Fact or Truth?

[smileyzookie]

Ok first off, I know next time not to against my judgement and instincts.

 

Riven has horrible breath, worse than dog breath. The vet says she has oral issues, and recommended to try "greenies". For those of you who dont know.. Greenies are green "all natural" toothbrush shaped snacks for better breath. I can put the ingredients if you really wanna know them. My best friend says dogs die and cant digest them, although she has personally never experienced, or known anyone who has experienced the death, or sickness. I asked the vet about this information and they said it was fiction that its just an urban myth. But here's the website for their response to questions about digestion. http://www.greenies.com/faqs/details.cfm?ID=514

 

Today, we got her stitches out for her spay. We got her food, and I happened to remember we wanted to discuss the breath issue more. Again.. greenies were recommended. So we bought 1 for $1.00. Got home from training, and gave it to her and she ate the heck out of it. Enjoyed it a lot. This was about 11 am. Around 3am this morning, we heard her vomiting. :eek: When we cleaned it up, my husband bless his heart, cleans it for me, anyway - we cleaned it and it was greenish yellow. Had chunks of greenie in it. We didnt give her dinner cause she ate like 4 or 5 hotdogs today at training and the trainer said dont give her dinner cause she's eatten enough.

 

My question is... Does anyone know of someone who has had a dog die or get sick cause of greenies? :confused: In our case, we dont know if its a fluke. COuld be greenie, could be too much hot dogs, could be we didnt feed her. But I want everyones opinion. :confused:

 

My husband says he doesnt think the product would still be out on the market if there were confirmed cases of it causing death. I dunno.

 

Ok as an afterthought (i probably should have done this first) I searched for it on the forums. I read people saying there are better treats to give their dogs for breath. Can you name some? Our stores out here in nowhere land stink, and selection is very limited.

[SincereArtisan]

From what I've heard, and what I've read, greenies can not be broken down when a dog ingests them. This is why there is a disclaimer of sorts on the packaging stating that your dog's poop might be greenish or green chunks might turn up.

 

However, deaths have only resulted in dogs who swallowed large chunks. Because it doesn't digest, it would cause blockage and such.

 

I think there were only 3-4 greenie-related deaths. And this is out of hundreds of thousands of greenie-users. And it was because the dog swallowed large chunks.

 

So they say that if your dog is apt to bite off big pieces or try and swallow the greenie whole by 'wolfing' it down, that greenies are not to be fed whole...instead, they do offer it in bits and little pieces.

 

My dogs ate greenies, well before I was aware of any problems. And after I found out about the problems, and the cause of the deaths, I didn't stop serving greenies to my dogs. It did help with their breath, and none of them had a problem swallowing large pieces. They all chewed theirs up gradually. And none had any weird side effects. I didn't even notice the green bits in their poo. But I did always make sure to give them greenies only when I was there to watch. While it may not have provided any vitamins or nutrients, it did help their teeth, and their breath.

 

If it goes in a dog's mouth and is meant to be chewed on, chances are there is going to be some cases out there where things got out of hand. I've known boxers to accidentally swallow tennis balls. I've known dogs to get blockages from rop toys and rubber toys, sticks poke holes in throats and mouths, and even problems with rawhides. In the case of greenies, the ratio of deaths compared to the use of the product is what I've looked at, and while it is a concern, I would just make sure you are there to supervise any greenie-action if you do decide to give her greenies.

 

And the puke could have been the hot-dog dinner combined with the greenie...I know our old lab would have an upset stomach if his diet was suddenly changed and unfamiliar food suddenly replaced one of his meals. I guess wait a few days, and on a day she has only had her regular diet for the past few and there are no signs of an upset stomach, try the greenie again to see if it really was the greenie that upset her. Instead of giving her the big one, you could just offer her a handful of the little bits if you're worried about her getting huge pieces down...

 

Sorry I'm so long winded.

[kelpiegirl]

I have two dogs who will swallow large chunks of things, and one in particular who had emergency stomach/intestinal surgery resulting from this behaviour, which means that even if there is a chance of this happening, I wouldn't feed them.

Giving 4-5 hot dogs is QUITE a lot for a dog. Cut the pieces into quarters. Hd's can cause gas and stomach aches if eaten in large quantities.

Julie

[Dal & Mad's Mom]

I would get bones and good hard dog cookies (neutro is really hard) and try that. I'd used greenies before and they were moderately received but, I think Jewel vomitted too. I also use the flexible flavored nylabones too but, they are a bit pricey. I also used to be involved in testing some of those treat bones at the grocery and such most stunk you out of the room while being eaten.

[Dal & Mad's Mom]

I forgot to add that for training I've used pounce in the jar with really good results esp the fish varieties.

[Tiga's_mom]

I give Tiga nylabones and soup marrow bones from the grocery store. They seem to do the trick. His teeth are nice and clean and his breath doesn't stink at all.

[Kitch]

I used to give greenies but won't any longer. A 2 day stay and a $700 vet bill has that effect on you. I gave him the appropriate size and Dublin never gulped or bit off large chunks of greenie. Instead he gnawed on it and the easiest way to explain it is that he created a greenie slurry in his stomach and upper intestine that solidified and caused a blockage. He had to be put on IV fluids, "flushed" out and put on medication for a few days.

 

I feed raw now and I have no problem with his breathe. Even my best friend (so not a dog person, believes all dogs are stinky) commented last weekend on how nice Dublin's breathe is and how he never has doggy smell.

[Rave]

Greenies have been discussed on here a number of times. Do a search (link is in upper right corner) and it should bring up the threads. At the time of the last discussion (I think last month?), there were 13 Greenie-induced deaths and many more near-misses:

 

"A CNN investigation uncovered 40 cases since 2003 where a veterinarian had to extract a Greenie from a dog after the treat became lodged either in the animal's esophagus or intestine. In 13 of those cases, the pet died.

 

McKiernan's says his Denver clinic has seen at least seven cases in the past five years, which he says is an unusually high number. That prompted him to start researching and writing a paper to warn other veterinarians of the problem.

 

He says his research, which he hopes to get published in a veterinary journal, shows compressed vegetable chew treats, of which Greenies is the most popular, are now the third biggest cause of esophageal obstruction in dogs behind bones and fish hooks."

 

Bottom line, it's not worth the risk, IMO.

 

-Laura

[Kit]

I give my dogs C.E.T. HEXtra by Vibac Animal Health. My Old English use to have terrible breath but this has helped a lot. You can get them from a veterinarian. They have Chlorhexidine Gluconate in a beef raw hide. I have used greenies also and had asked my vet. They stated it becomes a choking hazard usually with small dogs that dont chew up the product completely. Also when owners do not by the correct size for their dog. ie...they want to save money so they buy smaller size (more in the package) and then they swallow the greenies whole.

Here is the link to Vibac, they have a whole line of oral care:

http://www.cetdental.com

Kari and Kit

[RaisingRiver]

I used to give Greenies to my dogs who ate them nicely, even after posts on this forum - they got one once a week. But then one day one of them barfed up mostly bile and a chunk of greenie - from the day before.

 

That confirmed the limited digested issue w/ Greenies. It wasn't a chunk one would choke on (big dog) but still made me uneasy.

 

I still have the box left in my cabinet of unused greenies.... should probably toss em.

 

Now I'm feeding the rawhide type material that comes in strips pre-dipped w/ peanut butter. I'm mostly looking for dental care for my 5yo. dog.

[Meg's mum]

The bad press about Greenies scared me off. I've just been brushing meg's teeth with doggie toothpaste and a variety of finger/regular brushes since she was a baby (two months ago). I thought I was supposed to.

 

I don't know if pups can diget alfalfa but my old dog used to love to it alfalfa pellets when she could steal them from the guinea pig, and I swore that it kept her breath fresh.

[Tiga's_mom]

I brush Tiga's teeth too. A lot of people tell me they wish their dogs would let them, but like you Heidi I've been doing it to Tiga since we got him at about 3 months old. I haven't needed to as much since I've been giving him raw bones, but he still gets a good brushing sometimes.

[urge to herd]

We had trouble w/greenies, bad diarrhea in my 2 that have sensitive tummies.

 

I found a chewie called Zukes (www.zukes.com) that I really like. It helps their breath, no digestive upsets whatsoever, and they love them.

 

Somebody posted something to me a while ago about N-bones, I googled it and looks pretty good. I haven't been able to find them around here so haven't tried any.

 

And, ditto on the hot dogs. The way I used hd's was to slice them longways into quarters, then slice into little pie shaped pieces, then scatter on a paper towel and nuke them or bake them. It gets some of the fat out to do that, and they last a bit longer in the jeans pocket. You can boil them first, as well, to get out some of the salt. I used to get at least 50 or 60 pieces out of one hd.

 

Good luck!

 

Ruth n the BC3

[BustopherJones]

Our vet specifically prohibits us from giving our dog Greenies; she has seen too many cases where they have caused serious digestive problems, sometimes fatal. She has also banned such products as pigs' feet and other seemingly popular, yet hard-to-digest, products. As to whether products sold for animals are actually safe for dogs -- keep in mind that the FDA does not regulate pet products.

 

As for the breath, we brush Shadow's teeth with a special toothpaste that dogs can digest, using a special brush supplied by the vet. This has resulted in a signfiicant improvement. We also feed our dogs the variety version Old Mother Hubbard cookies, including the charcoal cookies that help both breath and digestion. (Shadow's sister also gets the OMH Couch Potato cookies meant for BIG dogs, which help clean her teeth.)

[Snorri the Priest]

Being a resident of the UK (or "inmate", if you prefer ), I've never come across these "Greenie" things, so I can't really comment on them.

 

BUT - Snorri-dog used to have a ferocious breath problem (the stench was even coming through his coat :eek: ).

 

We tried everything we could find - even tablets of parsley and peppermint - and nothing seemed to work.

 

The problem was solved by stopping feeding him on canned food, and switching him over to minced offcuts from our local butcher shop. The stench disappeared almost overnight and has never returned.

 

Not only that, but there are never any leftovers, it's easier to do portion control, and it's cheaper than the commercial rubbish. It does take up a bit of freezer space, but so what?

 

As it's pretty much human-standard, there are no chemical nasties in it and no mechanically-recovered offal, so it has to be better for them, all-round.

 

Also, as a side-effect, buying what would otherwise be thrown away helps to keep our butcher in business (there aren't many left here).

 

One problem, though - the little beggars won't eat anything else now! But at least, both boys are now socially-acceptable!

 

Snorri

[Susan M. & Skipper, Annie and Ben]

Sorry if I'm asking something you already answered in another post, but have you had your dog's anal sacs checked? It they're full, they are irritating to the dog who will lick them, causing very bad breath.

 

I don't feed greenies. Two of my dogs gulp them down in chunks and it's too risky for me. I know this because they (thankfully) vomited the chunks up.

 

How are your dog's teeth? Any plaque or gum disease?

 

Good luck.

[smileyzookie]

When we got her almost 2 mo ago, the vet looked at her teeth and never said anything; but this is the same vet that recommended greenies and told me science diet is better than raw.

 

We are taking the animals next week, cat and dog; to the vet. They are both scratching their ears, so i don't know if it's mites, or if one has an ear infection and we are just noticing them scrathing more. Riven will whine as of late while scratching her ears, she very very tenderly scratches. She did have kennel cough when we got her, could that cause an ear infection like it would in a human with a cold? Her ears look fine, and they seem to smell fine too. It might just be we are paranoid, but it never hurts to be sure. So, we will ask on the day we take them to the vet if her anal sacks need checked. I always seem to forget when I am there, becuase I never knew about it untill i got on the board.

 

 

Thanks for everyones stories, advice, opinions,etc. I dont' think we will feed greenies to her again, don't wanna take the chance, although what we keep hearing is that dogs eat them in big chunks, that was not the case with riven, she sat there forever and kinda mushed it up in her mouth, licking and chewing it alot, and I do mean alot.

But wether or not greenies did have a bad affect on her we are not taking the chance.... now if only I could convince my husband to start the raw diet....

[Little Bo Boop]

Our internist said no greenies, also no rawhide chews...all these have chemicals and God know's what else in them, not to mention the choking hazard posed by the rawhide bones. I use plain old beef soup bones from the grocery store. Once a week, you can even feed them frozen, my dogs have sparkly choppers and lovely breath well unless La Liz has made a recent visit to the litter box .

[Tassie]

My two have only had one Greenie - no bad experience - but at more than $1.00 per minute, forget it.

 

But - my friend's Border Collie's first Greenie had pretty much the same experience as Kitch's Dublin. She vomited a few hours later, then the next afternoon was admitted to the hospital and put on a drip to rehydrate her as she hadn't eaten or drunk anything. She had developed gastro enteritis - almost certainly from the Greenie, and was on Flagyl for that for some days, as well as cortisone and another a/b to deal with an infection from her IV site which she kept licking at.

 

Needless to say, she's getting no more Greenies. even though her sister has them regularly with no apparent ill-effects.

 

It seems that many dogs have no problems, but there are way too many who do have problems - IMO it's not worth taking the risk.

[Snorri the Priest]

In addition to their raw mince diet, my Boys get one of these chews every evening after they've been fed:

 

http://www.pedigree.com.au/products/dentastix.asp

 

TBH, I can't vouch for their availability outside the UK, but as the website APPEARS to be based in Australia, the availability MAY be international.

 

My dogs love them, and the vet says their teeth are excellent. There has been no sign of a problem with digesting them, either.

 

I'd recommend them, if you can lay hands on them, as they seem to do what it says on the pack (for once :eek: )

 

JMO

 

Snorri

[smileyzookie]

Originally posted by kelpiegirl:

Giving 4-5 hot dogs is QUITE a lot for a dog. Cut the pieces into quarters.

I cut a hot dog up like you said for training, and it was awesome. For her whole session I only used 1/2 a hotdog. She didnt even notice a difference.

Originally posted by Susan M. & Skipper, Annie and Ben:

Sorry if I'm asking something you already answered in another post, but have you had your dog's anal sacs checked? It they're full, they are irritating to the dog who will lick them, causing very bad breath.

She has an appointment Tuesday to get them checked

 

Thanks so much everyone I appreciate everyone's input so much.