Dog chew toys as a source of raw hide?

[Baelfore]

As the post says, anyone have any experiance with this?

I was getting a bag of cat food yesterday and saw some of those knotted bones and a pair of shoes that wear held together with what I think was rawhide lace.

So could I get them and soak them in water to take them apart and get some raw hide/ rawhide lace for some projects I have in mind?

Anyone tried this? is it doomed to fail? :yikes:

Or has someone done this successfully and have any tips or warnings or things to watch out for?

As always any nd all advice is greatly appreciated!

Regards,
Stephen

 

[John Fenna]

The rawhide bone chews are my sole source of rawhide.
Quality and the size of pieces varies with the insides often stuffed with uselessly small pieces.

 

[Ogri the trog]

I have found that most are a single sheet of rawhide packed with the offcuts to bulk it out. Nonetheless it is a good source if you need it. You might get lucky and be able to cut laces from the offcuts.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Baelfore]

Thanks guys. Thats great.

Can I just soak it to loosen it up or is there a better method?

 

[Wayne]

I use the giant dog chews for raw hide backing on my bows.

 

[John Fenna]

Soaking works fine - tepid water is faster than cold.

 

[danny358]

i bought a giant rawhide bone from pets at home for a tenner i got 2 big pieces and loads of small ones i use it to back bows definately worth £10

 

[tombear]

I got a giant bone shaped chew and there was enough 2.5 inch wide strips to go around a 2/3rds sized norman kite shield and leave me with plenty spare. It dried absolutely rock hard.

ATB

Tom

 

[Parbajtor]

I have found that most are a single sheet of rawhide packed with the offcuts to bulk it out. Nonetheless it is a good source if you need it. You might get lucky and be able to cut laces from the offcuts.

ATB

Ogri the trog

The ones that are 3/4 layered strips with a couple of knots at each end are the best value as the entire piece is usable (and quite often they are one long strap). The ones structured to look somewhat like a bone are generally one wide piece stuffed with offcuts, If you need a wider strip of rawhide, they are better, but for laces/straps go with the layered ones.
Soaking in tepid water is the best, but if you leave it too long (because you forgot it for a couple of days), the rawhide goes quite slimy and tends to squidge about when you're cutting it making it easy to make mistakes.

 

[tombear]

I was in a big pet shop yesterday and they had rawhide discs, like dinner plate sized bowls if you need bigger pieces.

ATB

tom

 

[Blood]

I was in a big pet shop yesterday and they had rawhide discs, like dinner plate sized bowls if you need bigger pieces.

ATB

tom

I'm certain I've seen a round one used to make the skin drum on a home made banjo! Clever stuff!