Rawhide is just exactly what it says it is - a
raw, dried out, animal hide. The majority of rawhide pet treats are not made in the United States, but even those marked
"Made in the U.S.A." are a hazard.
A
piece of rawhide purchased as a treat for your pet is a hide, usually bull, cow, or horse obtained from slaughter houses,
that has been scraped clean of all vestiges of meat, fat, and hair. Rawhide, however, can be made from just about any
animal. For Native Americans and early Europeans, it was the sheet metal, nails, and binding material of the day.
Rawhide was used to repair items such as horse gear and broken gunstocks, and in cabin contruction as door hinges, windows,
and truss bindings. Mandan Indians used rawhide in the construction of their boats. As you can see, rawhide is
a very strong, durable, heavy-duty item that does not break down easily.
Still want to give it to your pets?
Rawhide
is made for commercial use from bull, cow, and horsehides obtained from slaughterhouses as a byproduct of the meat industry.
The flesh side is scraped clean of all remaining meat, membrane, fat, etc. Traditionally, this is done by hand using
a drawknife and scraper. Modern day tenneries use a form of a band saw to speed the process up and make a nice clean
piece of leather. Commercial manufacturers of rawhide products have machinery to do this. Once the flesh side
is cleaned, the hair must be removed. There are two traditional ways of doing this. One is to "dry scrape"
by hand - this is extremely time consuming.
The other method is to soak the fleshed hide in either an Ash-Lye solution or a
lime solution. The Ash-Lye involves covering or soaking the hide in a mixture of wood ash and water, which creates Lye.
The hide soaks for approximately three days in the Lye solution, then as much of the hair as possible is scraped off.
The process is repeated until all the hair is removed.
The lime solution is the quickest and most often utilized by
manufacturers. This utilizes ordinary builders powered (hydrated) lime. The hide soaks for 1-3 days and the hair
is scraped off. This process is highly caustic, but the most efficient for mass production.
To remove all traces of the lime
solution and to sanitize the rawhide product, commercial makers then rinse the hides in a bleach solution before creating
whatever shape is to be used. The bone and other shapes used to attract you and your pet are created while the hide
is still wet. The "treats" are then either dried or sent for smoking to further entice the unsuspecting owner
and pet. A processed rawhide can shrink up to half it's original size when dried.
If the chemicals used
to make these "treats" haven't convinced you to stop, please consider this:
When rawhide is again wetted,
usually when your pet salivates over it, it will slowly regain it's original size. When your pet tears off and swallows
a piece, that piece then has the potential to swell inside your dog's stomach. Your dog's gastric juices CAN NOT break
down the rawhide. Once swollen, the piece then has the potential to cause anything from mild to severe gastic upset
- to death.
Don't believe us? Take the rawhide challenge:
Cut varying sizes from different rawhide products and set them
in a bowl of water to soak overnight. In the morning you will see the sizes they have grown to. They will
vary, but the increase should be noticeable.
So what should you give your pet?
-Natural chews such a beef tendons, bully sticks,
etc.
-Zukes Dental Chew Bones
-A Kong, Tux, or similar toy with treats stuffed inside
-Nylabones
-Or ask us here at ZPUP to do
some research on what you are giving your pup!
*Greenies dental chews are also NOT very safe for your pet. The pieces your
dog is able to bite off while chewing are not easily digestible and can cause stomach and intestinal tract problems.*
