Teton’s pals over at Mr. Chewy recently sent him some treats to review!

(Found a new use for our Chalkboard Dog!)

I’ve had my eye on Orijen’s freeze-dried treats for a while now. We’re a big fan of dehydrated treats, but freeze-dried? What’s the deal with freeze-dried?

Unlike conventional pet foods which are cooked at high temperatures, ORIJEN freeze-dried foods are prepared without cooking, so they fully retain the natural properties of our authentically fresh ingredients.

We start by flash-freezing our fresh regional ingredients to lock in their goodness. Then, using extremely low temperatures (-50°C) and special pressurized chambers, our 18 hour freeze-drying process converts the frozen water in our ingredients directly into vapor, without creating any liquid.

That means H₂0, and ONLY H₂0 is removed, leaving all of the goodness in the food — exactly where it should be!

(Source)

Ok, so what about “biologically appropriate?”

Orijen applies five “biologically appropriate” principles to all of their freeze-dried treats.

1. Rich in meat

2. Meat diversity

3. Meat freshness

4. Low carbohydrate, low glycemic

5. Whole fruits, vegetables and botanicals

(Source)

Check out this link for more information on these five principles.

How do the five principles translate into the treats, themselves? Check out that ingredient list. Only three things. Bison liver, boneless bison, and bison tripe. Boom.

Orijen’s Free Range Bison Freeze-Dried Treats are fun because they are a different texture than most treats their size. Did you ever have astronaut ice cream?

I think it’s pretty much the same texture as these treats. 🙂

They’re also a good size. I generally give Teton two at a time but I don’t feel like I’m cheapin’ him any if I only give him one.

He likes ’em.

Gimme one ‘a them treats, Ma.

Mr. Chewy has a great selection of Orijen treats and food. Check them out!

Happy 4th, y’all!