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Aussie Antlers – Dog Wash Café

Some dogs need soft deer antlers whilst others require hard antlers to chew on. We learnt this through experience seeing previous deer antler chews virtually disappearing in front of our eyes after a few short sessions.

Whatever your dog’s requirements might be, the team at Aussie Antlers will help you find the perfect match.


WHAT ARE AUSSIE ANTLERS?

Aussie Antlers are strictly sourced from Australian deer farms (not imported). They are naturally shed, full of nutrients, do not splinter and our dogs loved them! The colour, length, diameter and density of each piece varies as this is a naturally grown product and no two pieces are ever the same.

Based on our user feedback stating that our Belgian Shepherds - especially the two younger Malinois - are extremely powerful chewers, a special piece of 100% organic Australian Red Deer Antler was selected and shipped to us. 

Australian Red Deer Antler large 25cm piece
We received an extra large piece of antler, approxinately 25cm long and weighing around 250 grams. These pieces are best suited for the larger dog breeds or those - like us - looking for a heavier, denser antler piece that will last longer.

We decided we would set it aside as a special Christmas treat for our three Belgian Shepherds as they don’t mind sharing chew toys.

We had purchased various brands of antler chews in the past year and found our dogs enjoyed chewing on these mostly in the evenings after dinner, whilst we’re watching TV - though occasionally the loud background noise can get on your nerves… 


With 3 large dogs working efficiently as a “tag team”, deer antlers usually disappeared within a couple of weeks and we were on the lookout for something that would last a lot longer.


Australian Red Deer Antler cross section

Just taking this antler chew out of the package, I could feel an immediate difference in its density and weight. So did our dogs apparently when they were finally presented with their Christmas present: they all dutifully had a quick chomp but one after the other, they promptly abandoned this antler after only a few minutes.

The antler looked like extremely hard work for them before they could reach the nice-smelling (we can only assume) softer inside part.



If your dog is not interested at first, you can try rubbing the antler a little with a file or sandpaper, or soaking in water overnight, or a little peanut butter. –


It took the best part of three weeks and the repeated assaults of our female Malinois to start seeing a dent in this antler. All of the sudden, the other two dogs started taking an interest (apparently all the hard work had now been done…) and they would take it in turns to pick this antler chew and chomp on it for short sessions. 
Belgian Malinois grinding a large piece of deer antler

WHAT WE LIKE

A whole 7 weeks later, the original 25cm antler piece has now been ground down to a little stump barely 6cm long and it is not long before it needs to be retired… We're pretty happy with the time one single antler lasted given that three powerful chewers were taking turns to use it. We hear that other dog breeds may take up to 6 or even 12 months to go through a piece.

Yes, these hard duty deer antler chew will cost you a little more initially but if you actually work out the cost on a weekly basis, they end up being much more economical and who has time to visit a pet shop every other week anyway?

Antler Tips:

For intense chewers, you can give the antler as a treat for a controlled period each day, for 1 to 2 hours maximum ONLY. 

With most dog breeds, it is be perfectly fine to leave an antler chew in the backyard full time.

As a general rule, a dog should not be allowed to grind down more than 1cm of antler per few days. Make sure the antler is removed once it is small enough for them to swallow whole. 

As with any new toy or treat, it's a good idea to observe your dog with their first antler to discover their chewing habits.

PRICE & WHERE TO BUY


Sizes available from XSmall to XXLarge (ask for advice if you’re unsure which one to select the first time).


RRP: $8 - $44 from dogwashcafe.com.au
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