Raw bones are a healthy and safe part of your pet’s balanced raw diet and offer many benefits, some of which we have touched on in previous blogs.  Below we have outlined additional ways in which bones can benefit your pets. 

Bone Safety First

It is important that bones are always fed raw. Cooked bones can splinter and cause impaction, perforation of the gut and even death.  For a more comprehensive guide on bone safety you can refer to our previous blog on ‘How To Choose and Feed Bones Safely’, contact us directly or speak to your holistic vet if you have serious concerns about your pets health. 

5 Benefits of Bones 

1. Dental Health – Chewing is a vital part of dental care. Beyond the bacteria-fighting enzymes in raw meat, chewing on bones and connective tissues helps to prevent plaque build-up and keep their gums healthy. Whether you are feeding your pet a raw diet or not, feeding raw bones is a great way to add to their dental care routines. 

Puppies, seniors, and dogs with compromised dental health should avoid hard bones. Their teeth are more fragile and have a higher risk of being damaged. Avoid feeding bone and other hard chews until their adult teeth have come in.  You could also try something softer, like a tendon or a cow ear. You will still get a dental cleaning effect, but you won’t risk your dog damaging their teeth while chewing.

2. Mental stimulation – Chewing is a natural instinct for dogs and you might prefer to allow them to do this with a quality raw bone instead of a factory-made plastic substitute that has no nutritional value. Dogs love that raw bone’s taste and the mental stimulation. Plus, all that chewing is a wonderful workout for your dog’s jaw muscles keeping them both physically and mentally occupied. 

If your dog is a serious chewer with a powerful jaw, or has compromised dental health, stick to softer edible bones that are safe to consume.

3. Skin & Coat – Bones contain a variety of minerals that can aid in skin and coat health, and the marrow and cartilage are good sources of collagen.

Bones with connective tissues attached are especially beneficial for skin and coat health. Raw meaty bones can be fed to dogs eating any format of food, but can specifically complement a raw diet perfectly. 

4. Digestion- Keep your dog’s stomach in good working order with raw bones. It’s beneficial for their digestive tract as it offers a cleansing and scouring effect on their system. By providing extra roughage in your dog’s diet, he’ll be a lot more regular with going to the toilet, and it’ll stimulate anal gland emptying. However, to ensure that intestinal health is maintained, you need to know how often to feed bones and to balance bones in a healthy way. There is such a thing as too much bone and constipation or impaction can occur.  You can refer to our previous blog on ‘How To Choose and Feed Bones Safely’ or if your dog is suffering from constipation please contact your holistic vet.

5. Bones for Calcium– Dogs require calcium for good bone structure, blood coagulation, muscle contraction, and it also has a significant effect on vision and heart function. 

*Disclaimer: At Instincto, we aim to provide the most current, up to date information about feeding Raw safely.  If you have any further questions please contact us! Please use this as a guide only and always check with your holistic Vet if you want more information.

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