Elk bones ok to give my dog?

[hawk1]

I boned out my elk and was thinking about keeping the bones for the dog. Couple of questions:

1) Should I boil them first or is freezing them ok?

2) Anything to lookout for??? splinters? explosive dog crap around the yard?!

[earplug]

My dogs like the freezing option. My wife likes to boil stuff for stock.

[Great-Kazoo]

Frozen gives them a challenge. Antelope, deer, elk, our pups don't care. We take them away once they get smaller. Once they get chewed a bit we take them away, to avoid the bones splintering. . I'd save them for warmer weather. The bones give ours a desire to go out more, as it gives them the runs.

[fitz19d]

Cooking iirc enhances splintering though boiling might be different. I'd lean with just freeze and thaw if you are worried about parasites.

Elk/deer horn/antler is big money as they are great chews that supposedly act like a vitamin and are easy on teeth with no splintering. My only worry with 110lb dog is once they worry them small enough jackass swallowing it whole.

[DOC]

Got any extra for my dog?

[bobbyfairbanks]

Dude my yard has bones buried all over from deer and elk. Every now and again they show properly cured and the dog eats them. No freezing no cooking just give them to your dog. Unless your dog has a weak stomach.

[Monky]

Cooking iirc enhances splintering though boiling might be different. I'd lean with just freeze and thaw if you are worried about parasites.

Elk/deer horn/antler is big money as they are great chews that supposedly act like a vitamin and are easy on teeth with no splintering. My only worry with 110lb dog is once they worry them small enough jackass swallowing it whole.

Mine wittles them down to nubs... in a matter of hours a good sized antler becomes a nub. then it gets tossed. He hasn't swallowed one yet, but he has had them in his mouth crunching on them like a jaw breaker.

[Robb]

I have read to never give your dog a cooked bone, they supposidly will splinter. Raw is fine.
Although we used to give our collie cooked bones all the time and we never had an issue, I felt pretty crappy about it when I found out we shouldn't be cooking them.
A bud had his dog get a hold of cooked chicken bones & it killed him even with emergency surgery.
We give our dogs all our raw deer/elk/antelope leg bones. We freeze them. After they work them over I bust them up so they can get the marrow. Haven't had an issue yet.