Review: Yak Chews Are a Long-Lasting Chew Made for Super Chewers

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• Not a substitute for professional veterinary help.

We received a free sample of Himalayan yak chews from Downtown Pet Supply in exchange for an honest review.

A long-lasting, digestible, odorless dog chew is the holy grail for pet parents with power chewers on their hands. And it’s what some dog parents claim to have found in yak chews, which they say offer long-chewing bliss for dogs and odorless relief for their guardians. The tough treats also tend to be softer and more digestible than alternatives like antlers and rawhide, making for less wear and tear on a dog’s teeth and stomach. But could they work for our pups? We review and put yak chews to the test.

Note: For pet parents on a similar quest, it’s good to remember that all dog chews and bones pose some level of risk. We’ve weighed the risks for our household and decided some chews are okay—but it’s a choice for every pet parent to make themselves. If you’re uncertain, your vet can help, and so can this article on the risks associated with dog bones and chews.

Wait—What Are Yak Chews?

Yak chews appeared on the dog food scene in the early 2000s and have since been marketed as a natural, highly digestible, and long-lasting chew for dogs. Most yak chews are made using yak’s milk (often touted to be directly from the Himalayas), lime, and salt to create a cheese-flavored chew for dogs. The yak chews we’re testing are from Downtown Pet Supply and combine yak’s and cow’s milk.

Yak chews offer dogs entertainment, natural protein, and the teeth-cleaning that comes of determined gnawing. The attraction for pet parents is the chews’ lack of odor and their long lifespan.

While they’re not soft like a dental chew, yak chews are softer than antlers, bones, and some rawhides. Most can be microwaved or soaked for a softer surface.

Rover Test Pups Remy and Lucy Review Yak Chews

My dogs Remy and Lucy love a nice edible chew as a relaxing mid-morning activity. While Remy enjoys savoring his treats and even attempts to save them for later, Lucy is a power chewer who destroys rawhide alternative bones in 30 seconds and then moves on to Remy’s leftovers. She’s too powerful for even standard Kongs.

With my pups on different ends of the chewing spectrum, they were the perfect candidates to test out Downtown Pet Supply’s Yak Chews to see if they met a wide variety of dog chew standards.

Upon first being presented with the chews, both sniffed them, happily snatched them, and walked away to their respective chew spots. I checked in on them after an hour or so, and it looked like they barely made a dent in the chews. I worried they weren’t interested, so I waited to see what would happen.

Over the next few days, I noticed them chewing on the yak bones every so often and carrying them around. But the bones were almost fully intact, which made me think they weren’t getting a very warm reception.

Then I realized I was wrong—they were super popular and super tough.

How did I know? My dogs like to taunt each other with their bones, and with ones they really enjoy, they’ll inevitably determine one chew to be the “prime” one and go back and forth, stealing it from one another until it’s gone. Which is exactly what happened with the yak chews. Only, instead of this going on for an evening, this went on for days due to the chew’s longevity.

I kept an eye on the yak chews and my dog’s interactions with them over the next few days, and it seemed they kept showing up in their favorite lounging spot—the basement. Four days later, the yak chew they had designated as the best one was more than halfway gone, confirming two things:

1. They liked the chews.
2. The chews were truly long-lasting. Even better (for me), although they’d been carrying these chews all over the house, I couldn’t tell because they didn’t leave any crumbs behind, and they didn’t smell.

Final Verdict: Yak Chews Are Great for Pups With Powerful Jaws

Overall, the yak chews seemed to entertain both of my dogs and lasted almost an entire week. They lived up to their hype of being long-lasting and odorless, which pleased and slightly surprised me. Though my dogs didn’t go wild for them, they continued to chew on them until they were gone, returning to them time and again for a good ol’ gnawing session—which is a win in my book.

Pros:

• While great for super chewers who quickly eat chews and bones, these yak chews also entertain medium chewers too (in my experience) 
• Pet parents will rejoice that this treat is odor-free
• Yak chews don’t create crumbs
• They’re free of dyes and won’t stain carpets or couches
• Yak chews can help clean your dog’s teeth

Cons:

• These yak chews tend to be on the heavier side, so they’re probably not a good fit for small and toy breeds unless cut down to size
• They’re thick and hard, so you may need to pop them in the microwave for a few seconds to soften them
• Downtown Pet Supply’s yak chews aren’t entirely dairy/lactose-free since they use cow’s milk

One last caution: Chew safety is relative and very dog-specific. As always, before introducing something new to your dog’s diet, check with your vet to see if yak chews are okay for your pup.

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Further Reading

• Our Favorite Long-Lasting Dog Chews With Maximum Distraction Power
• Our Readers’ 22 All-Time Favorite Dog Chew Toys to Keep Their Buddies Busy
• Review: The Arf Pets Dog Treat Dispenser is an Advanced Puzzle Toy—and a Good One
• The 5 Toughest Tug-of-War Toys for Dogs