K9 Instinct Blog

High Quality Dog Treats: How to choose healthy dog treats for your dog!

1/10/2013

Treats are important! They make dogs wag their tails in excitement and drool in anticipation. There are very few dog homes that don't have a good selection of doggie cookies, chews and treats in the cupboard. Treats are an essential part of training, especially for young puppies. Treats also make the perfect snack in between meals!

There is a wide variety of dog treats lining pet store shelves across North America and the selection can be quite overwhelming. Many dog owners find themselves wondering what exactly makes a good, high quality dog treat. With tons of great options, and even more poor choices, I hope to help dog owners make the right choices in treats.

Diet and nutrition are important factors in your dog's health and well being. That is why feeding poor quality treats can be detrimental to your pet's health and undo the good you've done by feeding a high quality, balanced diet.

There are some simple guidelines to follow when browsing the treat isle.

Look for treats that are grain free. Grains aren't a natural part of a dog's diet, and they are one of the leading causes of allergies and ear infections in dogs.
Look for treats that are wheat-free, corn-free and soy-free; Treats with a bit of healthy grains can be good options for dogs that have no sensitivities, allergies or issues with yeast infections. You should seek to avoid treats with grains as mentioned above, but some dogs do fine with higher quality grains.
Read the ingredients: You want to see whole foods (that you would eat yourself!), no preservatives, no chemicals, no ingredients you can't pronounce or recognize, and absolutely NO by-products.
No artificial colours or flavouring, these are chemicals that are unnecessary and often cause allergic reactions.
Avoid "animal digest" at all costs... Animal digest is a mystery ingredient that can contain ANY part of an animal, and can even include road kill or euthanized animals.
Made in North America. This one is a given, considering all the recalls lately. There have been way too many complaints and cases of sick dogs eating treats from China.

Here is a list of dog treats that uphold a phenomenal reputation for quality, based on the guidelines listed above and my strict standards for nutrition and quality.

Interested in achieving your pet's optimum level of health? Visit my Diet and Nutrition page or contact me for details! Online dog nutrition and diet consultations are available!

Angel
Dog Nutritionist / Dog Trainer / Dog Blogger
K9 Instinct
www.k9instinct.com

18 Comments

randy

1/29/2013 02:39:04 pm

i just want to know what website i can buy these orijen treats.

K9 Instinct

1/30/2013 07:41:48 am

Randy, they are very new so they haven't hit everywhere yet. I will update on the K9 Instinct Facebook page as they become available.

randy

1/30/2013 10:41:12 am

ok thank you very much and thank you for the site. it has alot of great information. btw hunter is an awesome dog.

Lynn Anderson

2/18/2013 07:05:54 am

I can't wait to try the Orijen treats! Do you know if they come in different flavours? I believe that my dog is allergic to chicken and duck (based on an elimination diet) :(

K9 Instinct link

2/18/2013 07:08:09 am

Lynn, they come in Beef, Bison, Duck, Regional Red, the Adult Formula, Tundra...

Lynn Anderson

2/18/2013 07:13:22 am

Thank you! I just went to their website and it would seem that they have quite a variety and some without chicken (or duck)! I am so excited :). I'm going to check to see if my local pet store has any tomorrow :)

Tracey Bagatta link

3/6/2013 09:25:23 pm

I was present when a GSD presented with a serious obstruction from a bully stick and very nearly died! Since then, I have had many conversations with pet parents who have had many a close call with bully sticks - very much the same as raw hide - and I wish you wouldn't promote them... there are so many other choices that are safer.

Cheryl Trapper

4/13/2015 12:36:58 am

I will never bring bully sticks into my house again due the fact I had a huge dog fight over one with an adult and a puppy. My puppy was near death, but was saved thankfully. He did end up with neurological problems, but he was alive. Both dogs have since passed one of cancer almost 10 years ago and my other was 3 years ago due to neurological issues, but he was 8.

Nancy Filby

4/21/2013 03:15:27 am

Hi there,
I enjoyed your post on selecting health treats for your dog. I found it interesting that you recommended bully sticks in that list. I recently read an article concerning bully sticks and in the article they found bacteria that can be harmful to the health of your pet and you if you don't wash properly after handling. I used to give my dog bully sticks but now will not because of the identified concerns in the article. I understand this is only one study but one study finding of concern is enough for me....I will not put my precious GSDs health at risk.. Here is a link to the article.
http://www.veterinarypracticenews.com/vet-breaking-news/2013/01/28/bully-sticks-may-pack-on-calories.aspx

I thank you for your time and appreciate any feedback you may have :)

fidalma

4/21/2013 09:34:47 am

i got my dog shepherd Natural Balance treats - Sweet Potato, Salmon, and Apple... no grain products, plus added Vit E and Zinc for skin and coat... he loves them...

i had read about making dehydrated sweet potatoes for treats... just slicing and dehydrating them... think this would be good too??

Beth Jackson link

5/12/2013 11:21:38 am

We actually get our dog supplies from Frazzle Gear. They have awesome products!! Lots of dog toys and dog treats!

Kati

8/8/2013 10:12:08 pm

We make our own chicken jerky for our dogs. We slice chicken breast in thin slices (works best when lightly frozen) and put it in the oven and set the oven on dehydration mode - works great! Since it is all natural (no preservatives) we keep most of it in the freezer andsome of it in the refrigerator. :)

Ann

8/8/2013 11:14:30 pm

Natural Balance has several treats that meet your guidelines. My dog is 'grain sensitive' and that is all I feed him. He suffered for 4 1/2 years before I found Natural Balance and now we are vet free for almost 7 years! Only wellness visits and shots.
I have also read about bully sticks. Not only did they find bacteria and salmonella on them they are extremely fattening for your dog containing 22 calories per inch! That is approximately 132 calories per bully stick. I also have a foster that came to me with seizures and after having him for 6 weeks and feeding only Natural Balance he is seizure-free as well. IT's been 3 years now! Orijen is an excellent food but very pricey. Natural Balance was rated right up there with Orijen, the only difference is they compared the Ultra formula which contains grains and noted the grain content. There are so many grain-free formulas to choose from and it provides a variety for my dogs which I also love. Healthy dogs on healty foods!

Therese

9/23/2014 03:37:06 am

Zuke's recently sold their company to Purina, the same company importing toxic chicken jerky treats from China (Waggin' Train and Canyon Creek Ranch). We no longer use Zukes for that reason. They may be an okay company now, but if history is any indication, Purina will be looking to cheapen the ingredients in search of a fatter bottom line.

Carol G

9/24/2014 02:23:38 am

I make my dogs treats with one ongredient : various human grade meats. I dehydrate quarter-sized pieces of meat overnight at 150 degrees. He loves them and I know they are healthy and chemical free. I make enough to last and store them in a container in the fridge. Easy, safe & yummy and Zeke approved!

Amber

9/25/2014 02:00:57 am

What about Blue Buffalo? I thought all their food lines were supposed to be really good?

Hannah Neilson link

1/22/2018 07:44:31 pm

I agree that you want to make sure that your dog treats don't have any artificial colors because of the chemicals. It would be smart to consider this because your dog could get sick with something unnatural. My dog needs treats for his joint pain, so we'll have to consider something natural.

Ellie Davis link

7/31/2018 02:36:42 pm

Thank you for pointing out that you should make sure and look at the ingredients of the dog treats. My dog is needing new treats. I'll have to look into finding the right dog treats for her.

High Quality Dog Treats: How to choose healthy dog treats for your dog!

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