The scores
Vital Essentials Freeze-Dried Beef Liver: A/93 — Excellent. Single-ingredient freeze-dried beef liver, no preservatives, no binders, no flavorings. The platonic ideal of a dog treat under our rubric.
Charlee Bear Grain-Free Turkey Liver: A/90 — Excellent. Named muscle meat first, named organ meat second, natural vitamin-E preservation, no artificial colors. Held back from a perfect score by a chickpea + pea flour + pea protein legume stack.
How the ingredients compare
The leading ingredients are the structural difference between these two treats:
Vital Essentials: Beef Liver (1 ingredient).
Charlee Bear: Turkey, Turkey Liver, Chickpea Flour, Pea Flour, Pea Protein, Flaxseed, Canola Oil, Natural Mixed Tocopherols (8 ingredients).
Vital Essentials runs the shortest possible ingredient panel: one word, one species, one organ. Freeze-drying removes moisture at low temperature without heat-denaturing the protein, so a single piece concentrates roughly three pounds of fresh liver into the dry weight you see in the bag. Charlee Bear runs a longer panel built around named whole muscle (turkey) and organ (turkey liver) in the first two slots, which is the strongest possible opening for a multi-ingredient treat — but slots three through five are all legume-derived (chickpea flour, pea flour, pea protein), and that triple-legume stack is the formulation pattern the FDA has flagged in its 2018–ongoing canine DCM investigation. Neither product uses BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin, or artificial colors.
Where Vital Essentials pulls ahead
Single-ingredient simplicity: Our rubric awards +20 for a single-ingredient treat with one named animal protein. Vital Essentials earns the maximum simplicity bonus; Charlee Bear, with eight ingredients, picks up the +12 named-whole-muscle-meat-first bonus but cannot earn the single-ingredient credit. That is the structural reason for the score gap.
Organ-meat density: Beef liver is one of the most nutrient-dense whole foods in the canine universe — concentrated vitamin A, vitamin B12, copper, iron, and high-quality animal protein. Turkey liver in Charlee Bear delivers similar micronutrients but is diluted by the legume-and-flaxseed binder system. Per gram of treat, Vital Essentials delivers more bioavailable organ-meat nutrition.
Calorie density and training-treat math: A single Vital Essentials freeze-dried liver cube is roughly 7 kcal — small enough to use as a high-value reward without pushing a medium-sized dog past the 10%-of-daily-calories ceiling. Shop Vital Essentials on Amazon →
Where Charlee Bear holds its own
Softer texture and easier handling: Charlee Bear is a baked grain-free jerky — firm but pliable, easier to break into smaller pieces for small dogs or for owners doing high-rep training. Vital Essentials freeze-dried cubes are crunchy and shatter rather than break, which some small breeds and senior dogs with dental sensitivity tolerate less well.
Wider retail availability: Charlee Bear distributes through grocery, drug, and pet specialty channels including Petco, PetSmart, Whole Foods, and major regional grocery chains. Vital Essentials freeze-dried treats live primarily in pet specialty and online; the brand has narrower mainstream-retail penetration. For owners who restock locally rather than online, Charlee Bear is the more practical pick.
Lower price per piece: Charlee Bear’s cost-per-treat runs roughly 30–40% lower than Vital Essentials’ freeze-dried liver, primarily because freeze-drying is a more capital-intensive process than baking. For owners feeding daily training treats, the price gap compounds. Shop Charlee Bear on Amazon →
The bottom line
Vital Essentials wins on rubric score because single-ingredient freeze-dried beef liver is the platonic ideal of a dog treat — nothing the rubric can deduct from. Charlee Bear is still A-tier and is the more practical everyday-feed choice on price, texture, and availability, with the one watch-item being the legume stack for owners avoiding the FDA-flagged DCM-pattern. If your dog is on a primary diet that already includes legumes (peas, chickpeas, lentils), Vital Essentials is the cleaner pairing; if not, either works for occasional training.
Read our full reviews of Vital Essentials Freeze-Dried Beef Liver and Charlee Bear Grain-Free Turkey Liver for the complete ingredient-by-ingredient breakdown.