Greenies Dog Treat NOT Dangerous Now

UPDATE: Canine GREENIES® dental chews for dogs have been reformulated to be more safe and easily digestible, in 2006, in response to customer concerns about their safety for dogs.  As the company’s FAQ for veterinarians explains:

“Reformulated GREENIES® dental chews are 96 percent digestible, which is more digestible than the average dry dog food. Since the product was reformulated in 2006, there have been no reports of blockages or obstructions.”

So, no worries — it’s all good now!

For archival purposes only, and for the information of pet owners who may wonder what the story is/was, here’s my original article about the Greenies® safety issue, posted 17 Nov 2005:

Greenies Dog Treat may be Dangerous

Our dogs love Greenies® treats and would eat them every day if they had a chance, but serious questions are being raised about the safety of the product.

Those green “dental chews” certainly freshen the dogs’ breath, as advertised — but we’re beginning to think that these treats may be dangerous to the dog. A lot of reports have been coming to light recently about hazards related to Greenies ®, such as KIRO-tv’s investigative report (“Dog Treat May Carry Danger,” 15 November 2005), as well as numerous disturbing personal stories about dogs who have become very ill or even died from eating Greenies®.

Most of the reported health problems seem to be related to the Greenie creating a blockage in the dog’s intestine because it is not properly digested. That means great discomfort for the ill dog, at the very least, a trip to the veterinarian, and quite often some serious surgery — it can even mean death.

Bereaved dog owners and their veterinarians have described finding a solid mass of foam-rubber-like green substance in the dog’s digestive tract.

Yet, when I look at the list of Greenies® Ingredients, no red flags are leaping out to suggest a potential problem:

Processed wheat gluten (wheat protein), glycerin, natural flavor, powdered cellulose fiber, monosodium phosphate, monoglycerides of edible fatty acid, magnesium stearate and chlorophyll.

So what’s going on here?

The Greenies® website does say “Caution: As with any edible product, monitor your dog to ensure the treat is adequately chewed. Gulping any item can be harmful or even fatal to a dog.” (It does not, however, explain how to teach a dog to chew thoroughly before swallowing its treat.)

The importance of following the company’s “feeding instructions” is reflected in a response from the manufacturer, posted in the Global Paws forum’s Greenie Bone Warning discussion:

Question:
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There has been quite a bit of talk going around the internet about Greenies causing intestinal blockage. I have always tried to quell internet myths and rumors when I can. I have directed concerned dog owners to the Greenie website for info about feeding and discussed the numerous things we give our dogs that can cause blockages. I see that you have revised some of your feeding guidelines due to some new info. Can you give me an estimate of the percentage of intestinal blockages related to Greenies compared to other things? My guess is that it is relatively low.Answer:
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Millions of Greenies® are sold each week. On rare occurrences, we are troubled by an incident where a pet owner has said that his/her dog has had a problem with Greenies®. When we do hear of these reports, we always conduct a thorough investigation. Typically, the results of our investigations have revealed that the pet has been given the wrong size Greenies® by its owner or the pet has swallowed an abnormally large piece of Greenies® without chewing it. As such, we strongly recommend purchasing the correct size Greenies® according to the size and weight of your pet. Additionally, we recommend all pet owners supervise their pet’s eating and chewing habits. And not just with Greenies®, but when given dog bones, treats, rawhides, and even while eating meals.

Several people have notified us of the report about this Maltese that is circulating the internet. I can tell you that we did get the opportunity to investigate this case. We were so sad to hear about this dog. After doing an investigation, we found that this dog received the incorrect size of Greenies recommended for his weight. Our size recommendations are as follows:

Lil’ Bits:

Dogs under 5 pounds, dogs less than 6 months old, dogs of any size or age who tend to gulp

Teenies:

Dogs between 5 and 15 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Petite:

Dogs between 15 and 25 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Regular:

Dogs between 25 and 50 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Large:

Dogs between 50 and 100 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Jumbo:

Dogs over 100 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers.

Hopefully this information makes you feel better about our product. Any additional questions can be sent to Dr. Bradley Quest, our technical services veterinarian, at info@greenies.com. Please feel free to pass this response on.

Of course, any chewed object or food can cause a dog to choke. Greenies® are quite expensive, so a lot of people do try to save money by getting a slightly smaller size than is recommended.

From what I am reading about this story, however, it seems that the issue is not about choking on a hastily-gobbled treat but actually that the treat cannot be fully digested by the dog.

This email from Elaine Hopper of Starlaine Dobermans & Whippets tells story of her own recent personal experience:

Dog treat dangerI have a warning to pass on…

On the way back from the Dobe National this year, I was walking one of the dogs at the airport waiting for the owner to return our rental car when the dog decided to throw up…..

I was shocked to see a mass of green rubber-like material and immediately called the owner. The mass looked like something you would see in the pad under a carpet. I was assured the dog did not shred anything…and that the only thing the dog had been given to eat recently was a “Greenie”…one of those formed green dog treats that look like a toothbrush…..

I couldn’t believe one of those pressed dog treats would reconstitute into what looked like a mass of foam rubber pieces!

Well, after getting home my friend did an experiment….cut up one of those things and soaked it in water overnight….low and behold a mass of foam rubber crap! Certainly NOT digestible!

We both made a note to never feed those things again…and then last night in the Seattle area the newscast did a piece on…you guessed it GREENIES! A whole story about how dogs are DYING from blockages after eating those stupid things!

Here is a link to the article….turns out they are NOT 100% digestible….

My bottom line is this:
No more Greenies® for our dogs — not until I find out for sure what the rubbery-looking green material is that blocks the intestines of the dogs who are making the news.

So it’s back to our old regimen of (sterilized) real shank bones for the dogs’ (supervised) chewing amusement; chicken-flavoured toohpaste and a baby-sized toothbrush to clean their teeth and breath; and my own homemade dog cookies to please their greedy little doggie appetites between meals.

Tagged as: dog, Greenies, safety, treats