[lereg15]

does anybody feed their dogs ham bones? I've heard mixed opinions about them.

 

[Murphys Dad]

I don't for a couple reasons. I only allow the Bagel to gnaw on raw bones as cooked bones can splinter and could hurt him. If I could find an uncooked ham bone I'd not give it to the Bagel because unlike good beef or fresh chicken, I believe healthy pig meat can (most often does) contain Trichinella worms. Anyone who eats raw or undercooked pork, or Ursine (bear), feline (like cougar or Lynx)), vupine(fox), canine (dog, coyote or wolf), or wild horse is therefore at risk for acquiring trichinosis. My friend says the danger from undercooked pork is less than it was in old tymes but I won't take a chance with my Bagel's health.

 

[we3beagles]

And every time I have ever given my dogs ham they have had bad bum for days. Pork is an extremely rich meat and can react badly with their delicate little systems.

 

[Murphys Dad]

We gave Amber(my last dog...at the bridge now.) cooked ham bones a few times. My uncle said the marrow in them was good for her. They made her poop look like concrete so we stopped. I wouldn't recommend them. I buy beef marrow bones from the meat department at our grocery store. Jersey loves them.

 

[Melissa1701]

I have never given my pups a ham bone, but for christmas, I thought it would be a good idea to give them some honey baked ham... BIG MISTAKE! Suzy and Julio were fine, but beau had diarrhea for three days and wouldnt eat. I bought pedialyte for him, but thank god he got better. Just a heads up! I think it was the honey/glaze on it by the way...

Suzy Q,Beau and Julio

 

[BookerMoose]

One of my coworkers gave her dog (a spaniel) a cooked ham bone last Christmas and it splintered and stuck and he had to have emergency surgery to have it removed and it was touch and go for the little guy for a while... After hearing her story I would definitely not recommend giving a dog a cooked ham bone - it might be fine 99% of the time but I wouldn't chance the 1% when something could go terribly wrong.

As for the trichinosis, I have always had trouble dealing with a mental image my mom gave me when I was a kid - she worked as a dietician in a local hospital and she would tell me how, when they would lay the pork out, all of the worms in the pork would poke their heads up and they would have to go around and pull all of them out of the meat before cooking it. Needless to say we didn't eat much pork at my house (although, strangely enough, we did eat a lot of ham and wouldn't that have had the same worms...?). I have heard things are better now, but I can't get that image out of my head whenever I think of pork. So now you can have it in yours too (a gift from my dear mom who passed away thirteen years ago today... I'm a bit blue today as a result but happy that I got to share her pork story with you all)!

 

[lereg15]

I really didn't think it was a good idea. I knew about pork bones, but I wasn't quite sure on the ham bone since it was bigger. Thank you all for your input.