BARK Breed-Specific Dog Food & Soft Chews Review 2024: An Expert Guide
By Ingrid Yeh
Updated on
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We give BARK “Itty-Bitty Chicky” dog food and “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” soft chews a rating of 4 out of 5 stars.
Founded in 2012, BARK’s mission is to bring health and happiness to every aspect of dogs’ lives. Sourced and made exclusively in the United States, BARK strives to make dogs everywhere (and their owners) happy by providing the best products, services, and content.
With their new breed-specific dog food line, BARK offers dog food specially curated to meet the needs of particular dog breeds—promoting the tagline, “Different breeds, different needs.” Within this line, BARK supplies breed-focused dog kibble, supplements, and products designed to support your dog’s individuality. BARK’s innovative breed-specific line currently includes products for Chihuahuas, Labradors, Pit Bulls, German Shepherds, Dachshunds, Golden Retrievers, Australian Shepherds, Boxers, Doodles, and French Bulldogs—and more breeds to come.
At a Glance: What We Reviewed
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BARK “Itty-Bitty Chicky” Recipe |
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BARK “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” Soft Chews |
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About BARK
Who Makes “Itty-Bitty Chicky” Dog Food? Where is it Produced?
“Itty-Bitty Chicky” is part of BARK’s new breed-specific dog food line, with this particular food made specifically for Chihuahuas and other small breeds. BARK’s dog food is sourced and made exclusively in the US.
Which Type of Dogs is “Itty-Bitty Chicky” Best Suited For?
BARK’s new breed-specific food line allows dog parents everywhere to enjoy specially curated dog food made to meet the needs of their fur baby. With products including breed-focused dog kibble, supplements, and products designed to support your dog’s individuality, both you and your dog can rest easy knowing they’re not just receiving generic, run-of-the-mill dog food, made for just any other dog.
The “Itty-Bitty Chicky” food, supplements, and products are made specifically for Chihuahuas. Aside from being tiny and feisty, some common Chihuahua-specific traits include being notoriously picky eaters, and being particularly prone to orthopedic issues, like joint conditions affecting their hips, elbows, and knees. Because Chihuahuas have smaller mouths, BARK’s “Itty-Bitty Chicky” dog food is made of smaller-sized nutritious kibbles, and also comes with their “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” Hip & Joint Soft Chews, as well as a stylish mealtime “bib” or bandana for looks.
Discussion of the Primary Ingredients (Good and Bad)
High-Quality Ingredients
This recipe uses US-sourced chicken as the first ingredient, providing high-quality protein to support small dogs’ energy levels, strong muscles, and bones. Wholesome whole-grain rice also promotes increased energy, easy digestion, and a healthy heart.
Healthy Digestion
Containing a natural fiber blend made of both live probiotics and prebiotics, such as beet pulp, the “Itty-Bitty Chicky” recipe supports healthy digestion (and healthy poop!) for your Chihuahua pup.
Boosted Immunity
This recipe is also enriched to help your pup maintain a strong immunity, containing antioxidants like vitamin C, vitamin E, and selenium, among others.
Hip & Joint Support
The “Hip, Hop, Hooray” soft chews are made with joint and cartilage-boosting nutrients to help improve mobility and counteract joint discomfort—including omega-3 fatty acids, collagen peptides, and glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate.
In Summary
- Breed-specific recipe tailored to Chihuahuas (and other small breeds)
- Contains high-quality ingredients
- Supports bone and joint health, healthy digestion, weight management, and a softer coat
- Tasty flavor that even typically-picky Chihuahuas will love
- Comes with the “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” soft chew for hips and joints
- Not an all-natural recipe
Reviews of the “Itty-Bitty Chicky” Dog Food and “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” Soft Chews We Tried
Let’s take a closer look at both of BARK’s breed-specific Chihuahua-tailored dog food and treats we tried:
1. “Itty-Bitty Chicky” Dog Food
Bark’s Chihuahua-specific “Itty-Bitty Chicky” recipe is specially made to keep your Chihuahua fur baby happy and healthy.
Containing the perfect blend of chicken and brown rice, you can be confident that you are feeding your pup high-quality ingredients to promote healthy digestion, increased energy and metabolism, improved bone and joint health, weight management, and a softer, shinier coat. This recipe is even enriched with immunity-boosting antioxidants like vitamin C, vitamin E, and selenium to maintain your dog’s optimal health and wellness.
The best part is your little itty-bitty picky eater will love the taste!
- Specially formulated with your Chihuahua’s needs in mind
- High-quality ingredients support optimal health and wellness
- Sourced and produced in the US
- Contains zero artificial ingredients
- All breed formulations have allergy-sensitive options available
- Comes with a convenient feeding guide based on your dog’s weight
- Not an all-natural recipe (contains preservatives)
2. “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” Hip & Joint Soft Chews
Along with the “Itty-Bitty Chicky” dog food, Chihuahua owners can also enjoy the “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” hip and joint soft chews for their pups. Enriched with nutrients specifically geared to promote healthy joints and cartilage—such as omega-3 fatty acids, collagen peptides, and natural glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate sources—these soft chews offer your plucky pup a tasty bacon-flavored treat while improving their mobility and counteracting any joint discomfort they may experience.
With the “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” soft chews for hips and joints, your Chihuahua will be running, jumping, and chasing for years to come.
- Helps promote strong hips and joints, and improved mobility
- Helps prevent joint discomfort and pain, both now and later in life
- Tasty bacon flavor that dogs love
- Not an all-natural treat (contains preservatives)
- May not be safe for pregnant dogs or dogs meant for breeding
Our Experience With BARK’s “Itty-Bitty Chicky” Dog Food and “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” Soft Chews
Overall, both Coco and I had a great experience with both of BARK’s breed-specific products that we tried—the “Itty-Bitty Chicky” dog food and the “Hip, Hop, Hooray” soft chews. This was my first time trying out a product that was specially made for Chihuahuas. Coco is a 4-year old Chihuahua-terrier mix, and though she is far from your average Chihuahua in both her looks and temperament, it was still intriguing for me to try out both food and treats that were specifically geared to her particular needs as a Chihuahua mix.
Coco was an instant fan of the “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” soft chews. No surprise there, as they are bacon flavored, soft, and chewy. She would light up every time she noticed me reaching for the bag, anxiously doing all her tricks in anticipation of a treat. Needless to say, she would scarf it down within seconds of me giving her one each time.
The “Itty-Bitty Chicky” dog food, on the other hand, took her some warming up to. She has been spoiled with natural frozen (wet) dog food, so getting her back to eating kibbles took a bit of adjustment. After some time, “Itty-Bitty Chicky” food eventually grew on her as well, and she now thoroughly enjoys it mixed into her wet food twice a day for her meals.
On my end, I did notice a slight increase in Coco’s (already high) energy level. She is already a very active dog who loves going on long walks, runs, and hikes (hence her not being a typical Chihuahua), but she does seem to have a bit more stamina and pep in her step lately. Her digestion has also noticeably improved. Since starting on both the “Itty-Bitty Chicky” food and “Hip, Hop, Hooray” soft chews, let’s just say her bowel movements are “very healthy” these days, as she will sometimes go #2 twice within a walk. Safe to say those prebiotics and probiotic are doing their thing!
As it’s only been a short amount of time trying these BARK products out on Coco, I am happy to see some overall improvement in Coco’s overall health and wellness already. Not to mention, the adorable bandana that reads, “I’m not picky, I’m particular!”, was a sweet and thoughtful add-on from the folks at BARK. This positive experience with their breed-specific line has made me more open to looking for other breed-specific products that will help keep Coco as healthy and happy as possible.
Final Thoughts
BARK’s mission to bring health and happiness to every aspect of dogs’ lives continues with its breed-specific dog food line. With the catchy tagline, “different breeds, different needs”, BARK offers breed-focused dog kibble, supplements, and products specially designed to support each dog’s individuality while meeting their breed-specific needs.
The “Itty-Bitty Chicky” dog food and “Hip, Hop, Hooray!” hip & joint soft chews were specially formulated to keep Chihuahuas everywhere happy and healthy. Made with high-quality ingredients, keeping Chihuahua-specific traits and health issues in mind, these breed-focused BARK products make the perfect addition to any Chihuahua’s diet.
