Did you ever have a dream when you were little? A magical aspiration you obsessed over? Whether it was a juggling zookeeper or a singing astronaut, we were pretty confident these choices.
When Johnna McDonald Kredel was little, she dreamed of being a doggie baker, owning a cute storefront and making adorably decorated birthday cakes for all her furry customers. While it was a good dream, she ended up in the corporate world as an adult.
“I came home one day and decided, ‘You know what? My job doesn’t give me a warm fuzzy feeling,’” Kredel says. “So, my husband asked me what I wanted to be when I was a child and I told him.”
This wasn’t just a childhood passion; Kredel had started baking when she rescued her black Labrador mix and was unhappy with his skinny frame. She treated him with all the baked goods she had time to make.
Coincidentally, around that time, news spread that many dog treats on the market weren’t safe. People were scared to feed their dogs anything, which prompted Kredel’s sister to ask her for handmade dog treats. Since those were a hit, her work friends began sniffing around for some and pretty soon, everyone was howling for more.
After going to work every day and staying up late baking every night, Kredel realized she could no longer juggle both and she had to give up one thing – and she decided it wasn’t going to be her dream.
Nom Nom Nom All Natural Dog Treats operated for five and a half years before opening its Canal Winchester storefront in September 2018.
“We use all my original recipes with high quality, human-grade ingredients,” Kredel says. “We don’t use any additives, preservatives, flavors, fillers, salt and absolutely no sugar.”
When the business first started, Kredel reached out to veterinarians all across the country to ask about the healthiest human-grade ingredients for dogs. She received a slew of answers and created treats with whole, natural ingredients.
For instance, pumpkin is at the top of the list for healthiest human foods for pups. Nom Nom Nom uses real pumpkins and scoops out the inside because it promotes good digestion for dogs. She then mixes that with a bit of cinnamon since it’s an anti-inflammatory. Kredel and her team also uses peanut butter, which is ground in Columbus at Krema Nut Company – no additives or sugar included, just peanuts.
It’s a lot of effort using natural, local ingredients, but Kredel says it’s worth it.
“I want to make high-quality dog treats that everyday people can afford and can feed to their pups without hesitation,” she says. “I want people to feel like there’s nothing questionable or weird in our treats.”
In fact, Kredel’s treats are so safe, people can even eat them – and they do!
“We’re licensed to sell dog treats but … on Doggie Donut Saturday, it’s not shocking to see people outside eating our donuts,” she says, laughing. “They’re so good that people actually eat them.”
Who can blame them? Nom Nom Nom has a cornucopia of cupcakes, cake pops, pup-tarts, doughnuts, blueberry scones and even doggie ice cream. Arguably, best of all are the doggie birthday cakes.
“We’re the only people in central Ohio that make birthday cakes specifically for dogs,” Kredel says. “Some bakeries will claim they make dog cakes, but use buttercream frosting – which is terrible for dogs and not safe at all.”
It’s a career that bings that warm fuzzy feeling to Kredel’s day, as she feels just as excited every morning even after an 80-hour work week. It’s clear she doesn’t regret dumping her eight-to-five job.
“It’s all or nothing; I know a lot of people who try to juggle their job with their passion on the side,” she says. “But your job takes away time to commit to your passion, and it affects the quality of your work.”
It was a big risk, but it’s paying off. Not necessarily in cash, as Kredel actually doesn’t even take home a paycheck she’s so busy putting profits toward her staff and the community, but it has paid off in other ways.
“I’ve had customers say their dog had cancer and treats would mess up his blood work so badly he had to skip chemo,” Kredel says. “But after feeding him my treats, his results would come back completely normal.”
Other customers even claimed their dog got sick from store-bought treats, but after shopping at Nom Nom Nom the pup felt much better.
“Find something that you’re passionate about,” she says. “Then go from there and give it 100 percent. Pick a career and cultivate your passion with it.”
Mallory Arnold is an associate editor. Feedback welcome at marnold@cityscenemediagroup.com.
Recipe: Paw-Berry Cheesecake Bites
Ingredients
Biscuits
- ¼ cup nonfat milk
- ¼ cup cream cheese
- ½ cup applesauce
- 1 egg
- 4 strawberries cut into small pieces
- 3 cups of whole wheat flour
Drizzle
- 1 Tbsp. coconut oil
- 3 Tbsp. pure honey
Directions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a bowl, mix nonfat milk, cream cheese, applesauce, egg, strawberries and whole wheat flour.
- Lightly dust a clean surface with whole wheat flour and roll out dough to ¼ inch thick.
- Cut with cookie cutter of choice.
- Place on lightly greased or parchment paper lined baking sheet.
- To make drizzle, combine 1 Tbsp. coconut oil and 3 Tbsp. pure honey. Microwave for 15 seconds and drizzle on biscuits.
