I often ask clients if they give their dogs chews. I am always disappointed when they are keen to tell me that YES! Their dogs have a dentastick every day
Why am I disappointed? Mainly because the power of advertising has struck again and that dogs are being given these things because people think they are doing the best for their dogs
Chewing is a very good addition to a dogs day, and it has lots of benefits apart from helping to remove plaque from teeth -it is also a proprioceptive activity, which is excellent if dogs aren’t as mobile as they used to be and chewing can help reduce stress and dogs just simply enjoy chewing
But if that chew lasts seconds and is full of additives and even things that are detrimental to health there are no positives about buying these things in the belief that they are good additions to your dogs’ daily diet
Natural chews which can now be bought at the huge pet stores-which once only sold rawhide and dentastix – is a positive change, but of course they are often sold singly and can be expensive but there are now many good websites that sell good natural treats in greater quantities and are cheaper -they may not smell or look great to us-but these are the kinds of chews which dogs enjoy dogs and have the benefits that were listed earlier
Please do not fall for the big companies like Mars which have huge advertising budgets-instead prioritise your dogs health by choosing food and chews wisely
