The best part about them for us (besides the all natural ingredients) was the fact they were labeled "Virginia's Finest" and made by hand locally on the eastern shore's Chincoteague Island by Howl Naturale, a tiny operation run by a woman named Inge Veneziano.
After digging around online to try to learn more, surprisingly not too many results were returned other than Howl Naturale's endearing website (just as cute as their hand drawn label that includes an email address). Reading the about page, I learned the business was started as a dream after the owner was involved in a motor vehicle accident and was unable to go back to work as a nurse. She hand-cuts and bakes all of the different treats using human-grade ingredients with no added preservatives, coloring, salt, or imitation flavorings. They also make similar treats exclusively for cats, and horses!
The Whoofle seemed pretty hard/tough which is great since we're always hunting for treats that will keep Basil busy for more than a few minutes - we've found dehydrated sweet potatoes and hiding treats in his Kong toy are other great options that occupy him in the same way.
Without a doubt, the Whoofle was Basil approved - in fact, he was working on it so hard it was nearly impossible to snap a still photo of him not in action. We're wondering if a treat like this might be something we could make in our home using our waffle maker. While we figure out if that's feasible, we'll definitely be picking up a couple more and ordering directly from from Inge's website. After asking for a glass of milk to wash the Whoofle down, Basil was also down for the count.
Would love to hear what's working for you - have you found any certain pet treats you love or even make yourself?
Our dachshund, Henry, loves Healthy Hips, tasty chicken jerky, from the Blue Buffalo Co. (http://bluebuffalo.com/). It contains added chondroitin sulfate which is supposed to be good for dogs' joints (though it never did much for mine). Blue Buffalo touts the fact that their chicken is U.S.-sourced and not from China, which may not be insignificant. Remember melamine? But Blue Buffalo's entertainment side is limited: Basil would down this chicken in one snap.
ReplyDeleteSteve,
ReplyDeleteSmall world - we too use Blue Buffalo for Basil's dry food. we also like their canned food and whole line of treats - these are the main treats we give him so it's always fun to find and try something new!
My sister and her husband have two dachshunds, those little guys make it hard not to melt your heart.
Met Inge a couple yrs ago while vacationing at Chincoteague and found her and her treats to be quite delightful. Love your recipes here, need BIG ones for my Newf and now have a small dog and pup so here we go...
ReplyDeleteAwesome! We are dying to meet her and love her treats! We too need big ones that take a while to chew up!
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