What are Functional Treats?
At the Bearded Monkey, we believe that treats should be more than just empty calories, which is why we make handcrafted functional treats. But not everyone knows what we mean when we say "Functional Treats". In this post, we are going to explain exactly what we mean.
Functional treats are more than just treats. They are delicious rewards or snacks for your dog that go a step further, thanks to carefully chosen, healthy ingredients that add a special boost to your pet's everyday diet. The real secret behind these functional treats is what we call Powerhouse Ingredients.
Powerhouse ingredients:
Powerhouse ingredients are what make our treats functional. They are highly researched and tested items that are proven to not only be rich in several vitamins and minerals, but also have many health benefits. With each new product, we ask ourselves what special ingredient we can add to make this treat more than just a treat. (Links to more in-depth readings on each ingredient will be provided if you wish to learn more)
Pumpkin:
Pumpkin is a widely known superfood that is fantastic for gut health. It's rich in fiber and balances the pH levels in the gut, soothing sensitive stomachs, diarrhea, or constipation. Pumpkin is also rich in several vitamins like A, C, and E, and also minerals like Potassium and Iron. It's such an amazing ingredient that it was one of the first two flavors we ever made. Our Pumpkin and Oatmeal treats are not only easy on the stomach but extremely popular with picky eaters.
Read more on Pumpkin here.
Nutritional Yeast:
Nutritional Yeast is a complete protein, containing all nine amino acids. It's also rich in several B Vitamins, essential minerals, and natural antioxidants. It's beneficial for flea and tick prevention (not treatment), environmental allergies, skin and joint health, and it tastes delicious. With it being such a powerful ingredient, we add it to three different flavors of treats: Peanut Butter, Cheddar Cheese, and Cheddar Bacon.
Read more on Nutritional Yeast here.
Chia Seed & Flaxseed:
Both of these ingredients are packed full of omega-3 & 6 fatty acids. This is an essential part of a pet's diet and encourages skin, coat, joint, brain, and heart health. They are also great sources of fiber, leading to improved digestion. Not only do the omegas help with joint health, but Chia seeds are also a great source of calcium and phosphorus, making them a great ingredient for supporting bone health and maintenance. We add Chia seeds to our Peanut Butter Banana treats, and flaxseed to both the Cheddar Bacon and Cheddar Cheese treats.
Read more on Chia Seeds here.
Read more on Flaxseed here.
Spirulina:
Spirulina is a nutritionally rich protein with a long list of benefits, ranging from a long list of essential vitamins and minerals, to slowing the rate of cancer growth. It aids in detoxification, digestive health, allergies, and immune health. We've added this ingredient to our Apple and Mint treat for its ability to reduce bad bacteria that may reside in the mouth or gut. It's commonly paired with dental chews to help improve overall oral health.
Read more on Spirulina here and here.
An Extension of Your Pet's Everyday Diet
While our treats are made with great intention to benefit pets, they are not medicine. We created these treats so that they would be more than empty calories. They are an extension of your pet's diet. If you are giving them allergy medicine, you can give them nutritional yeast to bolster what the medicine is already doing. If you're treating them for joint health, adding extra omegas to their diet is an extra boost. Our treats allow you to add those special ingredients in a fun and delicious way. Or maybe you're just looking for a fun, healthy treat for your dog to enjoy. If so, you can choose any flavor that you believe they will enjoy. At the end of the day, they are still treats. But they're also more.
posted: 06/01/2026