Gently smoked venison treats for dogs from Carnello, in the Alpenglück range. 60 g, resealable.
What is in them, which is very nearly nothing else. 98% game meat — red deer and roe deer from the Thuringian Forest — with 1.5% apple fibre and 0.5% minerals. The meat is smoked slowly over beech wood. There is no grain, no soy, no gluten, no artificial colouring, no added flavouring and no preservative. Read the back of most supermarket dog treats and the meat content is often below 10%, with the rest made up of cereals, sugars, glycerol and colourings; 98% is a different order of product.
Why single-protein treats matter. Food-responsive skin and gut problems are common in dogs, and diagnosing them requires an elimination diet — feeding one protein and one carbohydrate the dog has never eaten before, for eight to twelve weeks, with absolutely nothing else. Treats are what wreck those trials. One handful of the wrong biscuit undoes weeks of work, and dogs get given a great many treats by a great many people. A snack with a single, clearly stated, uncommon protein is genuinely useful here — though if your dog is on a veterinary elimination diet, check with the vet before giving anything at all.
Game is lean. Venison carries noticeably less fat than pork or beef, which makes it a sensible choice for dogs carrying extra weight or with a history of pancreatitis — though again, a vet should be the one making that call.
Treats count towards the day's food. This is the single most-ignored fact in dog nutrition. The general guidance is that treats should stay under about 10% of daily calories, and the rest of the food should be reduced to account for them. Canine obesity is common, it shortens lives measurably, and it is very largely built out of snacks given with affection.
Available at Só Verde, an organic concept store in Foz, Porto.