# are pigs ears safe



## max&me (May 16, 2009)

Based on everything I have read, it seems pigs ears are not bad for puppies to chew on. Max is 4 months old and he loves chewing on them for hours. I just want to make sure he can not choke on them. Can I be certain that by the time he cuts them down, he will get them to a size that he will manage to swallow or do I need to be watching him the hole time. I have noticed that by the time he has them down to smaller pieces, they are quite soft since he has been chewing on them for a while. Has anyone had a problem with pigs ears and chocking or other problems. thanks in advance/


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## max&me (May 16, 2009)

Any thoughts please?


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## valb (Sep 2, 2004)

I wouldn't give them. I not only think you can't be sure they
won't get a piece that chokes them, they also can cause 
pretty bad diarrhea if your pup does manage to consume them!


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## girlll_face (Jun 9, 2009)

All the dogs I've owned or fostered never seemed to have any problems with them, except they are obsessed with them and have to chew until they are gone!!!


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Aren't they high in fat? I think I remember hearing that somewhere. The only edible chews I give to Lucy are bully sticks and frozen marrow bones from the grocery store or butcher. Bullies get expensive, but marrow bones are really cheap. I think I get 4 for like $3 at stop and shop. Those will last much longer than pig ears and are much better for digestion.


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## rover51 (Apr 21, 2009)

I read they were high in fat as well. Elvis loved them and he was overweight. Didn't realize the fat content at the time.


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## max&me (May 16, 2009)

thanks. ur comments help a lot.


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## Alto (Nov 18, 2008)

pigs ears have been subject to recalls due to high salmonella counts - several local shops have stopped carrying them after the last go round ...

Characterization of Salmonella Associated with Pig Ear Dog Treats in Canada


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## Lem (May 30, 2009)

Dude, I've been giving my dogs pigs ears since like the first dogs I remember ever having. Which were 2 of them. One was a Golden Retriever/Labrador Mix and the other was a German Shepherd/Border Collie Mix. Both females. This was back when I was like 5 years old, maybe younger. I do buy those stewing bones to boil up and let him eat those. They dont top the pigs ears though. Keanu will go into Petsmart, and out of everything there to choose from, he mouths the pigs ears the most. I wont give my dog cow throat or thats its called...the bully stick, or cow penis? Ewww. No thanks.


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## sgtmom52 (Aug 30, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Lem I do buy those stewing bones to boil up and let him eat those.


<span style="color: #FF6666">You should feed them the bones raw.</span> Cooking them makes them brittle and more likely to splinter causing injuries to your dog. Just make sure you start them out in their crate or outside to contain any mess. It doesn't take my dogs long to clean off any juicy meat bits!


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: sgtmom52
> 
> 
> > Originally Posted By: Lem I do buy those stewing bones to boil up and let him eat those.
> ...


Raw marrow bones are our "thing" over here, Stark loves them!

Definitely fed outside or in the crate though - MESSY!!!


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Quote: "and out of everything there to choose from, he mouths the pigs ears the most. I wont give my dog cow throat or thats its called...the bully stick, or cow penis? Ewww. No thanks."

Uhm, cows don't have penises. 

Bully sticks are bovine parts that only bulls have -- yuck!!!! 

I agree, my dogs would rather have a pigs' ear than fillet mignon. I have given my lot pigs' ears, even puppies at eight weeks. They love them, and I have never had any problems with them (except for the flour bug infestation that came with a box of them). 

Yes, they can have salmonella, so can raw chicken, eggs, green onions (not that you would feed those to your dogs). Generally dogs will not have a problem with salmonella, their systems are too quick I think, but YOU can get it from handling them. 

Also they are high in fat. But if your dog is not overweight and does not have a specific problem with fatty foods like pancreatitis, they should not be a problem, especially if you do it in moderation, once or twice a week.


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## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

I've seen cow ears as well, they're lower in fat.


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## Lem (May 30, 2009)

aubie, Keanu eats those too, but i think he likes the added flavor on the pigs ears alot better. 

selzer, thanks for the clarification. I was thinking 'Bull' and typed 'Cow' LOL

sgtmom52, You said i should feed Keanu the stewing bones 'Raw'? You sure thats safe? Because they do have some left over meat still on them, and I'd rather prefer it if my dog doesnt get sick from it.


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## zyppi (Jun 2, 2006)

quite a while ago I remember a member losing a pup when a pig's ear lodged in it's intestinal tract.

I've never given them to my dogs but, obviously a lot of folks do.


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## sgtmom52 (Aug 30, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Lemsgtmom52, You said i should feed Keanu the stewing bones 'Raw'? You sure thats safe? Because they do have some left over meat still on them, and I'd rather prefer it if my dog doesnt get sick from it.


Yes it is safe to feed them raw. In fact there are many people on this forum that feed all raw food to their dogs. There is a whole section on raw feeding here ~ http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=postlist&Board=52&page=1

If you are concerned about spoilage ~ let your pup chew on the bone for a 1/2 hour or hour, then just pop it back in the freezer until the next day and let him have it again. It really doesn't take my two 10 month olds very long to get all the meat off the bone ~ then they work for days on getting all of the marrow out of the longer bones. Also the bones seem less greasy if they are fed raw than if they are cooked first.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Yep it's safe to feed raw. Don't cook it at all... You don't want the bone to splinter. Lucy gets one a week without any issues. She's usually finished sucking out the marrow and cleaning the bone in about an hour. She'll lick the bone for the rest of the night. It keeps her nice and busy.


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## Mozart396 (May 11, 2009)

My first dog I gave a bag of pig ears. I figure he's chew a few and quit when he got tired. I was surprised when I came back and my 3 month puppy ate the whole bag...... and then threw up all over the crate. He was fine. I spent awhile hosing down the crate and cleaning up the mess.

Moral of the story: a few ears is fine, but a whole bag at a time is a no-no.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

You are way lucky that your dog produced a load of barf. 

I watched an Animal ER where the labs ate a bag of Pigs ears and I think the one had a bad reaction. Way too much fat for one sitting.


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## Lem (May 30, 2009)

Keanu doesnt get the pigs ear all the time. Just once, maybe twice a week. Depending on his behavior while i'm working with/training him on various things.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Mozart396My first dog I gave a bag of pig ears. I figure he's chew a few and quit when he got tired. I was surprised when I came back and my 3 month puppy ate the whole bag...... and then threw up all over the crate. He was fine. I spent awhile hosing down the crate and cleaning up the mess.
> 
> Moral of the story: a few ears is fine, but a whole bag at a time is a no-no.


Real moral of the story: use a little more common sense when giving your puppy treats to chew on. And do not leave a puppy alone when it's chewing on anything. 

I can keep going on with stuff wrong from the above post...


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## summer (Jan 19, 2009)

I could not have survived puppyhood without pig ears! It would take Aspen about 3 days to chew one up until she could fit it in her mouth and then I would take it away. She is 6 months old now and doesnt really care for them now but loved loved them for about 4 months of her life!


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## StarryNite (Jun 2, 2009)

I gave Lulu Pig's ears at first but she chewed them up SO fast and always had diarreah afterwards so I did switch to the moo tubes and bully sticks which she loves and take a LONG time to chew up. It may sound gross to US but for a dog it is natural and it takes her so long to chew the bully sticks and moo tubes that I am not worried about blockage or choking. I can't imagine it taking 3 days for Lulu to eat a pigs ear LOL I give her a huge one even and it's gone within 20 minutes!


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## StarryNite (Jun 2, 2009)

I just gave her a new moo tube, hehe, have to share the pic


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Moo tube? Never heard of it... What part of the cow/bull are we dealing with here? Couldn't be worse than the infamous bully stick.


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## middleofnowhere (Dec 20, 2000)

A dog can choke on just about anything they can chew up. I'd watch them with anything like this.

Cow/Bull -- cattlemen refer to bovines as a group as cows regardless of their sex. If they are speaking about a specific group of same sex animals they may use specific terms. Sorta like when we talk about our canines generally we refer to them as our dogs although they may be bitches and not dogs at all.. (Hey!, no, wait, that's wrong isn't it??? I mean our bitches are dogs aren't they???







) Excuse the diversion. Sometimes I cannot resist temptation.


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## sgtmom52 (Aug 30, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Lucy DogMoo tube? Never heard of it... What part of the cow/bull are we dealing with here? Couldn't be worse than the infamous bully stick.


A Moo Tube is the Trachea.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I don't know much about cattlemen, but farmers around here would be rolling at the thought of cow penises. I suppose we are either raising calves for beef, or have cows for dairy. Very few people around here bother with bulls -- too much trouble. Cows are artificially inseminated, male calves are castrated, kind of like a horse is never considered a stallion unless he is intact, bulls are few and far between, at least here in farm country.


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