Now that we've hiked a thousand miles I thought I'd take the time to talk about the foods Emily & I have found to work the best out on trail. I think the very best testament to their success is that Emily hasn't lost a single pound on trail despite logging between 20-35 miles a day! She never has issues with her feet, coat or and health issues. Her energy levels stay up with and above mine. 

I couldn't be happier with how well the Carnibars have worked for feeding Emily on trail! They are super easy to feed, I just open the pack and rip them up into bit sized chunks, no fuss no mess. Having them individually wrapped does produce more waste than I'd prefer, but the bars are so rich and meaty that if they were not they would be impossible to keep fresh and not messy. Having them wrapped also means they can be inside my food bag without making everything smell like kibble.

Emily eats two packages of Carnibars a day, providing her with 1000kcal, which is more than double the calories she would normally eat off trail. With the high quality and digestibility of the Carnibars she hasn't lost any weight and maintains her high energy level no matter how many miles we cover each day. There are 4 flavors and I mix it up so she gets a different flavor with each meal. 

It didn't take me long to stop carrying her First Mate kibble and exclusively feeding the Carnibars on trail. Not only because of the weight savings, but because there were days she wouldn't eat her kibble and I had to add dehydrated beef or something else to get her to eat it. But she never seems to tire of the bars. I do keep feeding the kibble when we were in town, and I send extra baggies of it and offer her all the food she wants while we're off trail. 

Her treats on trail are Zukes Beef Jerky. It's her favorite and they provide the highest kcal to weight ration I could find in a super convenient treat. In each resupply box I have a bag, which I put into a snack sized ziplock which easily fits into my pack's hip belt. That way I can give her snacks easily all day long.