Today my neighbors 5 yr old Mutt died after choking to death on a rawhide bone. She has always given her dogs these, even after I told her what could happen. She's not a bad owner, she just thought that people sell these, that they must be safe. They are NOT!!!!!I never let my dogs chew on these, but I thought you should know about this. Please don't give these to any dog, they are killers. This is not the first time I know of this happening.

Kim, you sre you right. So many pet owners are unaware of so many hidden dangers. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />
A simple object as a ball can choke a dog if it becomes stuck in their throat.(always have a piece of rope attached to any ball) <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

You did all you could by warning he rof the dangers.

Even if the dog is lucky enough to not choke, rawhides can cause gas and stomach upset in many dogs. I didn't have to convince my family to quit giving Auster rawhides, she did the convincing for me <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> .

Just have to add a little something here. We saw a dog at the vet clinic where I work last Friday that was given one of those meaty "T-Bone" shaped treats. The dog (who weighed only about 12-15 pounds) swallowed that thing whole. It did not stop in the throat but went all the way down until the opening into the stomach. It wouldn't go any further. The dog could breathe okay but was bloating because the gas and air could not leave the stomach. You couldn't tell on x-ray if the food was lodged or not. The tried to pass a tube to relieve the pressure but it wouldn't go through. They thought it was from the build up of pressure. The started surgery and found the treat lodged at the entrance to the stomach. It took two vets (one working at each end) to break the treat up and get it out. They had to pass a tube through and put pressure on it so the other vet could reach up through the stomach and try to grasp it and pull it down. It slowly broke into smaller pieces but it took a good dose of K-Y gel to get the last of it. The surgery took more than two hours. The dog is fine but the owners will now break anything they give her into very small pieces. I advise anyone else to do the same if you have one that "gulps" everything!!!!

WOW, I didn't know that. I give them all the time. I'll stop giving them now. Thanks

I've found the pressed rawhide to be the better of the two evils. When "my" dogs chew the pressed hide, they become really soggy at the end and they are unable to shread them or break them into pieces. (again, my dogs...) Also, the only time they are allowed to work on these bones is when I'm litterally right there with them.

Anything can become a chocking hazard for a dog. Take a sofa or your favorite chair for instance! Hell, I had a Doberman that liked bricks and the like... There was no way I could eliminate all of the bricks in the world... Key is to know what your dog is doing. If you can't keep an eye on him or her, put em in the crate.

Bricks? Did he eat them or just chew? Does the old saying shi@@ing bricks apply here?