Of course, there are good and bad things about getting older (not that I would have believed that when I was young).
As we age, we begin to feel the effects our lives have had on our bodies.
I developed grain sensitivities, which gave me a small taste of what our first dog Sorrel must have suffered. She was fed on grain-based big business dog food her whole life.
However, the benefit of age is experience.
And my experience led to Bounce and Bella taking the direction it did – no grain – no derivatives – no rawhide – no nasties.
Difference between saying and doing
Experience also means once you’ve seen something a few times, it’s no longer a surprise when it happens.
And you’ve probably developed a strategy for dealing with it.
A clear example of this is the difference between what people say and what they do.
They may not be lying; they may honestly believe it – so no amount of questioning is going to get us to reality.
However, what will show us reality are their actions.
That is why when I’m picking up treats for Roscoe (always on the hunt for goodies!) I look at the words on the front of the packet and then search for the reality of the maker’s actions on the back.
The list of ingredients shows us what actions the maker took to back up their warm words on the front of the packet.
Do they mean what they say?
So here’s a great example of what I mean…
These particular treats are available online in the UK, but it’s a US product.
Interestingly it’s a US company that was recently bought out by one of the big 3 pet food conglomerates that own 90% of the UK market.
I don’t know if the ingredients have changed or if they’re the same as the original ones.
Words
Here are the words from the online listing and the front of the packet…
Mini Naturals (the main name, so does it stand up?)
Crafted in the USA using the Earth’s best Ingredients (Earth’s best?)
Wholesome (Cambridge dictionary definition: good for you and likely to benefit you physically, morally, or emotionally)
Corn, Wheat and Soy free (cool – but does it avoid similar grain fillers like oats and rice)
Nutrient-rich (Is it full of nutrients?)
Action/Ingredients
They said some good things but did their actions stand up? What’s in the ingredients?
Peanut Butter, Barley, Rice, Oats, Malted Barley Extract, Vegetable Glycerin, Tapioca Starch Modified, Cherries, Potato Protein, Dried Cultured Whey Product, Sunflower Lecithin, Salt, Phosphoric Acid, Turmeric Spice, Vitamin E Supplement, Zinc Proteinate, Citric Acid for freshness, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, Rosemary Extract.
Compare Words to Actions…
So let’s compare words to actions and check out the reality…
Naturals? Can we call Phosphoric Acid, Dried Cultured Whey Product and Zinc Proteinate naturals?
Earth’s Best Ingredients? I’m not sure these really are the finest ingredients the world has to offer?
Wholesome? Are these ingredients good for your dog and likely to benefit them physically, morally, or emotionally? I’m not sure I can point to any of these ingredients and say they’re good for your dog.
Corn, Wheat and Soy-free? Yes – but they have been replaced with other cheap grain fillers such as barley, rice and oats.
Nutrient-rich? Not seeing many accessible nutrients for dogs.
This is why when I look at a packet of treats, I don’t believe the words until I’ve seen the actions – and the ingredients are all the actions we need to know.
At Bounce and Bella, we want to help end your pet parent worries over hidden nasties, by offering simple yet tasty dog treats with just a few premium ingredients. This means you can relax knowing exactly what your dog is eating.
If you’re new to us (or you’ve never used the offer before), you can grab 50% off our treats – all clearly labelled with the ingredients front and centre – we want our words and actions to match up.
It’s easy, all the details are here… https://shop.bounceandbella.co.uk/pages/blog50