Not all treats are created equal. Many are filled with low-quality ingredients, fillers, and unnecessary additives that can impact your pet’s health over time. Learn what to look for in high-quality treats and how to choose options that truly support your dog or cat’s overall well-being.
Feed one ingredient treats only. Treats with the fewest ingredients are ideal.
Fruits and veggies make great treats.
The majority of treats available at Chewy, Walmart, Petsmart, etc are garbage. Buy healthy treats at locally owned or holistic pet stores. See our treat recommendations on this page.
Healthy dog and cat treats should nourish your pet, not undermine their health. Many store-bought options are ultra-processed and loaded with starches, synthetic additives, artificial flavors, and low-quality rendered meats that can contribute to inflammation, allergies, yeast overgrowth, and chronic disease. While treats may seem small, they add up quickly—and for many pets, they make up a significant portion of the daily diet. Choosing truly healthy, limited-ingredient treats made from whole, species-appropriate ingredients can support digestion, immune balance, dental health, and long-term vitality.
Natural dog and cat treats should be simple, nourishing, and minimally processed. Single-ingredient options like chicken feet, turkey necks, and other natural chews are highly palatable while supporting dental health, digestion, and overall well-being. Unlike many commercial treats that contain preservatives, fillers, and excessive processing, these whole-food options provide real nutrition. Choosing single-ingredient, species-appropriate treats is one of the easiest ways to support your pet’s health while still giving them something they love.
Many of the most commonly recommended treats are also some of the most problematic. While they’re heavily marketed and widely available, these options can quietly contribute to digestive issues, inflammation, and even long-term health concerns
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Top reasons to avoid rawhides
Rawhides are often promoted as a long-lasting chew, but they come with significant risks. They are not easily digestible and can swell in the stomach, increasing the risk of choking or dangerous intestinal blockages. Many rawhides are heavily processed using chemical treatments during manufacturing, which may include exposure to substances like arsenic, lead, mercury, chromium, and formaldehyde. In addition, their tough, leathery texture can pose a hazard for aggressive chewers who may break off large pieces.
Top reasons to avoid Milk-Bone Original Dog Treats
Traditional biscuit-style treats like Milk-Bone are often made with low-quality, highly processed ingredients that offer little nutritional value. They tend to be high in carbohydrates and sugars, which can contribute to weight gain, yeast overgrowth, and blood sugar imbalances. Many formulas include preservatives such as BHA and sodium metabisulfite, along with filler ingredients like wheat, flour, meat meal, and bone meal. These types of ingredients can be difficult for some pets to digest and may trigger sensitivities or allergies over time.
Why peanut butter isn’t always a safe choice
Peanut butter is often seen as a “healthy” treat, but there are several reasons to be cautious.Many brands contain added sweeteners—best case, sugar; worst case, xylitol (also called birch sugar), which is extremely toxic to dogs and can be life-threatening even in small amounts. Peanuts themselves are prone to contamination with aflatoxins, naturally occurring mold toxins that have been linked to liver damage and cancer.
In addition, peanut butter often contains hydrogenated or processed fats that can promote inflammation. Peanuts are typically grown with heavy pesticide use and are frequently sprayed with glyphosate before harvest. They are also high in fat, which can be problematic for pets prone to pancreatitis or digestive upset. Lastly, peanuts contain lectins, which may interfere with nutrient absorption and contribute to gut imbalance in sensitive animals.
When it comes to treats, simple is better. Choosing whole, minimally processed, single-ingredient options helps avoid these hidden risks while supporting your pet’s overall health.
Yak chews, sometimes called Himalayan yak chews, have become increasingly popular with pet parents looking for a long-lasting, more natural alternative to synthetic dog chews. They typically contain a relatively simple combination of yak and/or cow’s milk, salt, and lime.
That simple ingredient list can certainly sound appealing. But when deciding whether a chew is healthy for our pets, we need to look beyond the ingredients.
With yak chews, my biggest concern is how incredibly hard they can be.
Although yak chews are sold for dogs, I generally prefer softer alternatives because of the potential for dental injuries.
Dogs can exert tremendous pressure when chewing. When a tooth meets something extremely hard, sometimes the chew doesn’t break—the tooth does.
Fractured teeth aren’t merely cosmetic. A damaged tooth can be painful and may expose the sensitive structures inside the tooth, potentially leading to inflammation or infection and requiring veterinary dental treatment. Veterinary dental literature recognizes fractured teeth as a significant source of pain and oral disease in companion animals.
One simple guideline I like to use when evaluating a chew is this:
If the chew is so hard that you cannot make any impression in it with your fingernail, I would think twice before giving it to your dog.
I would be particularly cautious about hard yak chews for:
Don’t assume that a young dog with beautiful teeth can’t break one. Healthy teeth can still be damaged by excessive chewing forces.
Dental fractures aren’t the only concern.
As a yak chew gets smaller, some dogs attempt to swallow the remaining piece.
Depending on its size, that piece could become lodged in the throat or potentially create a gastrointestinal obstruction after being swallowed.
For this reason, dogs should always be supervised with any recreational chew, and the chew should be removed once it becomes small enough to swallow.
They can.
Yak chews are dairy-based, and not every dog’s digestive system handles dairy well.
A sensitive dog could potentially experience:
This is particularly important for dogs that already have sensitive gastrointestinal systems or known food intolerances.
From a holistic perspective, a recreational chew is worth creating unnecessary digestive inflammation or discomfort.
I don’t recommend yak chews for cats.
Cats have very different chewing behaviors and nutritional needs than dogs, and there is little reason to give a cat an extremely hard dairy-based chew.
A cat’s teeth are designed primarily for grabbing, tearing, and cutting meat—not spending long periods grinding away at something extremely hard.
Cats can develop broken teeth and other painful dental conditions just as dogs can. The AVMA recommends monitoring pets for signs of oral problems including abnormal chewing, drooling, dropping food, reduced appetite, and broken or loose teeth.
For cats, we recommend you offer an appropriate species-specific meat-based treat or enrichment activity.
Some yak chew manufacturers recommend taking the small leftover portion of the chew and microwaving it. The piece expands and becomes more like a crunchy puff.
If you choose to do this, follow the manufacturer’s directions carefully and allow the puffed chew to cool completely before giving it to your dog.
It can become extremely hot during heating.
Even after puffing, supervise your dog and make sure the resulting piece is an appropriate size. We recommend you do not give your pets yak chews.
This is an important distinction in holistic pet care.
We recommend choosing foods, treats, and products with simple, recognizable ingredients whenever possible. But the word natural doesn’t automatically make something appropriate for every animal.
Antlers, bones, hooves, yak chews, and other extremely hard natural products can still cause problems.
You have to consider the whole animal:
How hard does your dog chew?
What condition are their teeth in?
Do they swallow pieces?
Do they have digestive sensitivities?
Are they a puppy or senior?
A chew that’s tolerated by one dog may be completely inappropriate for another.
We prefer recreational chews that provide some give rather than something that’s essentially rock-hard.
Appropriately sized softer natural chews, certain collagen-based chews, and other digestible options may be better choices depending on your individual dog.
But no chew is completely risk-free.
Size matters, chewing style matters, dental health matters, and supervision always matters.
Also remember that chewing something isn’t a replacement for good dental care. Regular tooth brushing remains one of the most effective things pet parents can do at home to support their pet’s oral health.
For dogs, we would never consider yak chews my first choice because their extreme hardness can create an unnecessary risk of fractured teeth. There’s also the possibility of choking, swallowing large pieces, or digestive upset in dogs that don’t tolerate dairy well.
For cats, I would skip yak chews altogether and choose species-appropriate alternatives.
When choosing something for your pet to chew, don’t focus only on whether the ingredients are natural.
Look at the whole pet.
The safest chew is one that’s appropriate for your pet’s size, age, dental health, digestive system, and individual chewing style—and one that’s always given under supervision.
Sometimes choosing the gentler option is the most natural choice of all.
Nylabones and other hard nylon chews are popular because they are long-lasting and can keep dogs occupied. However, durability does not necessarily make a chew a healthy or risk-free choice. Because these products are extremely hard and are not designed to be digested, we do not recommend Nylabones as a regular chew for dogs.
One of our biggest concerns with Nylabones is their hardness. Dogs can generate tremendous force when chewing, particularly large dogs and aggressive chewers. When a chew is harder than the tooth can safely withstand, the tooth may be the thing that breaks.
Fractured teeth can expose the sensitive pulp inside the tooth, causing significant pain and potentially leading to infection. Treatment may require veterinary dental procedures such as extraction or root canal therapy.
A simple rule we like to keep in mind: a chew doesn’t have to break for your dog’s tooth to break.
Nylabones are made primarily from nylon and are intended for chewing rather than eating. As dogs chew them, however, the surface can become rough and small or larger pieces may eventually come off.
Tiny shavings may pass through the gastrointestinal tract, but larger pieces can present a much more serious problem. Swallowed pieces may become lodged in the esophagus, stomach or intestines, potentially causing choking or a gastrointestinal obstruction.
An intestinal blockage can become a veterinary emergency and, in some cases, require surgery.
Take a look at a heavily chewed nylon bone and you’ll often notice that its once-smooth surface has become rough, jagged or sharp.
Those edges can irritate or injure the gums, tongue and other tissues in the mouth. Pieces that are swallowed may also irritate the digestive tract.
This is particularly concerning with dogs that are powerful chewers or determined to break pieces from their toys.
Dogs have a natural desire to chew, and chewing can provide enrichment, relieve boredom and help satisfy instinctive behaviors. But we prefer to meet that biological need with options that provide more than simply something hard to gnaw on.
Nylon is not food and provides no meaningful nutritional benefit.
From a holistic perspective, we prefer species-appropriate chewing and enrichment options that support the dog’s physical, nutritional and emotional needs whenever possible.
It is important to distinguish traditional nylon Nylabones from the company’s edible products. They are not the same thing.
If you’re considering an edible chew, evaluate it as you would any other food or treat. Read the complete ingredient list rather than assuming that an edible product is automatically a healthier option. Look at the quality of the ingredients, additives, preservatives and whether the product is appropriate for your individual dog. Nylabones Edible Chews do not have good ingredients.
Depending on your dog’s size, chewing style, dental health and diet, alternatives may include appropriately sized raw meaty bones, certain edible natural chews, frozen food-based enrichment, stuffed enrichment toys and other softer options.
Never feed cooked weight-bearing bones or bones that have been roasted, baked or smoked. Cooking changes the structure of bone and can make it more brittle and prone to splintering.
No chew is completely risk-free. Always choose something appropriate for your dog’s size and chewing style and supervise your dog while chewing.
If your dog has swallowed a large piece of a Nylabone, don’t simply wait for symptoms to develop. Contact your veterinarian for guidance.
Seek prompt veterinary care if you notice repeated vomiting, gagging, excessive drooling, difficulty swallowing, abdominal pain or swelling, loss of appetite, lethargy, straining to defecate, inability to pass stool, blood in the stool, or sudden pain while chewing.
If you suspect a fractured tooth, veterinary dental evaluation is also important. Dogs frequently continue eating despite significant dental pain, so a normal appetite doesn’t necessarily mean the tooth is okay.
Nylabones may last a long time, but longevity isn’t our measure of a good chew. Their extreme hardness, lack of digestibility and potential for pieces to be swallowed are enough for us to choose other options.
Our philosophy is simple: when possible, choose chewing and enrichment options that work with your dog’s biology rather than simply giving them something they can’t easily destroy.
FROZEN FRUIT TREATS
By Linda Hoover
Yum in 3 Simple Steps! Serve as a treat or as part of a meal.
DOGGIE MEATBALLS
By MonicaSegal.com
BEEF & BROCCOLI BITES
By spot•on Canine Nutrition
MAKE YOUR OWN DELICIOUS TREATS!
Want to treat your pup to something special? Simply slice up some lean meat like chicken, beef, or venison into thin pieces and dry them out at a nice low temperature (140-158°F or 60-70°C) using a dehydrator or your oven. Once they’re all dried out, just pop them in airtight containers or bags and store them in a cool, dry spot. Your dog will love these homemade snacks!
Note: Dehydrating times will vary based on the device used and depending on thickness.
Some items may take longer but well worth the wait (not to mention at a fraction of the cost from store bought!). You may want to finish some items in the oven about 10 mins after dried. Play around and see what works best for you.
“Preservatives to Avoid In Dog (Cat Food and Treats-Unsafe, Toxic and Carcinogenic” by Karen Rosenfeld.
Freeze-dried treats can be one of the healthiest options — if they are truly single ingredient and properly sourced. The freeze-drying process removes moisture while preserving nutrients without the need for synthetic vitamin sprays, artificial preservatives, or starch binders. Look for named animal proteins (like duck liver or sardine) and avoid products with added glycerin, “natural flavor,” or vitamin packs. For many pets, especially those with allergies or yeast issues, simple is safer.
Yes. Many commercial treats are high in starch, sugar, and inflammatory ingredients that can feed yeast and disrupt the gut microbiome. Multi-ingredient treats with fillers, synthetic additives, and plant-heavy formulas are common triggers in sensitive pets. If your dog or cat struggles with itching, red paws, ear infections, or chronic inflammation, switch to limited ingredient, single-protein meat treats and monitor closely. Treats count toward total diet impact — they are not “free calories”.
Treats should generally make up no more than 10% of your pet’s daily caloric intake. For small dogs especially, even a few high-calorie treats can unbalance the diet quickly. Choose nutrient-dense options instead of empty-calorie snacks, and adjust meal portions if needed. Remember, treats are an extension of the diet — they should support long-term health, not undermine it.
Click here to order Duncan’s Delights. They come in Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Cookies, Pumpkin Chai Biscuit, Carob Drop Cookie, Ginger Snaps Biscut, and Sweet Potato and Cinnamon.
These are the healthy, limited-ingredient treats I recommend for dogs and cats, especially for pets with allergies, sensitive digestion, or inflammatory conditions
Treats and Chews, Meatballs (for Meal Replacement) and Food Toppers. If your dog doesn't like it they will replace it.
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