Buying Local is Better for Everyone, Even Your Pets!

The past few years there has been a movement to buy local and support small businesses.  It supports the local economy by creating and sustaining jobs and puts food on your neighbor's table rather than fuel in a CEO's private jet.

Think about the way you grocery shop - don't we all prefer our produce to be grown closer to us, even in our own state?  Why buy Pecans shipped from Georgia when us Arizonian's can buy them from our own county.  Who wants to eat eggs shipped from chicken farms in the midwest when you can buy eggs at your farmer's market from your neighbor who lets their chickens free range.  The same ideology goes for your pets.

The other week I was speaking to a client about the dog treats they just bought.  It was a big bag of chicken jerky from a massive company whose dog treats have been causing several dogs to become sick and die. There is a big disclaimer on the back of the bag of treats that says "MADE IN CHINA".  On top of it, the treats are also infused with glycerin which increases the weight of the treat without increasing the amount of chicken.  Sneaky little jerks.

It got me to thinking about how my treats compare in price to big box brands so I wanted to share some numbers which could surprise you...

This morning as I was packing up some treat orders, I put them on my kitchen scale to see their weights: 12.7oz and 13.7oz.  I sell my chicken jerky in one pound poly lined bags for $12 per order which makes these two particular bags $0.94/oz and $0.87/oz.  I fill my treat bags as much as I can which is why there is always a discrepancy.  I buy my treat ingredients at our local grocery stores and make them only after an order is received which guarantee's that they are as fresh as possible.

Big box companies make their dog treats in factories where quality control is often lacking.  Products are shipped across country, or worse, come from a different country, and then can sit on a shelf for several months before going 'out of date'.

Additionally, they are often full of other ingredients you might not expect...

I like simplicity and because of my years working with dogs and cats with food allergies, I like limited ingredients.  My chicken jerky has one ingredient: chicken breast.  Chicken breast that I buy from the grocery store labeled that it has been raised and butchered in the U.S.  Many of these big companies include weird ingredients in their 'chicken jerky' like: glycerin, soy flour, molasses, salt...  The sugar and salt are great for creating an addictive craving for your dogs, but they are terrible additions for carnivores.  High protein/low carb treats like chicken jerky are great for diabetic dogs ... unless those treats are made with molasses and sugar.  Most dogs and cats do very poorly with soy, and who would expect soy to be put into chicken jerky anyways?

Here are some prices and ingredients on some popular chicken jerky treats on the market...

Purina's Waggin Train Chicken Jerky Tenders: $12 for 11 oz. $1.09/oz. Ingredients: Chicken breast, glycerin. 'PRODUCT OF CHINA' disclaimer on the back. Long history of consumer complaints and recalls...

Blue Buffalo Chicken Jerky: $8.89 for 3.25 oz.  $2.73/oz.  Ingredients: Chicken, dried cane molasses, salt.

True Chews Chicken Jerky Fillet: $9.46 for 12 oz. $0.78/oz.  Ingredients: chicken, vegetable glycerin, distilled vinegar, salt....

Milo's Kitchen Chicken Jerky Recipe: $21 for 15oz.  $1.40/oz.  Ingredients: chicken, soy flour, sugar, glycerin, textured soy protein.... Once recalled for unapproved antibiotic residue

Dogswell Vitality Chicken Breast Jerky: $17.64 for 13.5oz.  $1.30/oz.  Ingredients: chicken breast, glycerin, salt, flaxseed .... Once recalled for unapproved antibiotic residue.

Something to think about when feeding your 4-legged loved ones.  I'm certainly not encouraging everyone to buy my treats because I only have one dehydrator and one oven ;)  But there are others like me who believe every pet deserves the very best and put a lot of work into offering healthy options.  Of course, there are local pet bakeries who make their own pet treats too but with ingredients like wheat flour and margarine (yuck!), you still have to do your homework by reading ingredient labels. 

Feeding better does not necessarily mean you need a money tree to afford quality treats.  But when you buy locally, a lot of overhead costs are eliminated and you can feel better about supporting local economy AND feeding Fido better!