Hello & Bark

[K9Cook]

I may be the first but hope I am not! I am the owner & Operator of California K9 Kitchen. We are a wholesale bakery of gourmet dog treats Yep that is right I have no formal training with baking or cooking; but the company started kind of out of necessity and also as a result of the animal food recalls a couple of years ago.

I have a special needs Italian Greyhound (Guido) He had so many health issues; it was recommended by his vet that I make his food as the commercial foods were too difficult for him to digest as well as all the preservatives in the foods were possibly triggering his seizures.

I started to make his food 4 years ago. When the recalls happened; many of the people that thought I was completely nuts cooking for him started to call me because the foods they were feeding their dogs were on the recall list. That then turned into making treats as people started to call me and requesting birthday cakes and cookies for their dogs.

I bought some books on making dog treats and started a business. I have product in 5 stores in California and I am looking to crank things thing up full blast. The only problem is there are so other really goo dog bakeries out there making some really cool looking treats. I barely have the basics and need to learn a lot to make my dog treats have that extra kick.

Big challenge is the ingredients I work with. I have been to some local cake shops that have decorating classes; and they can't / don't seem interested in helping me make that extra leap.

I look forward to learning some things here and applying it to my dog treats and cakes!

[bughut]

Good for you K9cook.
We started making Bruno's dinners ourselves when we realised the rubbish and lack of good stuff that was in his cans.
I'm not sure what direction you are going in exactly for your expansion. ( new recipes?) What about your packaging? Could that be more enticing to compete?
Organic?
Just a thought, Could you have a menu online that doggie lovers could use to plan their weeks dinners?
I've got an over active imagination, so please forgive me if i'm talking rubbish.
All the best

[K9Cook]

The main focus is to compete with some of the other bakeries out there. Not really doing dog food (for my guy only). I am focusing on treats.
We have a website which is getting ready to be redone as the product has changed a lot since the site was developed. I just want my treats to look really good!

I am also currently competing against one of the other local pet bakeries to land a major hotel's gift store account. If we get that; we will be making custom dog bones with the hotel's logo on it Presentation is going to be key!

[bughut]

Oh my goodness!
I had no idea there was such a market for that kind of product. Maybe it's an American thing.
Sounds like a go-er.
Let us know your website address, I, for one, am fascinated to see your products

[K9Cook]

It is a huge market here especially in the area of California I live.
The company is California K9 Kitchen. The site is old but will have all our new products soon. (not suppose to put links; but if you do a search; you will find us)

[bughut]

Great site as it is.
If you dont mind me saying though, I would lose the birthday cake. It's not very professional in it's tinfoil plate. And take the party stuff out of its packaging for display.
All the best

[K9Cook]

Originally Posted by bughut

Great site as it is.
If you dont mind me saying though, I would lose the birthday cake. It's not very professional in it's tinfoil plate. And take the party stuff out of its packaging for display.
All the best

We are in the process of doing all that. We have made huge leaps in our product line; and those photo's do not even represent our current cakes and cookies.

[Mezzaluna]

Hello K9Cook! Let me add my welcome to Bughut's. I think you're going to like it here a lot.

Do take some time to explore the site. Besides the forums we have cooking articles, cookbook reviews, recipes, blogs, and a photo gallery. Whew! You may have some time leftover to cook for your pooches.

Welcome!
Mezzaluna