# Q about beef ribs



## Nani (Apr 14, 2010)

I have never fed my dogs beef ribs. I am curious as to how hard they are and if any of you think they can break teeth. For some reason they've always seemed more hard and splintery. For whole un-ground bones I've always fed all kinds of birds, fish and rabbits. I have access to freshly ground beef, lamb, venison ect all with bone ground in but I've been nervous and curious to try beef ribs.


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Beef ribs are a good recreational treat/chew but I wouldnt consider them a meal. We have all large dogs (60-120 pounds) so we get whole racks of them. We split them up into sections of 2-4 ribs depending on the size of the dog. This way they have to work harder to detach and strip the rib bones of the meat. They gnaw on the bones for a while but don't actually consume the bone. Sometimes they break off a larger piece but it has never been an issue. I don't believe that beef ribs are dense enough to break teeth, but that isn't a guarantee.


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## Nani (Apr 14, 2010)

Thanks! I just wasn't sure and I have a dog with very weak enamel so I am very cautious with which types of bones I give him to chew on. I've always liked the idea of them getting the mental and physical stimulation of ripping hunks of meat off of large bone I just worry about the chewing on those larger bones. I think I might buy some and just supervise then discard the bones once they've ripped the meat off. 
I saw the link you posted with the giant deer rib cage. That was awesome!!!


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

Yeah our dogs really enjoy beef ribs. I would definitely give them a go and see how your dog does with them. Some of our dogs are such professional eaters that they can strip four beef ribs in a matter of minutes while others are more meticulous about it and take their time!


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## Northwoods10 (Nov 22, 2010)

I haven't had the opportunity to let my dogs try them yet, but from what I've heard.....they are mostly just a bone that they will rip the meat off and maybe chew on a bit.......not to actually be edible.


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## RachelsaurusRexU (Sep 4, 2010)

I've been using beef ribs as a light meal the night before I give a larger meal. I give three ribs connected. My dogs will strip the meat off and then I'll let them gnaw on the bones until they get bored. I have pit bulls (aka power chewers!) and only one of them has been able to gnaw about half of the bone away until he gave up. They haven't been able to (or perhaps just haven't tried to?) actually break or splinter the bones.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

we use them as a meal because we weigh the bone before and after and generally one rib is good for our 18 lb dog and two are good for our 36 pound dog...

they really get a nice workout, plus much needed fat, some meat and good teeth cleaning. beef ribs are a nice win, win for us.


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## RachelsaurusRexU (Sep 4, 2010)

Re, is it the beef back ribs that you use? If so, what would you say the approximate meat to bone ratio is? This is something I've been meaning to figure out but it keeps slipping my mind on rib days.


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

let's see. they don't eat the bones, my two...so there is no bone ratio, just amount of meat.

one rib generally yields, for us, approximately 4 ounces of meat....two is about 7-8 ounces...

let's see....since it varies from rack to rack....last night they got beef ribs, so it's fresh in my head.

bubba's total weight was 8.4 ounces and when he was done, it weighed 4 ounces.
malia's two ribs weighed 13.2 ounces and when she was done, we had 7 ounces of bone left.


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## schtuffy (May 17, 2010)

I use it as a meal as well because my dog is barely 13 pounds. They are a bit fatty though and made him throw up a couple times and have softer poop. That was many months ago though, and he's acclimated to raw much better now so I will probably start giving them to him again, and sandwich it with more bone. It takes him pretty much all day to strip the meat off, and for some strange reason he reeks like a slab of steak for the next day or two. Very strange! But he loves them :smile:


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

schtuffy said:


> I use it as a meal as well because my dog is barely 13 pounds. They are a bit fatty though and made him throw up a couple times and have softer poop. That was many months ago though, and he's acclimated to raw much better now so I will probably start giving them to him again, and sandwich it with more bone. It takes him pretty much all day to strip the meat off, and for some strange reason he reeks like a slab of steak for the next day or two. Very strange! But he loves them :smile:


i thought it would be cool, in the beginning, to let them play with a beef rib...that was a big oops, because they weren't acclimated to fat in that quantity yet....so man, poor babies paid with a few days of squirts....but boney meals cleared it up after a few days....so i did what you did...

when i reintroduced, i gave a boney meal before the beef rib and after...

now i just have to give a boney meal before or after..and they're fine, but we're a year in now....yay...


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## SpooOwner (Oct 1, 2010)

There's a dog in our neighborhood who eats the bone. It's a horrendous sound, but he seems ok afterward. Still, I try not to let it happen.


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## Katie Chumlee and Shorty (Oct 22, 2010)

Took him over 15 minutes to get the meat off and he never ate the bone hwell: Neither did my GSP


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## sassymaxmom (Dec 7, 2008)

Very cute! I also weigh the ribs before and after. You would never think it but they seem to be only half bone so I give Max about 20-24 ounces and it comes to just his meal size. I couldn't do this for a while as he thought anything in his bowl was meant to be completely eaten. Last year I was amazed when I gave him a whole rack, 3 pounds maybe? He ate the meat and some bone. It should have been 20-24 ounces of meat and fat down the hatch which ought to produce a large messy poop but he had tiny firm poops as he ate just enough bone for the meal. One of his and my favorite meals. It is a hoot to watch him take the bones apart - he must TOUCH them!

In her heyday Sassy could down a cooked beef rib in 5 minutes with no issues.


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## Kofismom (Sep 14, 2010)

Hey Chumlee!
Good to see you sweet boy!
Kofi did eat the beef bones, which made me switch to pork. I may try them again though.
Love to you guys!


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## Katie Chumlee and Shorty (Oct 22, 2010)

Kofismom said:


> Hey Chumlee!
> Good to see you sweet boy!
> Kofi did eat the beef bones, which made me switch to pork. I may try them again though.
> Love to you guys!


Really? These are really long ones! And with his abnormally narrow trachea he chokes so easy so that is why I bought the long ones not short ribs. Were Kofi's Short ribs?


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## Nani (Apr 14, 2010)

*Update...Gave them rib bones....*

So I got a rack of beef ribs this afternoon and gave each dog 3-4 ribs. They had an absolute blast pulling all the meat and fat off. I was so happy and planned on giving this to them about once a week.......Until I looked in their mouth afterwords....My youngest dog (not the one with weak enamel) Chipped a good portion of his molar off and there is a big hole in one area down to the nerve.

I'm so bummed out about this! No more ribs for us.


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

OH no! Thats terrible...so sorry this happened! Are you sure it just now happened?


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## bumblegoat (May 12, 2010)

Oh no, that stinks! I wonder the same thing as Natalie, are you sure it just happened?


I also have a question about beef ribs, so I might as well post it here. I haven't found any beef ribs yet, but if I do, I also wonder if they would be any good for my dog. My dog is pretty small, like 20lbs, and he has some fractured teeth. Should I try giving beef ribs to him? Though, I have never seen beef ribs, so this would mean that I would have to ask around to get them.


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

I'm sure they would be fine for your dog, size wise. I know that magicre's dogs are small and do fine.


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## bumblegoat (May 12, 2010)

It isn't the size that worries me the most, it is the teeth. I think he has like, three fractured molars or something. Can't remember exactly though.


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## Kofismom (Sep 14, 2010)

Katie Chumlee and Shorty said:


> Really? These are really long ones! And with his abnormally narrow trachea he chokes so easy so that is why I bought the long ones not short ribs. Were Kofi's Short ribs?


They were about five or six inches long. I may try them again, but I was surprised to see that she ate the bones. I don't hear her chomping like I do Billy Jean, but she is pretty much a gulper.


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## Nani (Apr 14, 2010)

DaneMama said:


> OH no! Thats terrible...so sorry this happened! Are you sure it just now happened?


Sadly I'm sure, I brush my dog's teeth everyday so I had seen his molars that morning and it was a very fresh break. My older dog has broken both upper canines so I'm unfortunately very familier with fresh versus older breaks. I stopped feeding all recreational bones due to fear of tooth breakage cause I'm pretty paroniod about that kinda thing even though they had never had problems with beef and bison knuckles. 
Oh well stuff happens and you live and learn... I plan on keeping an eye on the tooth and gently rinsing the area out with luke warm salt water and hope the root just dies, recedes and doesn't get infected!


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## magicre (Apr 7, 2010)

bumblegoat:

my pug weighs 18 lbs and has a wide mouth and narrow trachea....malia is a corgi mix and has teeth better suited for raw...

i honestly believe it comes down to how much your dog wants to eat that bone....

i watch my dogs...especially with beef ribs....because my pug would eat cement if it smelled good.....once they strip all the meat off and are pulling the fibrous fattiness and whatever else those long things are.....he'll start to gnaw on the ends...i will let him until i hear him get a piece off and then i take the bone away. he has enough edible bone, like lamb and goat ribs to challenge him and clean....he's got whole lamb necks to give his teeth a good cleaning....and these are a softer bone.

i am wary of beef ribs.....they get them because well they are beef, have nice dietary fat and they give them a good half hour workout....but i won't let them crunch...even if they could.


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