Mesa veteran's store is a real treat for dogs

Jun. 15—Tony Richardson never forgot learning that poor nutrition was the reason he had to put down his 11-year-old German Shepherd named Buddy in 2014.

Eight years later, he decided he had to do something.

In January, the Army veteran opened Harley's Treats USA, a 1,200-square-foot store in Mesa that sells all-natural pet food and treats like biscuits, bites, jerky, and 'Sweet Pawtato Chips' that he makes himself in the commercial production kitchen on-site.

After Buddy's death, Richardson earned his bachelor's degree in animal nutrition, discovering the "horrible" realities about most of pet food commonly available.

"There are trace amounts of poison that are actually in there," Richardson said. "Not enough to kill a dog or cat, but over time, it's what is contributing to the number one killer of our pets nowadays — which is cancer."

That prompted Richardson to go all-natural with his dog's food and become anti-anything that's going to harm a pet.

His number-one seller is Beefy Bacon Biscuits, which comprise only a handful of ingredients: almond flour, eggs, coconut oil, bacon, beef broth and a powdered form of lemon or lime used as a preservative.

He started making his all-natural dog biscuits and jerky when he was stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington State.

"I had talked about it before but I told my wife 'hey, I think I'm going to start making dog food and dog biscuits,'" Richardson recalled. "And she 100% supported me 'sure go ahead, do what you got to do.'"

With her help, Richardson got a business license in 2020 and started selling vacuum-sealed bags of homemade dog treats at farmers markets in Washington.

The retired infantry sergeant major spent 32 years in the Army, starting with eight years in the Minnesota Army National Guard and finishing with 24 years on active duty.

Richardson has five combat deployments under his belt, including two in Afghanistan, two in Iraq and, most recently, to Syria in 2019.

Now, Richardson, 54, spends his days at Harley's Treats USA developing and adding to his collection of more than a dozen different flavors of dog treats and fulfilling online orders that he's shipped to 39 states across the country and military post offices around the world.

By June, Richardson said he expects to have his products in other mom-and-pop retail stores and by September plans to open a second store in Florida, where his daughter currently attends college and helps sell his products at farmers markets.

Richardson inherited his love for animals from his mom Susan, who fed any critter that visited their rural Minnesota home — including porcupines, skunks and whatever else would stop by the back door.

Along with critters outside, his mom also adopted German Shepherds.

Anytime she brought home a new puppy, Richardson said that as a kid, he would sneak out of bed, grab it from the pen downstairs and bring it to bed with him.

"I thought they didn't know that I was doing that," Richardson said. "But I found out later on in life that they knew I was doing that."

Since age 23, Richardson has always had his own German Shepherds, except when the military didn't allow it in the barracks or on deployments.

His latest pups hang out at the shop most days and they include the store's namesake, Harley, an 8-year-old shepherd he got while stationed in Grafenwoehr, Germany in 2015 after Buddy's death.

Alongside her is Bella, a German Shepherd mix that Richardson rescued and estimates is 8 years old.

Just like people, Richardson said, pets require regular exercise, a good amount of sleep, and a well-balanced diet. That means more than just a hamburger patty for a dog or a can of tuna for a cat, he explained.

A pet can have that well-balanced diet with Kibble Booster for $22.99, a dehydrated natural supplement sprinkled on a dog's food.

Recent concerns for pet food safety in the United States began in March 2007, when a wide variety of dog and cat food brans were recalled because of chemical contamination.

This contamination led to thousands of cases of kidney failure and reports of more than 4,000 deaths across the country.According to the US Food and Drug Administration, experts traced the source of the chemicals to a supplier in China.

Richardson knows the anguish of losing a pet and said owners can avoid costly veterinary bills by looking at the ingredients label. Knowing the ingredients can save money and heartache, he said.

"Many of these bills can be avoided if they look at the diet for their dog," Richardson said. "If you have problems pronouncing the words that are back there, you want to be cautious."