Pig Ear for Dogs – Are They Safe?
Today’s post is a reprint. Today is also my first chemo and radiation day. Cross your paws and pray for me, please!
I get asked occasionally, “Are pig ears okay for your dog to eat?” Before blogging for Jones Natural Chews, it never occurred to me to NOT give my dogs pig ears. They eat them like candy! Pig ear for dogs – are they safe?
Which brings up a related issue – dog chews are not food. They are treats, like candy to children. Dog chews, including pig ears, are meant to be a treat for your dog, not their diet.
Pig ears are a very popular chew for Jones. In fact, Suzy sent me a box full of them last week and I’ve been testing them on dogs all over the place! But first, the safety issue.
Here’s what Jones Natural Chews says about their bones and chews in general:
We test all of our bones for splintering. We conduct pressure tests and moisture tests to ensure the best bone strength. Because of the all-natural process we put our bones through, they will not splinter any easier than a raw bone. As with any food or treat supervision is always recommended, all dogs have different chewing habits. We at Jones’ give all of our own dogs our products with confidence.
Supervising a grown dog eating a pig ear isn’t always feasible. At least two of the seven dogs to whom I gave treats disappeared immediately, including my mom’s dog, Honey. Honey liked hers so much that she buried it … under my mother’s pillow … yes, on the bed.
Silly puppy.
Jones Natural Chews Pig Ears Are All Natural
Jones chews are 100% natural, which includes their pig ears. I’ve had a great time showing them to children. You can see the veins in the ears and everything. Pretty darn cool. They’re also 100% made in the USA, meaning these are American pigs, people!
Because I’ve been giving pig ears to so many different dogs the last few days, you know you can’t escape here without cute dog photos.
Sadly, due to a technological snafu that is entirely my fault, I lost three photo shoots. Three. That’s six adorable dogs eating pig ears. So my friend, Paige, let me come to her house last night and photograph her beautiful Will and her adorable daughters. Thank you, Paige!
Let me tell you a little bit about Will. Will is from Louisiana. He was born about a month before hurricane Katrina hit Buras (just south of New Orleans). Paige is also from Louisiana. She was working for an insurance company at the time of the storm and was in the Sportsman’s Paradise with her work when she found Will at a shelter. They assume he was one of the abandoned dogs from the storm. Aren’t he and Paige happy together?
Thank you, Paige, for letting me invade your home and photograph your adorable children. Will is a beauty.
So, to sum up, this weekend I gave pig ears to a little shih tzu, a lab puppy, a beagle mix, a mutt, a rat terrier, a pug, and Will, not to mention my own two Aussies. They all enjoyed them. Four of the seven chewed them to bits immediately. The rat terrier went back and stole the lab puppy’s pig ear and chewed it to bits. So I’d say the pig ears are a big hit, and that they are good and safe for most sizes of dogs. Our sampling started at about ten pound dogs and went up to about 60 pound dogs.
All that said, please don’t give an entire ear to the toy breeds. For you, Jones Natural Chews has created the Pig Ear Snacks. One is perfect for a smaller dog.
Don’t Forget Our Giveaway!
This week I’m giving away a tasty treat, the Tender Taffy Soft Chicken Blend! So click on this sentence and you’ll be taken to the giveaway post, with instructions on how to enter.
Spreading the good chews …
Flea
