Tag: dog treats

I Scream, You Bark: Ben & Jerry’s Now Makes Doggie Desserts

If you’re anything like me, you’ve helped Ben & Jerry’s stay in business during this months-long COVID-19 quarantine by eating massive amounts of their ridiculously delicious ice cream. Especially Chunky Monkey.

Good news! Now our dogs can enjoy Ben & Jerry’s, too. For the first time ever, the company is introducing frozen “Doggie Desserts” made with ingredients that can be safely digested by our beloved pets.

Bad news! For now at least, only these two flavors, named after B&J employees’ dogs (sweet!), are available in supermarkets and pet stores:

  • Pontch’s Mix, with peanut butter and pretzel swirls (yum!)
  • Rosie’s Batch, with pumpkin and miniature cookies (yum!)

They’re sold in single 4-ounce mini cups for the retail price of $2.99, or four-packs for $4.99.

Since ice cream and other dairy products can cause digestion problems for dogs, these treats are made with a small amount of sunflower butter, which is safe for dogs. They also have some of the same ingredients in Ben & Jerry’s ice cream for humans, such as wheat flour, coconut oil and sugar.

Although Doggie Desserts are safe for human consumption too, they’re intended for dogs. Sorry.

No word yet on future flavors, but William K. Wolfrum has an excellent suggestion.

Photo: @benandjerrys/Twitter

Petco and PetSmart Will Stop Selling Treats Made in China

You can expect the dog treat shelves of your local Petco and PetSmart stores to start looking pretty barren. As both national chains promised last year, they will no longer sell pet treats that were manufactured in China.

More than 1,000 dogs have died after eating chicken, duck or sweet potato jerky treats made in China, and nearly 5,000 more have become ill. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been investigating these cases since 2007 (and taking way too long to do so, many pet parents complain). No link has yet been found between the treats and the illnesses.

About 60 percent of the illnesses reported to the FDA were gastrointestinal problems; 30 percent were kidney or urinary issues; and the remaining 10 percent were symptoms including convulsions, tremors, hives and skin irritation.

“We know some pet parents are wary of dog and cat treats made in China, especially chicken jerky products, and we’ve heard their concerns,” Jim Myers, CEO of Petco, said in a press release last May. “As a leader in the industry and the trusted partner for our pet parents, we’re eager to make this transition and to expand our assortment of safe and healthy treats, the majority of which are made right here in the U.S.”

Since September, Petco has been pulling the products from its online store and 1,300 physical stores; PetSmart will finish removing them by March.

Petco Vice President John Sturm told the Associated Press the chain will substitute the China-made treats with those made in Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands.

Last week Jump Your Bones recalled some lots of its Roo Bites, treats made in Australia from dehydrated kangaroo meat, because they may have contained Salmonella.

It seems like it may not be a good idea to feed your dog commercially made jerky treats, no matter where they’re manufactured.

Photo credit: Tony Alter

RECALL ALERT: KONG Aussie Sticks Dog Treats Sold at PetSmart

Some KONG Aussie Sticks dog treats that were sold at PetSmart have been “quietly” recalled because they may be contaminated with mold.

As of Friday morning, the recall has not yet been publicly announced by KONG or the product manufacturer, JAKKS Pacific. KONG sent an email to DogFoodAdvisor.com with the recall details.

Why aren’t KONG and JAKKS Pacific letting consumers know about the recall?

“We are troubled by the covert nature and lack of transparency exhibited by both companies associated with this particular event,” wrote DogFoodAdvisor.com. “Obtaining confirmation and collecting details about this recall were especially challenging. Apparently, the companies only notified PetSmart and relevant distribution centers.”

According to the email sent by KONG to DogFoodAdvisor.com, the recalled products “were not dried properly so a small percentage of finished goods have gone moldy. Majority of the product is fine, and the mold was caught at our [distribution center], but some product may have made it to PetSmart so we are recalling all the product at PetSmart and destroying all the product we have at our [distribution center].”

KONG Aussies Sticks products with the item numbers 75559 and 75560 are included in the recall. They have the “Best Before” date of 1/30/16 or 1/31/16.

The product can be returned to PetSmart for a full refund.

JAKKS Pacific can be contacted at 877-875-2557, Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT. KONG can be contacted at 303-216-2626.

Photo via DogFoodAdvisor.com

Exit mobile version