Recently a fellow blogger wanted some information on making homemade dog treats. Since my "comment" in her blog was so long, I thought I'd post it here as a separate page if anyone needs to refer back to it.

Here is one of my blog pages with a good recipe

Minty Fresh Dog Biscuits

Another recipe that I use all the time is for peanut butter dog cookies - this recipe is also in the book illustrated in the blog page above, called Dog Bites - Canine Cuisine by Rick & Martha Reynolds.

3 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 cup milk
1-1/4 cups peanut butter (creamy)
1 tablespoon molasses

Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine flour, oats, and b.powder in bowl.
In mixer, blend milk, peanut butter, and molasses until smooth. Add dry ingredients.

Dough is quite stiff. Roll into 1-inch size balls and put on baking sheet with SilPat or parchment/wax paper. Flatten out each cookie to 1/4th inch high with a fork.

(I have been sprinkling the tops with GRATED parmesan cheese)

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Turn off oven and leave cookies in oven until cool (to harden). Store in airtight container.

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My dogs absolutely love these things! In fact, they are almost out of the ones I made last week so today is a doggie biscuit baking day! I have given these treats to my dogs for years, and the only kind I buy commercially are Milk Bone biscuits which I keep on hand in case I run out of homemade ones.

Whatever you do, DON'T GIVE DOGS ANYTHING TO DO WITH ONIONS OR EVEN GARLIC (which is in the onion family). Even something like broth has onion in it and onion can be fatal to dogs AS CAN BE RAISINS AND GRAPES. So beware of those items and don't use anything that contains those in your biscuits.

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Regarding onions and dogs, I do not know this for a fact, but our previous collie girl, Whitby, died suddenly (over a 24 hour period) back a few years ago and no one could really tell us why. But the animal hospital doctors kept asking us if she had had any onions and I said no except for maybe some onion flavoring in the broth that comes from a supper we make for ourselves. I used to let the dogs have the broth on their kibble, and after she died, I kept thinking that this may have contributed to her demise. I have beat myself up about this ever since because Whitby was the apple of our eyes, what a great dog. And we still miss her now several years since she was so cruelly taken from us.

So, no onions, no raisins, and no grapes for dogs.

Also, chocolate in sufficient amounts can be toxic in dogs. This is a contested opinion, especially from my friends "across the pond" as they seem to give chocolate quite regularly to their dogs over there, and I can't understand why they don't get sick. I remember the day we were at the veterinary hospital waiting for news about Whitby, a young family came in the front door very hurriedly, carrying their big family dog in their arms, saying to the attendants "Our dog just ingested some chocolate - we're not sure how much.." and they whisked that dog back to the lab very quickly indeed. Better to be safe (and alive) than sorry.

I don't know about cats, but you can find this stuff online.

Cheers,

Bex

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"There are only two seasons - winter and baseball."
[Bill Veeck]
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"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened."
[Anatole France]