What's So Special About Single-Ingredient Dog Treats?

Our pup Missy’s thyroid cancer diagnosis last year had motivated me to re-evaluate the pups’ nutritional intake at the beginning of 2015, and to consequently steer clear of highly processed dog food and treats.

Why exactly? Because the latter contain a plethora of artificial, harmful, and ~GET THIS!~ completely unnecessary preservatives and ingredients, whereas single ingredient treats are made of only one ingredient, and one ingredient only!

There are single-ingredient, freeze-dried treats (98% water is removed), as well as single-ingredient, dehydrated (75% water is removed) dog treats.

Great For Allergic Dogs!

Should your dog have a known allergy to a certain kind of protein, single ingredient treats will provide peace of mind for you as you’ll know exactly which kind of protein they are made of.

You won’t have to worry about your pup having an allergic reaction to one of the ingredients as there is ONE and only one ingredient!

Many companies sell a variety of single-ingredient treats, meaning you’re able to choose between different proteins, such as beef, chicken, fish, lamb, etc.

No Superfluous Add-Ons

If you’ve ever taken a closer look at the ingredient list of standard dog treats you’ll find at the major pet retailers, you will have noticed the addition of artificial colors, animal by-products, salt and sugar, as well as cheap fillers such as corn and wheat.

The beauty of single-ingredient dog treats is that they don’t contain any of above mentioned garbage (quite literally, that’s what by-products are: the leftovers from slaughtered mammals, such as beaks, hooves, undeveloped eggs, skin, etc.)

No Harmful Preservatives Needed!

Single-ingredient, freeze-dried and dehydrated dog treats never contain any harmful preservatives such as BHA, BHT, Ethoxyquin, TBHQ, Propyl Gallate, or Propylene Glycol.

Here’s why they don’t need them: When treats are freeze-dried/dehydrated, moisture is removed, eliminating the need to add preservatives, and resulting in a shelf-stable treat!

(If your dog treats contain any of above mentioned artificial preservatives, I strongly suggest tossing them in the trash right now as they are known to cause serious health problems if eaten on a regular basis!).

Full Nutritional Value is Maintained!

Cooking is not necessary when freeze-drying/dehydrating dog treats, which means that no nutrients are lost – on the contrary, the full nutritional value is maintained!

Single-Ingredient Treats We’ve Fed in 2015

Disclaimer: I may make a small commission through the BestBullySticks affiliate link below this post if you chose to order through it, which however is at no additional cost to you.

We’ve gotten our paws on several different single-ingredient dog treats this year, and have loved them all:

Dr. Harvey’s Power Patties (Freeze-Dried, Raw Green Tripe)

K9sOverCoffee | Missy eating Power Patties Tripe Treats

Dr. Harvey’s LeDogue Bites (Freeze-Dried Chicken, also comes in Beef and Fish)

On my list of best single-ingredient dog treats: Single-ingredient, freeze-dried Le Dogue Bites from Dr. Harvey's

Dr. Harvey’s Sweet Potate’r Chews (Dehydrated Sweet Potato)

Missy Buzz posing with Sweet Potate'r Chews

Dr. Harvey’s Coconut Smiles (Dehydrated, Organic Coconut)

Brave Beagle Chicken Liver Treats (Freeze-Dried)

Single-ingredient, freeze-dried Chicken Liver Treats from Brave Beagle

Treats Happen Beef Lung Treats (Dehydrated)

Missy & Buzz also had some Bully Sticks from Raw Paws Pet Food, as well as Venison Wrinkles & Gullet Wrapped Tendons from Best Bully Sticks. While neither of those treats contained any preservatives, they weren’t freeze-dried or dehydrated, and therefore had to be stored in the fridge or freezer.

Storing_all_natural_dog_treats_in_fridge

While I am not anti limited-ingredient treats, I do prefer single-ingredient ones and will definitely no longer offer our pups any treats with a long ingredient list, particularly with anything that’s hard to pronounce (and likely of artificial nature)!