The holiday season is all about eating good food and sharing with your loved ones, dogs included! Here are three festive treats to make this holiday season, including one protein-rich option for dogs on a diet.
Sweet Potato Dog Treats
What are the holidays without sweet potatoes? It’s great for entrees and desserts, and of course, dog treats. Sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber and other nutrients, though you may want to skip this sweet potato recipe if your dog is watching his weight.
Ingredients
2 sweet potatoes
1 egg
½ cup oats
3 cups whole wheat flour (or a wheat-free substitute)
3 tbsp natural peanut butter
½ tsp cinnamon*
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. Then boil them for about 15-20 minutes, or until soft. After draining, puree the sweet potato using a food processor or blender.
Combine the flour, oats, and cinnamon in a bowl.
In a large bowl whisk together the egg, sweet potato puree, and peanut butter until mixed. Then combine the wet and dry ingredients.
Roll out the dough on a floured surface to about ¼ in thick. Then bring out the cookie cutters to shape your cookies.
Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown.
Cool, and then serve!
*Cinnamon is non-toxic and safe for dogs, though it can be potentially sensitizing on a dog's stomach if they have too much. Even though this amount of cinnamon should be just fine for your dog, feel free to skip it if they have a sensitive stomach.
Peanut Butter Christmas Cookie Dog Treats
This recipe is a simple, yet classic treat that you can’t go wrong with. It’s easy to make, only requires 5 ingredients, and is guaranteed to be loved by your dog.
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour*
1 tbsp molasses
2 tbsp natural peanut butter
2 tbsp vegetable or canola oil
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, mix the molasses, peanut butter, and oil.
Combine the flour together in a bowl (unless using only one type of flour).
Add the flour to the wet ingredients and mix until smooth.
Scoop the dough into balls and lightly press them on a baking sheet. For festive cookies, use cookie cutters.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Let them cool, and then serve!
*The purpose of using whole wheat flour is to add in good nutrients for your pup. For wheat sensitivities, substitute the all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour with a healthy alternative, like coconut flour.
Turkey Christmas Tree Dog Treats
This recipe is perfect for Christmas, using Spirulina powder to give a natural green look (plus health benefits) to your Christmas tree treats. Not to mention, these are packed with low-fat protein, so they’re great for dogs on a diet. This recipe requires a dehydrator, so if you have one at home, this is a great recipe to try.
Ingredients
1 pound lean ground turkey meat
1 egg
1/2 tbsp Spirulina powder
1-1/2 tbsp dried oregano*
2/3 cup oat flour (you can use a food processor or coffee grinder to turn oatmeal into a powder)
Directions
Mix all the ingredients to get a sticky green paste.
Put the mixture onto floured parchment paper and flatten it to about ¼ thickness. Then use tree-shaped cookie cutters to shape the treats.
Put the treats in the dehydrator, and set it to 160°F for 12 hours, or until the trees are completely dry. The drier the treats, the longer they’ll stay fresh, but you can take them out at 6 hours.
Store them in a plastic container at room temperature up to 10 days, or longer in the fridge or freezer.
*Oregano is safe in small amounts for dogs and is a natural preservative that can be swapped with parsley, ginger, thyme, and/or turmeric. These ingredients all have nutritional benefits as well.
We hope you enjoy making these treats as much as we did!
All proceeds from Thousand Hills Pet Resort support New Life K9s. New Life K9s provides service dogs to veterans and first responders with PTSD at no cost to them.
References
Sweet Potato Treats https://lemonsandbasil.com/homemade-holiday-dog-treats/
Peanut Butter Cookies
Turkey Christmas Trees
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