Catnip wines designed for anxious cats and dogs

Muttley's Estate is named for director John Roberts’ childhood dog, and offers a range of different strength pet wines made from catnip. The non-alcoholic beverages can be enjoyed by cats and dogs, and even people, though it is not recommended just yet.

Roberts said the wines were inspired by ‘‘dog beers’’, which are usually made from bone broth.

He wanted something felines could also enjoy.

Cats prefer the lighter taste of whites such as  Champawgne and Prosecatt while the deeper blends such as the Purrno Noir and Pawt are popular with dogs.

‘‘With the growing international interest in catnip and the ‘humanification’ of pet diets, it was a natural extension to explore the development of a premium beverage for pet owners to celebrate with their pets.’’

Roberts said the catnip wines also helped reduce stress in pets – catnip is a mood enhancer for cats and makes them more playful, while for dogs it helps them relax.

‘‘We created the range to help alleviate some of the modern stressors on pets, but unlike conventional wines, our products contain zero alcohol.’’

The range offers multiple varietals, each featuring a different concentration of catnip: lighter whites such as the Champawgne appeals more to cats, while the deeper blends such as the Purrno Noir and Pawt are popular with dogs, Mr Roberts said.

Despite having launched less than a year ago, he was now looking to expand into the United States and was working with New Zealand Trade and Enterprise to identify distributors in overseas markets.

‘‘We believe the reputation of New Zealand’s wine sector in North America will help us establish an entry into this market and we now actively looking for US distributors.’’

Mr Roberts said catnip was a resilient crop which grew well in his part of East Auckland.

He said the commercial-scale farming of catnip would further diversify New Zealand’s horticultural sector.

Global demand for catnip is rising, driven by pet product manufacturers and natural health industries.

The catnip essential oil market is projected to grow by almost 6% each year by 2030 to reach $400 million.

‘‘We’d love to see entire fields of catnip grown right here. The idea that we could turn a small backyard experiment into a nation-wide horticultural endeavour, and share it with pet lovers worldwide, is really exciting. It’s a chance for New Zealand to do something fresh and unexpected – yet again.’’

Muttley’s Estate is also looking at developing a variety for human consumption.

– RNZ