Beer for dogs is bad to the bone

The latest addition to America's ever-growing list of craft beers gives new meaning to the time-honored idea of feeding leftovers to the dog.

Dawg Grog, a non-alcoholic mock brew for canines, is the brainchild of Daniel Keeton, 32, who perfected it over the past year with a little help from his seven-year-old American Staffordshire terrier Lola Jane.

It's made with wort, or spent grain, left over from the process of making real beer at the Boneyard Brewery of Bend, Oregon, where Keeton works in the tasting room when he's not home-brewing his own suds.

"I'm recycling a spent product that would otherwise go down the drain," Keeton, contacted by telephone on Tuesday, told AFP.

"I've had a lot of people say dogs love human beer," he added. "But obviously that's not good for dogs, so I wanted to make an alternative that's fun to give to your dog as well as a beneficial healthy treat."

The first batch of Dawg Grog, which comes in 16-ounce (half-liter) bottles in cases of six or 12, went on sale last August in Bend, a beer-loving city of 76,000 in the heart of the Pacific Northwest state.

But a spate of national publicity in recent days has seen Keeton suddenly facing a rush of orders from around the United States, where craft beers from small-volume local breweries have exploded in popularity in recent years.

"It's sweet and kind of caramelly and malty," said Keeton when asked how Dawg Grog tastes. He adds that his product -- which also has vegetable broth among its ingredients -- is best served on its own or poured over dog food.