Mary Wakefield

The insane craze for dog ice-cream

(Coral Hoeren/iStock) 
issue 19 August 2023

During the few hot days we had in June, I came across my first tub of dog ice-cream nestled among the Häagen-Dazs in my local supermarket. Scoop’s vanilla: ‘Tubs that get tails wagging.’ My first thought was that it was a joke, or perhaps for people who identify as dogs. So I looked it up as I stood in the queue, and it was as if a door opened onto our national psychosis. Purina ‘Frosty paws’, Wiggles and Wags ‘Freeze-Fetti’, Frozzys dog ice-cream, Pooch Creamery Vanilla, Wagg’s Sunny Daze blueberry, Higgins dog ice-cream, Dogsters ice-cream-style treats, Jude’s, Smoofl, Ben and Jerry’s… the market for dog ice-cream is limitless and it crosses the socio-economic spectrum.

Hippo ate the contents of both tubs, followed by their cardboard containers and a tennis ball

For the ethical rich, there’s Cool Dog Vegan, retailing at an astonishing £120 for a five-litre tub. What’s a one-off £120 when you pay £4.20

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