If your new to owning a dog then you may think all the treats in pet stores and supermarkets are safe enough for your dog. Most owners including myself have learned along the way and have made some mistakes, and that’s okay, it’s normal, as long as we do our best to learn and correct ourselves then were heading in the right place.
When it comes to dog treats there are many great ones out there, but there are also ALOT of awful ones, too.
Rawhide
Right up the top of ‘worst treats to ever feed your dog’ is none other than, rawhide. A by-product of the leather industry. You’ll still find these treats lurking EVERYWHERE. Especially the run up to Christmas when pet shops are stocking these things like crazy.
Let me tell you just some of what I know, about why they’re awful.
Not only do they pose a huge choking risk, but they can cause serious blockage in their digestive tract, which can lead your dog needing emergency surgery and if the emergency surgery can’t happen then it will lead to death. And if that didn’t sound bad enough, below is the journey which it makes before going onto the shelves.
So, what is rawhide and how is it made?
Rawhide is essentially leather. The top part of the hide is stripped away and sent to be made into leather bags, car seats etc, whereas the underneath is sent to be made into dog treats.
Firstly, the rawhide is to sit in a chemical bath, this is to help preserve the rawhide and stop it from going bad as quickly
Next the rawhide is sent to sit in another bath of toxic chemicals (ash-lye solution or sodium sulphide liming), this process will remove any leftover hairs and fats on the rawhide.
The rawhide is chemically treated again to help puff up the rawhide, this makes it easier to split into layers. The tops layers are sent away to the leather industry, again and the underneath part of the rawhide is what will be the rawhide dog chew, but not only do they use this for a dog chew, they also use this part for glue and cosmetics!
As if it didn’t have enough chemical baths, it’s now sent to sit in a bleach bath, to whiten the hide and remove the smell of rotting leather. Yuk.
Now it’s time for the painting, dye and flavouring.
The super white ones you see in shops are often painted with titanium oxide!
Now that the rawhide journey is almost over its worth mentioning what other substances have been found in rawhide. Mercury, lead, chromium salts, arsenic and many other chemicals have been traced.
To make their pretty shapes you see on the shelves, they use glue.
Now it’s time to be sent to the store where an unknowing owner can purchase this awful chews.
I really hope this is enough to put you off this horrible dog chew and please share the word to other owners, as it’s good to spread awareness and spread knowledge where pet welfare is involved.
You can find some great rawhide alternatives Here.
