Shedding

Shedding. Usually that word refers to dogs loosing their hair. At Timberidge Goldendoodles our dogs don’t shed quite like that. Around here, “shedding” has a totally different meaning. Moses, Abria & Junie hopped in the car this afternoon and drove down to New Richmond with us to some family land in search of whitetail deer antlers. Each winter male deer (bucks) shed their antlers in preparation for growing a new larger set in the spring. They leave their old rack lying in the woods, waiting for a lucky person (or dog) to happen upon them. We enjoy traversing through the woods, relishing in the beauty of nature and enjoying the treasure hunt activity of seeking sheds. Today we found both antlers from a 7 point buck! At the end of deer hunting season a lot of hunters walk through the woods very slowly looking for where their elusive bucks lost their antlers that year. Finding shedded antlers gives hunters information about the type and number of bucks traveling through the area. For dog owners like us, shed hunting is great because it provides our dogs with an all-natural, preservative-free chew toy. Our dogs love chewing on deer antlers! Like bones, antlers are high in certain minerals like calcium. Since they are very hard (hard enough for bucks to use when fighting each other), they last a long time and the chances of one splitting are slim. The points of the antlers are sharp though so blunting them is beneficial. Like any bone, there is always the chance of a dog injuring a tooth while chewing on an antler and the ends can become sharp as a dog gnaws on it. Because of this, we only allow our dogs to chew on them while we’re home and keeping an eye on them. Chewing on an antler is always an exciting treat for them.