[northernmama]

We took in a then 4yr old Siberian Husky last summer. He went through great stress in the move: didn't eat well, lost almost all his hair, would poop in the house if we left him alone, but never any agressive behavior. He is all good and happy now. Not stressed if we leave him, confident in his home. Well behaved.

It seems that he was very well trained to be quiet and non-agressive. So much so, that only in the last few months has he really found his voice and will actually bark when excited! Yay! We live in the country so he is allowed to be all dog, except that he's not allowed to run free unfortunately.

He never chews on anything. Late last summer/early fall, he spent some time with us and another family with their dog. That afternoon, the other dog taught him how to chew on sticks (other dog was teething). I was excited. I love for a dog to chew on bones because it's good for their teeth, but had had no success in getting our husky to chew on anything to this point.

Well, I was excited for nothing. I still haven't been able to get him to chew and gnaw on bones or various chew products. Help? What can I do? I have tried different flavours, putting other flavours on the bone/product (peanut butter, gravy)... all to no avail. I am concerned that his currently healthy teeth will deteriorate if he doesn't get some serious chew time in. I really do believe this is something that was trained out of him and I want it trained back! How?

He is currently feed mostly dry dog food. He gets some table scraps (yes, people food!) and the odd milkbone or comparable treat. He is otherwise healthy, happy, playful and positive.

 

[fawkese1]

he might never chew on them, all i can say is keep offering them to him and taking them away, i would do so when he is hungry. you could also try to get him to chew a stuffed kong...

as far has his dental health, you may have to brush his teeth or you can use a water additive (that's what i use) you might also want to take him to the vet so that they can rule out any health issues that might make chewing painful for him.

 

[THINK]

Have you tried pizzle sticks aka bully sticks? My adopted 6 yr old dog never chewed anything either. After reading here about pizzle sticks, I ran out and bought some and to my amazement he actually ate it all.

 

[northernmama]

What are pizzle sticks?

 

[THINK]

Pizzle sticks are actually bull penis. It's dried and stretched and is hard as a bone. As the dog starts to chew it kinda gets a bit softer but its great at removing plaque and massaging gums. It stinks horribly but my dog goes nuts over it. He will actually refuse a walk while he eats one. Its basically just muscle so it's easily digestable more so than rawhide. High in protein and low in fat!

I also live in northeastern ontario. I can usually find them at canadian tire, petsmart sometimes walmart. There is a great canadian company called Rollover who makes pizzzle sticks and seem better priced then the other ones you get at other pet supply stores.

 

[northernmama]

Thanks! I will look for them next time I'm in town.