With the popularity of bully sticks skyrocketing right now as a quick and easy way to give your dog a treat, we have noticed a huge spike in the number of questions that we see being asked from the community about using bully sticks.
One of the more commonly asked questions that we see people asking is how long do bully sticks last so we wanted to publish this article going over the various ins and outs of keeping bully sticks.
Although some people do say that a bully stick can last for up to two years if it is stored correctly, this is not totally accurate as different brands produce bully sticks in different ways and use different meats.
The drying process for the meat also comes into play too with some of the cheaper brands of bully stick lasting less than six months even if they are stored perfectly.
This coupled with the fact that we see so many people reaching out and asking about bully stick storage made us want to publish this article.
Our hope is that we are going to be able to help as many of our readers as possible avoid accidentally causing issues with their dog’s diet by giving them bully sticks that have expired.
How Long Do Bully Sticks Last?
High-quality bully sticks with better quality meat and faster meat drying methods can usually last for up to two years when stored correctly. Cheaper bully sticks that use lower quality meat and drying methods can expire within six months.
Thankfully, it is legally required for products sold in Europe and North America to clearly state and expiration date on their products. This allows you to quickly and easily see how long your bully stick will last as well as when you should try to use it by.
One potential issue with this is that many of the bully sticks online will simply come with a sheet confirming the order and the paper will state the expiration date of the bully sticks rather than the actual packing of the bully stick.
This can end up being a problem as the paper ends up going missing so we recommend that our readers try to write the expiration date for any bully sticks that they ordered online on the packaging of the actual bully sticks to prevent this.
The Best Long Lasting Bully Sticks!
Due to the cheaper bully sticks on the market not lasting for as long as the higher price point bully sticks, some companies tried to develop long-lasting bully sticks.
These longer-lasting bully sticks can usually last around two years when stored correctly usually lasting four times what the cheaper bully sticks on the market will last.
There are a number of popular bully stick brands that create long-lasting bully sticks using the highest quality ingredients and the latest meat drying technologies.
In our opinion, Best Bully Stick Co have the best long lasting bully sticks and when stored correctly, they can actually last as long as three years provided the packaging is not opened.
Once the packaging of these longer-lasting bully sticks has been opened they can still last for as long as two years when in storage provided they are stored correctly and conditions are right.
Depending on your situation, this may be able to make is possible for you to bulk buy your bully sticks for larger discounts and then keep your bully sticks stored for months, if not years to come before giving them to your dog.
Do Bully Sticks Go Bad?
Bully sticks do go bad but the time required for the bully stick to go bad depends on a number of factors. The main factors to consider is exposure to water, the temperature that they are stored at, and the humidity of the room that they are stored in.
Warmer temperatures with high humidity and conditions where the bully sticks can actually get wet will cause them to go bad much quicker than low temperatures, low humidity, and dry conditions.
In some situations, your bully sticks can go bad in a matter of weeks if not stored correctly and a large number of people make these easy to avoid mistakes when storing their bully sticks.
Although it is not essential, some people specifically purchase food storage containers to store their bully sticks safely in optimal conditions.
Considering that most suitable food storage containers are less than $10 and are easily able to store months or even a years worth of bully sticks, this can definitely be worth doing.
Do Bully Sticks Expire?
Bully sticks expire within six to twenty four months of creation with a number of variables playing into their expiration date.
The quality of the beef muscle used and the drying method implemented for the meat are the two main conditions but the packaging of the bully sticks is also important.
This is why the long-lasting bully sticks on the market use the highest possible quality beef muscle with the most recent meat drying techniques as well as the best possible packaging.
Please keep in mind though, the expiration date labelled on the packaging is only until you open the packaging and oxidization of the product starts.
Once the packaging is open and oxidization starts, the time until your bully sticks go bad really sets in rapidly.
This is why so many people choose to store their bully sticks in a suitable food storage container as it can keep your long-lasting bully sticks lasting for as long as possible even once the packaging has been opened.
Conclusion
That brings our article on how long bully sticks last to an end. We hope that we have been able to help you understand the various differences that come into play when trying to workout how long it will take for your bully sticks to go bad. Our best advice is to try and about the cheap bully sticks as they tend to use low quality meat to keep their costs low and it can oxidise much quicker.
