When we were first asked to try out a bag of this vegan kibble, I must admit that I did so with some trepidation because of my dog’s significant gut issues. However, it turns out I needn’t have worried because Coco took to it like a duck to water (or should that be like a dog to their dinner)? Anyway, my Green Crunch review describes our experience of using this reassuringly good food from German brand VEGDOG, and explains why it’s become a regular feature on Coco’s menu.
Pros
- nutritionally complete
- hypoallergenic
- small biscuits
- reduced fat
Cons
- price
Our experience of Green Crunch
After a multitude of elimination diets, my dog was diagnosed with protein sensitivities and it transpired that many ingredients – including those in prescription foods – were the cause of her poor health. Consequently, we decided to try her on a vegan diet but had to proceed with caution because we discovered that her sensitivities extended beyond animal proteins to include soy, an ingredient contained in several popular vegan dog foods.
Eventually, we consulted with vegan vet – Dr Arielle Griffiths – who recommended that Coco try Solo Vegetal’s hypoallergenic biscuits (you can read about our very positive experience of that product here). It really is an excellent product but in the end, the biscuits proved too big for Coco’s small – and largely toothless – mouth and I was having to crush and soak them every mealtime which was becoming more than a little tedious!
And this is where Dr Arielle’s subsequent recommendation – VEGDOG’s Green Crunch – came to the rescue. It’s another high quality, hypoallergenic, soy-free vegan dog food, but this time with small, round, flat biscuits which mean that thankfully, I am no longer required to carry out mashing duties! And if Coco’s clean bowl is anything to go by, they’re clearly very tasty too. For a bit of variety, I also regularly mix in some of VEGDOG’s senior wet food which has a very enticing aroma of rosemary and yeast!
The other benefit of moving her onto these biscuits is that at 7%, they are lower in fat than most and after a few weeks of eating it, Coco gradually lost the weight she had been putting on around her tummy. If she had any, she’d be getting those old trousers out of the wardrobe in case she could get into them again…
I’ve also found it easy to buy these products in the UK too and they’re available from a number of online outlets. I choose to buy mine from Just be Kind dog food (who asked me to review this product) because I find their stock levels to be consistently good, with great service and quick delivery.
So Green Crunch biscuits really have saved the day in the Vegan Mum household and a more slimline Coco is pretty happy about that too. Read the rest of this Green Crunch review to find out more about its positive nutritional credentials but also its cost, because whilst I think it’s worth every penny, from £7.30 per kg it might be more than you want to spend. Find out why I do.
Use 10% discount code VEGANMUM
Green Crunch is nutritionally complete
VEGDOG’s Green Crunch and Senior wet food have been formulated to meet the stringent guidelines exacted by the European pet industry organisation FEDIAF. You can find those nutritional guidelines here if you’re interested. So both are independently nutritionally complete meaning that you don’t need to supplement with anything else to give your dog all the nutrients they require.
This is such an important factor and whatever vegan dog food you decide to give to your pooch, please make sure it contains all the necessary nutrients because otherwise, you may be putting your dog’s health and wellbeing at serious risk. It should be stated on the packaging and on the brand’s website if it is nutritionally complete, but if it’s not clearly stated then assume that it could be missing at least some of the nutritional elements your dog needs.
It’s hypoallergenic
There is a quite staggering number of ingredients that dogs can be sensitive to and any breed, size or disposition can be affected so it’s good to know that all the VEGDOG products – including Green Crunch – are free from all the common (and less common!) allergens. Ingredients that can cause sensitivities include: meat and fish proteins; dairy and eggs; grains including rice and wheat; and importantly, soy. Soy protein is a fabulous alternative protein source for us vegans but sadly, it can cause sensitivities in some dogs.
And the symptoms aren’t always obvious either, although Coco’s normally revolve around signs of physical discomfort, sickness, diarrhoea, itching and a general malaise. Fortunately, all of these disappeared within a few weeks of her switching to this vegan hypoallergenic diet.
I would always recommend taking professional advice if you have any concerns about your dog’s health though. Many vets will suggest an elimination diet – Coco has done a few – and because Green Crunch is hypoallergenic, it can be used in this situation, as can Solo Vegetal.
You could also arrange a teleconsultation with Dr Arielle Griffiths, the vegan vet I finally consulted with for Coco. She is enormously knowledgeable and helpful and will offer you invaluable advice. I wish I’d done it sooner!
Coco loves the small Green Crunch biscuits
Whilst it doesn’t particularly matter if your dog swallows their kibble whole, Coco can find it quite off-putting if the biscuits are big. With few teeth and a small mouth, she struggles to break the biscuits down before she swallows them and so she ends up not eating them. That’s why I spent many months with a carton of plant milk and a masher in hand before she moved over to Green Crunch. I will be forever indebted to VEGDOG for these smaller biscuits – they have saved my sanity and my time! Oh, and Coco loves them too!
Coco benefits from the lower fat level
Green Crunch has a crude fat level of 7.5% which is lower than the average kibble – vegan or meat-based. In a very unscientific scan I carried out on a number of dry dog foods online, many came in at between 11 – 15%, so 7.5% seems like a good, healthy level to me, particularly for Coco.
She had been on an ultra-low fat diet for several years due to a diagnosis of pancreatitis, but when later tests revealed this was unlikely, it was recommended we try an elimination diet to understand what else might be causing her symptoms (which had never gone away). Unfortunately, all the recommended products were higher in fat and perhaps as a result of her body’s unfamiliarity with that, she started putting on weight which was a little bit alarming.
When I finally moved her over to Solo Vegetal, she stopped gaining weight (which was great) but she didn’t lose any and I was concerned about the effects of that on her health. So when she started losing the excess after moving over to Green Crunch, I was absolutely delighted and after a few weeks, she had returned to her normal body weight which she now easily maintains. That’s definitely a win in my book, and helps Coco to stay active and healthy too.
Price might be an issue
Is there ever a time when budgets aren’t tight?! Maybe not, and so perhaps your dog’s food isn’t as high on your priority list as it might be. But that said, I have not found any cheaper foods that are the equal of Green Crunch so although prices from £7.30/kg might sound expensive, I believe it is money well spent. If Coco was eating food that is higher in fat and that is not hypoallergenic, I would still be spending a fortune on vet bills (and some of those have been truly eye-watering). Not only that, her quality of life would be poorer so from my perspective, it’s a good investment.
You can also benefit from an exclusive 10% discount code: VEGANMUM if you buy from Just be Kind’s online store – use the link below:
My verdict of this Green Crunch review
I think that Green Crunch biscuits are great. But more importantly, my dog Coco loves eating them and because they are hypoallergenic, she no longer suffers from the distressing symptoms she once had. And at 11 and a bit (at the time of publishing) she remains healthy, energetic, active and slim!
These nutritionally-complete biscuits are not just for dogs with sensitivities though and would be my first choice for any dog (of any size!) in the Vegan Mum household. I guess the only negative is that you pay more for a high quality vegan dog food, but one of the reasons for that is because its production isn’t relying on the very gory and unappetising by-products from the meat and fish industries. It’s little wonder that feeding our dogs all the animal remains that humans refuse to eat can make them ill.
So, I firmly believe that paying a bit more to get a brand like Green Crunch is worth every penny because it keeps my dog happy and healthy, and it’s not causing harm and suffering to other sentient beings either. But this isn’t just about my personal views of this product and Coco’s reaction is equally valid. Fortunately, Green Crunch gets the paws up from her too!
Use discount code for Green Crunch: VEGANMUM with Just be Kind
More articles about vegan dog food
I hope you have found this Green Crunch review helpful. I have written a number of other articles about dogs and plant-based diets, some examples of which are below.
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