A bone a day, keeps the vet away!
Dogs are known to be man’s best friend, but have you met their best friend? Enter bone. Bones are known to be a dog’s favorite food. But why do dogs like bones so much when they have such a variety of foods to choose from? Let’s find out.
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The Scientific Reason Behind Why Dogs Love Bones
The only reason why dogs like bones is not because of their delicious taste. There is actual scientific reasoning behind it. Scientifically, it has been proven that dogs have a big appetite that does not always satisfy the food we give them. Bones are high in minerals and nutrients that help satisfy a dog’s appetite.
Further research has revealed that dogs are directly descended from wolves. Wolves are canines that live in packs and hunt. Their ancient ancestors were ‘hypercarnivores,’ and their diet consisted of at least 70 percent meat.
As evolution occurred, these animals developed strong jaws and teeth to eat large prey to sustain themselves. Since they could eat every part of the prey, including the bones, they did so. These strong teeth and jaws got passed down to modern dogs. So even today, dogs prefer to eat bones.
Furthermore, bones are actually good for dogs, so incorporating a bone in their diet is beneficial.
Why do dogs like to chew bones and other stuff?
Your dog’s favorite activity is most probably chewing on things. Be it your couch, socks, or a chew toy – nothing is off-limits for them. The real reason dogs like to chew things is:
Boredom
Boredom is the main culprit when it comes to your dog chewing on unwanted items. Imagine the situation: You leave home in the morning, and your poor little pup is left alone for hours. He has no option but to entertain himself, and he does so by chewing on anything and everything he can find.
Obviously, your dog’s situation of being left alone at home is unavoidable, but here are some things you can do so you do not have to come home to semi-chewed furniture.
- Place chew toys around your house, but don’t put them all in the easiest location. Hide some in unexpected locations so that when your dog finds them, it will be like a surprise for them.
- Another interesting thing is a snack dispenser, which you can install to deposit snacks periodically, so your dog does not have to stay famished until you get home.
Teething
Puppies are just like human babies. When they are teething, they need to chew on something to relieve the pain, and anything around them goes into their mouth. Everything around them is a new texture for them to explore.
To keep your pup happy, make sure you buy a host of age-appropriate chew toys and don’t keep the little one unsupervised for too long!
Separation Anxiety
A slightly more serious reason why your dog might be chewing things around the house is Separation Anxiety. Just like humans, dogs do not like being lonely.
If you spend too much time away from your dog, he might develop separation anxiety, which will manifest into destructive behavior. This can include chewing and destroying your things and/or refusing to eat and drink. Anxious dogs can even bark nonstop and drool excessively. To solve this issue, you will need to consult your vet.
Reasons Why You Should Give Your Dog a Bone
Bones are a good source of minerals and nutrients, and bones help satisfy your dog’s appetite. Here are five reasons you should definitely be throwing your dog a bone.
Bones help with dental health
Your dog’s pearly whites are just as precious as any human’s. If not cared for properly, it can lead to excess tartar build-up, which causes bad breath, cavities, and gingivitis. This can lead to expensive appointments at the vet. Brushing your dog’s teeth is an option, but most dogs will not sit still long enough for you to get in there properly.
Giving your dog a raw bone is a great alternative to keep your dog’s teeth healthy. When a dog chews a bone, it causes saliva enzyme stimulation when given after the dog has eaten. This helps to remove food particles that are trapped in your dog’s teeth.
Bones are good for your dog’s overall health
Bones are packed with minerals and nutrients that help your dog’s overall health. Bones are high in calcium phosphate, a mineral that aids a dog’s skeletal system growth and helps it regenerate and adapt. Bones are also a good source of calcium for your dog. In fact, calcium from raw bones will be easier for your dog to digest than calcium supplements. Raw bones are essential for large breed puppies as these pups grow quickly and need the extra calcium boost!
Stop unwanted chewing
If your dog exhibits unwanted chewing habits, a good way to get him to stop is to give him a raw bone to chew on instead. This way, your furniture stays safe, and your dog is happy too.
Helps with stomach and gut health
Giving your dog a bone will help to keep tummy problems away. It is good for your dog’s digestive tract and helps clean out the system. It also provides roughage, which keeps your dog healthy.
Natural Instinct
As we read earlier, chewing on a bone is an instinct for every dog. So instead of avoiding this instinct, we should nurture it. Giving your dog a raw bone is a great way to nurture this instinct. It has nutrients that are good for your dog, which are not present in synthetic bones, and it helps strengthen your dog’s jaw.
Why You Should Avoid Cooked Bones for Dogs
Feeding your dog a bone is great, but you have to make sure it is the right kind of bone. It is essential to understand that cooked bones are very harmful to your dog. The reason behind this is that cooked bones can cause an obstruction in your dog’s throat or can even lead to intestinal perforation.
When bones are cooked, they break. This forms splinter-like ends which damage the inside of your dog’s intestine. Also, during the cooking process, the bones lose all the nutrients. Thus it essentially becomes useless feeding your dog a cooked bone. A better alternative is feeding your dog bone broth, which is extremely delicious and nutritious for them.
Giving your dog a cooked bone can lead to:
- Broken teeth
- Constipation and bloody stools.
- Perforation of the gums, esophagus, tongue, stomach, rectum, and intestines.
- Tears
- Obstruction in the trachea will cause obstructions in breathing and coughing.
What kind of Bones are Safe for Dogs?
Some bones are not safe for your dog, but bones are good for your dog. Here is a list of bones that are definitely safe for your pup o chomp on:
- Chicken neck
- Turkey neck
- Lamb’s neck
- Chicken carcass
- Chicken wings (chopped)
- Drumstick
- Cow knee
- Ox knee
- The cartilage of the chicken breast
- Hambone
- Bison’s femur
- Whole veal ribs
- Calf elbow
One important thing to remember while feeding your dog a bone is to ensure that there is some meat on the bone and you are not giving your dog a totally bare bone. Also, it is extremely important to supervise your dog while he is eating the bone. Supervision is important so that you can react quickly if your dog chokes or develops a mouth sore.
The Proper Way to Feed a Bone to your Dog
Bones are packed with minerals and nutrients that are very good for your dog, so periodically, it is good to feed your dog bone. Most vets agree that twice a week is a good enough frequency to feed your dog a bone. Here’s how you can feed your dog a bone:
- Giving him a large bone to chew on
This serves two purposes; it will satiate your dog’s appetite, and it also acts as a recreational activity. If you are going for a large bone, choose the hip or femur from a large animal like a bison or a cow, as these bones are filled with marrow.
- Grinding the bone
Bones can also be ground and added to your dog’s food. For grinding purposes, choose soft bones like the neck bone or wings of poultry. Crush them in a meat grinder and add them to your dog’s food.
Conclusion
Why do dogs like bones so much? A question with a logical and scientific answer behind it, but that’s not all. Feeding your dog a bone actually helps your dog grow and keeps his gut healthy. If fed correctly, it can enhance the overall well-being of your dog.
So next time, don’t think twice before throwing your dog a bone!
