At least 13 dogs have died after being fed the top-selling pet treat in the country, owners and veterinarians have told CNN.
The problem comes because the treats, called Greenies, become lodged in a dog’s esophagus or intestine and then some veterinarians say they don’t break down.
“I know they are marketed in saying that they do digest. Certainly the ones that we’ve taken out, esophageal or intestinal, that have been in for days are still very hard,” Brendan McKiernan, a board-certified veterinary internal medicine specialist from Denver, Colorado, told CNN.
Uh, I’ve known a lot of dogs who aren’t diligent about reading warning labels on treats.
In the picture it looks like it’s made of plastic……What is it really made of?
From having done dog rescue for awhile with a large group that finds homes for 200 or more dogs a year, most of the folks in the rescue group think the same thing can happen with raw-hide dog treats or probably any other nylon franken-treat crap, where large pieces can splinter or be gnawed off and swallowed by the dog. Unfortunately dogs can choke on any food just like people, so being around when the dog is eating anything isn’t a bad idea.
If the owner gives the dog one every time the dog wants to play and the owner just wants to be left alone, that’s likely to cause problems. Older dogs and puppies have more issues with these things than healthy adult dogs. Staying with the dog while they are chewing on whatever the treat, is not a very appealing idea but probably best.
I give my dogs chicken base “milk-bone” type treats and have had no problems with those.
Ballenger,
The difference here is that I have experienced one of my dogs getting very sick and, thankfully, throwing up a huge undigested ball of this crap three days after giving it to her. I thought it was weird when that happened, so I stopped giving them right then. She has no problem digesting other food. The issue with Greenies is the process that makes them so hard (which is what is needed for cleaning teeth in dogs) apparently makes them undigestable for certain dogs…
CNN had a good segment on the news last night about it.
I didn’t mean to imply that the plastic green things were OK. The only thing I would feed those to is my garbage disposal, which come to think of it, they would likely clog up or break also.
eek scary, wouldnt want to lose my dog to crappy treats…. but atleast he will have clean teeth….
I have a four yr old Lab / Schnauzer mix. He gets half table scraps and half kibble. When I have a good sized bone, he gets that too. Occasionally I will buy him milk bone treats, but only as a treat and only occasionally.
The whole business of pet food is to sell it to the owner. A dog doesn’t care what he is fed as long as you feed him. Any nutritionally balanced diet is fine. Buying the expensive brands are no better then buying the cheap stuff or using mostly scraps.
Dogs have been chewing bones for eons. Most carnivores do it. They eat the very nutritious marrow. To do that guess what, they crush the bone. Yet there are those in the pet supply industry that have convinced most people that crushing the bone is bad for the pet. Get a life people !!! It is propaganda. You just bought into their selling you some dog treat made from artificial crap or made from parts of the animals dogs don’t eat.
Wild dogs don’t eat the skin because they can’t digest it. They certainly don’t eat nylon, rubber, leather, or other phony treats.
wow, im gonna stop giving my dog this stuff. thanks
I used to give my dog nyla-bones when he was yonger, mainly for teeth cleaning. I did find, however, that real bones ended up keeping his teeth even cleaner due to the fact it takes him longer to wear it down.. No more fake bones for him. Putting something on or in the bone, like peanutbutter, will get them to chew on the bone if they are not interested at first.
I almost lost my 2 year old German Shepard to these things. After a night of moaning and vomiting she was rushed to the vet in pretty sad condition. After a day of IV fluids and intestional relaxers, the cute round end of the treat finally passed. It had been fed to her 3 days earlier – and was still hard as a rock. Luckily all I have to show for the experience is $1500 in vet bills, not a dead dog. Go to the local butcher shop and ask for bones. They’ll sell them cheap and cut them to size. Her teeth are just as clean.