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Raw marrow bones questions.

2K views 16 replies 12 participants last post by  Muddy Meadows puppy owner 
#1 ·
Hello! Pup is 16 weeks old:) I went to store and obtained 2 large marrow bones. Butcher trimmed most of meat and fat off of them. Do I now boil them? Do I remove the marrow? Do I freeze them? Should I be worried about bacteria? She likes her split deer antler but only for a few minutes. No guarding noted with the antlers. Any info would be great!
 
#2 ·
For a small puppy, I would scoop out most of the marrow and freeze the bone. Marrow is very rich and might cause some stomach issues to eat too much all at once. Once your puppy is older, the marrow will be easier to digest.

I like to freeze the bones just to make it last longer.

Make sure that these bones are several inches long, or longer. Dogs can get their mouths stuck in the shorter ring cuts that are sometimes available.
 
#3 ·
For a small puppy, I would scoop out most of the marrow and freeze the bone. Marrow is very rich and might cause some stomach issues to eat too much all at once. Once your puppy is older, the marrow will be easier to digest.

I like to freeze the bones just to make it last longer.

Make sure that these bones are several inches long, or longer. Dogs can get their mouths stuck in the shorter ring cuts that are sometimes available.
Thanks! So I do not have to boil first?
 
#8 ·
OK......So I gave her the marrow bone. She had played with hose and run around outside in backyard with us.
Gave her the bone to chew while I tried to dry her off because she fusses and bites the towels. As soon as she had that bone her whole body began to quiver and then she wanted to run away with the bone. When I tried to take it from her she would not release it for a good minute (I was holding the other end). This was right before her normal feeding time. I gave her something else to chew and she is still looking for that bone 30 minutes later.


Is this normal? No more marrow bones for her? Were the circumstances wrong to give it to her after exercise and before eating?
 
#9 ·
Congratulations, you found a super high value treat for your dog!!! Sounds like she did NOT want to give it up. Maybe a little bit because she was hungry, but probably a lot because she realllly liked it. Raw bones are awesome. This is a really good opportunity to practice her dropping it, and giving up something she values.

Piper did the same thing with bully sticks. She's never guarded anything in her life, but we got a bully stick one day, and she was SO excited to get at it she almost exploded. Then, I was trying to take a picture of her and got close to her face with my camera and she actually growled a little bit at me. She's never growled at anything in her life. Unfortunately for her, for the rest of the day, all we did was practice giving up the bully stick. And then I got more, and we practiced LOTS.

Now I'm always looking for something really high value again. More practice!
 
#11 ·
Great idea with the peanut butter. I'll have to try that. I buy bully rings occasionally but they are pricey, our local butcher always has the marrow bones and they are half the cost:). I've had digestive issues with them once or twice, I think it was my little guy. Mixing it with peanut butter will cut it nice.


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#14 ·
I personally don't try to take a food item from the pup after giving it to them....If they take it off the counter or other unauthorized theft then I either trade it for a biscuit or I remove it from the mouth.

I think your pup is totally normal. They grow out of it in time. The bone is extremely important (to the dog) and plays into centuries of survival instinct and hording skill. Some pups will have a possessive temperament that is stronger than others. Butters has learned to trade things he should not have, like a rotting peach from the yard. He brings it and I say trade....he drops in on the tile floor and I give him a biscuit. BTW I did not train him to put peaches in his mouth....he used to eat them but I don't think that is a good idea, so he now does not.

Sonja is 21+ weeks old and is sweet as can be unless she has something like a larger biscuit. She is currently a little protective of it while she eats and I understand that. She will grow out of it once she realizes she lives in the land of biscuits and they are not going to taken from her or fought over....

I don't think you should try to take given treats from the pup. The dog knows the instant you are going to try to take something from it, and it runs or goes into a safe place. You can teach the pup to trade it for a treat in time. Mine learned it pretty fast.
 
#15 ·
The OP did raise a good question that I seldom see discussed, though: are there concerns with letting a raw meat product get all over your house? If I gave Albus a raw bone to chew, I assume it would be at least mildly messy, get all over his paws while he's holding it, get all over the floor while he's chewing it, and get all over his face and mouth (which he'll then invariably use to slobber our faces with a lengthly session of "kisses" as is his new nightly custom before bed).

We're very anal about raw meat/bacteria and other types of food-handling concerns, not just for Albus' heath, but for our own. Do you just clean up really well afterwards? Avoid doggy kisses for a while? Keep him in a designated spot during the chew session?
 
#16 ·
Do you freeze the bone to kill bacteria and then give it to the dog thawed or give it to them frozen? Wouldn't that risk breaking a tooth. I really want to try this but my Vet advised against it because of catching something. Do you give the big thigh bone with marrow scooped out or is there a smaller bone more acceptable?
 
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