Gourmet Dog Food

Willoughby is an itchy dog. He chews on his paws and rubs his chin everywhere. Sometimes he goes into a scratching trance where he starts scratching, then starts growling at the itch, and then scratches so hard he turns on his foot to attack it for scratching so hard. The dog trainer suggested he may have food allergies, and if I switch his food to something more palatable, the itching may subside.

The world of gourmet doggie food is complicated, vast, and growing quickly. Petco has an entire section of "healthy options" for your pet, and this section set apart in the corner of the store and modeled with a rustic, on the Napa Valley farm type vibe. Clearly, I should be buying my dog's food from this fancier section. I approached with the trainer's suggestion in mind- no corn, no beef. I floated towards the pretty blue bags with their photos of happy, healthy pets.

And then I saw the price sticker.

FIFTY DOLLARS. Fifty dollars for a large bag of dog food. A bag of Beneful that size would cost $19.99 at Target. So I switched tactics. My wish list of healthy food items was no longer priority. Instead I looked for the cheapest damn bag of dog food in the healthy dog food section. I left with a pretty blue bag, complete with a photo of a happy, healthy pup, of a medium size. It cost me $15.99, with my 20% off coupon. It cost the same amount of money as a jar of protein powder. Much more than the salmon I like to buy, much more than the Ben and Jerry's I try to forego, and much more than the same size bag of Beneful I was used to buying for my pup.

The itching hasn't really stopped, but Willoughby can't wait to get to his food bowl every morning. Clearly, this food suites his refined tastes. Filet mignon on a ground chuck budget. Someone has to sacrifice, and it's obviously not going to be the dog. Goodbye Ben, goodbye Jerry.