Just a follow on from my last topic.

Firstly. I happen to have a whole large row deer antler in the shed which I use for knife making. Is it safe to let my Airedale have a prong?
I didnt know if the 'stag bars' have been treated in some way. Cooked, heated or flavoured?

My other question would be if people think it is good for the dogs teeth? Logic tells me that a dog shouldn't really be grinding its teeth on something so solid.

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I don't think the stag bars are treated in anyway , i think they remove the skin stuff off them but thats it. and yes they are very good for teeth as they chew on them it helps cleans off plaque and tartar

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http://www.english-toy-terrier.co.uk/

Not cooked.

You might want to clean them depending where they came from, IE slaughtered stock or bodies found on the fells .

I've read of people soaking an end to provide a starting point for their dog.

good stuff. I will saw him off a bit today.

When boiled the marrow becomes soft enough to put a knife handle through the middle. But as soon as its cools it becomes hard again. So I'm not sure soaking it would really do anything. I'll try and put the end in a cup of hot water and give it to him when its tepid. That might do the trick.

Thank you for your time.

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I think they are fantastic. Ollie has had his for an hour every other day for about 3 weeks and his teeth are now white (he did have caked on brown plaque). Its the best dental solution I've come across, and it also provides him with some entertainment whilst chewing it, and its healthy too (it has minerals in it).

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Totally off topic.. Antlers and knife making... reenactor?

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Personally I would soak in room temperature water for a day or two and try that - a cup of hot water would not be enough and keeping in hot water too long would cook the bone.

Experiment.

I bought one for each of my dogs. Ziggy had a little chew then left it. Kite wasn't interested. For me, it was a waste of money.

Not a reenactor no. The antler is cut in to disks or coins and make great spacers and ferrules. Most nordic style knives have a antler pommel. I've never used a whole prong as a knife handle.

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Don't see why you'd need to soak it? On their website (stag bar) I think it says that if your dog isn't interested you can soak it to make it smell a bit more interesting, but that certainly wasn't necessary for Sherlock - as soon as I brought it home from the shop he was desperate to get his teeth on it!

He got a large one for Christmas, I guess about 15 cm long with two prongs, and he's already chewed through one of the prongs. He loves it.

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