A Nylabone Alternative for an Anxious Dog
Like most Millennials, my dog is my baby. She gets a gift every Christmas and birthday. And for a good portion of her life, her gifts have been brand-new Nylabones because she spent most of her days gnawing one of the bones down to a stub. They kept her occupied and quiet, so they were a dream come true for my household, considering my dog barks any passing shadow she sees fit. But like all kids, dogs get old. And my energetic, anxious, spoiled rotten, loudmouth Corgi, Riley, is pushing eight years old, and her teeth are showing it more than any other part of her body.
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Over the last year, I started noticing her favoring her lips after a chew session, and I started to notice the cause tended to be little bits of nylabone she had bitten off and gotten lodged up between her teeth and gums. Shortly after, my vet told me that she had two cracked teeth. When we mentioned the nylabones might be at fault, my vet agreed. And upon further inspection, two cracked teeth turned out to be four, with abscesses to match. And by the end of it all, I was staring down a $2,200 canine dentist’s (yes, they exist) bill, hoping it would magically drop a “2.” No such luck. Suddenly all those $15 -20 sporadic purchases weren’t all that worth it.
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While browsing a mom-and-pop pet shop a while after that, a worker suggested a brand called “West Paw,” namely their line of toys comprised of a resilient, soft rubber- around the same price as an average nylabone. Our first corgi had a similar toy, so I gave it a shot and picked one up once Riley was fully recovered – the Drifty, to be exact. My dog had a new favorite toy within a day, and the hard plastic that had been harder on my wallet was already forgotten. She even ignored her favorite Kong in favor of chomping down on her new little blue bone for hours on end – and argued very loudly any time we tried to take it away. We were so thrilled with our find and followed it up with buying more from the brand- the Hurley and Snorkl in particular. So far, only the Snorkl has lost the fight against Riley’s incessant chew power. The Hurley was an even bigger hit, and Riley’s constantly carrying it around. But most importantly: there are no new dental issues, and she’s still just as distracted as she was with the nylabones. Victory!
I love that it’s sturdier than a Kong squeak toy but gentler than a Nylabone. It’s the best of both worlds- and less expensive to boot. Can’t go wrong with that combination, and I can’t wait to try more out for her. So, if your fur baby is a powerful chewer, I’d highly recommend West Paw products before their teeth and your wallet pay for nylabones.