Puppy is almost 5 months and is teething. ( Malinois) I feed raw but he is now taking forever to eat any bone.Should I only give him a certain amount of time and pick it up, feed more muscle and organ meat or just let him go? Sometime at least 20 minutes for a chicken back which use to take 2o seconds. I know his mouth is bothering him as he won't evan bite onto my or my wifes arms anymore. We have stopped all bite work except frustrating with bite toys.

For your pups comfort,I'd suggest grinding the meat (bone-in). Maybe a butcher would do it for you? An old-fashioned hand crank meat grinder does the job well, but it's so messy it's almost a 2-person job!

Some people also freeze the meat partially - sorta like an ice-pack for pup's sore mouth.

You could grind it or break it up with a hammer for him. That is what I am doing with my teething monsters.


Editing in that I posted at the same time.....and that I partially freeze also.

 Quote: mitch kuta

Puppy is almost 5 months and is teething. ( Malinois) I feed raw but he is now taking forever to eat any bone.Should I only give him a certain amount of time and pick it up, feed more muscle and organ meat or just let him go? Sometime at least 20 minutes for a chicken back which use to take 2o seconds. I know his mouth is bothering him as he won't evan bite onto my or my wifes arms anymore. We have stopped all bite work except frustrating with bite toys.

All the suggestions are great except upping the muscle/organ meat.

You don't want to throw off the calcium-phosphorous ratio by omitting bone.

People at our club with pups have commented:

One just let the dog take a long time. The dog didn't seem to be in pain, but just seemed to take longer for a few weeks.

(I agree that you don't want to pick it up before he's done if it's the teething that's holding him up.)

One had the butcher grind the RMBs - using what they call "chili" grind (coarser than hamburger and faster) for a few weeks.

Also, necks might be easier for a while, or at least I've heard that.

You know in a book I was reading at the Library, I read that at around the age of 5 to 7 months wild dogs including Wolves loose weight during teething process and actually don't eat many bones.Only small bones, from small prey.It goes back to the speed of growth our dogs go through as supposed to wild canines.I am seeing(by reading) that many wild canines have a period of consuming less calcium during teething , which benefits their growth process.That way they don't grow so rapid and get joint and bone problems later on, the way perhaps domestic dogs do by us feeding(people that feed kibbles) the same amount of calcium regardless of what stage a dog goes through.I believe at teething stages that that is when "naturally" the growth process slows down during less calcium feedings.It's not a long period but it is enough to benefit their joints and bone growth..It made a lot of sense to me, I hope I explained it right..Makes sense?
I think too if you have read a lot of Billinghurst books it makes sense.If a dog at teething stages does not eat bones, you should not add it or ground any.let the young pup get what he can and wants and discard the rest.It won't last long and I feel it "naturally" has a purpose.

 Quote: angelique cadogan

You know in a book I was reading at the Library, I read that at around the age of 5 to 7 months wild dogs including Wolves loose weight during teething process and actually don't eat many bones.Only small bones, from small prey.

Yes, but not "no bones."

Small bones from small prey translates nicely to backs and necks from chickens, I think.

Teething is too long of a process to consider withholding bones from a raw diet, IMO.

I did read Billinghurst et al, too, so no argument -- but my take is that we offer softer bones and the pup does what he can.
http://leerburg.com/feedpups.htm

JMO.

P.S. Dogs under total dietary control can't instinctively correct errors we might make in feeding them. I'm very reluctant to withhold something important that the animal would consume on his own. JMO.

he seems to not be in any pain when eating. I have been feeding the same as before. Tell me if this sounds ok for one day meal. Morning chicken back neck couple gizzards, lunch ground venison ground egg and shell, dinner chicken breast with bone with salmon oil and vit E and missing link plus. All meal around 10 to 12 ounces. Puppy weighs 42#

I actually give pups ice cubes when teething. They act like it feels good on those swollen gums.

My pup loves ice cubes ... I started giving them to him during his diahreah bout to slow down but not eliminate water consumption. Then we continued with them during teething. My pup really really loves FROZEN chicken broth, too.

He's done teething but I still give him ice cubes to chew.

Ice cubes – my dogs understand those words! Those two words can turn them into drooling, snorting blockheads quicker than a picture of Keira Knightley and my husband.

I started using them during teething and they still look forward to them several times a day. Great for the summer when you want to slow down their water intake.

My dogs were on raw before and during teething. I never changed any of their feeding habits and they never gave any indication that they wanted me to. Listen to you pup – if he stops eating, worry; if he just takes a little longer to eat, don’t worry.