[Mosey_2003]

I tell you what, it makes me glad I feed a prey model raw food diet. I haven't had a dog need a dental in a LONG time. Their teeth are beautiful, white, and healthy, even the 10 year old boxers. I have never brushed them, nor done anything other than hand them chunks of raw meat and bones.

Ooooh, can I ask you specifically what bones you get? I've been wanting to get my Boxer girl some good chewing bones but she destroys them so quickly and I have to watch her like a hawk. Tried a knuckle but she persisted in trying to swallow the big chunks she got off...

Sorry to derail!

[wendy]

If you're feeding raw, you don't give "good chewing bones" , you give EDIBLE meat-covered bones that the dog eats- consumes the bone and the meat, in a matter of minutes. It's the shearing action of the teeth through the meat that cleans the teeth, far better than just gnawing on a chewing bone. Soft pork rib bones, lamb neck bones, or raw chicken wings are good choices.

Many dogs fed raw, or given raw meaty bones once or twice a week, have very nice sparkly clean teeth their entire lives. Many dogs fed low-carb diets, even ones fed soft ground raw diets with little chewing to be done, also have sparkly clean teeth life-long, suggesting that the heavy carb content of most kibble diets is a strong contributing factor to dirty teeth.
If your dog already has dirty teeth, and you would like to try a raw diet for teeth cleaning, I would suggest getting a dental done BEFORE you try the raw diet- if the teeth are damaged/painful, chewing on bones isn't going to improve dental health, quite the opposite. However, after the dental, the new diet may keep the teeth clean for the rest of the dog's life. It's worth a try anyway.

However, some dogs, particularly many of the smaller breeds, seem to be genetically doomed to having filthy, bad teeth regardless of diet.

[Arrows Endure]

What Wendy said! *grin*

I don't give "chewing bones". My dogs get raw chicken quarters and breasts, soft pork bones like ribs, and venison ribs. They also get raw beef heart, pork, and venison. All the dogs LOVE their meals, and now that I am a bit more experienced with feeding raw, it's easier than kibble meals.

[Mosey_2003]

Hmmm, interesting, thanks!