[dobesgalore]

Our oldest dog is a doberman named Coors. He has no front teeth, but does have pretty decent back ones so I haven't worried to much about him eatng. Wayne and I were watching him eat a chicken quarter last night, and he was having a time chewing. He was chewing with all his strength but still not able to get through the bone. He crunched once or twice then started trying to swallow it whole. It got stuck in his throat twice and he gagged until it came back. He finally managed to get it down, but it scared us cause we were afraid he would really choke. He needs bigger cuts of meat because he is a gulper, BAD. Even when we fed kibble he was bad to gulp. I literaly had to put two huge rocks in his bowl to make him slow down. I have given him drumsticks, but I don't think he even tastes them they go down so fast. What can we try with him that will have bone, but that he will be able to chew?

 

[DaneMama]

Sounds like he eats like Akasha. A couple chomps, not even all the way through the bone sometimes, and swallow. She does the regurgitate thing on occasion too. I just think some dogs eat like that and there's not much to worry about. Especially since he's been on raw for a while now and should be able to handle large chunks of bone.

 

[dobesgalore]

Alright, thanks! I won't worry quite so much. We have been on raw a couple of months now I guess so he should be fine. He just worries me with his age. He will be twelve later this year. Wayne was wanting to get a hammer to some drumsticks and mix that with something ground if it would help him eat but I'm worried about to much ground meat.

 

[RawFedDogs]

Both my Danes ae the same way ... a few chomps then down the hatch. They rarely bring it back to rechew but they have been doing this all their lives. I'm sure your dog will get better with practice. I wouldn't worry bout it now. All dogs always chew with their back teeth.

 

[dobesgalore]

He just seems like lately, that his jaws don't have the strength to get through the bone. When we first started raw he seemed fine. We have just noticed this with him. But I guess as long as he gets it down and it stays down he should be fine. It just kills me to feel like he is struggling.

 

[DestaRR]

Both of mine chew with their back teeth. My older RR is almost 10 and he still has excellent tooth health but I'm getting prepared for the day he might not be able to handle large bones anymore. If that day comes I'll probably grind it up or break it up with a mallet or hammer to make it easier on him.

 

[whiteleo]

Most dogs grab their meat with their front teeth to get the meat in their mouth, because he doesn't have any hes probably over compensating. I personaly don't think its a bad idea to give the meat a whack since hes already got it stuck a few times, I'm just being cautious as we all know I've spent thousands of dollars in surgery getting things unstuck from my female.

 

[dobesgalore]

I agree with the hammer deal. I'm really thinking of trying that. And yes they do chew with the back teeth, and they seem to be fine, but I think he's losing jaw strength, because he is awful weak and wobbly due to age. I like the hamer idea.