I am not sure if pipe cleaners will rust, but I seem to recall having pipe cleaners do so with age.
This is what I immediately thought of as a solution. They are copper and won’t rust because of that. I would braid 6 or so together to get nice thick ‘bones’ inside. I think they’ll be thin enough it won’t hurt a kid if they poke out, too. I used to play with these as a child.