Cracking a cold one after a long day is something dogs can do now too, with a dog 'beer' made in Guelph.
Yes, you read that right — dog beer. Well, sort of. It’s actually beef bone broth made for dogs and served in packaging that resembles a beer can. The vintage beer design has zero per cent alcohol content stamped on it.
Brothers Brewing Company co-founder, Asa Proveau, has started something completely separate from his business. He is the "brü’er" and sole founder of BrüMaster’s Premium Dog Beer.
Brü is pronounced like "brew" — a nod to Proveau's role as brewmaster — and also plays on the German word "brühe," which means broth or stock.
Proveau launched the non-alcoholic dog-friendly drink three weeks ago with a video on Instagram that piqued the interest of pet parents.
He has received interest in the product from bars, restaurants, pet stores — even from unexpected places like a local barber shop and cat owners.
Currently, the product is available online, at a local Pet Valu and a couple restaurants, and bars.
Bone broth for dogs isn’t a new concept. Proveau said it’s a really big thing in Australia and there is a company in Halifax with a similar product.
During the winter, Proveau began brainstorming ideas separate from Brothers. Brothers has been around for the last 10 years. Proveau wanted to do something a little more light-hearted.
Although he doesn’t have a dog of his own, the main point of his new business endeavour is for him to eventually adopt a dog.
“But also the thought of having a dog and bringing them around to work and going and trying to sell dog beer in a park or on a patio. I need more of that in my life, so I'm kind of working towards manifesting that with the company,” he said.
The brewery’s patio sees lots of dogs and so a dog beer felt like a no-brainer. The only hurdle to start was the brewery didn’t have equipment to pasteurize the broth.
Royal City Brewing has a pasteurizer so staff there helped Proveau with the process. He was the guinea pig and in the beginning stages tasted a lot of broth. The main difference between broth for humans and broth for dogs is the sodium content. There is less sodium in broth for dogs so it may not be as tasty for humans. Regardless, it’s human-grade ingredients so they can drink it.
“If you crack it and you smell the can, it has that kind of beef dog treat scent to it and that’s for the most part, what it tastes like,” he said.
He doesn’t encourage people to drink it and suggested regular bone broth instead.
“Dogs have been lapping it up,” said Proveau.
Like seasoned beer drinkers, dogs have been downing it in a couple seconds which gets lots of laughs from their owners.
It can be served as a drink in a bowl, on top of kibble or frozen as a treat. It’s shelf-stable so it doesn’t need to be refrigerated but can be chilled or at room temperature.
It’s supposed to be healthy for dogs since it has collagen and amino acids which is good for joints, skin and digestion.
Bone broth has been popular for humans the past few years and people know it’s beneficial for them, so it can also be good for their dogs, he said.
Proveau emphasized BrüMaster’s Premium Dog Beer is not a pet food company. The dog beer is geared towards craft beer consumers who are dog owners.
This summer Proveau is going to be involved in The Great Downtown Guelph Garage Sale to get the dog beer out there. He’s also trying to get a license so he can bike around parks to sell it.
“Being able to just walk into any store and ask them if they'd be interested in carrying this product and interacting with other businesses I wouldn't have otherwise been interacting with has been really freeing. There has been limitations for dealing with alcohol that this product doesn't have, that has been really enjoyable,” said Proveau.
He sees Guelph as being very dog-friendly and now that the summer is nearing it seems like the city has more dogs than people these days.
Eventually he’d like to see the broth be sold across the province in the Beer Store, LCBO and more pet stores. He hopes to eventually use the beer as a way of trying to get dogs fostered and adopted.