Rawhide Alternatives

The chews that come closest to how rawhide behaves, without being rawhide. Nothing here is a formed or moulded product, and nothing here is a by-product of the leather trade.

Natural rawhide alternative dog chews from Wag & Whistle
Which one is closest to rawhide? Our own figures for this range

Most rawhide alternative ranges are full of formed chews: minced meat and starch pressed into a bone shape. That solves the rawhide problem by making a different processed product. Everything here is one ingredient, air-dried, in the shape the animal came in. Closest to rawhide first.

ChewHow closeWhat it is
Buffalo wrapClosestRolled buffalo skin
Furry buffalo wrapClosestRolled buffalo skin, fur on
Camel wrapClosestRolled camel skin
Braided buffalo collagenVery closeBraided collagen layer
Buffalo collagen strawVery closeHollow collagen tube
Braided tendonSimilar chew, different feelBraided beef tendon
Beef pizzleSimilar chew, different feelSingle dried pizzle, 20 to 25cm
Beef tracheaSofter, gives soonerWindpipe, hollow

Closeness here means how it behaves in the mouth: whether it softens as they work at it, holds its shape, and gives that same slow give rawhide has. The three wraps are skin, so they are the nearest thing by some distance. The collagen chews are the layer directly beneath skin, which is why they come next. If your dog reacts to beef, the camel wrap does the same job with a protein almost nothing else uses.

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Two natural camel wrap dog chews on a white background

Camel Wrap

Per Wrap, 2 for £12

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£6.50
Five dried beef pizzle bully sticks laid out on a white background

Beef Pizzle (Bully Stick)

Per Pizzle, 3 for £15

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£6.00
Braided buffalo collagen dog chew, a thick plaited natural chew

Braided Buffalo Collagen

Per Braid, 3 for £17.50

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£6.50
A pile of dried beef trachea for dogs, showing the hollow centre of each tube

Beef Trachea

Per Trachea, 5 for £6.50

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£1.50
Two natural braided beef tendon chews for dogs on a white background

Braided Tendon

Per Tendon, 3 for £10

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£4.00
Three natural buffalo wrap dog chews on a white background

Buffalo Wrap

Per Wrap, 2 for £12

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£6.50
A furry buffalo wrap dog chew with the dark fur left on, on a white background

Furry Buffalo Wrap

Per Wrap, 2 for £12

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£6.50
Buffalo collagen straw, a long hollow natural dog chew

Buffalo Collagen Straw

Per Straw, 3 for £7.50

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£3.00

Questions we get asked

The ones that come up most about this range

Why avoid rawhide?

Two reasons. Rawhide is a by-product of the leather trade rather than a food, and getting a hide from an abattoir to a shelf usually involves chemical treatment along the way. And it does not digest properly: it swells and softens into a mass rather than breaking down, which is what causes the blockages you will have read about. A dried chew made of meat digests the way food does.

What is the closest thing to rawhide?

A buffalo wrap, by a distance. It is rolled skin, so it is the same sort of material doing the same sort of thing: it softens as they work at it, holds its shape, and takes a while. If your dog liked rawhide specifically rather than chewing in general, start there.

Are rawhide free chews from the supermarket any better?

Sometimes, and it is worth reading the ingredients rather than the front of the pack. A lot of what gets sold as a rawhide alternative is a formed chew: minced meat, starch, humectants and colouring pressed into a bone shape. That is not rawhide, but it is not a single ingredient either. Everything on this page is one thing, air-dried, in the shape the animal came in.

What is collagen, and is it the same as rawhide?

No, though they come from nearby. Collagen chews are made from the layer directly beneath the skin, which is why they chew similarly. The difference is what happens next: collagen breaks down and digests, and it is dried rather than chemically processed.

Do these last as long as rawhide?

The wraps and the collagen chews do, roughly. A buffalo wrap gives a medium dog one to two weeks of sessions. If you want something that lasts far longer, a buffalo horn runs to months, though it is a hard chew rather than a hide-like one.

Is my dog alright if they have eaten rawhide before?

Almost certainly. Plenty of dogs eat rawhide for years without incident, and swapping is about lowering a risk rather than undoing a harm. If your dog is unwell after eating a large piece, that is a call to your vet rather than something to read about.

Which would you start with?

A buffalo wrap if your dog liked rawhide for the texture. A braided pizzle or a braided tendon if they just wanted something to work at, since the braid gives them more to get their teeth into. A beef trachea if they are older or gentler, because it yields sooner. If you are not sure, email us and describe how they went at their rawhide. We answer every message ourselves.