Cool Summer Fro-Yo Treats

Have you seen doggie ice cream? Several different companies are making it. They even sell it next to ice cream in the freezer case at my local grocery. Max loves the stuff, but have you seen the ingredient list? Blech! Max has a sensitive stomach so we whip up our own which is incredibly easy and cheaper too!

What you need:
Fruit or flavors your dog loves (Max loves strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, watermelon... you get the idea)
A large tub of plain or vanilla yogurt with as few weird ingredients as possible

What you do:
Process your fruit into a puree' in the blender or food processer
Add your yogurt and blend some more
Pour the whole mixture into cupcake liners or ice cube trays and freeze.
Once the yogurt is frozen you can pop the cubes or cupcake liners out of their trays and put into a baggie for storage.

I know it's not rocket science but really, your dog's gut will thank you for not having all the weird ingredients and you'll feel much less guilty about not sharing your fudge bar in the heat of the summer. Stay cool dog friends!

*Quick update: I used muffin liners but after seeing what a pain they are to get off the fro-yo once it's frozen, I wouldn't recommend them unless they're somehow waxed. Next time I'll just pour directly into the muffin tin.

Tasty Treat Tuesday- Meaty Mystery Treats

Max is involved in a gift swap and is sending goodies to two lucky dogs next week. I can't disclose all of what will be in the package but we're making treats tonight. In an effort to be a little sneaky, since this is a public blog, I'm just going to post a picture of the "before" but I promise to post the recipe after everything's been securely tucked into the mail.

Meaty Marinade

I'll give you two guesses, given my recent methods of treat-making, what I'm doing with this meat. It smells so good!

We're part of Tasty Tuesday Blog Hop hosted by Sugar the Golden Retrieve and Kol's Notes. Check out the other blogs for more tasty ideas!

Tasty Treat Tuesday- Fall Cranberry Fruit Treats

It's fall and for us and the Maxter that means time to make pumpkin and cranberry treats. In fact, we're up to our ears in pumpkin puree at home. Max loves the pumpkin but I'm still working out the perfect treat, though Max doesn't mind eating the "mistakes".

Since I'm still experimenting with the pumpkin with mixed results, I thought I'd share another fall favorite. Cranberry fruit leather is becoming a fall staple for us. I buy several bags of cranberries each year when they go on sale and freeze the bulk of the bags.

This recipe couldn't be easier and is so tasty!


Puree 1 lb of cranberries with 1/4 c. of white sugar.










Mix the puree with 1/2 c. unsweetened apple sauce, 1 tablespoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger and zest from one lemon.









Spread the mixture onto a pan lined with a baking mat or parchment paper.
Place into a low oven,  I used the "warm" setting, and leave the door open for 6-8 hours until you have a leather.
Peel the fruit off the paper or mat and cut into strips or pieces for training treats. I cut mine with scissors but a pizza cutter would work well too. Don't forget to sneak a treat for yourself!


UPDATE: Several folks asked me about the white sugar out of concerns for calories or processed sugars. I made a second batch and used juice from 1 naval orange instead of sugar with close to the same results. For that batch I also zested the orange instead of a lemon.




This week we're part of a blog hop hosted by Kol's Notes and Sugar the Golden Retriever. Check out the other tasty goodies this week!

Tasty Treat Tuesday- Pumpkin Chews

The weather here has cooled off and pumpkins are all over! The Max-monster loves pumpkin and it's so good for him so I've been playing with different recipes for treats. I bought a pie pumpkin I'm using for today's chews and Aldi's had cans of puree for $1 each so I picked up 6!

Pumpkin is a funny thing. First I tried to make a shortbread style cookie but there were some challenges. There's so much water in canned puree that my first attempt at cookies was a disaster! I used garbanzo bean flour and had to add a ton to absorb the water for not a lot of flavor. Max ate them but Sweetheart and I didn't think they were worth the work.

After much frustration I decided to get back to basics. The pie pumpkin needed to be used and Max needed treats. I turned, once again, to oven dehydrating. Oven dehydrating isn't hard, it's just more about process and "low and slow" to turn something fresh into something shelf-stable by removing the water. Let me be the first to encourage you to grab your food dehydrator or consider investing in one. Mine melted so I'm using the oven.

First you want to peel your pumpkin. I used a peeler but you could do it with a knife if you're good like that.







Then cut the pumpkin in half and gut it. Keep the seeds for human treats if you want.

Quarter your pumpkin and then slice it thinly. Lay the slices out on a baking tray, preferably on a rack. You can dehydrate without a rack, it'll just take a little longer. I sprinkled mine (Max's) with cinnamon and sugar.

Let the slices sit in a very low oven (about 150 degrees or "warm" setting) with the oven door cracked for 4-6 hours until the slices are very leathery but not brittle. Store airtight on a countertop. If you have a silica packet to absorb any leftover moisture, feel free to throw it into the storage container. 

That's all there is to oven dehydrating and you can make all kinds of snacks that you and your dog will both love!




If you enjoyed this recipe, check out the rest of the Tasty Tuesday posts with Kohls Notes and Sugar the Golden Retriever!

Tasty Treat Tuesday- Roasted Chickpeas

The days are getting shorter and walk times are too! Normally Sweetheart and I take Max on 2-3 miles of formal walk a day but late last week it got really really cold. We decided to forgo the standard trail walk in favor of something a little closer to the warm car. We ended up at a local park with tennis courts and baseball diamonds. These are the best spots to exercise Max when we can't do the long walk. They're enclosed, fairly clean and well lit. What more could you ask for? What? You want video proof? Here's the Maxster at the baseball field. He'll chase but rolling in the grass is way too enticing to ignore.

Sooner than I want, it will be too cold or dark to do much walking and indoor activities will become our life. Indoor activities means I need lots of small treats of lower value. Even better if the treats are shelf-stable and cheap. With that, I bring you Roasted Chickpeas. These remind me of soy nuts or peanuts but are infinitely customizeable for your dog and take 2 minutes to prep and about 45 minutes in the oven.

Baked Chickpea Treats

1 can of Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans)
Some kind of oil spray (veggie, olive, canola, etc.)
Seasonings if you want them.

• Drain the chickpeas and rinse them well.
• Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and pour the beans out onto the parchment  in a single layer
• Bake for 25-30 minutes until the outsides are starting to dry but the peas are still slightly squishy.
• Remove the chickpeas from the oven and lightly spray with your oil spray. Roll the chick peas around to coat them in the oil. 
• If you're adding seasoning like garlic powder, cinnamon or sea salt, do that right after the oil is sprayed.
• Return the tray to the oven for another 15-20 minutes until the chickpeas are crispy through the middle. 
• Let the chickpeas cool on the baking sheet and store them in a plastic bag away from humidity on the counter. If you bag the chickpeas before they're cool, condensation will build up and make the treats soft but you can return them to the oven for 10 minutes or so to re-crisp them. 

This week we're adding our voice to the blog hop at Kols Notes for Tasty Tuesday. Check them out for many more treat ideas!
 

Tasty Treat Tuesday- Baked Turkey Treats!

Training is hard work! Time for a nap!

In light of all the pet food recall's and the crazy issues with jerky treats made in China, I'm starting "Tasty Treat Tuesday" to help people be confident in making treats for their pets. It doesn't have to take a lot of time or be expensive. All you need are some basic ingredients your dog loves and some imagination. Max loves turkey and tomato so that's what I go with.

Here's what we do:
2 lbs ground turkey (or beef or chicken or pork)
1 small can tomato paste
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1/2 c. chopped parsley

• Mix it all together like you would for meatballs. 
• Kick the dog out of the kitchen
• Section the mixture into 1/2 lb. batches. 
• At this point you can freeze these raw and thaw to bake or bake them all and freeze so you can pull them out as you need them.

• If you're baking, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 
• Take a lump of the meat mixture and roll it thinly between two sheets of parchment paper. I've also made meatballs and meat sticks but your cooking time increases with those shapes.
• Kick dog out of the kitchen (again)
• Score the meat with a pizza cutter (or do it after)
• Transfer the meat to a baking sheet (you can keep it on the parchment paper if it will fit. Just slide the whole thing on.)
• Bake for 10-20 minutes until the meat is done but not dry or until the dog races to the oven timer.
• Cut the meat into small training treat sizes.

You'll want to store these in the fridge just like any other meatball. Ours don't stay in the fridge long because Max loves them so be prepared to make plenty!

Easy Grocery Store Dog Treats

Life has gotten busy! With spring here and plants to go in the ground, lawns to mow and general life I haven't made Max treats in a while. With so many pet food and pet treat recalls lately, it's tempting to go "off the grid" and make everything yourself. There are plenty of people who do. I, however, am kinda lazy sometimes and so I've compiled a list of my go-to treats when I just don't feel like doing a full effort.

You can see a full list of Max's foods here but every dog is different. Find out what makes your dog beg and use it to your advantage. If you're in doubt talk to your vet. This is by no means comprehensive but a few ideas to get you started.

If you decide to make your dogs treats (make is a very loose term here) don't be afraid to try different foods. Be aware though, there are a few foods you should NEVER feed. These include:

• Grapes or Raisins (Can cause kidney failure)
• Onions/Shallots/Leeks/Chives/ Large Amounts of Garlic (Can cause Anemia)
• Chocolate (Theobromine can cause tremors and cardiac arrest)
• Macadamia Nuts (vomiting, ataxia, weakness, hyperthermia, and depression)
• Bread Dough (swelling from the yeast fermentation)

So what can you feed your dog? It's a long list but here are a few ideas to get your creativity going!

Happy Gotcha Day Cupcakes!

Max eyeing the second cupcake since he ate the first one
before we could get a good picture.

Today was Max's 3rd Gotcha Day! In case you haven't heard of it, Wikipedia says that Barbara Bizou wrote, Gotcha Day "is designed to show your adopted child how much you wanted him and that every year you continue to cherish him." I think that about sums it up. 


So today Max had an extra long walk, two yard fetch times and a bath! Sounds great, right? He was good with the walks and playtime but not so much with the bath as you might have guesed.
In celebration I made cupcakes (pupcakes? I know...groan.) For these I turned first to the trusty garbanzo bean flour and then to the trusty google for a recipe. I actually made 18 of these so two of them went to a friend's dogs, 2 were given to Max and 14 went to Chain of Hope, a local organization that helps dogs living on the end of a chain with basic medical, food, water and shelter. 
In case you need proof about what mean mom's we are, here's the video of us trying to get a good pic.

Grain-Free Bacon Biscuits!

Waiting for the flash to go off...

Max has been having some eye issues lately and so yesterday we went and saw the vet (henceforth known as Dr. Awesome).  Thankfully he didn't have any abrasions to his eye but boy was his eye mad! His lower lid was swollen, the eye was cloudy and the skin around the eye had been scratched at. Max was very good for Dr. Awesome's exam, eye stain, and as she gave him his first dose of eye ointment. It does help that she passes out freeze dried chicken treats like candy at Halloween and he's no fool.


Since Max was so good for Dr. Awesome (and the all the clinic staff are great with him) I thought I'd try some cookies for Max. Max is explicitly grain free so cookies can sometimes pose a challenge but I was looking around last week and ran across Garbanzo bean flour which was perfect since Garbanzo beans are a legume, not a grain. I ran by the local health market this evening and grabbed a bag. I also hit my regular grocery store on the way home for bacon and I was set to make treats. What I like about this recipe is that these treats could be customized just about any way you want with whatever flavors work for your dog.

Here's what you'll need:

New tricks mean lots of treats!

Max is working on new tricks and this week we're working on "Gimmie 5". This is a biggie for him since he doesn't like his front paws touched. He'll put his paw in your hand about 80% of the time...provided there are treats, of course.

Max loves these peanut butter meringue treats and I love them too since they're shelf stable and grain free (and I sneak a few, I'll admit.) These do take a bit of oven time but are so worth it. They're cheap, I control the ingredients and can always have treats without rushing to the pet store. I love this recipe because I make a  full or half batch and experiment with treat sizes and flavors!

On to the treats!

Sweet Potato Treats

So we recently has a freak December thunderstorm and Max does not do well with thunderstorms. He has a thundershirt which helps a lot but he still won't sleep alone in his room.

Max loves his Thundershirt

As I was trying to convince him that it was all going to be OK, I went to get treats and realized we were out! I dug out a piece of cheese for a treat and fell asleep on the couch with Max sleeping in his bed on the floor. I decided I would make an easy treat the next day.

I had a sweet potato and so I decided to make sweet potato chips, which Max likes. This treat is really easy but it does take some time.