Now that we've covered what a single ingredient dog chew is, why are they so great? For starters, you know what you're feeding your dog. For example, Bison Scapula Cartilage (Bison Scaps) are just that - Bison Scapula Cartilage. Part of caring for dogs is caring about their health. That starts with knowing what they're actually eating. By knowing what's actually being consumed, you can also more easily control dogs' calorie intake. Single ingredient dog chews tend to be higher in protein and lower in calories than dog chews made from multiple ingredients because they don't contain all the empty filler calories.
It's also especially helpful if your dog has stomach and digestive issues or food allergies. By limiting dogs to single ingredient chews, dogs with sensitive stomachs or food allergies can still enjoy chews but without the negative side affects. This is particularly true of single ingredient dog chews made from Bison as the vast majority of dogs tolerate Bison extremely well.
Single ingredient dog chews also tend to take more time to eat which is always a good thing. Most are made from some form of cartilage so dogs happily gnaw, nibble and taste and taste, nibble and gnaw them as they go. And all that gnawing has another great benefit - helping to keep dogs' teeth clean and breath smelling great!
So which single ingredient chews are best? Always purchase dog chews that are both sourced and made in the USA. Many manufacturers state that the ingredients used are USDA inspected which can be greatly misleading as consumers often assume the ingredients are US sourced. What consumers don't realize is that ingredients coming from outside the US are inspected by the USDA upon arrival giving the illusion of being from the US.
The product is then processed in the US whereby companies mark the product as "Made in the USA." While the product may have been manufactured in the US, it doesn't mean the ingredients were sourced in the US unless clearly indicated as "Sourced in the USA." Because consumers have no way of knowing how foreign animals were raised or how parts were harvested, cleaned, stored and transported, it's always best to purchase US sourced and made products.
After that, the choice should come down to taste and variety. Just as people benefit from variety, so do dogs. Choose a range of single ingredient chews from a variety of animals and parts. Most importantly, choose ones that your dog enjoys the most. If it's clear that your dog really loves one particular part over another then by all means get those. Just like people, dogs have their own preferences. While one may love Bison Scaps another may love Beef Trachea and Bison Pizzle. Why fight it!
