LIFE ESSENTIALS BY CAT-MAN-DOO Freeze Dried Chicken Dog & Cat Treats, Healthy Single Ingredient Training Treats for Dogs, Puppies & Cats, Made with Real Chicken – 5 oz (2 Pack)

Life Essentials, you saved the day! I will explain why in just a bit, but first I want to compliment the quality of your chicken. Upon arrival it looked and smelled very fresh. My cat ate it - no kitty questions asked. It was crisp, but not so rock-hard that you cannot break it with your fingers (like some other brands). It smelled like raw chicken. It looked great and my kitty, Apollo, said it tasted great, too! I feel it is very important to keep a cat, especially a male cat like my Apollo, well hydrated to help prevent blockage of the urethra (which can be lethal) and ultimately, kidney disease. The ash content of dry food contributes to crystal formation in the urine that causes these blockages and contributes to kidney failure. Females are susceptible to urinary tract illness, too. I witnessed it in other cats and it is heartbreaking. My apologies: I digress a little bit, and I apologize because most of you kitty lovers probably already know this - especially if you are purchasing this type of healthy food. Anyway, what I LOVED immediately about this chicken is that you can break it into small pieces for cats and let it soak in some water and it hydrates beautifully. The meat puffed right up into tender, meaty pieces. This way, he is not getting dry treats, plus he likes it this way. He gets what he wants. 🤭😉 Now I cannot say this about all freeze-dried chicken brands. I have picked through many, many bags just to find a few pieces that were soft enough to hydrate - even partially. Another brand contained very sharp pieces that I think were bone fragments. They were sharp enough to cut my finger. I was buying an organic freeze-dried chicken brand from a company who makes what the owner calls "regular" freeze-dried chicken as well. The organic pieces of freeze-dried chicken were so hard I could not break them with my fingers. This happened repeatedy among several purchases. I contacted the owner of this brand, and I appreciated his prompt reply - and for replying at all, for that matter. However, his explanations left me feeling quite dubious about his products. First, the owner said that he gets emails from "cat owners about this problem regularly," and that it is a "cat thing" owing to their sensitivity to texture, taste and their fussiness. He said that he was going to stop making the organic brand because of the "chicken crisis." However, he was quick to suggest that I could buy his "regular" chicken. Wouldn't a chicken crisis affect all chicken products whether they are organic or not? He assured me that his "regular" chicken is a lot softer and would be easier to hydrate. What I don't get is this: All of the freeze-dried chicken - organic and "regular" - that this owner is selling contains no additives (the organic brand contains sea salt by the way - which I don't think is so great). If all of his chicken is additive-free, does that not mean then that an organic chicken is the same as a "regular" chicken? This brand also states that all of their products are antibiotic and hormone free. In considering all if this, how is their organic chicken being the sole ingredient different than the "regular" chicken that is also being the sole ingredient) in this case? (One exception being that the organic variety contains sea salt. Why?) Maybe I sound confused. That is because I AM confused! Well, I went ahead and ordered the "regular" freeze-dried chicken that the owner of this particular brand kindly suggested. The first bag was as hard as the organic pieces of freeze-dried chicken; however, I tried again. I opened the second bag of this other brand that I ordered, and I discovered that the freeze-dried chicken was incredibly soft. It was the softest freeze-dried chicken I ever purchased. I was really excited because I am hydrating it, ad I explained earlier, and the process only took seconds as it turned into a moist, meaty chicken. Everything seemed great, and I was in heaven, thinking that Apollo would finally have the hydrated chicken that I so very much want him to have and that I know he loves! I was sure my guy would go for it. But Apollo did not eat it. All Apollo did was smell it and he quickly left his bowl. Cats know. I trust him. I went ahead and smelled it, too. Truth be told, to me, this very soft "regular" freeze-dried chicken smelled exactly like chicken noodle soup - not raw chicken. This experience left me dumbfounded. I thought to myself, if the organic chicken was impossible to hydrate and it was rock hard but this "regular" chicken isn't rock hard then something must be added to the "regular" chicken to make it really, really soft. It just has to be that way. If both products are antibiotic, hormone and additive-free what makes them so different? Why is one soft and the other so hard? The owner explained, as he did in his email reply, that every freeze-dried batch of chicken is different because the freeze-drying process will aleays yield results. (Meaning some bags contain hard-as-rock chicken and some do not.) I accept that the freeze-drying process yields inconsistent results, but the chicken soup odor in combination with the extremely soft texture left me wondering. The packaging of this brand boasts of only one single ingredient. Mmmmm.... Next, my mind flashed back to his email reply again, and I remembered he said he was going to stop making the organic freeze-dried chicken because of the "chicken crisis." Chicken crisis? Well would this not warrant stopping manufacturing of the "regular" chicken, too, not only the organic? By the way, I noticed that the price of a 3oz of bag of this particular organic, hard-as-rock brand was lowered substantially from $19.99 to $15.02. Mmmmm. So, back to my review of the product you are considering purchasing today: "Life Essentials." I am picky, Apollo is picky, and we both are happy, so far, with Cat-Man-Doo's "Life Essentials." That says something. My fingers are crossed, though, as it seems every time I give freeze-dried pet food a positive review it goes downhill shortly thereafter. Not unlike the freeze-dried salmon sold for pets that is on the market these days. (By the way, off topic, but has anyone else noticed how the quality of freeze-dried salmon has drastically reduced over the past few years? I keep receiving pieces of chunks of skin with no meat; pieces with rot; pieces that are a spongy yellow consistency; and pieces filled with thin, waxy tissue laced throught that contribute to crusty texture. The quality of freeze-dried, wild-caught (I do not purchase "farmed" salmon, and not one of my cats ever liked it) was not always thisk consistently poor. Is it because of growth problems in salmon and lack of supply due to overfishing, perhaps? Is it because I am purchasing during the wrong season? Back to topic. How did Life Essentials save the day? Well, it goes like this: My boy, Apollo, has become a very very fussy eater. I attribute his very particular nature partly to my trying to feed him the best food I can (with limited, fixed income), so his standards and expectations are high. I just want to promote his good health by investing in better quality food now versus large vet bills later - a "pay now or pay later" scenario. But I also think he may have irritable bowel syndrome. Finally, he gets tired of the same food day after day, and because of my own chronic illness (including chronic fatigue), along with financial challenges result in my failure to always keep it interesting for him. But boy do I never stop trying. So, one weekend he went off of his food. I mean OFF. I feed him New Zealand's Feline Natural raw freeze-dried cat food, which I always hydrate. It is good food. He likes it. I like it because he likes it. But he stopped eating it. I also sprinkle a little of Wysong's PDG power on his food to encourage him and help his appetite. Thus particular weekend nothing worked. I tested him and gave him some dry cat treats that I know all too well he should not have. I am not perfect; I felt desperate. As many of you dedicated kitty partners know, cats will starve themselves, unlike dogs, until they get the food they want. The old familiar opinion of many who say: I bet you heard this before in response to this kind of situation: "If he/she gets hungry enough he/she will eat it." Nope - not applicable in Apollo's case. I also had on hand some "Only Natural Pet" dry "PowerFood." Down the hatch it went, while he refused to eat any other wet options I had in the house. My boy will not even touch free range, antibiotic-hormone-free, organic raw chicken that I buy from the store. He will not eat fresh-caught salmon ir any ither fish I bring home from the store. Sigh...he is the first cat of mine, at least, who ever rejected it. I was very sick and having a lot of pain that weekend while all of this was going on. I do know, without a doubt though, that he loves hydrated freeze-dried chicken. I abandoned that "other" brand I talked about earlier. It was a very challenging situation being I am a "single cat patent" with a chronic illness that includes fatigue. I first found "Life Essentials" brand on Amazon.com, and they could offer free delivery by the following day, so I went for it. Thanks to those of you who kindly posted such great and thorough reviews that helped me decide on "Life Essentials." I felt like giving up! This is a new-to-me brand, and it is still a huge success. He is eating it, and he is hydrating. You saved the day, "Life Essentials!" Now I just need to find other wet options before he gets tired of it! Having lost cats before, I have a lot of fear around them getting sick. I am terrified that the repeats of dry food that I was giving him would end up giving him urinary problems or worse. He is a sensitive guy. I rescued him from the woods one day when he was barely one year old and starving and he rescued me. Not knowing his background or his mom or dad, I don't know his health history. I suspect though he does have some health problems even though the vet gave him a clean report only a short couple of years ago. Has anyone tried "Life Essentials" freeze-dried salmon? I am specifically interested in knowing if it hydrates well. Is it come a nice meaty, tender piece of salmon meat? I find that some of the white freeze dried salmon that I've tried to hydrate does not soften well in the water. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Salmon is such a healthy option compared lot of other cat treats. Well, I do the best I can. Sometimes I feel like I am not the best mom I could be or aspire to be. But maybe only really good moms and dads feel that way?

If you are considering getting these for your cat, JUST DO IT! Now, don't get me wrong, they are pricey. But they are WORTH IT! My cat (1 year old) absolutely loves them. As others have said, they do come with quiet a bit of treat dust at the bottom of the bag, but I just sprinkle this on her wet food when I serve her breakfast and dinner. This was extremely helpful when we transitioned foods to a better brand after she turned 1. She had a hard time switching over until I was serving her food with this dust sprinkled on it. These are also really great for trick training because you can break them apart so easily. My cat comes RUNNING for these when she hears the bag ... moreso than with Temptations, Greenies, or any other treats I've tried on her. As long as this company maintains their quality, I will be a lifelong patron!

The product is great. It is one ingredient, & my cats love the treat! I purchase this all the time. However, sometimes it is shipped in a bag with no protection. It should always be shipped in a box with packing material.

The best but needs better packaging or chicken pieces go to powder

There are many freeze dried chicken treats out there for cats & dogs. This is the only one I've found where the treats are actually fully cooked prior to being freeze dried. Most other brands out there freeze dry the meat without cooking, so you end up feeding your cats & dogs raw meat. The process of freeze drying does kill some bacteria, but not all. You should not feed your pets raw meat for safety & health reasons. While you may have found some freeze dried chicken treats from brands that talk about using human grade premium meats, the problem is still they are not cooked. If they do not say they're cooked, then they are raw treats. This saves them money which is why some brands may be cheaper. But for the safety & health of your pets, please purchase only cooked freeze dried treats. A few dollars savings now may end up costing you hundreds & thousands if your pets get sick from the raw treats. My cat absolutely loves these freeze dried chicken treats. Even when there are powders on the bottom, you just sprinkle the chicken powders on top of their food, and watch them chow them down! These treats are best fed with wet food. Freeze dried treats should be fed as treats only, they do not replace regular meals. They're very dry, and if fed as regular meals, your pets will end up getting dehydrated. Dehydration leads to constipation and other health conditions. I highly recommend this brand, again because they're actually fully cooked freeze dried treats. There's a good balance of solid treats and chicken powders in the bags. Treats I feed sparingly after play, and chicken powder I sprinkle on top of my cat's regular meals.