Something to chew on for a Golden Retriever puppy?

Question

Our new Golden Retriever puppy is 13 weeks old, and chews on absolutely everything. The only thing that works, is called "Flossies" by a company called Merrick. Only problem is they last about 20 minutes, and cost about three dollars each (it's a dried beef tendon). I've heard bad things about rawhide (he doesn't like them anyway), so I'd like other natural alternatives. Sweet Potato chips (dried) work well, but he goes through them just as quick. We've tried nylon bones, and rubber / plastic chew toys, and he's not interested in them. Any other ideas?!?!?!?

Answer 1

Try a Kong or a toy that a dog has to work on to get treats out of it. Get Nylabones that are flavored. My dogs love the chocolate flavored ones. I discard them when the ends wear down but they can't eat them. He will not be interested in the nylon bones and other chew toys if he gets chews that he can eat. It's sort of like giving a dog left over steak and then wondering why they don't eat the dog food.
Hooves are sold at pet stores and stink to high heaven but dogs love to chew on them. I would only give those to the dog when he is outdoors. I dont' like rawhides either. Or pigs ears because of how they are cured and how greasy they are. The rawhides, some, have formaldehyde in them even.

Answer 2

All my dogs play with different toys. Watch out for squeaky toys because that sometimes sounds like a puppy dying and they won't play with that. I think plush toys and balls and anything you can throw and he will bring back. I saw a show on tv where a woman hid toys in the yard then brought her retriever out and used a whistle and hand signals and she directed the dog to the toy so he could find it. I think hiding toys and the yard and having him find them would be a good game. Find a breed mentor, and call other breeders in your area to get more information. While most dogs love any toy, I agree, you have a breed that requires mental stimulation, so you need to take care of that. Try search for questions too, there should be other questions asked like that. Keep in mind too that he is only 9-weeks-old, so too much training is overwhelming. Mix training with play. Also keep in mind that some things come with time. Come, sit, stay, usually get better around 11-weeks-old. Also while you can be practicing leashes now, I don't tend to clip a leash to a collar until 3-months-old and they just get better with the walk around 4 to 5-months-old. I think I would take him to the back yard and drag a leash and try to get him to follow it, assuming your yard is fenced. I would practice walking laps in the back yard for about a month before graduating to the street. It is usually 5 minutes for each month with walks, so a two-month-old puppy gets a 10 minute walk. It is easier to address walk issues in the back yard then trying to correct things in a busy street and being stressed that you might get hit by a car or something. Good luck.

Answer 3

Natural things like rawhide and pigs ears are not the best choice. They are preserved with all kinds of nasty chemicals and can be very dangerous if they swallow a chunk of them. Tennis balls are not good to chew on because they damage the teeth over time. The best bet is nyla bones and rubber toys. If she does not show interest in them you have to encourage her to chew on them. Put peanut butter on them and/or play with them yourself. If she thinks what you have looks more fun she will go for that instead of something she shouldn't have.

Answer 4

Hey! Goldens are great! Our golden - tucker - loved to chew when he was young, luckily he never got any of our furniture, what worked for us was buying nylabones , at 13weeks, you shoudl probably get the soft ones - he will probably wear it down pretty quick, but once he learns he's allowed ot chew on those, you can switch it to the hard nylabones. The only other thing that Tucker loves to chew on were tennis balls - they are cheap, and soft. He loves rawhides, but seems to get a belly ache if he eats too much of it, so we rarely give those to him. He also seems to like a hard bone from pet smart..i think its called a dental bone, its basically a real bone, and he's been working on it for months now!

Answer 5

Yea, been there - done that with our lab - try a tennis ball (the favorite among favorites with retrievers) with an inch or two slit in it. Take his dog food and peanut butter all mixed up and stuff it in the ball. This is a double treat for them. Also, a kong toy is the ultimate - they are a little pricey, about 15 bucks, but they are worth their weight in gold. The same idea as the tennis ball, stuff it full of peanut butter and kibble. yummy. Good luck

Answer 6

BOred dogs chew. Make sure he has plenty to do. Kongs work great get several and fill them with bananas and leave them in the freezer. The coolness soothes the teething too

Answer 7

What about Marrow bones? They are beef bones that can be found at the grocery store (well, in my area anyways but i'm sure, you can find them if you look around) in the meat section. Ask the meat clerk if they have any. What about one of those dog tug of war rope things? They are pretty stong (As long as he won't eat it!!) if you get the really thick ones!

Answer 8

TENNIS BALLS..... play retrieve with him daily,... give him lots of walks,,, try going to obedience school,,,,,, teach him tricks ,, he will not have time to chew...... old socks , tie in a knot make for fun games of tug....... "real bones" sold at pet stores are pretty good,,,, and yes rawhide is dangerous ...

Answer 9

have you tried any of those knotted ropes my dog loves his and he chews on it and plays with it all the time...but your puppy is still small and he is teething like a baby he will grow out of this eventually hopefully he dosen't cause to much havock on you things in the meantime good luck with this

Answer 10

We had a black lab that absolutely loved raw potatoes. They are soft enough not to make him "hard mouthed", they won't last long, but aren't too expensive. Try it for a treat, anyway.