You’d like human grade ingredients for your dog food but what about your dog food treats? Full Moon provides quality dog treats made from only natural and human grade ingredients so that every part of your dog’s health and well-being is considered.
Full Moon’s treats are high quality but are they worth the price. The company makes 100% human grade options right in their kitchens, and the treats are things that you could eat yourself.
Let’s take a look at this company and their treats to see if you should switch. Below is our comprehensive full moon dog treats review, read on.
Brand Quick Look
- Parent Company: Full Moon Company
- Founded In: 2011
- Made in: USA
- Available at: Chewy, Amazon, Walmart
- Types of Food: Human grade dog treats
- Real Meat in First 5 Ingredients? : Yes
- Recalled in Past? : No
Behind the Brand
The company is a fourth-generation family owned company that creates recipes right to its own kitchens. It has been making treats for the past 40 or so years and continues to use only the highest quality ingredients — sourced in the United States — for every treat option in their line.
The company sources from companies that provide sustainable ingredients. No extra hormones or antibiotics in their meat sources and no artificial ingredients or flavors to account for subpar recipes.
There are no cheap fillers, and you could eat them yourself in theory. The company is family-owned and -operated and was a local fixture in the US economy for 40 years before opening a distinct line of pet treats in 2011.
What Types of Dog Treats Does The Real Meat Company Offer?
The company makes a full line of treats in different flavors and combinations for dogs. Some of its treats are just for pleasure while others are for training. Some help solve certain kinds of issues such as hip and joint support.
There are a variety of sizes and shapes to suit many different breed sizes. The company’s range is vast, but the one thing they all have in common is the quality of the recipes and the lack of cheap fillers, artificial flavors, and artificial colors. Below are all the range of treats it has on offer.
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Full Moon Duck Training Dog Treats
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Check Price on ChewyCheck Price on Amazon | |
Full Moon Hip & Joint Health Chicken Jerky
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Check Price on ChewyCheck Price on Amazon | |
Full Moon Organic Beef Jerky Dog Treats
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Check Price on ChewyCheck Price on Amazon | |
Full Moon Wild Jerky Venison Recipe
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Check Price on Chewy | |
Full Moon Freeze-Dried Organic Chicken
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Check Price on Walmart |
Full Moon Dog Treats Review
There are a lot of great choices here, but we thought to highlight only one formulation from each range.
Training Treats
Make your pet sit, stay, or roll over with glee. The training treats combine Full Moon’s natural recipes in a smaller size suitable for training. They’re still premium and contain only human grade ingredients. These treats are available in these flavors:
- Duck Savory Sticks
- Chicken Savory Stick
- Organic Chicken
- Duck
1. Full Moon Training Treats in Duck
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
First Five Ingredients:
- Duck
- Evaporated Cane Syrup
- Flax Seed
- Ground Celery
- Cultured Dextrose
These delicious training treats will have your pup begging to obey your commands. We’re happy with these treats because these contain limited and recognizable ingredients and a novel protein that’s suited for sensitive canines.
Like all Full Moon dog treats, these start off with a high-quality animal protein — duck. Duck is considered a novel protein because it isn’t commonly used in dog foods. For dogs that are allergic to beef or chicken, duck is a good alternative. Besides, duck is delicious on its own, with a strong taste that’s almost akin to red meat.
Duck is a terrific source of premium-quality protein, and its fat content is high. It’s an ideal meat for feeding high energy dogs. While the fat content is high, the saturated fat content is low.
The meat is also a rich source of B vitamins that allow the nerves, muscles, and enzymes to function as they should; support cardiovascular health; and protect dogs from cancer.
The second ingredient is evaporated cane syrup. It helps to make the treats soft and easy for you to break apart when needed. Cane syrup also helps preserve the food so that it lasts longer.
Sugar has a bad rep, but not totally justified. While sugar shouldn’t make up 14% of your canine’s diet, a lower amount could be beneficial. In this case, the sugar content is only .09 grams per treat.
Flaxseed gives the treats a boost in essential fatty acids that are important if you want your pet to sport a glossy coat and healthy skin. The crop is also plentiful in protein, dietary fiber, lignans, and manganese. It’s a super healthy food that will raise the mineral content of any food.
The rest of the ingredients are made up of ground celery, cultured dextrose, paprika, salt, natural smoke flavoring, and rosemary extract. If the cultured dextrose caught your eye, it’s just a food additive that is used by companies to prolong shelf life.
Cultured dextrose comes from combining dextrose with the bacteria, Propionibacterium freudenreichii — a safe bacteria commonly found in dairy foods.
The treats are grain-free snacks that every dog of every breed will find scrumptious. Since these are bite-sized and soft, even little dogs will have no trouble biting and chewing each piece. Each piece contains 2.25 kcal and plentiful moisture (30% max). There’s also a good amount of protein here, pegged at 22%.
Jerky Treats
Jerky treats are made from human grade meat and use only a few limited ingredients to create a taste that dogs love. The batches are slow cooked and made from sustainably sourced ingredients. Some also have supplements to help solve a particular issue.
The treats are offered in these varieties:
- Organic Chicken
- Organic Beef
- Organic Duck
- Chicken Skin and Coat Support
- Chicken Hip and Joint Support
- Natural Cut Pork
- Natural Cut Chicken
- Chicken
2. Full Moon Chicken Jerky Hip and Joint Health
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
First Five Ingredients:
- Chicken
- Organic Cane Sugar
- Vinegar
- Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Chondroitin Sulfate
- Turmeric (all ingredients included)
These treats are limited ingredients and use only natural, wholesome chicken to create a tasty jerky. Full Moon sources all their recipes from only trusted sources, no hormones or antibiotics.
Added glucosamine and chondroitin help offer support to joint health and could help reverse mild damage in conjunction with a joint healthy diet and veterinarian support.
The treats are soft enough that a variety of dogs can comfortably chew them. The ingredients use no cheap fillers such as corn or soy, and there are no artificial colors or flavors. These only impress people but can often cause adverse reactions in dogs. Everything is human grade, and you could almost eat the treats yourself if you were hungry enough.
Many customers noted that the treats are palatable for their dogs. They’re easily broken apart for training or can be given whole for a fun extra. They don’t have too many extra calories but make sure you account for how many your dog is eating so you don’t accidentally overfeed calories.
The treats aren’t going to take the place of your vet’s recommended joint treatments. Your dog would have to eat at least five servings a day, which could get expensive and isn’t realistic considering the overall calorie consumption. However, as a small piece of your dog’s overall health maintenance, they could be a good option.
The treats are a little on the expensive side, but not so much that buying them is prohibitive. Overall, they offer excellent treats and help your dogs feel a bit better, both physically and emotionally.
They’re a unique way to upgrade everything that goes into your pet’s body, not just the food, and could be an excellent addition to a holistic, nutritionally dense diet. We would buy quite a few of the different recipes and wholeheartedly endorse both the company and its practices.
Organic Jerky
Like all of Full Moon’s dog treats, these are made from 100% human-grade ingredients, so they’re extremely safe for your dogs. The difference between these and the other Full Moon treats is that these ingredients are not only human-grade, they also use organic products.
Organic simply means that no artificial agents like fertilizers, antibiotics, or pesticides have been used.
The flavors available for this range include:
- Organic Chicken Jerky
- Organic Beef Jerky
- Organic Duck Jerky
3. Full Moon Natural Organics Beef Jerky
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
First Five Ingredients:
- Organic Beef
- Organic Chicken
- Organic Turkey
- Organic Cane Sugar
- Organic Ground Brown Rice
Pet owners who would like nothing more than to give their dogs the very best will be glad to have these organic treats. Most of the ingredients (and it is a very short list of them) are organically grown or raised, so you don’t have to worry about the meat being treated with antibiotics or your veggies being grown using pesticides.
The first ingredient is beef, and it’s a superb protein source that’s highly digestible and palatable. Beef also contains plenty of minerals and vitamins that canines need for their overall development and health.
Because beef would be a tad plain, why not add more animal meat for a sumptuous blend of meaty flavor? Right after beef come chicken and turkey, both organic too. The combination of three animal protein sources brings the crude protein content up to 30% minimum — already a very good amount that’s higher than the average you see in dog treats.
The organic cane sugar helps preserve the treats longer while keeping them soft enough to break into pieces. Don’t worry. Sugar in small amounts won’t harm your pet, and there’s only 0.27% of sugar in each treat. (An amount that would be harmful is 14% or more of any canine food, but this doesn’t even reach half of a percent!)
The other ingredients in this mix are just as healthy and natural. There’s organic brown rice that’s a highly digestible carb; organic flaxseed that’s full of omega-3 fatty acids and fiber; salt for preserving the food; dried cultured skim milk for calcium and phosphorus; vinegar for neutralizing odors; and natural smoke flavoring for an enticing aroma and added palatability.
We’re a bit on the fence about vinegar. Although it’s a healthy ingredient, some dogs don’t react well to it and may experience gastrointestinal upset. However, in very small amounts such as in these treats, there most probably won’t be any problem.
These are perfect anytime snacks for doggies, but make sure to feed only a couple or so pieces per day because each treat contains 48 kcal.
Wild Jerky
Wild Jerky treats bring to mind the call of the wild. These tempting treats come with an enticing hickory-smoked flavor that rewards your pup with every tantalizing bite. They’re completely free of sugar and additives and contain no grains.
Wild Jerky is offered in the following flavors:
- Wild Jerky Venison
- Wild Jerky Bison
- Wild Jerky Grass-Fed Beef
- Wild Jerky Organic Chicken
4. Full Moon Wild Jerky Venison Recipe
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
First Five Ingredients:
- Venison
- Turkey
- Pork
- Organic Cassava Root
- Salt
Made with human-grade ingredients, no sugar or grains, and a tempting hickory-smoked flavor, these treats will have your dogs drooling for more. All of these are made right here in the U.S. with no ingredients coming from China.
There are only seven ingredients in the recipe, and they’re all premium ones that are recognizable. The first one is venison. Venison isn’t frequently used as a main animal protein in most dog foods, but it’s an extremely healthy meat to start off a formula.
While venison doesn’t contain as much protein as beef, it more than makes up for this with less fat and cholesterol. It’s also an excellent source for pups to get their daily dose of zinc, iron, phosphorus, and B vitamins.
The second and third ingredients are also made up of high-quality animal proteins — fresh turkey and pork. Turkey is a lean white meat that is rich in riboflavin, protein, and phosphorus. And pork is a protein that many pets are not exposed to and is less likely to cause allergic reactions. Besides, pork is an excellent source of essential amino acids.
Note: Don’t believe the myth that pork is bad for dogs. The reason why pork meat is rarely used in dog food is that so many parts of the pig are marketed for human consumption. Only a few parts of the pig will make it to a dog food plant.
The turkey meat is also great for canines. When unseasoned with human spices, the turkey becomes a highly digestible food that’s fit for dogs to consume.
Organic cassava root can give your dogs plenty of carbohydrates and some amounts of vitamin C, calcium, and amino acids.
There’s also salt for preserving the food; a smoky flavor for piquing a dog’s interest (a unique taste!); and rosemary extract as a natural antioxidant.
It’s the ideal snack for adult dogs of all breeds. But keep the servings few because each treat will give your pet a hefty 50 kcal.
Freeze-Dried
Each piece of treat from the Full Moon Freeze-Dried range has been gently freeze-dried to lock in all the freshness, flavor, and nutrients of raw. All the ingredients are completely natural with nothing artificial (preservative, color, or flavor) to be found anywhere.
5. Full Moon Freeze-Dried Organic Chicken
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
First Five Ingredients:
- Organic Chicken
- Organic Cassava Root
- Salt
- Hickory Smoke Flavor
- Organic Rosemary Extract
What’s the deal with freeze-dried raw treats, and what are they? Freeze-dried raw foods go through flash freezing at a low temperature. During this freezing process, the moisture is removed and the growth of bacteria and other microorganisms is stopped (because bacteria needs water to survive). In this way, the food is preserved without using additives or chemicals.
Freeze-dried foods are popular because the freeze-drying process, while removing moisture and stopping bacteria growth, keeps all the freshness locked in. And unlike with most cooking methods, freeze-drying does not strip away the nutrients of the food.
An advantage of freeze-dried treats is that the ingredients are kept to an absolute minimum, which is a big deal for pet owners with food sensitivities because each extra ingredient poses a risk.
Lastly, most freeze-dried foods contain much more protein and nutrients than other food that have undergone a different process.
Anyway, let’s begin examining the ingredients. The recipe starts with organic chicken (meaning it provides the bulk of the treats). Chicken is one of the most popular meat choices for dog foods because of its distinctive taste. It’s also a great meat to have when you’re looking for a leaner choice.
The second slot belongs to organic cassava root or tapioca. It works to bind food, it has various minerals like calcium and potassium, and contains a significant amount of dietary fiber.
A lot of scare tactics have been going on in some dog food sites about cassava, but consumers should know that it refers to improperly processed raw cassava. Properly processed, cassava has been a staple food for millions of people from different cultures.
It doesn’t have much protein, but since it is not used as a substitute for animal protein, that is okay. The chicken is enough (crude protein in the recipe is at 40% minimum).
There’s salt in this dog food. The good news is dogs need salt in their bodies to help their cells function properly. A healthy amount of salt is up to 1.5 grams per 100g of food, but these treats contain only a minimal amount.
The last two ingredients are hickory smoke flavor and rosemary extract. The hickory smoke flavor gives dogs something a bit different from their usual treat and enhances the palatability of the food. Rosemary extract, meanwhile, preserves the snacks and gives it antioxidant properties.
Because the treats are freeze-dried, they don’t have a soft texture but are rather firm. You can break them apart, though, because they easily crumble. Each treat contains 44 kcal.
Artisanal Treats
Artisanal treats use a blend of superfoods and premium ingredients to create unique flavors that interest and entice your dog. All ingredients are still human grade and combined in genuinely unique recipes.
Artisanal Treats is offered in the following flavors:
- Maple Blueberry Chicken Jerky
- Black Cherry BBQ Beef Jerky
- Honey Peach Pork Jerky
- Rosemary Apple Chicken Jerky
Recall History
Full Moon Pets hasn’t experienced a recall. Foods follow a rigorous safety process and production is well regulated. We are completely comfortable feeding our dogs these treat lines because of Full Moon’s clean track record with cleanliness. In almost ten years, there’s never been an incident. We’re impressed.
Customer Reviews
Customers loved that they have so many varieties of treats but that all are premium, human grade ingredients with no fillers. The treats are often dog pleasers and aren’t so expensive that they’re impractical to buy.
The recipes are trusted sources of protein and nutrients, and the variety is suitable for almost every dog.
The treats are very well rated from customers (close to five stars for many recipes), and many trusted dog food reviewers are also impressed with the selection.
What Customers Like and Dislike?
Customers really dig the selection of treats. The different styles of treat are all excellent choices, but pet owners have a lot of freedom of choice without adding in cheap fillers or using artificial ingredients. The treats could almost be something you eat yourself, and that’s a comforting thought for most people.
Some customers complained that the size of the bags was a little small. Also, there’s always the possibility that dogs won’t like the taste of some of the treats. They aren’t the cheapest, so if your dog doesn’t love a flavor, that can be pretty frustrating.
The upside is that there’s probably something for even the pickiest dogs. The treats are great options for people who’ve upgraded their pet’s food and need to do the same with their dog treats as well. Many customers have really enjoyed the recipes and dogs seem to love them as well.
Positive:
- “These are Human Grade and doggie approved! The fact that they smell better when opening the package than any Jerky I've bought for myself says it all! My dog loves them, and they are real meat with no filler.” Roscoe, chewy.com
Negative:
- “The jerky was broken up into little pieces hard to give a full piece to my dog for a treat.” Dogfriend,chewy.com