I have relatives who are getting a organic cow butchered, is it ok (health wise for them to get my dog a fresh cow leg bone?
IANA-Vet but I’ve participated in the organic cow thing* with friends, and we asked for a few large bones for our Ridgeback… He was fine after spending the better part of a week on one of the knees. I think the main worry is bacteria. The butcher said the bones you buy at the store are sterilized. He obviously wouldn’t sterilize what he gave us, but because it was fresh I didn’t think much of it. And Griss loved it. He had no ill effects, then again, I’ve seen him bite into a Cholla Cactus before…
*we had to purchase an extra freezer for the half a cow we bought. with the benefit of hindsight that was a lot of red meat. Probably won’t be doing that again…Cholesterol, ya know.
It depends. Large bones given to the dog for a short period of time (say, an evening’s gnawing) is likely cool. Bones that hang around for days can become a bacterial concern. Small pieces of bone can be a problem. Some dogs get so excited that they swallow them. I’ve removed a few surgically. Cooked bones splinter more easily, and I have seen dogs swallow hundreds of little pieces of bone and become constipated/obstipated/obstructed as a result. Geometry can be a problem as well. If there is a way for the dog to become “stuck” to the bone, it will happen. I see dogs come in with a round steak bone stuck on the rostral mandible, just behind the canine teeth. I sedate the dog and cut the bone with a dremel.
I’m sorry, I probably shouldn’t be giggling at this, seeing as how it could be serious, but still. I think the statement “If there is a way for the dog to become “stuck” to the ___, it will happen” is true for any value of ____.
We get raw bones from the butcher for the dog and she’s shown no ill effects. Just make sure it’s not spine!
I’m curious why you think that posters with past military experience would be the best source of information regarding the question.
I ment veterinarians, not war time vets. Sorry :smack:
One thing I always hear as a warning from the raw food crowd is to avoid the heavy, weight bearing bones–the femurs and such. These are very dense and hard and will sometimes crack teeth on dogs who are voracious chewers, or wear them down over time (for dogs who get these bones on a regular basis).
There is no reason for you to apologize for me being a smart-ass.
Heh. My old dog Bear, rest his soul, managed to do this two or three times. The first time required a very expensive late-night emergency vet call. Fortunately, by the second or third time, he was well-enough trained that sedation wasn’t necessary, and we were able to take care of it ourselves.
Very true, indeed. I once saw a Great Dane who was stuck to a dog food can. The owners bf was dog sitting. He fed the dog, but left the empty can sitting on the counter. After the dog finished its meal, it tried to lick out the gravy from the inside of the can. The lid was incompletely removed from the can, and got pushed into the lumen of the can by the dog’s tongue. The guy tried to pull the can from the dog, wjhich lead to the can lid digging into the tongue and the dog crying (which sounded like a muted trumpet due to the can).
I was going to anesthetize the dog in order to remove the can, when the simple solution popped into my head. I stuck my finger into the can and pushed the lid further into the can, which then came free easily. 
I’ve done a bunch of those late night calls. You might be surprised at the people who have come in at 2 am on several different occasions to have bones removed. Kudos to you for learning from experience!
I don’t think it’s so much that I (or more accurately, Mom) learned from the experience, as that Bear did. It’s really not too hard to remove a bone, if the dog cooperates, but as I’m sure you know, it’s almost impossible if he doesn’t.
I would disagree here.
From growing up on a farm with a dog-breeding kennel (collies, springer spaniels), those were the bones we liked best. They are much less likely to split and create splinters that the dog will swallow and possibly create digestive-tract problems. Never heard of a dog chewing hard enough to break their teeth. When it hurts to bit that hard, our dogs stopped. Did you maybe have one of the dumber breeds of dogs, like the toy breeds?