# Age appropriateness for Raw Beef Bones



## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Hey everyone,

I have a local pet shop that is just great. They carry all the high end brand kibble and supplements etc as well as raw, uncooked bones! I saw that they have a bag of 6 raw beef bones for cheap. You can see the grissley fat/marrow n all! They are each about the size of my fist (so fairly thick/big) My question is, is something like this appropriate for my 5 month old female? Every now and then she'll get the runs from a bully stick but it's not that often to where her stomach is super super sensitive....How old is appropriate to start feeding raw beef bones with the fat and marrow and all! Also, I'm a tad hesitant about letting her eat the entire bone....seems a tad too large and fibrous. Thanks!


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## Princesspaola21 (Oct 30, 2012)

Luna-Blue said:


> Hey everyone,
> 
> I have a local pet shop that is just great. They carry all the high end brand kibble and supplements etc as well as raw, uncooked bones! I saw that they have a bag of 6 raw beef bones for cheap. You can see the grissley fat/marrow n all! They are each about the size of my fist (so fairly thick/big) My question is, is something like this appropriate for my 5 month old female? Every now and then she'll get the runs from a bully stick but it's not that often to where her stomach is super super sensitive....How old is appropriate to start feeding raw beef bones with the fat and marrow and all! Also, I'm a tad hesitant about letting her eat the entire bone....seems a tad too large and fibrous. Thanks!


That pic is cute as a button!! I feed my dogs raw deer legs for a treat all year round. I have several family members that hunt and they all give me their legs. My dogs love them and Ive never seen an issue from it. I've fed them cooked buffalo knuckles from my local pet store as well. They were huge pieces so I was nervous but they did fine with them. Albeit cooked and raw is totally different. Not much help I know lol but that's my experience! 

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Princesspaola21 said:


> That pic is cute as a button!! I feed my dogs raw deer legs for a treat all year round. I have several family members that hunt and they all give me their legs. My dogs love them and Ive never seen an issue from it. I've fed them cooked buffalo knuckles from my local pet store as well. They were huge pieces so I was nervous but they did fine with them. Albeit cooked and raw is totally different. Not much help I know lol but that's my experience!
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Thanks! As far as the cooked buffalo knuckles, I'm picturing that they are roughly the same size as the beef bones I'm talking about. They look like knuckles or the such. Given these will be raw and yours were cooked, how long did it take them to devour it? Did they chunk off and swallow the bone bit by bit, little piece by little piece? The guy at the store told me that I cant leave them out/down for more than 24hrs (bc of them being raw/bacteria) so that each time I give her one...she has 24 hours to eat or its getting thrown out. To me, that seems like an awful lot of bone to eat for a 5 month old in just 24 hours (1 or 2 sittings)


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## Princesspaola21 (Oct 30, 2012)

Luna-Blue said:


> Thanks! As far as the cooked buffalo knuckles, I'm picturing that they are roughly the same size as the beef bones I'm talking about. They look like knuckles or the such. Given these will be raw and yours were cooked, how long did it take them to devour it? Did they chunck off and swallow the bone bit by bit, little piece by little piece? The guy at the store told me that I cant leave them out/down for more than 24hrs (bc of them being raw/bacteria) so that each time I give her one...she has 24 hours to eat or its getting thrown out. To me, that seems like an awful lot of bone to eat for a 5 month old in just 24 hours (1 or 2 sittings)


Well here's an example. I gave my 9 month old male bully one because I knew we were gonna be gone all day and I thought it might occupy him so he wouldn't eat his bedding. Well maybe 4 or 5 hours went by and we stopped by the house for something and that bone was gone except for some crumbs. I think raw probably will take longer to eat though. Couldn't you freeze it and give it to her frozen and then when you think she's had enough wrap it and stick it back in the freezer for later? I know a lot of people on here feed raw so they will know better than I.

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Princesspaola21 said:


> Well here's an example. I gave my 9 month old male bully one because I knew we were gonna be gone all day and I thought it might occupy him so he wouldn't eat his bedding. Well maybe 4 or 5 hours went by and we stopped by the house for something and that bone was gone except for some crumbs. I think raw probably will take longer to eat though. Couldn't you freeze it and give it to her frozen and then when you think she's had enough wrap it and stick it back in the freezer for later? I know a lot of people on here feed raw so they will know better than I.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Thanks! He probably had a big ole' grin on his face too when you came back  The freezing idea sounds legit eh? Not sure if it's the same for human food though, in which case I don't think the freezing and thawing process is good to do more than the initial freeze and thaw.

Moderator: Possibly move this thread to the Nutrition section? No worries if not, it most likely gets more views here anyways :doggy:


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## Princesspaola21 (Oct 30, 2012)

Luna-Blue said:


> Thanks! He probably had a big ole' grin on his face too when you came back  The freezing idea sounds legit eh? Not sure if it's the same for human food though, in which case I don't think the freezing and thawing process is good to do more than the initial freeze and thaw.
> 
> Moderator: Possibly move this thread to the Nutrition section? No worries if not, it most likely gets more views here anyways :doggy:


Lol no I remember that day pretty clear. When I got home he was passed out asleep on his back with his legs flopped open. I took a pic of it lmao.

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Princesspaola21 said:


> Lol no I remember that day pretty clear. When I got home he was passed out asleep on his back with his legs flopped open. I took a pic of it lmao.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Lol. Loungin' like a BOSS  haha


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

No one has any input? :doggy:

I figure since the Raw Beef Bones are quite fatty (visible fat on the bone) and have quite a bit of marrow in them that maybe I should save them until she gets a tad older (8+ months) :snow: I'm sure she'd LOVE them ya...but I don't want her getting diarrhea every time she eats one


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## Gucci (Feb 5, 2013)

I feed my dog a raw diet and everything I have read has advised me not to feed my dog beef with bone in. The beef bones are used for carrying a lot of weight and are usually to hard or strong for dogs to chew on it may break or crack their teeth.

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Gucci said:


> I feed my dog a raw diet and everything I have read has advised me not to feed my dog beef with bone in. The beef bones are used for carrying a lot of weight and are usually to hard or strong for dogs to chew on it may break or crack their teeth.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Thank you! Wow I remember reading that somewhere too! I wonder why they sell them then? I was wondering how in the hell my baby Luna was going to knaw through those bad boys  :snow:

So what raw bones would be acceptable for her at 5months old? Just as an occasional treat (like her bully sticks she loves so much upruns


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## BullyGal (Jun 25, 2012)

Gucci said:


> I feed my dog a raw diet and everything I have read has advised me not to feed my dog beef with bone in. The beef bones are used for carrying a lot of weight and are usually to hard or strong for dogs to chew on it may break or crack their teeth.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


:goodpost:

Beef ribs are okay though


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## Gucci (Feb 5, 2013)

So far I am only on the 3rd protein I feed chicken necks, backs, and hindquarters all three have bones. I fed turkey necks as well which have a lot more meat on them. I just started feeding pork necks and my dog doesn't ingest the bone maybe a little bit. So far the pork necks are the best that I've seen considering actual meal or jaw workout. She takes about 20 mins on them and after she is done I put it back in the fridge and give it to her later to detail clean!  hopefully this helps. I don't know why the store sells them but the grocery store I work at sells marrow bones for dogs and I know they don't really care about the dogs teeth when they are making 98cents a # on a bone.

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Gucci said:


> So far I am only on the 3rd protein I feed chicken necks, backs, and hindquarters all three have bones. I fed turkey necks as well which have a lot more meat on them. I just started feeding pork necks and my dog doesn't ingest the bone maybe a little bit. So far the pork necks are the best that I've seen considering actual meal or jaw workout. She takes about 20 mins on them and after she is done I put it back in the fridge and give it to her later to detail clean!  hopefully this helps. I don't know why the store sells them but the grocery store I work at sells marrow bones for dogs and I know they don't really care about the dogs teeth when they are making 98cents a # on a bone.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Thanks that does help:cheers: As I will not be feeding RAW (not for a while) what would be the best type/cut/bone for just a treat type thing? Something that won't upset her stomach (as she won't be used to raw whatsoever)


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## Princesspaola21 (Oct 30, 2012)

Luna-Blue said:


> Thanks that does help:cheers: As I will not be feeding RAW (not for a while) what would be the best type/cut/bone for just a treat type thing? Something that won't upset her stomach (as she won't be used to raw whatsoever)


I'm telling ya my dogs LOVE deer legs!

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Princesspaola21 said:


> I'm telling ya my dogs LOVE deer legs!
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Darn I wish I would have known this earlier as my buddy tagged a GI-NORMOUS 12 point elk a few months ago...I'll ask him if he has anything left!

Princess you feed raw though correct? If not, do the deer legs bother their tummy's at all? I'm just hesitant as her body will have never experienced something like this before.


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## Princesspaola21 (Oct 30, 2012)

Luna-Blue said:


> Darn I wish I would have known this earlier as my buddy tagged a GI-NORMOUS 12 point elk a few months ago...I'll ask him if he has anything left!
> 
> Princess you feed raw though correct? If not, do the deer legs bother their tummy's at all?


No I don't feed raw. I have 13 dogs. I think raw would be rough lol. It doesn't seem to upset their stomachs at all.

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## Gucci (Feb 5, 2013)

Luna-Blue said:


> Thanks that does help:cheers: As I will not be feeding RAW (not for a while) what would be the best type/cut/bone for just a treat type thing? Something that won't upset her stomach (as she won't be used to raw whatsoever)


I don't know where you live but so far I think pork necks are the way to go. I think I got around 40#s of pork necks for like $16 you can't beat that. Just make sure the pork necks are bigger than your dogs head than you should be okay. I was gonna feed her deer legs but when I processed my last deer I took a hammer to one of the legs to see how the bone broke down and nothing but sharpe shards of bone. Now her dogs may do fine I am only justifying why I haven't fed my dogs deer legs.

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Gucci said:


> I don't know where you live but so far I think pork necks are the way to go. I think I got around 40#s of pork necks for like $16 you can't beat that. Just make sure the pork necks are bigger than your dogs head than you should be okay. I was gonna feed her deer legs but when I processed my last deer I took a hammer to one of the legs to see how the bone broke down and nothing but sharpe shards of bone. Now her dogs may do fine I am only justifying why I haven't fed my dogs deer legs.
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


I live in Scottsdale Arizona. We get everything out here : ) As a treat every now and then...she can eat the entire pork neck bone and all right? Luna's head is HUGE lol...not sure I'm gonna be able to find a pork neck that big  Just to verify, when she eats it (I will keep an eye on her) she should not be swallowing the entire bone/big pieces correct? She should be knawing it down into small pieces before swallowing right?


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## Gucci (Feb 5, 2013)

Here is a picture of my girl and the pork necks I get here in IA. She eats turkey and chicken bones but not the pork bones which I honestly don't know if they can eat the bones but I know they are safe to gnaw on which is what she does. She cleans the meat in between the necks which is okay. Since it it raw you might wanna make this treat like a once a week type deal I really don't know honestly because all my girl eats is raw. But if anything it might cause a loose stool but if you give your dog one once in a while she will slowly get used to it. If you want your dog to eat the bone then I would definitely look towards turkey necks, to me they are about the perfect snack because they have more meat on them.




















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## Gucci (Feb 5, 2013)

I posted the picture so you can see the size in pork necks to her head much bigger. Even though they are wrapped in freezer paper I just took that picture so you could get a general ideal when you go to get some necks or what ever.

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## downlikedisco (Mar 19, 2013)

Just fyi - at my clinic we recently got a warning about the bully sticks!! A large percentage of them contain active e.coli because they are not cooked just dried!! Please everyone be careful when feeding any raw treats. It can have devastating consequences when not handled properly

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## Princesspaola21 (Oct 30, 2012)

For the record I haven't ever had any problems with the deer legs. I know lots of people that feed them.

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

downlikedisco said:


> Just fyi - at my clinic we recently got a warning about the bully sticks!! A large percentage of them contain active e.coli because they are not cooked just dried!! Please everyone be careful when feeding any raw treats. It can have devastating consequences when not handled properly
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Thanks! Makes sense. I think that's why I only buy the USA ones from Merrick (hoping that matters) They claim to smoke them and that's all.

Sounds like turkey necks is the way to go huh? She can gobble bone and all? :doggy:

Luna...TV Junkie


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## downlikedisco (Mar 19, 2013)

Luna-Blue said:


> Thanks! Makes sense. I think that's why I only buy the USA ones from Merrick (hoping that matters) They claim to smoke them and that's all.
> 
> Sounds like turkey necks is the way to go huh? She can gobble bone and all? :doggy:
> 
> Luna...TV Junkie


Oh yea thats probably a good thing. I think they were mainly talking about the China ones which if course make up a lot of the inventory ;-)

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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

downlikedisco said:


> Oh yea thats probably a good thing. I think they were mainly talking about the China ones which if course make up a lot of the inventory ;-)
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


:reindeer: A lot from Paraguay too. The way I rationalize it is that there are plenty of Bulls in Southern America and America. China...? Ya not so much :hammer: More like cat pizzle


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

So does anyone have any recommendations or personal experience with feeding a RAW treat/bone every now and then? I'm looking for something that hopefully would not cause stomach distress (as she does not eat raw food what so ever currently) and I'd like to get her something that's safe and nutritious! What is everyone feeding as treats or RAW bones/meat etc???


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Alright so here's what my local guy has...

1) Beef Marrow Bones (6 small pieces)
They have TONS of marrow and quite a bit of visceral fat on them. *Are these ok to feed as a 24hr chew toy and snack?* The guy said she will most likely clean out the marrow first, then clean the bone if it's fat, then knaw down the bone into small piece in which to eat. He said since the bone is raw, it will be softer and chewable without damaging her teeth. He also advised that if she has not eaten most of the bone fragments within 24hrs to simply throw out the remaining bone. Sound about right? 


2) Turkey necks (no bone obviously)
Are these ok to feed maybe 2x a week SOLELY as a treat? (Not as feed, she's staying on kibble for the time being)


3) Chicken necks
Same as Turkey necks? Just not as much meat?

What I'm concerned about most is stomach distress/diarrhea when awarded these treats  (seeing as she is on 100% grain-free kibble and treats.) I just wanted to throw some RAW variety in there solely as special occasion snacks. DO you think I'll be ok feeding about 2-3 necks and 1 beef marrow bone a week in addition to her kibble?  The last thing I need is her having irregular bowels and/or diarrhea in her kennel (as she is kenneled 8+ hours a day during the week)


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Any help? This question is the most important to me.
*
"What I'm concerned about most is stomach distress/diarrhea when awarded these treats (seeing as she is on 100% grain-free kibble and treats and has NEVER has a RAW item.) I just wanted to throw some RAW variety in there solely as special occasion snacks. Is this even worth it? Do you think I'll be ok feeding about 2-3 necks and 1 beef marrow bone a week in addition to her kibble? The last thing I need is her having irregular bowels and/or diarrhea in her kennel (as she is kenneled 8+ hours a day during the week)"*


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## EckoMac (Aug 25, 2010)

Raw a min of 12 hours after kibble. Not in the same meal.
Poop monitoring is a forced hobby for raw feeders. If it's soft, more bone, hard, less bone.
Probiotics and/or canned pumpkin could help too, if things get soft.


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

EckoMac said:


> Raw a min of 12 hours after kibble. Not in the same meal.
> Poop monitoring is a forced hobby for raw feeders. If it's soft, more bone, hard, less bone.
> Probiotics and/or canned pumpkin could help too, if things get soft.


Thanks. I've used canned pumpkin before and it's the bee's knee's. I think for now I'll hold off on the turkey necks as that's basically 100% raw. I think I'll just get the beef marrow bones and throw one down and hope for the best :doggy:


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

So for a kibble-fed dog...given I space it out many hours from her last meal...as a recreational bone/treat, are those Primal marrow bones I posted a pic of above a good choice?! Can I also give her at times raw baby back or regular raw beef ribs bone and all? I figured I could by a slab and simply cut the rib bones and use them as recreational treats! She can eat the bone and all correct?

Also, with the beef marrow bones, I will definitely monitor her progress with them (don't want a broken tooth etc..) but after one sitting can I re-freeze them if the some marrow and fat/meat is still on them? Thanks!


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

K let's try this. A, B or C....and why? For a recreational treat/chew toy

A) Beef Marrow Bones


B) Buffalo Bone


C) Lamb Bones


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

:snow::rain:up:

My emotions....in order of how they are coming to me :hammer:


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## EckoMac (Aug 25, 2010)

All are good rec bones. They should all be monitored while gnawing on them. Waiting between kibble and rec bones aren't such a big deal since there's not a whole lot actually being eaten.


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Luna-Blue said:


> Alright so here's what my local guy has...
> 
> 1) Beef Marrow Bones (6 small pieces)
> They have TONS of marrow and quite a bit of visceral fat on them. *Are these ok to feed as a 24hr chew toy and snack?* The guy said she will most likely clean out the marrow first, then clean the bone if it's fat, then knaw down the bone into small piece in which to eat. He said since the bone is raw, it will be softer and chewable without damaging her teeth. He also advised that if she has not eaten most of the bone fragments within 24hrs to simply throw out the remaining bone. Sound about right?
> ...


I feed both of those several times a month without issue (not that brand, but the same bones). My dogs usually always have marrow bones. I give knuckle bones as well, but they dogs actually eat more of that bone which makes for harder white powder poos. Not even my big dogs eat the marrow bones all the way, just eat the marrow from inside, and then chew on the bones. When the bone starts to really dry out I replace them with new bones. I give them just so they have something to do when crated and tether other than just lay there (the bones not the necks).


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## KMdogs (Apr 22, 2011)

None, find a hunter or go to a butcher shop... Quality far better and know what your getting..


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

EckoMac said:


> All are good rec bones. They should all be monitored while gnawing on them. Waiting between kibble and rec bones aren't such a big deal since there's not a whole lot actually being eaten.


Thank you!



American_Pit13 said:


> I feed both of those several times a month without issue. My dogs usually always have marrow bones. I give knuckle bones as well, but they dogs actually eat more of that bone which makes for harder white powder poos. Not even my big dogs eat the marrow bones all the way, just eat the marrow from inside, and then chew on the bones. When the bone starts to really dry out I replace them with new bones.


Great I think we'll start out with the beef marrow bones then as they seem to serve as a time-consuming knaw toy after she's demolished the marrow


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

KMdogs said:


> None, find a hunter or go to a butcher shop... Quality far better and know what your getting..


I agree that fresh would be of better quality bar-none but are these Primal's really questionable? They're vacuum packed and erre-thing!


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Ok I was at my local grocery and saw these beef soup bones....I assume they are beef ribs as that's what they look like. Are these ok to cut into single ribs and give bone and all? She can knaw on and eat the bone and all correct? I'm freezing them now. Should I give them to her frozen or thaw them a bit before serving? Thanks!


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## EckoMac (Aug 25, 2010)

There's more meat on those then the ones you showed before. These I would call food, not rec bones.
You should be able to give the whole thing and allow your dog to eat them. I wouldn't feed frozen for these as your dog is not accustomed to raw yet, and beef ribs tend to be a little harder then pork. Beef also is not necessarily the best meat to start with either. It's a lot richer then poultry and pork.


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## KMdogs (Apr 22, 2011)

Get some knuckles if you want something to chew on with a little meat on the bone, go to a butcher shop or ask around butcher shops (not grocery stores) for pricing or if they deal with much bone.. If they do you can usually get a 20 - 25 box for about $10 which will probably go bad before you can even use them all on one dog.. OR find a hunter.


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

Thanks! So it sounds like these soup bones are not ideal. Too much meat and bone too hard for a kibble fed dog  KM unfortunately, and it's super odd, Arizona does not have a lot of butcher shops  like back east (I grew up in Chicago/Iowa)

I'll try and find some knuckles! In the meantime, are all those options I posted above from Primal ok to give? (Beef Marrow/Buffalo and Lamb bones) Which would you start her out on and why?

Btw, speaking of hunters, my buddy just tagged this bad boy last season. Maybe I should ask him if he has any venison left! What cut/bone of the elk should I ask him for? What bone would be ideal for a recreational chew bone?


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

I use these, but they are usually cut in half.


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

American_Pit13 said:


> I use these, but they are usually cut in half.


Thanks. What are those?


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Soup bones I think is what they are called... I use knuckle bones as well but these last longer.
When I do necks I add them to their meal.


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

American_Pit13 said:


> Soup bones I think is what they are called... I use knuckle bones as well but these last longer.


Ah I see. I assume that butchers/groceries label them as soup bones as they could be anything eh? Looks like large beef marrow bones?! I'll look into the knuckles as you suggested.


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

Oh yeah they are beef marrow bones lol. I thought you meant like what are they called.


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## Luna-Blue (Mar 21, 2013)

American_Pit13 said:


> Oh yeah they are beef marrow bones lol. I thought you meant like what are they called.


Haha damn soup bones! :roll:


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