t keep him busy as long. With the marrow bone, they can enjoy licking all the marrow out of the bone. —- RECORD SCRATCH– this was a novice’s mistake. Please see above that this cut of beef is likely inappropriate for a small breed of dog.
Q: Had you ever fed your dog beef before? Yes, he had eaten Wholehearted small breed adult kibble in beef & pea flavor before I gave him this raw bone. I do not feed Nalu grains or cow’s dairy; and Wholehearted has some great and affordable grain-free kibble I stand behind.
Q: Where on earth am I going to feed this raw bone to my dog, especially if we don’t have a back yard (many of us here in Hawai’i live in apartments)? A: In their crate. Take the pillow/pad/ blanket out, and offer the raw bone inside their bare crate. If you really wanna get fancy, you can always line the crate with a plastic shelf liner.
The crate is where I also offer him peanut butter b/c I don’t want PB smeared all over my apartment. If your dog is not crate trained, I strongly recommend crate training, because boy does it come in handy. Youtube McCann’s Dogs crate training tips. I know Nalu likes to enjoy his non-messy chew sticks and treats on our (by which I mean me and him. It’s just the two of us, LOL) couch. He has a mat on the ottoman of my couch and often takes all his treats and chews them on the couch or in his crate. So there was no way I was going to let him drag that raw bone up on my furniture.
Q: How long can I let them chew on it? A: I would say on his first go he was probably in there for a solid 45 minutes. I did not let him consume the whole thing. I let him consume a smaller portion of it and then put it back in the fridge.
Trust me when I say Nalu was *obsessed* with gnawing on this thing and licking the marrow out. He literally turned primal and practically became a real live gremlin. According to the owner at Public Pet, you can then re-freeze the bone after every chew sesh; and you can let them enjoy just chewing on the bone itself once they get all the meat off and marrow out. When the bone eventually turns brownish grayish, it’s time to toss it and start a new one. Knowing what I know now, if I ever gave Nalu a marrow bone again, I might let the bone thaw and scrape most of the marrow out, then re-freeze it. But more than likely, I think we’re sticking to raw chicken feet and raw chicken wings.
Q: How did you handle the raw bone? A: with kitchen tongs. I did NOT and will never touch that thing with my bare hands. I never touch raw meat with my hands and always use tongs even if I’m cooking for myself. If I must hold meat, I’ll wear gloves.
Q: where did you put the bone ‘in rotation’ after the chew sesh? Did you throw it back in the bag with the rest of them? A: No, I put it in its own sandwich ziplock baggie; and put this back in the freezer. My instinct said not to put a chewed-on bone back with the unchewed fresh ones.
Q: How did you clean up after this experience? A: I put his house line on immediately so that he couldn’t run around the house and spread raw bone germs everywhere. For info on a ‘house line’, google “McCanns Dogs House Line”. Every dog owner needs one of these. It really comes in handy for various needs from clean up to grooming to safety.
Q: What did you clean first? The dog or the crate? A: The dog. First, I wiped his paws and face. You can use a disposable doggie wipe or wet a washcloth with water and a little bit of dog shampoo. We like Earth Rated wipes. Then, I let him drink water **from a separate bowl that was not his usual water bowl**. Because, again, we did not want to cross contaminate and get raw bone residue in his everyday water bowl. I used a little ceramic bowl that used to be his puppy food and water bowl from Target, and put some fresh filtered water in this. He drank probably two of them after chewing on the bone. Finally, I followed up by brushing his teeth. Why would you do that even though you said chewing the raw bone helps their teeth?? Because my dog loves to lick me. And no, I was not about to let him lick my skin after he had chewed on a raw bone without brushing his little Griffy gremlin teeth.
Q: what did you use to clean the crate afterward? Just an FYI for reference purposes, our crate is one of those metal ones with a plastic crate pan bottom. It is not a soft-sided crate. I cleaned the crate using hydrogen peroxide, and followed up with white vinegar.
*NEVER* use commercial sanitizing wipes, or Clorox bleach to clean your dog’s crate. Commercial sanitizing wipes chemicals are NOT safe for dogs to smell or ingest (they’re not even very safe for humans. They contain Quats. I’lll let you go down that rabbit hole yourself). Bleach as a cleaning agent specifically will also literally destroy your dog’s sense of smell and make him smell blind because it is such a harsh cleaning chemical for a dog’s sensitive nose. So again, never use it on your dog’s crate. If you ever must use bleach to clean in your home or clean your dog’s belongings, the dog should not be anywhere near you; and the bleach should be thoroughly rinsed away and aired out.
So in summary: here are the steps again…
- Choose the type of raw bone that is appropriate for your dog breed. The smaller the dog, the smaller the bone. Chicken feet and chicken wing tips are allegedly the safest for small breeds. Consult with your vet, as I am sharing from personal experience and I am not a dog healthcare professional.
- feed puppy the raw bone inside their crate.
- give them a bowl of fresh drinking water in a separate dish from their typical water bowl because boy will they be thirsty and you don’t want to cross-contaminate.
- use your house line to help you control the clean up process.
- When the dog is done, close the crate door, clean the dog first, wiping the face and paws; and then brushing their teeth. Then address the crate.
- clean out the crate using hydrogen peroxide and following up with white vinegar.
- re-freeze the bone after each chew session until the bone starts to turn grayish brownish. At this point it is no longer safe for your pup and you can start a new one.
To see photos of Nalu, follow us on instagram! @puppyandaparadise808 ◡̈ Mahalo for reading!
puppy & paradise 