Bell and Bone: Vet endorsed dental treats for dogs and cats
One Aussie woman is on a mission to spread awareness on a ‘silent killer’ that many pet owners aren’t aware of.
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If we asked you how often you brush your teeth, you’d probably say everyday – day and night, routinely.
But what if we asked the same question to your dog or cat? If they could talk, would they say daily, every other day, once a week or never?
Dental hygiene is arguably one of the most overlooked aspects when it comes to raising a pet – 80 per cent of dogs and 70 per cent of cats suffer from dental disease by the age of three. Shocking, right?
This is partly due to pet owners not taking action to prevent the silent but deadly disease until they can visibly see signs and symptoms – think bad breath, staining of the teeth, plaque build-up and inflamed gums. If left untreated, it can cause pain and discomfort, tooth loss and complications with your pet’s heart, liver and kidneys.
However, there’s one Aussie brand leading the charge to effectively encourage owners to prioritise their furry friends’ dental health from the get-go.
Enter: Bell and Bone.
Dog Dental Treats, from $15.95 at Bell and Bone
Dog Dental Treats
Cat Dental Treats, from $12.95 at Bell and Bone
Cat Dental Bites
“THEY CAN’T SPEAK UP”: THE ‘AH-HA’ MOMENT
After forging a successful career in food manufacturing, Arianne Sackville, 36, became entranced by the world of pet health once her dog, Louie, came into the picture.
“In getting him, I was highly invested and still am, in his health and wellbeing so I was choosing the best brands that I could afford to feed him, and naturally, I wanted to give him a good dental stick to chew on,” she told news.com.au checkout.
While the idea had floated around her work experience and love for animals, Arianne says Louie was “her main motivation” as she “wanted to start him off on the right foot”.
Frustrated at the lack of healthy options, the 36-year-old took matters into her own hands and launched Bell and Bone in 2018.
“It just seems so obvious to me that as we brush our teeth daily, our pets need to do something for theirs. So I went into stores, and to be honest, I was actually shocked at how unhealthy the options were from these multinational businesses.
“Dogs are omnivores, so meat should be the first ingredient in all of their food. But what I found was that these sticks were full of wheat, rice, potato, cereals, and not only are they unhealthy, but they’re also really bad for teeth as well.”
Just one-week out from the Melbourne Covid lockdown in March 2020, the Melbourne-based pet brand launched its renowned dental range that quickly became a household essential for many pet owners.
“Everyone was staying at home with their pets and the more time we spent with our pets, we were noticing things about them that we had never noticed before. And one of the main things that people were noticing were problems with their dental health,” she told news.com.au checkout.
“We were really lucky with the timing of that launch and got a lot of attention really, really quickly, which helped build the business. Health was such a big topic at the time because there was so much sickness around the world.
“With Bell and Bone being that healthier, more natural, more effective option than our large multinational commercial competitors, we had a really big advantage at that time, which helped skyrocket the business really quickly in terms of maintaining that growth and keeping owners on the journey with us.”
For Arianne, being present and building relationships is a big part of her role as a business owner, and while the brand lends itself credit as a trusted name in the pet community – Arianne also owes it to them for the success of her business.
The Bell and Bone support community consists of a thriving group of pet owners who are as passionate as she is and support the brand wholeheartedly, as well as many industry professionals like trainers, breeders, groomers and vets.
“We’re an authentic brand. I sign my name on the back of every single pack and am very much the face of the brand. I show up every single day to be with our community, to bring fun and joy to owning a pet, and help empower owners to make the best decisions that they can for their dogs and cats – to give them a better life and also to help build a bond and keep their pet around for longer,” she told news.com.au checkout.
“We do a lot of work to be in person with our community as best as we can. So we attend events such as the RSPCA Million Paws Walk – we’re a major sponsor for that and The Dog Lovers Show. I also go and visit our stores, and I have personal relationships with the store managers and staff that work in the stores, and you know, they’re also a really big part of our community and our advocates, because they help educate shoppers.”
“DOGS AND CATS NEEDED A BRAND LIKE BELL AND BONE”: A BRAND WITH PURPOSE
Developed under the ethos of wanting to “empower, educate and support pet owners in their decision-making”, Bell and Bone’s first dental range was catered to adult dogs – which is from six months when their puppy teeth have fallen out. Since then, the Aussie pet brand has released a puppy range – suitable for pups from 10 weeks old and a senior range – suitable for dogs that are seven years old and older, and have been formulated to be softer to chew and easier to digest.
More recently, Bell and Bone have tapped into the feline space and released dental bites for cats. While it may come as a surprise for many, Arianne revealed that cat products were always in the plan.
“The plan for Bell and Bone was always to create cat products. So the word Bell and the name Bell and bone, so cats wear bells and dogs eat bones. So it was always in the plan,” she revealed to news.com.au checkout.
“I felt like our dogs and cats needed a brand like Bell and Bone, and I knew that I had the means to be able to do that. I worked with industry experts from pet nutritionists to vets to food technologists to the best manufacturers in this country to create the products that we do with the latest research available to us, to give our dogs and cats a healthier and happier life through good food.”
Their dental treats come in a range of flavours including salmon, kangaroo, beef, chicken and lamb and is formulated with active ingredients like sodium tripolyphosphate and zinc sulfate; and in the new cat dental bites, they’ve been formulated with zinc, ascophyllum nodosum, vitamin C and cellulose. All of which are ingredients known to fight against plaque and tartar build-up to promote healthy dental hygiene.
“There are over four-million cats as pets in Australia. So there’s a really big number of cats that are suffering from the disease and it can shorten their life, it can hinder their happiness and their lives if we don’t do something about it,” she explained to news.com.au checkout.
“What’s interesting about the cat market compared to dogs is that far less owners will give their cats treats – only 13 per cent of cat owners will give a treat to their cat and the benefits of doing so are similar to dogs, where it can strengthen the bond between the cat and their owner.
“It’s great for mental stimulation, and also it can have functional benefits like our cat dental bites. So it’s really my job to help owners understand why they should be not only treating their cat because it enhances their life, their mental and physical well being, but also how important it is to take care of their dental care, because it can be the difference between a shorter and a longer life, or a life potentially in pain or a life that is healthy and happy.”
Bell and Bone comes highly-rated on Judge.me – garnering a 4.92-star rating with over 7,000 five-star reviews and many pet owners attesting to their greatness writing:
“Thank you Bell and Bone for making these senior dental chews. I have an almost 13 year old Shi Tzu who struggles to chew through many other dental chews as she has very small teeth. But these chews are amazing for her, made from natural ingredients, softer texture which makes it easier to chew and a taste that she absolutely loves, always wanting more! And this gives me peace of mind knowing she’s getting a healthy dental experience! Love these!”
Another wrote: “My cat loves these so much. Since he’s 10 years old, he wasn’t really interested in the bites at first, but as I started adding them to his daily meals he really started loving them! I’ve started noticing a massive difference in his teeth – they went from brownish yellow to a much brighter colour. (I actually didn’t realise his teeth were that bad until I saw the difference of the before and after) Definitely recommend for anyone who has a cat and doesn’t brush their teeth often!”
Other reviewers say “they’ve made life so much easier” and “made a huge difference” in their pet’s overall dental health.
They’ve also got a line of Collagen Sticks and Healthy Treats formulated with collagen that target joint and mobility, skin, coat and nails, and provide weight and energy support.
Bell and Bone has effectively established itself as a credible brand that dog and cat owners can trust to keep their pets happy and healthy. Their products can be found in all major pet specialty retailers in Australia like Petbarn, Pet Stock, Pet Circle and more.
“WE’RE JUST AT THE BEGINNING”: THE FUTURE OF BELL AND BONE
From making waves with an inclusive range of top-of-the-line dental treats for dogs and cats to releasing Collagen Sticks and a ‘Healthy Treats’ range – Bell and Bone is evidently a brand that’s continuously growing in success and coming up with new ways to promote pet health.
“Last financial year, we grew 40 per cent which was really exciting to see, and we plan on maintaining that growth into this year as well, with next year being even greater than that, with some exciting export opportunities as well as product launches into new categories,”
Arianne told news.com.au checkout.
“So we’re just at the beginning and getting started, but the plan is to be a world class household name for dental care and pets, not just in Australia, but around the world.”
Arianne revealed that Bell and Bone will be tapping into the healthcare category and has plans of releasing a first-of-its-kind dental supplement for dogs and cats early next year.
“We have found that this category is in growth, and people are coming into pet specialty retailers to find options that they can’t find anywhere else for their pets,” she revealed to news.com.au checkout.
“We are currently in development of our next innovation … It’s science-backed and contains a range of dental actives and pre, pro and post-biotics targeting the animals’ gut microbiomes. This is unlike anything the industry has seen before.”
“I am so excited for this to launch, and for Bell & Bone to provide another option to owners wanting to take better care of their pets”.
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