Home › Bully stick vs yak chew: what the brands and the AKC say
Bully stick vs yak chew: what the brands and the AKC say
Bully sticks and yak chews are two of the most common single-ingredient-style chews, and they're very different things: one is dried beef pizzle, the other is hardened cheese. This page puts 14 products from our directory side by side, quoting each brand's own page on ingredients, where it's made and where it's sourced, and adds what the AKC and a veterinary journal say about each type. We don't pick a winner; your vet can help you choose for your dog.
Last checked 2026-10-24
Bully sticks and yak chews, side by side
Quoted from each brand's product page, checked 2026-10-24. "Not stated" means we found nothing on that page about it.
Brand: product
Type
Ingredients (quoted)
Where made (quoted)
Sourced from (quoted)
Campfire Treats: Standard Odor-Free Bully Sticks (8-10 Inch)
Bully stick
Ingredients: Dehydrated beef pizzles
Sourced and made in the USA
Sourced and made in the USA
Best Bully Sticks: 6-Inch Thin Bully Stick
Bully stick
Made from 100% high-quality beef
Not stated
Not stated
Jack&Pup: Bully Sticks - 6 inch Standard
Bully stick
100% Beef Pizzle
Not stated
Made from all-natural beef - grass-fed cattle from Brazil
Bow Wow Labs: SafeFit Bully Sticks
Bully stick
Ingredients: 100% Beef Pizzle
Not stated
Sourced from Brazil, Argentina, the USA, & Turkey
Pawstruck: Straight Bully Sticks for Dogs (Sold by Weight)
Bully stick
Beef pizzle
Made in: Paraguay, Brazil, Colombia, New Zealand, Peru, or Turkey
Sourced from high-quality South American cattle
Nature Gnaws: Small Bully Sticks 6"
Bully stick
Ingredients: Beef Pizzle
Not stated
We source from Europe, The Americas and Nepal through our SQF Food Safety Program
Redbarn: Bully Sticks for Dogs
Bully stick
Beef Pizzle.
Country of Origin: Paraguay, Brazil, Colombia, New Zealand, Peru, Turkey
Not stated
Mighty Paw: All-Natural Bully Sticks
Bully stick
Ingredients: Beef
Not stated
Indulge your pup with the finest treats sourced from grass-fed, free-range beef in Colombia.
Raw Paws Pet Food: Standard Bully Sticks, 6-inch - 10-ct
Bully stick
Single-ingredient: Bull Pizzle!
Origin: Turkey.
Sourced from free-range cattle raised without antibiotics, steroids, or added hormones.
Best Bully Sticks: Medium Himalayan Golden Yak Cheese Odor-Free (3 Pack)
Yak chew
Ingredients Yak and Cow Milk, Lime Juice, Salt
Not stated
The delicious treats are made from a generations-old recipe that originates in the Himalayan mountains.
Mighty Paw: All-Natural Yak Cheese Dog Chews
Yak chew
Made from just milk, salt and lime.
Handcrafted in Nepal and inspected at our headquarters in Rochester, NY
Not stated
Pupford: Yak Cheese Dog Chew Medium
Yak chew
Yak Milk, Salt, Lime Juice.
This chew is sourced and made in the Nepal area of the Himalayan mountain range.
This chew is sourced and made in the Nepal area of the Himalayan mountain range.
Raw Paws Pet Food: Himalayan Yak Chews for Dogs, Medium - 3-ct
Yak chew
yak milk, salt, and lime juice
Origin: Nepal.
Sourced from free-range yak raised without antibiotics, steroids, or added hormones.
Pawstruck: Medium Himalayan Yak Dog Chew, 3-4 oz.
Yak chew
Yak Milk, Cow Milk, Lime Juice, and a small amount of salt
made in the Himalayan mountains by local craftsmen
only source the highest-quality chews from cow and yak farmers in the foothills of the Himalayas
Bully stick vs yak chew: what's the difference?
They're made from different things. Redbarn describes a bully stick as “a single-ingredient dog chew made from 100% beef pizzle”, and the bully stick pages in the table list beef pizzle (or just beef) as the ingredient. Yak chews are hard cheese: Raw Paws says “we boil yak milk and then add lime juice and salt, which curdles the milk and forms cheese”, and the AKC describes them as “hard blocks of dried cheese”. Four of the five yak chew pages say they're made in Nepal or the Himalayas; the bully stick pages that say where they're made name the USA, countries in South America, New Zealand or Turkey.
Which lasts longer, a bully stick or a yak chew?
We found no study that measured it. Brands on both sides call their chews long-lasting: Redbarn says its bully sticks “create a long-lasting chew dogs love”, and Pawstruck says of its yak chew “still longer chew time than a bully stick!”, which is the brand's own claim. The AKC says yak chews “are hard enough to be long-lasting”. How long any chew lasts depends on its size and on how your dog chews.
Do yak chews or bully sticks have more calories?
The few brands that state calories mostly give them per kilogram, and the figures are close. Campfire Treats states “Calorie Content: 3,320 kcal/kg; 94 kcal/oz” for its bully sticks. For yak chews, Raw Paws states “3,168 kcal/kg., 90 kcal/oz.” and Pupford “Metabolizable Energy: 3,074 kcal/kg” (“About 329 kcal per chew.” for its medium chew). A per-chew figure depends on the chew's weight; see our bully stick calories guide for the published study.
What the AKC says about each
On bully sticks, the AKC says they “are easily digestible” and adds that “power chewers might bite straight through, producing large pieces that pose a choking risk, or swallow the entire stick whole.” It suggests a bully stick holder for those dogs and says: “When your dog has chewed the stick down to a nub, take it away before they can swallow what’s left.”
On yak chews, it says “The lactose content is low, so dogs generally digest them well”, and also “although these are cheese, they are quite hard and could lead to broken teeth.” Its advice: “only give your dog a block large enough that they can’t eat whole.”
How a veterinary journal classes them
Today's Veterinary Practice (two board-certified veterinary nutritionists) lists bully sticks among “Other body parts” in the group of “Animal-derived products that have undergone minimal processing”. The article doesn't mention yak or cheese chews, so we can't say how it would class them.
Where they come from
Of the five yak chews in the table, Mighty Paw says “Handcrafted in Nepal”, Pupford “sourced and made in the Nepal area of the Himalayan mountain range”, Raw Paws “Origin: Nepal.” and Pawstruck “made in the Himalayan mountains by local craftsmen”; Best Bully Sticks doesn't say where its yak chew is made. The bully sticks vary more: Campfire Treats says “Sourced and made in the USA”, while Redbarn and Pawstruck list several countries in South America plus New Zealand and Turkey, and Raw Paws says “Origin: Turkey.”
Campfire Treats: Standard Odor-Free Bully Sticks (8-10 Inch)
Ingredients (as listed)
Ingredients: Dehydrated beef pizzles
Made-in claim
Sourced and made in the USA
Sourced-from claim
Sourced and made in the USA
Rawhide-free?
Not stated, check with them
Size / dog guidance
Puppy, young, adult, senior
Supervision note
This product is intended for intermittent or supplemental feeding only. Always supervise your dog when feeding any treats or chews. Please ensure that your dog has always access to plenty of fresh water.
Size does matter! To avoid accidental swallowing that may result in choking or blockages, always choose a bully stick that's wider than your dog's mouth. When in doubt, select a larger size.
Supervision note
Always supervise your dog when they're enjoying a bully stick, and remove small or broken pieces to prevent your pup from choking. It's also important to provide access to fresh water before, during, and after treat consumption.
Made from all-natural beef - grass-fed cattle from Brazil
Rawhide-free?
Not stated, check with them
Size / dog guidance
Standard thickness bully stick for moderate chewers.
Supervision note
Feeding instructions: Always supervise your dog while chewing and provide fresh water. Choose chews appropriate for your dog's size and chewing ability to prevent choking hazards.
Options on the page
5 Pieces
7 Pieces
25 Pieces
50 Pieces
Note
The same page also says the beef is from "free-range South American cows".
Indulge your pup with the finest treats sourced from grass-fed, free-range beef in Colombia.
Rawhide-free?
Not stated, check with them
Size / dog guidance
We recommend our Standard Bully Sticks for light chewers, Thick Bully Sticks for Heavy Chewers, and Jumbo Bully Sticks for Aggressive Chewers.
Supervision note
Not stated, check with them
Options on the page
Variety Pack (10 Pack)
Standard 12" (5 Pack)
Thick 12" (5 Pack)
Jumbo 12" (5 Pack)
Note
The same page also says "Our Bully Sticks are sourced from grass-fed, free-range beef in Brazil" and that they are hand-inspected in Rochester, NY. Ask the brand which applies.
Raw Paws Pet Food: Standard Bully Sticks, 6-inch - 10-ct
Ingredients (as listed)
Single-ingredient: Bull Pizzle!
Made-in claim
Origin: Turkey.
Sourced-from claim
Sourced from free-range cattle raised without antibiotics, steroids, or added hormones.
Rawhide-free?
Not stated, check with them
Size / dog guidance
Ideal for Small to Medium Dogs.
Supervision note
To prevent injury and choking hazard, always supervise your pet when giving any chew. If this chew splinters, develops sharp edges or breaks into pieces throw it away immediately.
Raw Paws Pet Food: Himalayan Yak Chews for Dogs, Medium - 3-ct
Ingredients (as listed)
yak milk, salt, and lime juice
Made-in claim
Origin: Nepal.
Sourced-from claim
Sourced from free-range yak raised without antibiotics, steroids, or added hormones.
Rawhide-free?
Not stated, check with them
Size / dog guidance
Ideal for Medium to Large Dogs.
Supervision note
To prevent injury and choking hazard, always supervise your pet when giving any chew. If this chew splinters, develops sharp edges or breaks into pieces throw it away immediately.