Millies Wolfheart

Millies Wolfheart, British food for working and sporting dogs

Millies Wolfheart is a small family business based in the Yorkshire Dales, in the United Kingdom, dedicated to making complete foods for working and sporting dogs. It was founded in 2011 by Mark and June, and its first recipe was launched in September 2012. The company presents itself as a British producer and states that its recipes are its own, not off-the-shelf products.

The project began with its founders' experience with large working breeds with sensitive stomachs: after more than twenty years trying complete foods on the market without satisfactory results, they decided to formulate their own recipes with particular attention to the absence of gluten and grain.

Formulation without gluten, grain or chicken

Millies Wolfheart recipes are formulated without gluten, grain, rice, chicken, eggs, beet pulp, additives or synthetic preservatives. The company states that it only uses complete meat proteins, which are more digestible than plant-based ones, and that it works directly with nutritionists to adjust the formulas to the needs of working dogs.

The firm maintains that most dog foods on the market contain a high proportion of plant proteins or do not specify their origin, and that chicken is used in almost all of them because it is cheaper than potato. For this reason, Millies Wolfheart does not include chicken or eggs in any of its recipes.

Dry food range

The dry food catalogue is organised according to the percentage of meat or fish, from recipes with up to 80% meat or fish to those with up to 40%. The references include:

• Up to 80% meat or fish: Hunter Mix (white potato free) and Turkey & Veg (white potato free).
• Up to 70%: Countryside Mix, Salmon & Veg, Obedience Mix, Surf & Turf, Forager (white potato free) and Peak Performance (high fat).
• Up to 60%: Riverside Mix, Ranger Mix (white potato free), Gamekeepers Mix, Ultima, Farmers Mix, Highland Mix (low fat) and Tracker Mix (low fat).
• Up to 50%: Endurance Mix, Utility Mix, Agility Mix, Gundog Mix, Pork & Veg, Lamb & Veg and Duck & Veg.
• Up to 40%: Forerunner and Alert.

Wet food and treats

The company also sells wet food with a proportion of 70% meat or fish and 30% vegetables, fruits, herbs and botanicals. The wet references include Riverside, Gamekeeper, Tracker (lower fat), Countryside, Salmon & Veg, Turkey & Veg, Lamb & Veg, Goat & Lamb (lower fat) and Highland (lower fat).

In the treats section, the catalogue distinguishes between training treats and luxury treats, with sausages of pork, beef, fish, lamb, venison and buffalo, as well as Christmas hampers.

Manufacturing process

Millies Wolfheart uses the Wenger TT3630 Thermal Twin extruder, which the company describes as the first of its kind in the world, to make its high meat content recipes. According to the firm, this system allows extrusion at a much lower temperature, around 90°C, which preserves a greater proportion of natural nutrients and eliminates microbiological risk.

Sales and distribution

In addition to the online channel, the company has a network of stockists and provides an application form for retailers interested in distributing its products. The site also offers special offers, multi-bag packs, starter packs and clothing.