HENRICO, Va. — Handcrafting pet treats with locally grown ingredients is a labor of love for Krystal Barnes of Henrico County.
While navigating her own medical journey, Barnes’ life changed when her Yorkie-Chihuahua mix, Milky, fell ill as a puppy from poor blood sugar regulation.
“She’d just throw her head back, and I couldn’t get her to put it down. It scared the life out of me,” she recalled. “Every time I’d give her soft food or kibble, it would happen within 24 hours, so I thought, ‘I’m just going to make your food and see what happens.’”
Milky’s cure was the catalyst for one of the most diverse lines of pet treat products grown, made and hand-packaged in Virginia.
Since officially launching the Pawfect Sweets business in 2022, the Barnes family has transformed their home into a pet treat-making powerhouse. Krystal, husband Chris and their daughters, Kaleeya and Asata, all chip in—constantly cooking, baking and packaging an array of bone treats, dehydrated products, “Woofles,” freeze-dried items and other bakery goods from scratch using fresh, locally grown ingredients.
Like people, dogs and cats have allergies, dietary restrictions and picky palates—something Krystal discovered from interacting with market customers. Her treats are methodically cooked to preserve essential nutrients and serve a variety of sensitive stomachs and allergies.
“My goal is to give everybody the opportunity to buy good, healthy treats for their pets,” Barnes said.
A conversation at the Ashland Farmers Market with farmer Paul Boulden of Studley Farms led to a profitable collaboration between the two family businesses.
The Hanover County farm produces its own line of beef liver and pork liver pet treats, but labor challenges and limited marketing opportunities often resulted in a stockpile of unused animal products.
“My thought was: The farmers work hard at providing good, clean food for all of us, so what can we do to take care of product they aren’t offloading?” Barnes explained.
In addition to supplying the Barneses with premium products like pork skin, beef liver, chicken heads and feet, Boulden initiated connections with other local producers.
“Every farmer that I’ve ever met has an aversion to waste,” Boulden remarked. “As soon as we can help producers find an outlet for products that would otherwise be wasted, they get very excited about that.”
The Barneses also incorporate locally grown fruits and vegetables into their recipes—optimizing the harvests of market vendors like Agriberry Farm and Leslie’s Garden.
And with ample kitchen and storage space in the new Pawfect Sweets storefront in Henrico, Krystal can look forward to partnering with more Virginia farms and businesses.
Visit pawfectsweets.com, studleyfarmsva.com, or the Pawfect Sweets and Studley Farms Facebook pages for more information on their various products, updated market locations and schedules, and ordering options.
Read more in Virginia Farm Bureau’s Cultivate magazine.
–Virginia Farm Bureau
