A Review of Symply Dry Dog Food from Pets Corner

I was having a snooze last week and dreaming about the things I like to eat.

I was awakened by a loud knock at the door, and there was the postman, with a big box addressed to me!

I couldn't believe that he'd found me when it was just addressed to Declan The Greyhound, Yorkshire! I wonder if I'm a bit like Father Christmas?

Declan, stop right there! Only last week we had to have a little chat about your delusions of grandeur didn't we? - Mum

Yeah well... Anyway, when I got my parcel opened, this is what I found inside:

It was a bag of Salmon & Potato Symply dry dog food from Pets Corner.

I was amazed, Salmon is one of my favouritist things!  Mum said she knew the food was coming because I'd had an email from a lady at Pets Corner asking if I'd test the food for them, but she didn't tell me as she thought it would be a nice surprise. But wait! That must mean Mum has been reading my emails. How rude! Still, it was very exciting to get a parcel of my own.

Mum said she thought it would be good for me to test the salmon & potato variety as it is wheat gluten free, hypoallergenic and good for dogs with grain intolerances which are sometimes indicated by the famous "bum problems". As some of you will know I have just cost Mums a small fortune at the v-e-t  in relation to my bottom issues. We don't think I have a wheat intolerance but Mum is on a "better safe than sorry" kick at the moment! If you prefer you can also have  Lamb & Rice or Turkey & Rice flavours.  Mum says a 6kg bag will feed me for just over 2 weeks.

Pets corner say that if you don't see an improvement in your dog's breath, wind or diet related scratching after a month of feeding Symply, you can have your money back. Well fair enough!

As well as this variety, Symply comes in Adult, Senior, Puppy, Small and Large breed. I could have Large breed variety but I prefer smaller kibble, as I'm a little bit on the greedy side and big pieces make me choke sometimes.

Here are some facts about the Symply range of dog food:

• Symply dog foods are made in the UK
• All Symply dog foods are free from artificial colourings, flavourings and preservatives
• They use the highest quality ingredients which are gentler on the stomach and more easily digested
• Higher levels of Omega-6. Linoleic acid is an ‘Essential Fatty Acid’ that has many important roles in the body including the maintenance of healthy skin and coat, ensuring normal growth in kittens and puppies. Omega-6 helps maintain a healthy skin and a shiny coat
• High meat content provides all the protein for healthy and strong muscles. Their dog foods are free of ‘wheat gluten’, a well known cause of allergies in dogs.
• The Salmon is sourced from the Highlands of Scotland and Symply’s lambs are meadow raised in the UK. 
• None of the turkeys in the foods are caged or battery farmed 
• Quality ingredients mean more goodness per crunch – feed less and save money Symply do not participate in any animal testing and do not use any artificial colours, flavours or growth hormones.
• Mum mixed the Symply with my regular food for a few days before giving it to me on its own. 

I really liked this dog food. It has a good smell and is nicely crunchy! Mum said if she sniffed it she could smell the salmon too. I did offer her some to try, but she refused. Sometimes Mum is a bit silly!

Symply is available at Pets Corner shops or via mail order.

Declan was not financially compensated for this review

Lathams V-Plan Dog Food Review

Well, my mum has left me for the week and other mum is in charge now, or that's what she would like to think... I have left her with instructions to clean the cooker so that I can take control of the laptop... he he he :)

Anyway, I was very excited to receive an email the other day from a nice lady who works for Lathams Dog Food. She said I was terribly good looking, she loved my blog and I looked like a bloke with good taste. Well, I might be paraphrasing a little, but I'm sure that's what she meant.... Well, the lady asked if I'd like to review their new V- plan formula complete dog food. I like to see myself as helpful, and I'm not one to turn down a nice bowl of food, so I said I'd give it a go.....

Lathams V-Plan 2kg Turkey & Rice Large Breed-Adult

Latham's V-Plan comes in a number of varieties including, large breed, adult, puppy, mature, sensitive and light. It is available in 2kg,(£6.50), 7.5kg, (£20.00) and 10kg, (£25.00) bags from Tesco

Is this what you want me to check out?

Well, it smells nice & meaty....

Looks alright to me.....

And I like the taste.....   :-)

Mum says she likes the fact that it is veterinarian approved, hypo-allergenic and contains no artificial colours or flavourings. It also has added Glucosamine & Chondroitin which Mum currently feeds to me as a supplement, so she liked that too.

I weigh just over 30kg which means I need about 400g of V-Plan a day. A 2kg bag should last me about 5 days. I have a splash of cold water with my kibble and Mum usually adds a little something to make meal times a bit more interesting; chicken, boiled potatoes, vegetables, rice, pasta, cooked liver or a tin of sardines. Having said that, I tried the V-Plan on its own and was quite happy to eat it!

If I have one small criticism, (well I don't have any, it's just Mum being overly concerned AGAIN) it is that, as you can see, the kibble pieces are quite large. I think this is probably just a Greyhoundcentic problem, as we do tend to bolt our food and large pieces can make me cough. Mum thinks this would be fine for most large dogs though, and personally I don't mind the odd cough if there's a bowl of decent nosh involved Hehe!

For more information visit Lathams Dog Food

Declan did not receive any financial or in-kind compensation for this review

A Bad Case of Man-Flu.....

Hello everyone. I had hoped to be telling you all about my lovely Northumberland holiday, but unfortunately, I've come home with a nasty dose of Man-Flu. Well, at least that's what Mum is calling it. Not that she thinks I'm faking it or anything, it's just that I do seem to be making the most of it......

To put it delicately (some of you may be about to eat...) I've got a bit of an upset tummy. Mummies can vouch for this as between them they had to take me outside 8 times in 6 hours overnight, in order for me to use my private bathroom (behind the hedge).

Mum says she doesn't think it's anything to worry about too much at this stage; I just need to take things easy. I have interpreted this as follows: I can sleep where I want, when I want regardless of how inconvenient it is for everyone else. The gas fire and central heating will be left on at all times. Mum will hand feed me fillet steak and coffee cake and there will be warm milk to hand. She will constantly tell me how pleased she is to be taking me outside at 2.00am in the pouring rain and force 10 gale.

Mum's interpretation: My bed will be placed under the window, out of the way. If I am cold I can have my Banky over me and the heating will not be left on all night. I will be starved for 24 hours and then given small meals of chicken, rice and scrambled eggs. I will drink only bottled water. She will try and not be grumpy when being awakened by me loudly breaking wind, but isn't making any promises..

Life can be so very cruel sometimes, or at least Mum can be. Anyway, I'm sure I'll be feeling well enough to raise my head from my pillow in the next day or so and I'll tell you all about my holiday then.

Holiday planning..

Mum says I might not have time to blog much this week as we go on holiday on Friday and I've got to help out. I think she's starting to panic. She disappeared behind a 27ft high pile of ironing three hours ago and hasn't been seen since.

 I keep hearing mutterings too.... " For God's sake, we go every year; how difficult can it be...." and " Do you really need that much stuff, you never use half of it..."  Well I do think other Mum has a point. I'm only taking my mac, my fleece and my fleece lined mac.. oh and my food, 2 bowls and stand. My bed, blanket, Mr Fog Fog, dong and ball. My lead, training lead, tin of treats, 2 towels and medical kit. Hmmmm.... moving swiftly on... :-/

I wonder if Mum thinks we might suddenly be invited to circumnavigate the globe whilst in the pub one evening and be away for a little longer than originally planned? There must be some explanation for all this stuff! Still I'm more than happy to lie on my sofa and keep out of the way, or project manage as I like to call it...

Mum has also said I'm not allowed to take the laptop away with me as we all need a proper break. That means Mum and other Mum might have to talk to each other... Blimey!! Still, there's always the Nintendo DS and the Kindle; I'd like to see Mum stop other Mum taking those with her, hehe! Perhaps there'll be a cyber-cafe in Alnwick. Do you think they'll rent out a PC to a blogging Greyhound though?

Well, I suppose I'd better go and try and find Mum... Can't see her but there are a lot of expletives coming from behind that ironing.......

Declan's favourite things...

Food!

I love food, no, I mean I really LOVE food! When I was racing it was all a bit boring. Lots of high protein stuff and not much in the way of treats, but now the world is my lobster, or something like that!

Mum would be the first to admit she's not the fittest person in the world, but she's pathological about ensuring her pets have a good diet. She says if she chooses to stuff her face with a cream cake, she has no one but herself to blame, but I can't make choices so she has to be responsible. Personally, I think she's got that dead wrong. I am more than capable of choosing my food - if someone conveniently leaves the fridge door open.. Only this morning I spied some boiled ham which would have done very nicely for lunch and a piece of sirloin steak and a key lime pie which would have sorted out my dinner dilemma.

Mum says so far she can't find anything I don't like; I even enjoy a chew on a stick of celery. Somethings are not allowed, like chocolate, raw onions and raisins as they are poisonous to dogs. I like curry too. Mum knows this as she turned her back on me for two seconds and miraculously half a popadom, 1 chapati and a mouthful chicken rogan josh vanished. I was only trying to be helpful; I thought she'd finished and was just clearing away.. A lot of spicy food isn't good for me though. Without wishing to be indelicate, we Greyhounds do tend to suffer from...err...hmmm....well... farting. People have written books about it - really!

Anyway, as it's such as long-winded (he he he!!) subject, I might save it for another day. Bye bye for now.