Category: Treat Recipes

Monday Musings ~ August 12, 2019

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 52 Comments

Happy Monday, peeps! Hope you had a terrific weekend. We were busy at the Ranch putting the final touches on the new BarkBook making it ready for downloading in the shop. To wet your good pup’s taste buds, here’s a sample of some of the delicious (and easy to make) treats from it.

🦴 Cheesy Applesauce Bites

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/3 cup applesauce

1/3 cup water

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/cup oatmeal

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375º F.  Combine cheddar, applesauce and water in a small bowl. Combine flour and oatmeal in a large bowl. Blend cheese-applesauce mixture into the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Knead into a dough and turn onto a floured surface. Roll dough to 1/4-1/2” thickness and sprinkle with Parmesan. Cut with cookie cutters (or use a pizza cutter and cut into small squares). Place on parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 mins. (longer if biscuits are thicker).

Store in an air-tight container in refrigerator and consume in 1 week or freeze for up to 3 weeks.

And because every Monday should start out with a smile, how about a little poodle food to remind you to smile and eat your veggies? Happy Monday.

Poodle food

BarkBook

Live, love, bark!

Give a Poor Dog a Bone

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 61 Comments

Hey there sports fans, Sam here with a new treat mom found and whipped up for me and Elsa last week. Boy, are they ever tasty. And so easy to make, once you’ve chilled the dough.

Peanut Butter~Pumpkins Treats

O-kay mom, I promise to share with the Ninja, but not before I share the recipe with our readers.

You’ll need:

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour (unless your pooch is sensitive in which case substitute to one he can enjoy)
  • 1 cup of oats
  • 1/4 cup of peanut butter (make sure it’s Xylitol free)
  • 1/3 cup of pumpkin (the real stuff, not pie filing)
  • 1 cup water

In a bowl combine all ingredients and mix until well combined. Press dough into a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerator for a few hours or overnight like we had to do. I almost lost my mind waiting. Sheesh mom!

When your dough is well chilled, lightly flour your work surface (using the same flour you used in the dough), roll out until about 1/2 inch thick. Cut out with cookie cutters or the mouth of a small glass. Arrange on cookie sheet. You can put a jillion of them on a sheet since they don’t expand. Mom always uses parchment because she’s lazy about cleaning off the sheets to avoid sticking. Optional: Apply an egg wash to top of treats. We skipped the eggs, I was already too excited to wait any longer. I already had to wait overnight. Bake at 250ºF for 25-30 mins. And for the legal beagles to keep us from getting sued, remember to allow your treats to cool before serving. Make sure to refrigerator to keep. Mom likes the idea of freezing to keep them safe and the treats crunchy for us. Gimme a treat, gimme a treat! 

See, what’d I say, quick and easy, right? Hope you bake some up for your favorite pup and let us know what you thought of them.

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

Holiday Foods and Our Pets

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 55 Comments

It’s clear I can no longer deny Christmas is around the corner what with all the decorations so lovingly hung and tasty looking foodables in magazines and on blogs everywhere. And because I will begin the annual destruction of the kitchen baking and preparation of treats this week while imaging sugarplum fairies, it prompted me to think about all the sweet treats in particular that will be consumed by the bucket load this month and which ingredients are good and which are not so good for our pups.

But like most things, nothing is totally black and white and some ingredients are grey with controversy. Take for example, garlic. In the past, some vets recommended small amounts for flea control however many others consider it toxic. Like onions, chives and leeks, garlic contains a toxin that could damage a dog’s red blood cells. Cow’s milk can be problematic for the same reason it causes issues for us humans-that being lactose intolerant and could lead to intestinal upset, gas, diarrhea and vomiting. Whether I’m making treats for Sam and Elsa or for the new 4-legged neighbors, all my handmade dog treat recipes are scrutinized for potential naughty and nice ingredients and any of those that fall in the “when in doubt, leave it out” category are removed from my recipe book or suitably modified to remove iffy ingredients.

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We all know chocolate and Xylitol (the artificial sweetener in chewing gum and candy)  are at the top of any list unsuitable for dogs and cats. This graphic shows a number of others that we might not realize as we over indulge in seasonal menus. Those on the “no” list  should never be included in your pet’s diet as they are toxic. Note however, this is just a small list that we need to make sure our fur-kids don’t get their paws on but if you have any questions, consult the Pet Poison Helpline for information. For a small fee, they can provide pet owners and veterinary professionals with assistance in treating a potentially poisoned pet and an extensive searchable list of potential poisons. The Pet Poison Helpline is a 24-hour animal poison control service available throughout the US, Canada, and the Caribbean and is not limited to dogs and cats, providing assistance with birds, small mammals and exotic species as well.

So, are you planning on making treats for your 4-legged buddies for Christmas? You might want to keep an eye out for nosey pets scamming for easy pickings around the tree this holiday and keep a copy of this handy graphic along with the poison center phone number (just in case) close by. After all, we want to be able to safely enjoy the holidays, right? Now pass me that tin full of Grandma’s Mac Nut Old Fashioned Fudge, will ya? Oh and if you’re like me, you’ll bury the scales in the back of the closet until after the New Year. No need torturing yourself if your tastebuds are enjoying the seasonal fare.

Live, love, bark! <3

Peter Peter Punkin Eater

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 34 Comments

A few years ago mom started a small at-home dog treat business because she didn’t want chemicals, additives or other unacceptable ingredients in my treats. With the addition of the dreaded little sister Ms. Elsa and her epileptic seizures, making sure we have top quality, healthful treats is even more important.

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Last week mom and I had hospital shifts (more about that later this week) and met up with our good friends, Teddy and his mom, Mary Ann who were coming to town for their shifts. We both were going to work one day selling the pet therapy calendars too so mom wanted to make sure we had some treats to give to Teddy. She dipped into her huge recipe book and found this one.

Peter Peter, Punkin Eater Treats

2 cups whole wheat flour (or another if your pup has wheat sensitivities. Mom experimented using coconut flour and it was quite yummy)

1 cup oats and 1/4 cup peanut butter

1/3 cup plain pumpkin

1 cup water (mom used The Honest Kitchen’s Bone Broth instead because she ALWAYS has to tinker with recipes and in this case, boy am I glad she did-that stuff is f.a.b.u.l.o.u.s!)

Mix all ingredients until well combined. Press into a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight. Lightly flour surface and roll dough out to about 1/2″ thick. Use cookie cutters or a small glass to cut out the treats. Bake at 250º for 25-30 minutes and allow to cool before serving.

I had hoped that by sitting pretty they’d cool down quicker. Nom, nom, nom. The use of the coconut flour sure made them super tasty even if mom said they were very hard to mix together and crumbled too much for her. Me personally, I don’t care…just give me the treats, woman!! She used the tiny cutters because sweet Teddy is a little boy and missing a number of teeth. Oh, and he LOVED them more than he usually loves mom’s treats. And he always loves her treats.

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What’s your favorite treat recipe?

Live, love bark! <3

Post-Holiday Haze

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 2 Comments

I don’t know about you but when a holiday falls on a Friday, I’m completely turned around the next couple days.  Today feels like a Sunday. I keep thinking I should be getting ready for work tomorrow. 😟

Today is one of the hottest days yet this summer so I thought it only proper to share a great way to cool down your fur friend. And so without further ado or rising temperatures, here a frozen dog treat recipe that might make everything a bit better. As for what day it is, you’ll have to look at a calendar because I have no idea. ❤️

FROZEN DOG TREAT

  • 100% pure canned pumpkin (NOT the one with spices!). Feel free to use strawberries, bananas, blueberries or other safe fruit for dogs.
  • fat free plain yogurt.
  • mix together, place in an ice cube tray, Freeze and serve.
  • Stay cool.🐾

Hope your 4th of July was fun and safe.