I give the large Nylabones to my male dachshund because he is such a hard chewer. If they are dangerous I had not heard that -- but if there is a danger in feeding would like to know so that I can stop giving them to my little guy.
Thanks.
Nefarious and Herschel: I gave my old labbie Nylabones all the time, but I just got a golden puppy, and her new vet was very specific about not giving her Nylabones or any other very hard bones, nothing but rubber, like Kongs. She said a really aggressive chewer could shear off her teeth gnawing on them, and that she saw it a lot in her practice. That wasn't something I'd even considered as being a problem. I have to say, though, that Molly, my old lab, did break three teeth over the years, which then had to be extracted. (None which I could trace to bones). Her teeth were awful, though, despite brushing, Hexoral rinse and twice a year cleanings.
Go figure. Probably each dog is different. The books I have on goldens all recommend Nylabones as being good for hard chewers. To be on the safe side, I probably won't give Phaidra any of them. Honestly, though, I think it's probably a crapshoot; growing up, none of my dogs had problems with knuckle bones, the kind my mom used in soup. I think it's most likely safe 99.99% of the time, and every once in a long while, you just get unlucky. I had to quit giving Molly rawhide chew chips because as soon as she got them softened, she'd try to swallow them whole. After the third time I had to reach down her throat and pry them off the back of her tongue (eww)....no more chips.
I'm so glad Brody's doing better, goldiefur, and we'll keep praying for him (and you)! Count me in if you need a paypal donation to help out with the vet bills.
Kitty