lol, Laramie, i used to believe Milkbone biscuits "cleaned" a dog's teeth, too, til i read up on it, turns out, it cleans their teeth about the same way eating hard crackers would clean your teeth, or, in other words, not much at all.
.
I so understand about budgets! oh i do! THAT is one reason i started making my own dog treats. I get several weeks worth of top-quality dog treats for about $6. The treat recipe i make is not hard enough to clean a tooth, though, but, it has zero sugars to add to dental decay, either, and DOES work great for tricks training.
.
I hear that chewing
pig ears, which are usually low cost, is better at cleaning their teeth, than milkbones. Pig ears aren't something they can have
every day, though, i don't think. AND i could be misinformed on the dental benefits of chewing up a pig ear...
I've been told to stay away from rawhide bones, as i hear those are not good for dogs, often coated with toxic preservatives, and can REhydrate inside of the dog's body and cause a colon blockage, but, i don't know if that is true or not. I fed my last dog rawhides, and he was always fine.
.
"Bully sticks" (which have tons of look-a-likes) are also good, and come in many shapes,
although, they are
more expensive and DO stink a bit. I don't know if the look-a-likes are healthy or not, so i stay away from them, but, i wish i DID know if they are okay, as they cost so much less.
.
i think if we try hard, we
can get our dogs to accept
having their teeth cleaned/brushed/rubbed by one of those finger thingies, if we try hard and
go slow and keep it very very brief, sloooooowly building up slowly to longer amts of time, and reward and praise
heavily.
.
also, consumer beware, not all bags of treats labelled "all natural" are actually anywhere near "natural" nor healthy. Lol, even Science Diet dog food,
one of the
most toxic and worst dog foods in the world, labels itself "natural" and "healthy".
So sadly, we DO have to read those labels, and study up on what IS and IS NOT supposed to be in dog treats...sigh.
.
but, i dont' think an
occasional flour-based treat is that bad for dogs. but,
not the best thing to use for
TRICKS training, imo.
.
also, i do think giving dogs RAW i repeat RAW bones to chew on now and then,
is very very good for the dog's teeth.
MY dog------------ sooooooo
unaccustomed to raw meaty bones,
had to be coaxed to chew it, and praised when he did show interest in it..... which he did not at first. Buddy's first impression of raw meat, was "eeeough, gross.."
.
I also had to run hot water over it to get him interested in it, and even slapped a dab of peanut butter on that first one,
to get him started.
that was back then, when Buddy first met his
first raw bones. lol, he seemed baffled
by the whole idea,
but, i did not give up, and kept coaxing him to eat it.
.
NOW he much enjoys chewing up a RAW bone now and then.
.
Anyone who wants to know more about RAW bones should contact "Charmed Wolf" a member here, who knows a LOT about RAW feeding, and doesn't seem to mind sharing her knowledge on that topic. She is the one who convinced me it was a good idea, and safe, and healthy and natural for dogs,
and she is the one who got me started tossing my dog the occasional RAW bone to my dog.
Here is a GREAT link Cwolf posted here once:
http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html
http://www.rawlearning.com/
.
I'd love to raw feed,
but,
i can't truly afford it
all the time, AND my guy thinks it is 'wrong'
but, i do give Buddy the occasional raw piece of meat,
or RAW bone.
(not cooked bones,
cooked bones are dangerous, but,
RAW bones are fine)
But, I'll do some searching and see if I can come up with anything and I'll post what I find.
When I go back home to visit this Christmas, I might try getting some deer legs and meat to bring back and use.
, if he wasn't already raised to like tooth brushes all along.
