Big Fishy Treats # Chewy Influencer

Whenever possible I feed my dogs fish. They love the taste and it's good for them. This month Chewy provided us the opportunity to try some fish treats. We chose Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Treats in the Sweet Potato & Fish Formula.

We've had both treats and canned food from Natural Balance in the past and I've been happy with all the products we've tried. I knew my pack would enjoy these, too.  These treats are very large. For my pack I would break them in half though for this taste test, each dog received a whole treat.

At 30 calories per treat, these are too much for a dog with a weight problem and they also contain rosemary, which can sometimes induce a seizure in susceptible dogs. Fortunately, rosemary doesn't seem to bother Mackey. I find a lot of dog foods and especially treats contain rosemary, so if your dog has seizures, be sure and look for it in the ingredients before buying.

And now for the very important taste test.

As you can see these were a resounding success.

Chewy sent us this bag of Natural Balance Sweet Potato and Fish Formula Treats at no cost to us in exchange for our honest review. My dogs loved these but because of the high calorie count, they probably won't be a staple in our household.

A Peak Month # Chewy Influencer

Hi Everybody,
Guess what wonderful thing happened the other day. I went onto the porch with Mom and there were two BIG boxes sitting by the door. Look Mom, where did these boxes come from?

Mom, they say Chewy on the front of the boxes

They say Chewy on the back, too.

What do you think could be in them? Come on Mom, help me open them.

Oh boy, there's big bags of foodables inside the boxes.

Fudge was getting very excited because he discovered several bags of Rachel Ray Nutrish Peak. Chewy has asked us to do a month long trial and Fudge thinks it's a wonderful idea.

He wanted me to open the bags right there on the porch. He started licking the bags, so Rob and I moved them to the garage where the important tasting will take place.

Over the next 30 days we'll let you know what we all think of this new food.

We can hardly wait!
Your pal, Fudge

What Season Is It?

Hi Everybody,
It's been Spring for a few days now, but it looks bleak in our yard.

 There are a few signs that Spring is actually here, like buds on Dad's rosebush.

 There are a few little violets sprinkled around the yard.

  Even Mom's bleeding heart plant is shooting up between the rocks.

 But this morning Mom put on her winter coat when she went outside. It was cold and windy and rainy. The weather dude on TV says we're going to get flood rains for the next couple days and we don't like the sound of that.

So what's a dog to do when it's cold and windy and rainy? We can't play outside. We can't even go for walks in the park.

Instead, we nap. 
Tess found her favorite place near the door.

Norma Jean stretched out on the couch. 

Sebastian snuggled into the pillows.

Norma Jean waited till Sebastian moved, then she climbed into the pillows.

The rest of us found places around the house to curl up or stretch out. We're just fine till dinner. Then we'll find different spots and do it again till bedtime. Mom will wake us up to go to bed.

It's a tough life.
Your pal, Fudge

Warm Soup On A Cold Day #Chewy Influencer

Hi Everybody,
Today is the first day of Spring but it sure still feels like winter around here. It was raining this morning and now it's just chilly and damp. No snow to play in, just wet mud underfoot. On days like this Mom tries to give us a nice warm meal to make our tummies happy. This time Chewy sent us something new to try and it sure hit the spot.

We received this box of containers and they looked very interesting to us, not like our usual dog food. These are from one of our favorite companies, The Honest Kitchen. This time we have The Honest Kitchen Embark Grain-Free Turkey Recipe Dehydrated Dog Food.

Can you believe that in this container there is turkey, flaxseed, potatoes, celery, spinach, carrots, coconut, apples, kelp, eggs, bananas, and cranberries? That sounds like one super meal in a little container. Mom says that because it's dehydrated, it all fits in there.

See this is what dehydrated looks like. Not too appetizing, is it? Just wait.

Mom added some warm water and we waited three minutes. Then when she stirred it, it looked like this. Mom says it doesn't look appealing to her, but we told her to let us judge. 

This food is grain  and gluten free and is rich in antioxidants. It contains higher calories and protein than other recipes so it's great for puppies and active adult dogs. There are no by-products, preservatives or GMO ingredients and most importantly no ingredients from China.

We all decided to taste it, even Noah. His tummy is super sensitive so he doesn't always get to try new things, but this time he did and he had no bad reactions. Mom put it on top of our kibbles and stirred it up. 

Then we tried it.

It was great!! In fact it was so good that we didn't want to waste any. Noah volunteered to clean out the container.

Sebastian helped him.

The Dog Food Advisor site gives this Embark Grain Free Turkey Dehydrated Food five stars, which is it's highest rating. They also state this: "It's worth noting The Honest Kitchen has taken the rather unusual step of applying for (and actually receiving) FDA approval to label it's pet foods human grade. The company only uses human-edible components and produces all it's products in a human food manufacturing facility."

Because of that Dad tried a spoonful of our food and said that it's pretty good. He tests most of our treats but not our regular foodibles.

Mom said to tell you that Chewy sent us this case of Grain Free Turkey dehydrated food at no cost to her and Dad in exchange for our honest opinions. As you can see, we think The Honest Kitchen makes some pretty good stuff. Try some.

Your pal, Fudge

Fudge's Words of Wisdom

Hi Everybody,
Have you noticed that your peeps tend to get all worked up over the silliest things? Last weekend Mom went into her office to play with taxis. She does this every year about this time.  Instead of paying ball outside with us, she spends all day in front of the computer surrounded by papers and instead of smiling and talking to us, she gets grumpy and says lots of bad words. Then at the end of the day Mom and Dad get together and go thru the papers and either get grumpier or sometimes they get happy.

 I don't know a lot about taxis but I know I like to ride. When Mom said she was going to do taxis I watched out the window but I didn't see a single car and she didn't leave the house, so what are these peeps talking about? Why get so worked up over a taxi?

Peeps should learn a few things from us dogs about relaxing and enjoying life. Take poop for instance.  Every dog enjoys the scent of fresh poop, either our own or that of another animal. We can spend a lot of time sniffing and taking in all the finer qualities of  a warm pile of poop. No two are the same, just like snowflakes.

But have you noticed how peeps react to fresh poop? They go nuts. When Mom or Dad get a whiff of fresh poop, we know what to expect. They line us up and do a butt check. Then someone is sure to wind up in the bathtub. What a waste!

The peeps use something called shampoo to destroy all our fine doggie fragrance that we've worked so hard to establish. Now think about shampoo. Sham means fake and poo means poo. Why on earth would you wash us with fake poo when we are perfectly able to make ourselves smell like real poo. It doesn't make any sense.

Then there's the issue with sticks.On a warm sunny day we all love to find a good thick stick and make mulch out of it. But when it's cold or rainy, we like to bring those sticks inside and chew in comfort on the carpet, in front of the TV.  The peeps are fine with us mulching outside in the grass, but they freak out when they see a fine pile of fresh mulch on the carpet. They yell and grab that big noisy dirt sucking machine and attack our handiwork. It just disappears. After all our hard work, it just disappears. How's that for gratitude?

Peeps need to chill and start thinking more like dogs. Accept others for the rich earthy doggie aroma that they possess naturally. Stop worrying about invisible taxis that don't even appear after hours at the computer. 

So, my advice for peeps is go roll in the yard, pee on a tree and find a good stick to chew. It will help your blood pressure and make you a nicer person to live with. Oh, and take more naps. If you aren't busy doing something important like eating, take a nap. You'll feel a whole lot better

Your pal, Fudge

Crisis Averted

Hi Everybody,
Last week we had a very serious crisis situation here at our house. This situation could have had tragic consequences if someone didn't step in quickly and correct the problem. I was really nervous. Let me explain.

As you all know I have a certain fondness for sprinkles. I like them on cookies......

and cupcakes.....

and even my birthday pie was generously covered with sprinkles.

But last week it came to my attention that our sprinkle bottle was getting perilously close to empty. There were only enough sprinkles left to cover one party. This was a truly frightening thought and I couldn't relax just thinking about it.

Then over the weekend Mom and Dad went shopping. They bought lots of goodies like green beans for my dinner and yogurt for my bedtime snack. While they were strolling thru the store Dad saw the display of sprinkles and commented that our supply was running low.

So guess what they brought home.

They bought a big supply of sprinkles of all colors and sizes and shapes.

 Crisis averted! We have plenty of sprinkles now which means we can have even more parties. Hey, I think that calls for a party!

Your pal, Fudge