Treats: Why so expensive?
I'm pretty casual about dog food. I read labels carefully, but all except the cheapest grocery-store brands rarely have chemicals, sweeteners, flour, or dye. Most use a named meat source as their primary protein and first ingredient. If you want a nice food, there are tons of choices out there (I realize other people have different criteria, but I'm talking about just the basics).
Treats on the other hand--- oh my gosh, so many are loaded with sugar, food dye, chemical preservatives, and plain flour. Since my Corgis (like most) are on a limited calorie diet, I do try to find treats that have some nutritional value, and since I like to buy "Made in the USA" when possible, I've found that an awful lot of the treats out there are just not acceptable to me.
But recently I've begun to think about price. Why do they cost so darned much? For instance, Blue Buffalo kibble (hardly a cheapy) retails online at Petco at anywhere from $1.75 per pound for a 30-pound bag, to $3.30 a pound for a six-pound bag. Obviously buying in bulk saves.
Now compare the Blue Buffalo treats. Basic bars, similar enough profile to their food. And they retail for--- $9.99 a pound. That's three times as expensive as their highest-priced bag of basic kibble.
What gives? I realize they probably don't make treats in the same large batches they do kibble, and that in manufacturing there is cheapness in numbers. Still, it seems a little ludicrous to me, especially since they are sourcing most of the ingredients from the same place as the kibble.
I can't help but wonder if they charge so much more just because they can.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Beth on
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http://www.mycorgi.com/forum/topics/do-you-make-your-own-dog
It did work, and here's the link. I might try the breath-freshening one!
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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I am sure they charge so much because they can get away with it. The truth is my corgis are such pigs that a carrot or a green bean will elicit the same enthusiastic response as a piece of steak (or chicken poop). I also love hot dogs but eat them as little as I give them to the dogs...and I do not like to cook so would be unlikely to do so for the animals. Although they love anything my husband slips them from the table!
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Yep, I don't enjoy cooking either and it's enough for me to cook for us so we're not eating take-out very often. I think it's fabulous to make treats but the most I can manage is to stir some peanut butter into yogurt and freeze it in the summer for some "pupsicles".
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Permalink Reply by Bob and SparkPlug on
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I cheat. I get free samples of holistic and natural kibble wherever I can and use those for training treats. Sometimes I'll grab a handful of my girlfriends cheap kibble that she feeds her dog. A few pieces a day are OK. Sparky is so food motivated it really doesn't matter what i use, just that he gets something.
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Permalink Reply by Karen Dadisman on
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Rosie and Rocky LOVE Cheerios or the el cheapo fake Cheerios. They go nuts if I have them in my pocket. A giant bag of them lasts forever and is super cheap. You can snack on it if training gets long!
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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on
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In a hurry when Sage and I were doing obedience I just cut up a piece of string cheese into tiny bits. All my dogs are very motivated by cheese even a bit of american will have them behaving...some people use the spray can but that's very expensive.
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Permalink Reply by Kari & Quin on
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what about people beef jerky it is cheaper than dog jerky and and most likely better for your dog without all the unnatural flavorings.
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Permalink Reply by Manda and Chloe on
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i feed both my chloe and our cat wellness food, but as far as treats go i get them all from my work. i work at big lots and we get all kinds of all natural, american made treats in, especially this time of year. they range from 2.50 to 5 bucks a box and most of them are brands that i see go for twice that, if not more, at pet stores. when we do run out i cringe at having to get them from the pet store because chloe has allergies and i have to be careful what she gets.
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Lucky you:)
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Permalink Reply by Basil on
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I buy Basil's treats from Trader Joes. "Organic" on the label...asst flavors. I break them in thirds. Reasonable and apparently tasty. :-)
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