Nylon chews are the most polarising products in the dog aisle. Owners love them because they last for months. A significant number of vets are wary of them, because hard objects and dog teeth are a known bad combination.
Both positions are reasonable. Here is the information you need to decide for your own dog.
What it is
The listing describes the Benebone Wishbone as a dog chew toy for aggressive chewers, flavoured with real bacon, in a medium size, and notes that it is durable, made in the USA, long-lasting, and available in a size for every dog.
The defining feature is the shape. Most hard chews are straight, which means a dog has to pin them with a paw and gnaw awkwardly at one end. The Wishbone’s curved arms let a dog grip the toy against the floor with their paws and get their back teeth onto it directly — the position dogs naturally want to chew in.
The flavour runs through the whole material rather than being a surface coating, which is why interest lasts longer than with unflavoured nylon.
Benebone Wishbone Dog Chew Toy, Real Bacon, Medium
Curved nylon chew flavoured throughout with real bacon. The wishbone shape is designed so dogs can hold it down and reach it with their back teeth.
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The tooth fracture question
This is the part that deserves more attention than it usually gets.
Slab fractures of the upper carnassial tooth — a chunk breaking off the big chewing tooth — are a recognised injury in dogs, and hard chew objects are among the common causes. Antlers, hooves, bones and hard nylon all appear in that conversation.
The commonly cited guidance from veterinary dentists is simple: if you cannot indent it with your thumbnail, or you would not want it dropped on your knee, it is hard enough to break a tooth. Nylon chews generally fail that test.
That does not automatically mean do not use one. It means:
- Match the chew to the dog. A gentle gnawer is at far lower risk than a dog who bites down with full force.
- Watch how your dog chews. Dogs who crunch and crack, rather than gnaw and scrape, are the higher-risk group.
- Check their teeth. Look at the upper back teeth every few weeks for chips or a flattened, discoloured surface.
- Consider softer alternatives for known heavy crunchers.
Sizing and replacement
Both matter for safety.
Size up. A chew that is too small can be swallowed or lodged. Benebone sizes by dog weight — follow it, and go bigger if you are between sizes.
Replace it on schedule. Nylon chews wear down, and a worn one develops sharp edges and becomes small enough to swallow. Bin it when the arms are visibly reduced or when it starts to fit comfortably inside your dog’s mouth. Most manufacturers suggest replacing every month or two with a heavy chewer.
Expect shavings. Tiny nylon flakes come off during normal use and pass through. Chunks do not. If your dog is breaking pieces off, this is the wrong product for them.
Who it suits
Good fit: adolescent dogs in the peak chewing phase; dogs who need a long-lasting outlet; households where softer chews vanish in minutes; dogs who gnaw steadily rather than crunch.
Poor fit: dogs with existing dental damage; seniors with worn or fragile teeth; puppies with baby teeth; dogs who bite down hard enough to crack things; any dog who has already fractured a tooth.
Softer alternatives worth knowing
If you read the fracture section and decided against nylon, the alternatives are genuinely good:
- Stuffed and frozen rubber toys — licking and gnawing rather than crushing
- Rubber chews rated for power chewers, which flex rather than resist
- Edible dental chews sized correctly, fed as part of the daily calories
- Food puzzles and snuffle mats, which redirect the need to do something into using the nose instead
What we like
- Shape lets dogs chew in a natural position
- Flavour runs through the material, so interest lasts
- Genuinely long-lasting for heavy chewers
- Sized range covers most dogs
What to watch out for
- Hard enough to carry a real tooth-fracture risk
- Needs replacing regularly as it wears
- Wrong choice for seniors, puppies and crunchers
- Not for unsupervised all-day access
The honest summary
The Wishbone is a well-designed version of a product category that carries an inherent risk. If your dog is a steady gnawer with healthy teeth, sized correctly, supervised, and the chew gets replaced as it wears, it is a reasonable choice that will outlast almost anything else you buy.
If your dog crunches hard, or has any dental history at all, the sensible answer is a softer outlet — and no amount of good design changes that.
