Our Values

The best proof: Happy Dog is Germany's best dog food brand according
to the customer satisfaction study by the German Society for Consumer
Studies.

The roots of the Bavarian family-owned company Interquell go back to 1765. Back in the 18th century it all began with a flour mill on the Singold in Wehringen. Then, in the 1950s, a groundbreaking innovation: with the help of a new type of technology and suitable machines, cereal flakes could be produced, which, together with dried meat, resulted in the first complete dry food for dogs. Our recipes, ingredients and additives have been refined over the years based on the latest scientific findings.
But that is not all: the coveted Happy Dog & Happy Cat products have made their way from Wehringen out into the wide world. Happy Dog & Happy Cat is now in demand by dog owners, not only in Germany, but also in Europe, most of Eastern Europe and in individual countries in Asia, Africa and South America. Of course, we continue to produce our dry food in our traditional family business in Wehringen, Bavaria.

Our milestones

  • 1765 - The "old mill"

    With the purchase of the old mill in Wehringen, the Müller family laid the historical foundation stone for the Interquell company today. At that time, Nikolaus Müller started operating his flour mill on the Singold.

    1765 - The "old mill"
  • 1951 - Potato flakes

    Edmund Müller produced the first potato flakes. Due to their easy digestibility and good shelf-life, they offered a significant improvement for farmers in pig feeding.

    1951 - Potato flakes
  • 1965 - First dog food

    First dog food production started with ‘Müller's dog food’. This consisted of flakes and wet food.

    1965 - First dog food
  • 1970 - Happy Dog

    Edmund Müller developed one of the first easily digestible complete food for dogs, consisting of dried meat, maize flakes and vegetables. Müller's dog food brand became Happy Dog.

    1970 - Happy Dog
  • 1973 - Export

    Happy Dog exported abroad for the first time: to Austria and Denmark.

    1973 - Export
  • 1975 - Croquettes for the first time

    The first extruder for the production of dog and cat food in croquette form started up and complemented the previous production of food flakes.

    1975 - Croquettes for the first time
  • 1987 - Georg Müller

    Georg Müller (Dipl. oec.) joined the family business in its 7th generation. After the death of the company founder in 1988, he took over the business.

    1987 - Georg Müller
  • 1992 - First complete feed croquette

    With Happy Dog NaturCroq, Interquell launched the first complete food for dogs in croquette form onto the market.

    1992 - First complete feed croquette
  • 2000 - Premium market

    Happy Dog entered the super premium segment for dog food with Supreme Salmon and Rabbit. The first ‘sensitive’ varieties were Ireland, Toscana and New Zealand.

    2000 - Premium market
  • 2001 - Happy Cat

    Interquell developed dry food for cats for the first time: Happy Cat was born.

    2001 - Happy Cat
  • 2004-2006 - Expansion of operations

    A new office building, two more extruder lines and a silo tower were built. This created a production capacity of 200 tonnes per day.

    2004-2006 - Expansion of operations
  • 2009 Innovation

    Happy Dog Supreme Africa is the first dog food in the world to contain ostrich as a protein source. For every pack sold since then 2% of the purchase price is donated to SOS Children’s Villages in Africa. To date, a total of 1.8 million euros!

    2009 Innovation
  • 2015 - Trade favourite

    Happy Dog became the leading specialist retail brand in Germany in the dry dog food sector.

    2015 - Trade favourite
  • 2018 - 100% climate-neutral

    Goood is Interquell's first premium dog food that is completely climate-neutral - from the field to the bowl.

    2018 - 100% climate-neutral
  • 2018 - 8th generation

    Annika and Andreas Müller join the family business in its 8th generation

    2018 - 8th generation
  • 2019 - Award

    Happy Cat Junior was named 2019 Product of the Year by FutterTester.de.

    2019 - Award
  • 2019 - Export extension

    This popular premium pet food is now shipped to 75 countries and is available on 4 continents.

    2019 - Export extension
  • 2020 - Capacity expansion

    With the commissioning of an additional extruder, fresh raw materials can now also be processed. Production capacity increases to 320 tonnes of pet food per day.

    2020 - Capacity expansion
  • 2020 - Product of the year

    No less than three products received the award for 2020 Product of the Year from FutterTester.de: Happy Cat Bio in the category Wet Cat Food Happy Dog Soft Snack for Dog Snacks and Goood Freilandlamm for dry dog food

    2020 - Product of the year
  • 2021 - Product relaunch

    Happy Cat products now have improved recipes and have been given a new look.

    2021 - Product relaunch
  • 2021 – Products of the Year

    The best food from all tests in 2021 and crowned as the Product of the Year 2021 by Futtertester.de: Happy Cat Culinary in the dry cat food category Happy Dog fit & vital Medium Adult in the dry dog food category

    2021 – Products of the Year
  • 2021 – Seal of Quality

    Our new vegetarian variety Sensible India excelled in the food test, being awarded 9.3 out of 10 stars.

    2021 – Seal of Quality
  • 2022 - Award

    The pet novelty of the year 2021/2022 in the dog category was Sensible India

    2022 - Award
  • 2022 - Product of the year

    The newly launched Happy Cat Culinary Crunchy Snacks are awarded Product of the Year 2022 by FutterTester

    2022 - Product of the year
  • 2022 - Puppy Food Test

    The new Happy Dog Young varieties were rated very good- by FutterTester

    2022 - Puppy Food Test
  • 2023 - Mini-Relaunch

    All products for small dog breeds have a new look and are now even tastier.

    2023 - Mini-Relaunch
  • 2023 - Products of the Year

    In the categories "Wet dog food", "Snack for dogs" and "Dry cat food", we received the Product of the Year 2023 award from the independent portal FutterTester.de.

    2023 - Products of the Year
  • 2023 - Solar field construction

    In order to be able to generate part of our electricity requirements ourselves from renewable sources, we built a solar field next to the company premises in 2023.

    2023 - Solar field construction
  • 2024 - Export expansion

    Our premium dog and cat food is now exported to 84 countries.

    2024 - Export expansion
  • Best Rated Pet Food 2022

    Independent testers rate 41 dry food brands: 1st place for Happy Cat

    Best Rated Pet Food 2022
  • Best Rated Pet Food 2023

    For the 3rd time in a row, Happy Cat dry food takes first place with 4.7 out of 5 stars.

    Best Rated Pet Food 2023
  • Top Pet Brand 2023

    The popular pet magazine hundkatzemaus has awarded us the Top Pet Brand 2023 for our cat snacks.

    Top Pet Brand 2023

Would you like to learn more about Happy Dog?

Our corporate film provides an interesting insight into the Interquell’s origins and work.