Flavored Animal-Part Treats Are Still a Cut Above

How Manufacturers Prevent Contamination
By Scott and Ann Springer

Making pet products from throw-away animal parts such as pig ears and lamb tracheas is a profitable business. Manufacturers who make these products must ensure that the treats and chews they offer are free from contamination and conform to all required health standards.

The first step in achieving this occurs after the manufacturers purchase the discarded parts from slaughter houses. Precise processes differ at each company, but the animal parts are typically dried in large industrial ovens and cut into different sizes to be accessible for all breeds of dogs.

Kasel Industries receives its product frozen from the slaughter house. The parts are then thawed and placed on baker's racks to be baked for 20 hours at temperatures hot enough to ensure bacterial removal.

"We kill all the bacteria and remove the moisture during the cooking process," says Richard Butcher, director of sales and marketing for Colorado Naturals, a division of Kasel Industries, located in Denver, Colo.

Manufacturers go to great lengths to be sure their products are safe. "We boil them, sanitize them by soaking them in a heavy peroxide solution, and them smoke them for flavoring," says Glenn Wilhelm, director of operations for Pet Magic, Inc. in Detroit, Mich. "Then they go into large ovens for two to five days at a low temperature and each batch is tested for bacteria."

The Food and Drug Administration requires that pet goods, like human foods, contain no harmful substances. Dog chews made from animal parts are considered food since pets eat them, according to the FDA's website.

"We run tests everyday to be sure that we don't have bacteria in our product," Butcher says. These daily tests especially look for salmonella and E-coli. "Quality control issues are more sensitive to the public now than ever before," Butcher adds.

Pet treats made from discards were implicated in a salmonella poisoning case in humans in Canada in 1999. However, no illnesses have been reported in the United States due to animal-part treats. The FDA cautions people to handle these products as if they were raw meat by using hot, soapy water to wash hands and surfaces that have come in contact with the products.

Healthy pets will rarely become ill from these types of bacteria, but they can act as a host for salmonella and transmit the disease to humans or other animals, according to the FDA's website.

Salmonella can cause vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps in healthy adults, but could be fatal in young children, the elderly, or people with compromised immune systems.

-S.S. & A.S.

(Published in Mar. 2004)

Flavored Animal-Part Treats Are Still a Cut Above
These mainstays are popular, low-carb alternative treats for dogs
By Scott and Ann Springer

One man's waste is another man's treasure—or at least man's best friend's treasure. In years past, slaughter houses across the country disposed of many animal parts that didn't have a market, until it was discovered that they could be resurrected as tasty treats for dogs.

Pet Magic Inc. in Detroit, Mich., was one company who did just this. The largest slaughter house in the Midwest was throwing away 2 million pig ears a month, so the owners of Pet Magic set up shop across the street from the slaughter house and began turning out a product that has proved profitable for 15 years, says Glenn Wilhelm, the director of operations.

"We took a throw-away item and cooked it and then flavored it so dogs would like it," Wilhelm says. "We saw an item that was wasted and turned it into a profitable business."

Such businesses were a win-win for all parties involved. "The slaughter houses got nothing for these parts, and in fact, they had to pay people to come pick them up,"
says Jeff Baikie, co-president of Redbarn Pet Products, in Long Beach, Calif.

Today, most pet stores offer various animal-part treats and chews, including pig ears, lamb tracheas and hearts, chicken feet, and bully sticks.

Increasing Popularity
Pet product trends have come and gone, but this segment of market has held strong for years and is surging.

"We have seen a double-digit increase in sales in the past five years," Wilhelm says. He attributes the increase in sales to consumers being more health-conscious and because it is an irresistible treat for dogs. "Just like most humans enjoy chocolate, there aren't too many dogs that don't like a smoked bone."

Retail stores have seen their sales continually climb over the years. "Sales are really high," says Darnell Moore, the manager of Pet Supplies Plus in Detroit, Mich. "We go through boxes and boxes of pig ears a week, and each box has about 100 treats in it."

These treats appeal to dogs' tastebuds and to their owners' pocketbooks. "Larger-breed dogs can be more destructive on couches and furniture because they like to chew," Moore says. "This takes their attention off tearing up the upholstery and gives them something to chew that is long-lasting."

Health benefits are also being touted as a reason for increasing sales. "You are giving them something they love, and it is good for them physiologically," says Richard Butcher, the director of sales and marketing for Colorado Naturals, a division of Kasel Industries in Denver, Colo. "It is medically proven that a dog eats food by smell more than by taste. Their sense of smell is 500 more times more sensitive than that of humans."

Dog owners tend to favor animal-part treats because some of them can last a long time. "A big femur can last a big dog weeks and weeks," Baikie says. He says owners may also purchase them because they are fully digestible, as well as cost efficient.

"The trend toward high protein and low carb is spilling over to feeding pets," says Stephanie Frommer, assistant manager at Especially for Pets, a small retail chain in Westborough, Mass. "I think they are an easy alternative to biscuits and they are longer lasting."

Frommer says another advantage to treats such as pig ears and bully sticks is that they don't expand when moist. "Other treats can cause a dog to choke if they are lodged in the trachea," she says. "Because these are muscle, they break down easier."

Dog trainers are also reporting great success when using these treats for positive reinforcement. "They claim the treats are so appealing to dogs that they reduce the training time almost in half," Butcher says.

Evolution Over Time
Pig ears have been a well-known staple in this line of products since their conception. Once sales took off, companies began branching out to treats made from other animal parts.

Companies have improved on these products over time by adding fillers to the marrow of the bones that they process and sell. "A lot of the bone product now is getting pretty high-tech," Wilhelm says. "The marrow is cooked out of the middle and flavorings like peanut butter and vanilla are being added in."

In the past, these products were sold exclusively in large bins, but companies are now individually shrink-wrapping products and selling them with catchy names and decorative labeling on the packaging.

"The packaging is what sells it," Baikie says. "All of our products are shrink-wrapped and labeled to appeal to the female customer because females purchase 85 percent of pet products and they treat their dogs like their children."

The advantage to individually shrink-wrapping products is that the items touch fewer hands before they reach Fido's chops. "It keeps them cleaner and it gives them a cleaner look on the shelves," Wilhelm says. "If you think about it, you wouldn't really want to go into a store and grab a raw steak with your bare hands."

Marketing Methods
Dog owners typically frequent a pet store buy just to buy basic supplies and food, so to increase sales you must attract their eye to things they didn't know they needed: the nonessentials. An animal-part chew is a good example of a nonessential.

"It is an impulse buy," Moore says. "We put them upfront, close to the registers, so they will see them while they are waiting in line and say, ‘Oh, a treat. Maybe I'll get that.'"

Displaying these items effectively will increase your sales and help your entire store look clean and orderly. "We suspect 15 to 20 percent of dog owners are buying this product regularly," Butcher says. "The more exposure the product has, the more it will sell. Displays trigger impulse sales."

Frommer displays her items in bulk bins near the front of the store because it is eye-catching and quick for customers to make a grab. "It's like the bulk candy bin at the candy store—it's instant gratification," she says.

Scott and Ann Springer are freelance writers based in Southern California.