Doggy treats

AnthonyR

I expect all us dog-lovers are prone to rewarding our pets with the occasional treat for being well-behaved, or perhaps even just "being" there for us. However, I watched a neighbour's dog gradually deteriorate by being overweight and eventually expiring in due (in part) to liver failure due to his owner feeding it packaged tid-bits at all times and just on a whim. Apart from the cost, it was behaviour that I'd try very hard to discourage if I saw it in the future.
Has anyone made their own treats, and if so what recipes have been successful. I'm thinking in terms of small, wholesome biscuit-type things that are easy to make.

Katiehound

I make sardine & garlic flapjacks! Bake until they are hard and crunchy and will keep out of the fridge.
Liver cake (or flapjack) is also good but that has to be kept in fridge / freezer.
The only other thing that my dogs get are hide chews- but not every day

I know I posted a couple of recipes for these a few years ago- but- they have vanished into the ether!!

Rev

I make my boys ice cream in summer but usually I just use fruit for treats. Apples. Blueberries etc.

Or if I buy dog treats I will specifically get grain free, high meat content treats. But I don’t buy them often as one of my dogs has allergies.

The only crap they get is peanut butter dog chocolate. They go absolutely mental for it but I only give them one or two cubes a week.

I have also seen a friends dog have to be PTS because of a leg injury that was perfectly treatable had the dog not been massively over weight. So I’m always super careful to be sure my dogs aren’t.

AnthonyR

Katiehound wrote: »

I make sardine & garlic flapjacks! Bake until they are hard and crunchy and will keep out of the fridge.
Liver cake (or flapjack) is also good but that has to be kept in fridge / freezer.
The only other thing that my dogs get are hide chews- but not every day

I know I posted a couple of recipes for these a few years ago- but- they have vanished into the ether!!

Sardine and garlic, eh? Might like them myself, let alone give them to the dog. I'll see if I can find a suitable recipe, or perhaps just experiment myself. It's great that they'll keep without being refrigerated. Thanks, Katiehound

AnthonyR

Rev wrote: »

I make my boys ice cream in summer but usually I just use fruit for treats. Apples. Blueberries etc. Or if I buy dog treats I will specifically get grain free, high meat content treats. But I don’t buy them often as one of my dogs has allergies. The only crap they get is peanut butter dog chocolate. They go absolutely mental for it but I only give them one or two cubes a week. I have also seen a friends dog have to be PTS because of a leg injury that was perfectly treatable had the dog not been massively over weight. So I’m always super careful to be sure my dogs aren’t.

Thank you for your reply. My dog's not too keen on fruit, although he will eat the odd blackberry if I toss it to him. He then is fooled into thinking it's a biscuit and it's gone down his gullet before he realises! Ice cream probably figures in his wildest dreams, and the peanut butter would be acceptable too....

Thrice

I printed off two recipes from here the other day for home made dog biscuits. I'm sure it was part of the recipe collection on a Frugal Living post or one of the Grocery Budget posts? I'll try to find them!

Also, just regarding the garlic in dog treats. I was always under the impression that garlic was toxic to dogs? As its similar to onions (which I never feed to my two), I always just avoid feeding them any garlic. Am I wrong? Maybe I should google it lol

x

Thrice

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5926686/december-2018-grocery-challenge

Post 10 I think has the miscellanious non food, there is three dog treat recipes there :-)

Katiehound

Sardine flapjack
Sorry the weights are approx- I just throw it in!
2 x tins sardines in oil
1 x L or 2 xS cloves garlic finely chopped
I egg
1Tsp oil
water or milk to mix
cheap plain or wholemeal flour - maybe about 4oz
cheapest rolled oats- maybe about 12 oz

tip sardines into large bowl and mash with fork
add garlic
Add oil, egg & mix. Gradually add oats and some flour until mixture is very stiff. You might need to add extra liquid so that it clumps together. If it's too wet it will shrink more- hey but we're not bothered about the look!.

Press into a greased & lined swiss roll tin (or similar) or use a silicone baking sheet. I sprinkle with flour and then use knuckles to press in. Mark into narrow fingers before baking

Bake in a low to mod oven- Gas 4? The longer & slower you bake it , the harder it gets. Turn over about half time.

I use oats because one of my dogs is wheat intolerant- hence minimal flour.
The amount of garlic used here is minimal- dogs love it!

halfone

AnthonyR wrote: »

Sardine and garlic, eh? Might like them myself, let alone give them to the dog. I'll see if I can find a suitable recipe, or perhaps just experiment myself. It's great that they'll keep without being refrigerated. Thanks, Katiehound

I bake sardine dog biscuits sometimes. I used to make tuna dog flapjacks but I had a 'what am I doing?' moment when I was painstakingly grating tiny bits of fresh spices and weighing out grated fruit and veg very precisely. I love my dog but suspected he wasn't really appreciating all my culinary effort by the way he just gobbled them down.

Anyway, here's the sardine biscuits recipe I use. Be warned, it's stinky when it's cooking. I sometimes add in grated apples or carrots for a bit of variety. If you want the tuna recipe let me know and I'll dig it out.

Sardine Dog Biscuits

It makes enough biscuits to cover 1 large baking tray. Amounts don't have to be precise.

- 1 tin of sardines in oil (120g)
- 30g of wholemeal flour (I've used different sorts of flour - seems to work with most kinds)
- 150g oats
- water to mix

1) Mash up sardines including the oil.
2) Add oats and flour and mix.
3) Add water gradually, mixing it in until it holds together (you don't need much).
4) Roll out and cut into shapes.
5) Put biscuits on a baking tray and cook at 190 degrees C (310 degrees F) for 20-25 mins.

Can be frozen, apparently.

halfone

Ah...You beat me to it Katiehound! :T

The egg is a good call though - I'm going to try mixing that in next time.

p.s. That reminds me, as a very occasional snack, I'll give my dog a whole (cooled) boiled egg, shell and all. He loves it, especially the yolk, picks away at it so delicately.

Katiehound

I don't bother cutting into fancy shapes! Just score into fingers and then they snap apart when cold