The DhK in Blog Form

Maybe its fall, or maybe it's because I'm around them all the time. All I know is that I, too, have been eating more treats. In the past it was always a joke; people asking me "You taste test 'em, right?" But more and more I am taste testing. I've always run into dog store owners who tasted the treats before purchasing from any new company, and I've always liked that attribute.

For me, of late, I'm just drawn to them; it brings me close to the product, which seems like it would always important be important in any industry. It might also be because our 4th year at The Common Ground Fair is coming up. As many of you know, we have a booth there in the *Maine Marketplace* and we ALWAYS encourage people to eat the treats. We take photos of it, too.




On Saturday I also tasted another company's treats. Decent ingredients, and a really nice smell. I pictured myself as the intended animal recipient and I chomped down. Then, to double check my initial reaction, I chomped again. Cleaned my palette and bit off a piece of one of our Spice of Life treats. The critique: They used a natural *flavor* which gave the treats a great smell but didn't hold up in the taste. Also, for some reason, a strange (and unfortunate) aftertaste. So it made me wonder: do the dogs have similar reactions?