There are several reasons why you should try these homemade dog treat recipes. They are ideal for dogs with allergies and are wholesome and filling as well. Unlike some store bought dog treats, these recipes contain no artificial colors, preservatives, flavorings, fillers or chemicals. You will love the fact that you control what goes on in these treats; you can choose organic ingredients and even change these recipes to suit your pet’s taste buds. These are sure to last several days, so you will end up saving quite a bit of money as well. Note that these are treats and not a complete diet, so do not replace your pets’ dog food with these snacks.
1. Pumpkin muffins
Pumpkin is very good for dogs. It is filling due to rich fiber content; plus it has vitamin A. The following recipe yields 8 muffins.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups unbleached flour
- ¼ cup each vegetable oil and honey
- 1 tsp each- vanilla extract, baking powder and baking soda
- ½ cup chopped unsalted peanuts
- 1 egg
- ½ cup sugar free all natural apple sauce
- 1 cup solid pack pumpkin puree
Method
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- In a bowl, mix all ingredients and prepare muffin batter.
- Spoon batter in muffin cups 3/4th
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
2. Peanut butter and banana cookies
This recipe yields approximately 60 2-inch cookies.
Ingredients
- 3 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 egg
- One ripe banana, mashed
- ¼ cup all natural unsweetened peanut butter
- ¾ cup water
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 F
- In a bowl, mix all ingredients.
- Knead the dough well.
- Now roll it out on a floured surface up to ¼ inch thickness
- Cut out cookies using cookie cutter
- Place the cookies on a baking sheet 1/2 inch apart.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes. When done, they should be firm to touch.
- Turn the oven off and leave the cookies inside for 1-2 hours to harden.
3. Dog treats without flour – Amaranth waffles
Many dogs are allergic to gluten in wheat flour. This recipe is for those dogs. Amaranth is an ancient grain; it is gluten free and rich in minerals. Dogs are sure to love these treats.
Ingredients
- 50 gm/2 oz softened butter
- 1 egg
- 7 oz amaranth flour
- 250 ml carrot juice
- 20 grams rolled oats/millet flakes or spelt flakes. If your dog does not have allergy to nuts, use 20 grams of hazelnuts
- 10 g baking powder
Method
- Pre-heat waffle maker.
- Beat the butter in a food processor or a hand mixer until nice and creamy. Add the egg and beat for a minute.
- Note that this mixture will not bind together as there is no sugar. Once you add the other ingredients, it will bind.
- Now add the flour, nuts or rolled oats along with baking powder and carrot juice into the butter-egg mixture. Combine until you have dough that glides off the spoon. If it is runny, add some more amaranth. In case it is thick, add a bit of juice.
- Spoon 3 tablespoons of the mixture into the waffle maker for each waffle. Cool the waffle before treating your pet.
4. Easy homemade dog treats with rolled oats
When a recipe calls for rolled oats, only use rolled oats. Never substitute it with instant oats as this will change the texture, flavor, taste and baking time and temperature.
Ingredients
- 1 cup each boiling water and rolled oats
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp chicken or beef bouillon
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 egg beaten
- 3 cups whole wheat flour or refined unbleached flour
- ¾ cup cornmeal
- 1/3 cup margarine
- ½ cup milk
Method
- Preheat oven to 325 F and grease cookie sheets.
- In a bowl, combine margarine, oats and boiling water and let stand for 10 minutes.
- Stir in cornmeal, sugar, bouillon, egg, cheese and milk and mix well.
- Add 1 cup flour at a time and mix well after each addition to form a stiff dough.
- On a floured surface, knead the dough until nice, smooth, non-sticky and stiff.
- Roll out the dough to ½ inch thickness and cut out bone shaped cookies.
- Place the cookies on greased sheet at least ½ inch apart.
- Bake at 325 F for 45 minutes.
- Cool completely before storing into an air-tight container.
- The recipe yields about 3 ½ dozen large dog treats.
5. Liver treats to use during training
Use these treats when training your pup and he will be obeying you within no time.
Ingredients
- 5 cups water
- 1 lb liver sliced ¼ inch thick. A butcher can do this for you
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- Nonstick cooking spray
Method
- In a large stockpot, boil water. Add the beef liver and return to a boil.
- Decrease heat to simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
- Drain the liver and set aside to cool. You can save the broth for other recipes.
- Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray and cut the liver in 1 inch squares.
- Place the liver on the sheet and sprinkle garlic powder.
- Bake for 2 hours.
- Turn off the oven and let the liver cook in the heat for a couple more hours.
- Cool completely and store in an air tight container for 2 weeks or in a freezer for 3-4 months.
6. Grain free dog treats – Tuna tater tots
These are great treats for tuna-loving dogs.
Ingredients
- 1 can tuna packed in oil or water (drained). You can also use sardines.
- 1 cup instant mashed potato flakes.
Method
- Pre-heat oven to 350 F.
- In a food processor, pulse the tuna with a bit of liquid from the can along with the potato flakes.
- Scrape mixture down from the sides of the bowl and stand for 10 minutes. This will let the potato flakes absorb moisture from the tuna. Now pulse again.
- The mixture will now resemble fresh bread crumbs and will hold firmly when squeezed.
- If the mixture is dry, add a bit of stock or water.
- Shape into small cylinders and place on a greased baking sheet.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes until firm.
- Cool completely before storing in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. You may also freeze the tater tots.
- This recipe yields about 3 dozen treats.
