# Need some advice on chew sticks..



## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

I've been meaning to come on and introduce myself officially but unfortunately (as most of you know) with a new puppy there's not a lot of free time! Intro coming later.... but in the meantime, my little guy(Leo) is not easily distracted. He wants to be with us all the time and seems to prefer nothing more than spending time with us. I'm looking for advice on chew sticks that might keep him busy for a little. I've been on the forum for the while and have pretty much tried most of the suggestions mentioned:

Himalayan chews - he doesn't like them (despite the fact it seems most Havs LOVE them)

Nylabone dura chews - flavored and unflavored - he had zero interest.

Stuffed Kong - work fine for the most part.. but I'd l

Antlerz - i bought 3 of them, he only likes 1 and basically ignors the other 2.

The only things that seem to keep him busy that he goes NUTS for are bully sticks but I only want to give those to him once in a blue moon. 

Anyone else has have a picky Hav? What works for your Hav? Help!
I'm throwing in a picture for good measure. Once you see that adorable face you'll most definitely want to help. Lol!

Corinne


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## Anna6 (Oct 21, 2012)

Nina only like Duck jerky. She is now also interested in chewing on a cow ear. It took several days until she figured out how to chew it and now she loves it. I hope it will deter her from chewing on us and the furniture.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

hmmm.. haven't tried cow ear.. I need to look into that.. thanks.


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## sandypaws (Aug 8, 2012)

Welcome to you and your adorable little Leo. I don't have any words of wisdom for you, but I'm sure you'll eventually find something he likes.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Thank you!


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## Beau's mom (Oct 6, 2011)

As gross as they are . . . pig ears (I can't touch the ones with hair still on them), cow ears and bully sticks are about it to hold Beau's interest for more than 30 seconds.


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## Anna6 (Oct 21, 2012)

Actually the pig ears looked more appetizing but they were brown and I was concerned it would add to staining on Nian's beard. But yes they looked good. LOL Thankfully the ones I saw had no hair on them any more.


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## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

Have you tried Hoofies (hooves?). Sometimes they come stuffed, but I get the empty ones. They smell SO BAD, but I guess that's why Timmy liked (liked) them. He's not really into chewing stuff so much these days.


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## sprorchid (Mar 30, 2010)

+1 on the hooves. smoked ones don't smell as bad. all the other chews, rawhide, bullstick (bull's penis btw), give all my dogs the runs. not the hoof though. about $1 a hoof, if you buy in bulk it's 50 cents.

that's all I give them now, hooves.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Wow... you guys just reminded me that I bought a hoof for him when he first got here. He seemed afraid of it so i removed it. I just dug it up and gave it to him and so far success! He just rubbed his body all over it and is happily chewing on it! Thanks for the suggestions!

I'm definitely going to look into pig ears and cow ears. I hadn't even considered those! Do you guys just pick them up at your local pet store or is there a certain website you purchase them from?


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## sprorchid (Mar 30, 2010)

You might want to set a time limit on the hoof time, as it's bigger than what he can consume in a sitting. 

My dogs LOVE pig ears, but they all get the runs from it. if you want to cut a pig ear up, use garden shears, works great.


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## Anna6 (Oct 21, 2012)

I picked it up at the pet store. They had a whole display, hooves, ears etc.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Will do. Thanks.


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## emichel (May 3, 2012)

Hi Queryne. You are right, that is one cute little face, and I can certainly understand why you want to please him. I think one challenge of having a cute little Havanese is to not fall into spoiling them. They are so dang cute you just want to give them treats all day long. My little boy, age 7 months, loves bully sticks and pig ears the best. How come you don't want to give him too many bully sticks? Just wondering. They seem harmless enough, and he usually gets a few of those a week, plus a pigs ear. I'm sure you'll figure it out. 
--Eileen


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## cap (Jun 21, 2012)

Our Isabelle loves everything so I really can't help with the picky part. I do give her lamb ears. They are white, softer and smaller than the pig ears. I also give her a 5 inch porkhide twist stick. I buy in bulk online from bullysticks.com. 50 lamb ears for $54 and 50 twist sticks for $11. I'm sure there are other sites that offer the same for similar prices. Good luck finding something that works for you.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Thanks for chiming in Cap and Eileen. 

Eileen to answer your question iv'e heard from lots of folks that bully sticks can be upsetting to their stomaches. I wish i could give it to him more i'd like to be careful. I wish he had more interest in something flavored and non-edible like Nylabone but of course that's not the case. 

I am going to see how the hoof treats him. Stay tuned...


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## dodrop82 (May 21, 2010)

OMG! Lovin' me some Leo!!!! He's absolutely gorgeous!!! I got just the thing for you! Moose antler!!! Check out Acadia Antler....they have nice size samplers called "tasters" perhaps? They cost $5.00 Each. My girls don't like deer antlers, but adore the moose antler! And they last quite awhile!


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## dodrop82 (May 21, 2010)

Moose taster slice is what the samplers are called!


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Hahaha LOVE your response!! Thank you so much!! I have some antlers for him but I think they are all deer. What's weird ishe only seems to like one of them. 


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

I'm definitely going to check out the moose antlers! Haven't even seen those before. Thanks!! Will let you know how it goes!!


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Btw, more pics of Leo coming! He's like my little an Oreo Ewok!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

We welcome more pictures

My guys won't touch the hooves, pig ears, or antlers. They love the Merrick corporal knee caps! I buy them by the box. They also love the Merrick glossies, but those have gotten too expensive!


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## NvonS (Jul 8, 2010)

I make marrow bones for Lily. Choose ones that are thick so they don't splinter. I bake them at 200 for 1 hour, let them cool then remove the marrow. Store them in the freezer. Lily will chew on them for an hour. She gets one if we go out for dinner as a special treat for being left behind. She will pull one out of her toy box every once in a while. She also LOVES bully sticks. I get them at the holistic dog store in my town.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

Be careful of anything that might splinter. Mine loved bully sticks, pig ears and now because I haven't bought them anything new for awhile finally like the nila bones they had when they were little . It took them two years so don't throw any thing away! Maddie was never very interested in the bones in tell her sister came.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Linda: wow those knee caps look great. He'd probably LOVE those but I'd want to try one to see how it goes before i commit to a large box.. Kind of pricey! I'll look into that.

NvonS: LOVE THIS IDEA.. a good thick bone that won't splinter.. I think he'd really get into. I will try this and see how it goes. Do you get these at a butcher or just at the grocery store?

Suzi: he won't be getting anything like bully sticks and pig ears without supervision, no worries there. Man i HOPE he starts to like the Nyla bones because I have about 6 of them which he refuses to touch! I'm going to hold on to them in the hopes he changes his mind.. Good advice..


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## DeeDee (Sep 4, 2011)

Always looking for something new so I ordered the moose taster slice but only one to see if either dog liked it. The slice was a hit with both so just placed another order. They're $5 each but include S/H. I think they'd make great stocking stuffers!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

dodrop82 said:


> OMG! Lovin' me some Leo!!!! He's absolutely gorgeous!!! I got just the thing for you! Moose antler!!! Check out Acadia Antler....they have nice size samplers called "tasters" perhaps? They cost $5.00 Each. My girls don't like deer antlers, but adore the moose antler! And they last quite awhile!


Kodi agrees. He has little use for deer antlers, but LOVES his moose antlers... especially the squarish blades.


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## Dory (Jan 4, 2012)

Quincy really likes the bully sticks, but man they give him stinky breath (and whiskers). He's not a big fan of the deer antler, but will chew it every once in a while. I might have to investigate some other options. The most recent Himalayan chews that I got him seem to be wider than the others and he can't chew them as well. I got the same size as before, but they're thicker.


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## marlowe'sgirl (Jun 17, 2010)

Dory said:


> Quincy really likes the bully sticks, but man they give him stinky breath (and whiskers). He's not a big fan of the deer antler, but will chew it every once in a while. I might have to investigate some other options. The most recent Himalayan chews that I got him seem to be wider than the others and he can't chew them as well. I got the same size as before, but they're thicker.


bestbullysticks.com - there you can find low odor bully sticks, makes such a difference and Marlowe loves it *almost* as much as the stinky bully sticks.


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## Dory (Jan 4, 2012)

marlowe'sgirl said:


> bestbullysticks.com - there you can find low odor bully sticks, makes such a difference and Marlowe loves it *almost* as much as the stinky bully sticks.


Yeah, we have to low odor and they still stink LOL


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Update: all of a sudden he's fallen in love with Himalayan Chews!! Go figure.. I'm pretty happy about it! Still no luck on the Nylabones but no complaints here.. He seems to like elk antlers... Interested to see how he feels about the moose variety!


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## Buzzys Mom (Sep 28, 2010)

My little guy has no interest in his nylabones either. I will pick them up for a month or so and try again later.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Are you kidding? Now that I've learned that I can reintroduce some things I feel like I'm on to something. He literally seemed repulsed by the Himalayan chews at first! Haha!


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## Sparkle (May 17, 2012)

Kallie didn't like her Nylabones or Kongs either when she was little. She did like her hollow sterilized bone that I'd stuff w/peanut butter on each end. Then she started liking the deer antlers. Chewed one down til it was so small I had to take it away from her. Now she's 7 months & has all of a sudden taken a liking to the Nylabones. She dug one out of her toy basket the other night & has played with/chewed on it for the past few evenings. Kong also had a type of hollow cylinder thing that I put peanut butter in. She likes that too. Thru loosing the baby teeth stage, she became quite a toy chewer. Boy the others on the forum were right. They need to learn to become chewaholics with their toys. She's never chewed on anything else - furniture, woodwork, etc.


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## Dory (Jan 4, 2012)

When the Himalayan chews get on the small side, pop them into the microwave. I don't remember how long I put them in there, but they puff up and make a yummy little cheesy treat. I think there's a video on their website about it too. Or there's a video somewhere that I saw with the tip. I worry when they get too small, so at least it doesn't go to waste when you puff it up 
Obviously, make sure they're completely cooled down before serving


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Sparkle: here's to hoping he one day all of a sudden falls in love with Nylabones.. He's got a bacon flavored one for goddsakes.. who doesn't like bacon???? LOL..

Dory: Yeah i heard about this microwave tip. I'm going to try it when it gets smaller.. He's def made some headway with it. Looking forward to seeing what it's going to look like.. I'm gonna Google that video.


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Here's a link to that Himalayan Chew microwave video just in case anyone is looking for it:


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## KarenL (Apr 25, 2012)

*chew toys*

Rico loves the hooves too...didn't know that there were smoked ones that smell better. Will have to look for them! How do you take such a great pic of your black faced dog? I really have difficulty seeing his eyes on photos... or; his eyes are scary glowing from a flash!


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## ClaireVoyant (Jan 26, 2012)

KarenL said:


> Rico loves the hooves too...didn't know that there were smoked ones that smell better. Will have to look for them! How do you take such a great pic of your black faced dog? I really have difficulty seeing his eyes on photos... or; his eyes are scary glowing from a flash!


I can't answer for little Rico's pic . . .but the glowing eyes are caused by the flash being too close to the camera lens. Try turning the flash off and photographing in natural light. If you need more light than that, you can make a reflector by covering cardboard with foil and having someone reflect natural light back into his face (from the floor).

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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

A friend of mine is a budding photographer. She's got a great SLR camera.. Like ClaireVoyant said... the key is definitely using natural light rather than flash. I've tried to take pics with my camera phone and it's impossible unfortunately.


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## RosiePosie (Nov 25, 2012)

Thanks for the tips. I bought an antler today for Rosie and she loves it. She also likes Himalayan chews.


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## ClaireVoyant (Jan 26, 2012)

queryne said:


> A friend of mine is a budding photographer. She's got a great SLR camera.. Like ClaireVoyant said... the key is definitely using natural light rather than flash. I've tried to take pics with my camera phone and it's impossible unfortunately.


I'm a photographer . . .but my iPhone is handy when my SLR isn't LOL. The pic in my avatar was with my iPhone (flash off, North light window)

Isabella turns her nose up at both deer and moose antlers as well as hooves, but loves bully sticks . . .Raider loves everything. I've never tried Himalayan treats but looked for them locally but couldn't find them.

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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Well done for an iphone pic! Gotta work on my lighting with my phone camera.

I'm gonna check out moose antlerz for Leo.. he seems to like Elk splits more than deer. Lately he's been killing Himalayan Chews.. I can't seem to find them at pet stores either so i ordered them off of amazon:

Amazon.com: Himalayan Dog Chew, Small 3.5 oz: Pet Supplies

or

http://www.bestbullysticks.com/home/bbs/page_214_22/himalayan_dog_chew_-_small.html

Like i mentioned in a previous post Leo had zero interest in them and then one day(completely out of the blue).. he started to loved them!


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## ClaireVoyant (Jan 26, 2012)

Just placed my order . . .thank you! 

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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Sure.. Let us know how Isabella likes them!


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## brendagates (Jan 11, 2013)

*Corinne and Leo!*

Hi Corinne and Leo! I just randomly stumbled across your posting! Small world! We met at the Puppy Party in February (I think that's when it was). I was wondering how your little Leo is doing? Malfoy is growing up SO fast.

Malfoy is just like Leo in that he LOVES bully sticks. I don't give them to him often because he stinks to high heaven after chewing on them 

Hope you guys are doing well!
Brenda


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Hey Brenda!
How wonderful to hear from you!

Leo has grown like a weed. You wouldn't even recognize him.
Omg! How's my little Malfoy? 

When you get a moment please PM me and we'll set up a play date for Leo and Malfoy!
Would love to see that little guy again.. such a sweetie..

Corinne


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## Sharonefinkel (Jan 20, 2013)

*Bosco love hooves too!*



sprorchid said:


> +1 on the hooves. smoked ones don't smell as bad. all the other chews, rawhide, bullstick (bull's penis btw), give all my dogs the runs. not the hoof though. about $1 a hoof, if you buy in bulk it's 50 cents.
> 
> that's all I give them now, hooves.


He loves them, but really smelly.  They last a few weeks before I give a new one, and I get to relax in the evening!


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## queryne (Apr 9, 2012)

Yeah I give Leo bully sticks once ina blue moon and prefer to give him either hooves or Himalyan Chews. 

I didn't know hooves came in a smoked variety.. I gotta look into that.. Where do you get them???

Bosco is adorable!


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