Homemade Dog Treats: A Way to Your Best Friend’s Heart

Most dog owners are opting for homemade dog treats because it is healthier, cheaper and safer. Processed food is unhealthy for individuals as well as dogs. The good thing about DIY dog treats is that you can control what to place into the mix; thus, this is more fitting for your dog’s dietary requirements. It is also more sumptuous and tastier. No dog can refuse a treat that just came out fresh from the oven. Making your own homemade dog treats is one of the most rewarding activities to do for any pet lover. Imagine your dog wagging its tail in anticipation as he or she smells your cooking.
A Word of Caution
Make sure that the homemade treats for your dog is nutritious and contains the right mix of ingredients for a wholesome snack. Also, avoid including ingredients or food that is dangerous to a dog’s health like chocolates, nuts, raw eggs and meat, too much sugar, pits from apples and plums, mushrooms, onions and the like.
Consult your veterinarian in regards to the dietary requirements of your dog. A complete meal should involve the right mix of ingredients. Also, make sure that your dog does not have any food allergies.
Make sure that you preserve your homemade dog treats in a container that is airtight and freeze them so they can last longer. Here are some of a few recipes that are easy to prepare.

Leftover Dog Mix
A flavorful DIY treats for dog may be made from leftover food. This is ideal for pet lovers who would want to take their dogs for a camp, a hike or some trail walking. This sumptuous meal can be packed and stored for at least a week’s time. Look for pieces of leftover meat, some potatoes, vegetables and some fruits. Next, cut the ingredients into bite sizes and moist it with light cooking spray. Then place the food into a dehydrator or heat in your oven to 200 degrees until it is dried. Now make sure to bring some water for your outdoor activity.
Healthy Pumpkin for Your Pumpkin
Pumpkins are full of beta-carotene, vitamin A and fiber as well as iron and potassium. This is a dog’s all in one food packed with vitamins. Mix mashed pumpkins, molasses, whole wheat flour, baking powder and baking soda, plus a little taste of sugar. Mix all the ingredients together until the dough softens. Make them into bite-sized balls and bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees. It only takes 25 minutes to do the whole process.
Tuna Pops for the Canine
This is probably one of the healthiest dog treats by mixing a drained can of tuna with yoghurt and parsley. Mix everything and use a spoon to place them in ice tray cubes. Deep-freeze them to make it fresher.
Your Dog’s Taste Bud Feedback
Observe your dog during his meal and see his taste bud feedback. If he is gobbling it all up fast while wagging his tail, then your recipe is a success. By looking at your dog’s eating habits, you would know what to prepare, his favorites and the things that does not appeal to his appetite. Truly, food is a way to a dog’s heart. Love your dog. Feed him right.

Homemade Dog Food Recipes and Cooking Techniques

It’s been three years since I adopted Achilles—the sweet puppy that morphed into the happy dog that’s now part of my new family. Like anyone else who has never kept a dog before, feeding him, I must admit, wasn’t that easy at first. I kept feeding him on commercial brands of dog food, switching between brands in a desperate attempt to find a slap-up meal for my beloved pooch. But after a month or so, Achilles started developing serious rashes and rough patches on the skin, which I highly suspected was because of the food I gave him.

This made me switch on to organic dog treats. But as it turns out, going the organic way was way too expensive for my shallow pockets. For instance, I could spend not less than $15 to acquire a small bag of treats for him, all of which could be consumed in a day or two.

To save money, I had to try out a number of homemade dog food recipes. And since then, I must say, Achilles has never eaten anything else, other than what it’s in my home menu for him. And to end the long story, suffice it to say I’ve never seen him that happy and healthy. 

Having said that, here are some of my favorite homemade dog food recipes and cooking techniques that I discovered along the way, for you to read and try out: yourself 

Frozen Yogurt Pops

If your dog loves ice cubes, then consider preparing this treat for him. Usually, the treat is made from human grade ingredients—including carrots and fruit juice, all of which contribute to the vitamin boost of what you serve your dog. 

Ingredients

. – 6 Oz of non-fat, frozen yogurt

. – I cup of fruit juice—without sugar

. – Half cup minced carrot

Directions

. – Add the fruit juice, yogurt and minced carrots into a large-sized bowl, and then stir until all the ingredients are well-blended. . – Using a table spoon, drop the mixture into ice cube trays. . – Let the mixture freeze until solid. . – Once compacted, remove the treat from the tray, and then serve it to your dog or puppy.

Beef-and-vegetable balls If made to choose between meaty treats and sweat ones; most dogs will go the meaty way. Beef-and-vegetables balls are a good example of treats that are highly-irresistible for dogs.

 Ingredients

. – Two 6-ounce containers of organic beef-and-vegetable baby food

. – Whole-wheat flour (1 Cup)

. – Dry milk (2 cups)

. – Water (1 cup)

Directions

. – Preheat your oven to about 350 Fahrenheit degrees.

. – Using a large bowl, mix all the aforementioned ingredients.

. – Now drop the entire mixture onto a baking sheet using a large spoon.

. – Let it bake for about 12 to 15 minutes.

. – Let it cool before serving. 

Please note: you can still store the left-over balls into a fridge for up-to 5 days. 

Doggie Chili

Dogs require a huge amount of proteins to stay healthy and active. And since the vast majority of the proteins dogs get come from meat—and maybe beans, this recipe blends beans, chicken, and vegetables to ensure your dog has all the proteins he needs. 

Ingredients

. – 4 Chicken breasts

. – 1 cup of well-drained kidney beans

. – 1 cup of well-drained black beans

. – 1 Cup of diced-carrots

. – Tomato paste (Half cup)

. – Chicken broth (4 Cups)

Directions

. – Remove all the excess fat in the chicken breasts, and then have them diced into nickel-sized bits.

. – Now have the chicken breasts cooked in a non-stick skillet with medium heat until it’s no longer pink.

. – Add the chicken broth, beans, carrots, chicken, and tomato paste into a large pot, and let it cook with medium heat for about 10 minutes. 

. – Let the mixture cool and the serve.

. – The left over chilly can actually be stored up to 5 days.

 

Tips You should know Before Making Homemade Dog Treats

In training your pet, it is important to have treats which will encourage good behavior. It is not a must to buy dog treats as they can be made at home. Homemade dog treats are not as difficult to make as most people would think. The secret is making the treats something that is healthy for your dog and delicious enough to keep them looking forward to the treat. The good part of making the dog treats at home is that you will have the opportunity to choose the recipe and make the contents as flexible as possible. Some of the ingredients that can be included in making the treats can be beef, rice, chicken, and lamb.

Ingredients for making the dog treats

The ingredients part should not be taken lightly because they will determine just how helpful the treats will be to your pet. If you buy dog treats and take a look at the ingredients, you will notice that they are things that you can eat yourself. Using the ingredients list on the processed dog treats you can create your own DIY treats for your dog especially with ingredients such as whole grains, kelp, beans and meat products.

Calories used

Calories are important for dogs as they are for humans. This means that when you are making the treats for your dog at home, you should pay attention to the calories. It is important that when you make the treats, you control the amount of calories because too much can lead to weight issues. A lot of dogs are overweight and this greatly affects their activity throughout the day. Check the amount of calories in all the ingredients you use in making the treats.

Treat Texture

The texture of the dog treats is something that most people do not pay attention to. Is the treat you are making hard or soft? Harder treats are better for average dogs and are beneficial in cleaning the dog’s teeth. Puppies and older dogs might have a difficult time chewing through the hard treats and thus you should consider making softer treats for them.

Recipes

It is important to have different recipes using the healthy ingredients that you choose for the treats. The alteration of the recipes will give your dog a different taste and avoid monotony of flavors. As long as the ingredients are safe for your pet, you can mix a few to ensure that the dog has a wide range of options. Keep in mind that you need to monitor the amount of calories to avoid any weight issues which might compromise their health and limit their activity.

Personalize the Treats

All dogs are not the same in terms of nutritional needs. This is why you should find out the needs of your dogs in relation to their age, health, and size. The treats should therefore address all the nutritional needs of your pet without causing any health issues. Check with the vet to understand better what your dog needs nutritionally to stay healthy and active.

 

A Novel Recipe for a Dog Treat

Dog treats are one of the best ways to show your love for your pet. Here is a recipe for an appetizing new biscuit treat that you can make right at home. Thought the treat is vegetarian, it is a favorite among all kinds of dogs. These homemade dog biscuits are a sure way to enliven the life of your pet. These treats are used regularly in veterinaries so you don’t have to worry about the health and nutrition aspects. Just follow these simple instructions to make your very own dog treat:

Ingredients:

1. Whole Wheat Flour ( 2 Cups )
2. Rolled oats ( 1 cup )
3. Fresh parsley ( 2 tbsp )
4. Non fat Dry Milk ( 1/2 cup )
5. Salt
6. Eggs ( 2 )
7. Crunchy Peanut Butter (1 cup)
8. Cold water to make dough (2 cups)

Directions:

• The first step is preheating the oven to a good 300 F. Use a couple of baking sheets and line them with parchment. 
• Then mix the main ingredients like flour, oats, milk, salt and parsley.
• To this mixture, add the eggs and peanut butter. Stir this well and it will combine to give a crumbly, crunchy mixture.
• Now the entire dough needs to be brought together in a cohesive unit. For this purpose add the right quantity of water. Then mix everything together to give it a good texture.
• Use a dog bone cutter to make the biscuits in the right shape. Roll the dough to a quarter inch thickness and then use the cutter. Then get the scraps together, roll it again, and keep cutting till all the dough is utilized into making biscuits. 
• Now the next step is to get the dough into properly shaped cookies. Get ready with the baking sheets and drop the dough onto these. Of course, first it must be made into a ball like shape. After dropping to the baking sheet, flatten them to about a quarter of an inch.
• Then it is time to bake these biscuits. Keep them going for about 40 to 50 minutes. It really depends on the size of the cookies. Smaller ones should be baked for lesser time and larger ones for a greater amount of time.
• You will know when the baking is done because the biscuits will get a dark golden brown color. They will also be dry and crisp all the way.
• Then take the biscuits out from the oven and allow them to cool down on the pan itself. With this quantity of ingredients you can easily make about 40 large dog biscuits and 50 smaller ones.

This is a very simple recipe that can be used to whip up dog treats in no time at all. At the most, the entire process will take about one and a half hours. While your dog will love these dog biscuits, it is important to remember that this is only a treat and should not become a regular part of your pet’s diet. Don’t indulge your pet too much with these treats as it can become very detrimental to their health. Keep this mind and hope you have fun with this recipe. Happy cooking!