Welcome to YT, Tinypaws!
Personally I don't give real bones, as I worry about the choking hazard-Emma is a power chewer, and if she thinks we or Milli is going to take something away, she'll put the whole thing in her mouth. It was chewing on bones and chew bones that she started this behavior with-so now we give them only nylabones and kongs to chew on.
With that said, I know there are many YT'ers that do give real bones to their dogs. I'm not sure about having the butcher cut the bone into a 1" piece-that seems a bit small to me. I home prepare food, and feed raw meat, and I freeze the meat for at least 48 hours before feeding it. This helps remove most of the bacteria that could be in the meat. The same rule would apply to bones-so make sure you're freezing them first. My two like their food just a little bit frozen, kind of slushy-it's a new texture, so try it with the bones and see how your dog does with it. If she doesn't like it as much, thaw it out completely before feeding it. You could also fill the center of the bone with peanut butter, cottage cheese, or bits of cheddar cheese before feeding it for something new and tasty. |