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Chew Safety

Practical, honest guides on natural chews — sizing, safety, and what actually keeps dogs busy.

A border collie on a hardwood living room floor looks up at a woman holding a phone and a plain dried chew stick

Minding Someone Else's Dog: The Chew Questions to Ask First

Yes, you can give someone else's dog a chew once the owner answers three things: what he already eats, any special diet, and what size fits his mouth.

Aug 28, 2026 8 min read

A dog lying on a home floor working on a chew from the lamb collagen and tripe variety pack

Handing the Chew Over: What a Sitter or a Boarder Needs to Know

Tell a sitter three things: the count you already give, a person in the room, and the stub taken away. Which lamb chew to pack, and what to write down.

Aug 28, 2026 7 min read

A red dachshund sitting on wooden porch steps looking up at a person's hand offering a small biscuit, with a short chew stub on the step beside it

The Stub Rule: Exactly When to Take a Bully Stick Away

Take the bully stick away once the piece could fit entirely inside your dog's mouth — near three inches for most dogs, and sooner for a big one.

Aug 27, 2026 6 min read

A person kneeling on a kitchen tile floor at night beside a blue-grey pit-bull-type dog, one hand on its back and a phone in the other hand

My Dog Swallowed a Bully Stick: What to Do in the First Hour

Call your vet if your dog drools, gags, struggles to swallow, brings food back up or keeps gulping after eating a bully stick. Then the two-day watch window.

Aug 27, 2026 6 min read

A yellow labrador lying on a hardwood floor pinning a long natural dried chew flat with both front paws while gnawing one end

Bully Stick Holders: What They Fix and What They Do Not

Foodiepaws does not sell bully stick holders. A holder locks the last inches of a chew out of reach - here is what that fixes, and what it leaves alone.

Aug 27, 2026 6 min read

A Bernese mountain dog lying on a kitchen tile floor chewing a braided natural chew held between its front paws

Are Collagen Chews Digestible? Two Ranking Pages Say Opposite Things

Yes, collagen is protein and a dog's gut breaks it down. No published assay has measured a chew, which is why two retailer pages answer this opposite ways.

Aug 27, 2026 7 min read

A person lathering their hands with soap at a kitchen sink while a dachshund waits on the floor behind them

Bacteria on Bully Sticks: What the Two Studies Found

Neither study found Salmonella on a bully stick — 26 cultured in 2013, 505 treats in 2025. The figures as published, the two FDA recalls, and the handling rule.

Aug 27, 2026 7 min read

A close view of a thumbnail pressing into a plain dried chew stick held over a wooden kitchen counter, with a German shepherd out of focus behind

How Hard Is Too Hard? The Fingernail Test That Sorts Every Dog Chew

A dog chew is too hard if your thumbnail can't dent it. The veterinary test, the enamel measurement behind it, and a one-line verdict per chew category.

Aug 27, 2026 6 min read

A dachshund curled on a folded blanket inside an open wire crate in the corner of an empty living room in morning light

Can You Leave a Dog Alone With a Chew?

No: a bully stick is too big to swallow for nearly all of its life, and swallowable for the last few minutes. Why leaving is the risk, and what to give instead.

Aug 27, 2026 6 min read

A german shepherd lying on a hardwood floor with its head flat on the boards and its teeth visible at rest

Can a Bully Stick Break a Tooth?

Yes, any hard chew can — and the tooth at risk is the big upper cheek tooth, not the fang. Veterinary sources disagree on where pizzle sits. What lowers the risk.

Aug 27, 2026 7 min read

A brindle boxer lying calmly on a jute rug with a plain dried chew stick in front of it while a hand places a small treat nearby

My Dog Guards His Chew: The Trade Protocol, Step by Step

Don't reach for the chew. Trade for it: drop a better treat a few feet away, let your dog leave the stick, then pick it up. Five steps, in order.

Aug 27, 2026 7 min read

A clear glass jar with a wooden lid on a kitchen counter holding one short dried chew stick, with a fawn French bulldog sitting on the floor looking up at it

Should You Give Back a Half-Chewed Bully Stick?

Give it back if it went into the fridge inside two hours and comes back out in a few days. Left on the floor all afternoon, throw it away. The clock decides it.

Aug 27, 2026 7 min read