My picky-eater dog tried Grub Club’s insect-based food – here’s our review

We started with the all-day buffet, which is Grub Club’s main meal. No dessert until after dinner, of course.

I poured half a cup’s worth into his bowl, and he sniff curiously at it for a few seconds, looking at me suspiciously, before diving right in and gobbling up the small pieces of kibble. The boy loved it, and he even came trotting up to me to ask for more after he’d finished. This was abnormal. It takes him a while to warm to new food, but he gobbled it right up, and he didn’t have any stinky dog breath afterwards either.

Grub Club recommends you introduce all-day buffet into your pet’s diet slowly over the course of 7-10 days, starting with around 25 per cent Grub Club mixed in with your dog’s current food. Then gradually increase the amount over a few weeks until your dog is on it completely.

The pieces don’t look like insects, they’re round bits of kibble that Grub Club says are baked in wood-fired, carbon neutral ovens. The kibble itself has a pretty good texture that wasn’t too hard, and the insect protein is powdered, so I couldn’t tell it was insect-based.

Plus, it didn’t smell particularly buggy either, and actually smelt less pungent than normal dog kibble. The pieces aren’t too big, so it’s crunchable, and doesn’t require more than a few chews for my medium-sized dog.

As well as fly larvae, the company says the food is packed with antioxidant-rich blueberries and pomegranates, and prebiotics for digestion. The packaging looks like it’s made out of plastic, but Grub Club says it’s fully recyclable.

I’ve used the food as a replacement for Gatsby’s lunch, and frequently mix the all-day buffet with his raw food for dinner. There have been no complaints or upset tummies. While he still enjoys it, he’d definitely choose his raw food over the kibble, though prefers the taste of Grub Club over previous dry food I’ve tried in the past.

Out of the three treat flavours available, this is the one Gatsby enjoys the most. Open up the bag, take out one of the hexagonal-shaped soft-baked biscuits and he comes running along, giving me his paw so he can have one. The treats are soft, so you can easily tear them up if you want to ration the amount of “Good boys” you give out.

This is a daily treat, so it’s generally good for teaching pooches new tricks or taking with you on walks. It features a blend of insect protein, spirulina, berries and fresh banana. The company says the treats are rich in fibre, antioxidants and detoxifying vitamins. There were no digestive problems with this one, and they didn’t induce a horrible itch.

The colourful resealable packaging is made from 70 per cent sugar cane and is fully recyclable, plus it’s only seven calories per treat. Ultimately, a big win.

Grub Club’s canine shine treats promise to deliver softer skin and a glossy coat. While Gatsby will still eat them, they’re probably his least favourite of the three flavours. If he had a choice, he’d opt for the sit roll treat repeat. So, what’s the issue?

I think it might be the ingredients. As well as insect protein, these contain coconut, turmeric and apple. The dog notoriously turned his nose up at Aldi’s apple-flavoured ice cream, and even I hate turmeric. That said, he did still eat them, but sometimes a little encouragement was necessary.

Thankfully, Gatsby doesn’t have any issues with his coat or the healthiness of his fur, so it’s not a treat I have to rely on. He had no digestion issues with these hexagonally shaped biscuits, which are again soft-baked and easy to break up and tear. The packaging is 70 per cent sugarcane, just like the rest of the treat pouches.

OK, scooty bums, listen up, because poop perfector might be the treat bag for your pooch’s digestive issues. This one’s made from insect protein, parsley, sage and prebiotic – sounds unappealing, but Gatsby weirdly dug these ones.

His poop gets a bit soft if he’s had the wrong foods or eaten something naughty in the park, so I was looking forward to seeing how these fared. Over the month or so of testing these, his poop has been absolutely fine, but he also hasn’t eaten anything bad, so maybe that has also helped.

The fusspot seemed to think the flavour of these ones tasted good, and just like the other two treats, they’re soft-baked, easy to tear and come in the same sugar cane resealable packaging, and they don’t smell like stinky dog treats either.