About This Item
Dogs love the unique texture of Ugly Chew hair-on, whole hide beef hide rolls! These all-natural, chemical-free chews last long enough to be used over multiple chew sessions. The hair is rolled on the inside for a mess-free experience, and your dog will have a blast “discovering” it as they chew.
These full-hide dog chews are great for your power-chewer. By leaving the hair on, the chews last longer while also cleaning up the entire digestive system. You won't find any industrial chemicals or additives in these hides. They are 100% natural beef hides sourced from local Wyoming ranches.
HOW UGLY CHEWS ARE MADE
It All Starts with Local Ranchers, Butchers and Cows
At the moment all of our products are beef, primarily because Wyoming, Utah and Idaho have a lot of cows. Most of our cows are raised on small family farms in Wyoming, Utah and Idaho. No factory farms here. The meat from these cows goes to local restaurants and family freezers. We’ve partnered with multiple butchers to take the hides, ears, and trachea to make dog chews. We pick them up each day to make sure that they stay fresh and transport them to our facility.
Cleaning Them Up
Some other dog chew manufacturers keep their hides fresh by soaking them in salt or lime or bleach.
We always knew that wasn’t what we wanted to be. We want to keep our chews as clean and natural as possible, which is why we take them immediately from the butcher to cleaning. There are two important parts of the cleaning process: washing and fleshing. Fleshing is the removal of excess fat and meat from the hide. One reason we flesh the hides is for caloric impact. If we left meat and fat on the hides, they could easily be several hundred calories each, which makes them incredibly unhealthy for a simple chew. The main reason is because both meat and fat will spoil and go rancid without some form of preservative, and we don’t want your dog to get sick. Washing, is of course used to clean the hides. These are cows that graze mountain pastures, so their hides often carry dirt, grass, leaves, manure, etc. that needs thoroughly washed.
We don’t use any chemicals or soaps in our washing or fleshing. We just use water at various pressures and angles for a long time to make sure the hides are left fresh and clean, ready to be transformed into chews.
Cutting, Forming, and Drying
Once the hides are all clean, they are hand cut (using a knife!) into approximately 4, 8, and 12 inch strips. Technically we cut them a little longer than that to account for the size they lose when they dry.
Then they are rolled and put out onto racks in the direct sunlight to dry. This step is super important, because we want to keep our dog chews additive and chemical free. But we also don’t want your dog to get salmonella or E.coli or some other nasty bacteria. Luckily, studies have shown that direct exposure to the UV radiation in sunlight kills these bacteria. Each chew spends at least three days in direct sunlight, being rotated to make sure the entire chew is disinfected and dried. While this process is time-consuming, it allows us to create an all-natural chew without any chemicals, additives, or preservatives, while still providing a near infinite shelf-life to the final product.
ARE UGLY CHEWS SAFE?
Ugly Chews are significantly safer than “conventional” rawhide. Most commercial rawhide has been saturated with tanning chemicals and shaved to leave only a small portion of the skin. Simply put, Ugly Chews are made from the whole hide (no thinning or additives), while rawhide is typically a byproduct of the leather industry, and a thin layer from the hide. That makes them break easily and can cause blockages in your dog’s throat or digestive system.
Ugly Chews are made from fresh, whole cowhide. No processing, no chemicals. And just like wolves, coyotes, and dingoes don’t choke when chewing the hide of their prey, your dog is unlikely to choke on an Ugly Chew.
Now, there are always exceptions. We do our best to make our products as safe as possible, but you should still monitor your dog while they chew. Anything that fits in your dog’s mouth is a choking hazard, so be sure to take the last chunk away when it gets small enough to be swallowed whole.
Always supervise while chewing, and we suggest a set chew time every day. One chew should last your dog multiple sessions. While the hair on our hides has many benefits, chew time should be limited to help avoid blockages.
Our hides are washed with hot high-pressure water, and disinfected by UV, but not chemically disinfected, so there is always a small risk of bacteria, especially if not stored properly. And of course, our beef hide chews aren’t safe if your dog is allergic to beef.
To store they are kept in a cool/dry drying room.
FOR MORE INFORMATION visit Frequently Asked Questions at: Hair-On Hide Rolls for Dogs | All-Natural Chews – Ugly Chews
Ugly Chews 100% BEEF
Sun-Dried Beef Hides for Dogs. 8 oz
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (Min)- 95%
Crude Fat (Min)- 3%
Crude Fiber (Min) .5%
Moisture (Max) 12%