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In this article, we\u2019ll be talking you through <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- What ingredients you need for homemade puppy treats<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- What the best homemade puppy treats to bake are<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- What recipes you can follow to make your own puppy homemade food and treats<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- How much homemade puppy food is safe for your puppy to eat<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re not sure what food you should be feeding your puppy or how much, we have a handy food calculator built into the Zigzag puppy training app<\/a>, and a team of puppy coaches <\/a>ready to help you figure out any worries you have with your puppy. You can contact them 7 days a week, so they\u2019re always there whenever you need them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Dog](\"https:\/\/zigzag.dog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/tamara-bellis-E8LxrpUjW7Q-unsplash-1024x681.jpg\")
Photo by Tamara Bellis<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n What ingredients do I need for homemade puppy treats?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
If you’re planning on making your own homemade puppy treats, there are a few basic items that are commonly found and used in recipes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We should say there is a lot written about what is and isn\u2019t healthy for dogs to eat. While we would never give our dogs something that might poison them, we take a common sense and balanced approach to puppy nutrition<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For healthy puppy treats you\u2019ll typically find some of these ingredients listed in recipes <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Ground Flax Seed – a great source of Omega 3s, which keep your puppy\u2019s coat and skin healthy<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Pumpkin – A great source of fibre and beta-carotene<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Sweet Potato – Good source of Fibre, Vitamin A and Antioxidants<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Wholemeal flour – Fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Oats – typically used in place of flour, they can be whizzed up in a blender to make oat flour<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Apple – Fibre and a source of vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium, and antioxidants<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Olive Oil – Great source of healthy fats<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Peanut butter – but just make sure it does not contain xylitol<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Homemade puppy food can be given as a complementary food and as a nice treat, maybe you want to home cook a couple of meals a week, or shock horror you\u2019ve run out of your regular puppy food and need to improvise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re going to solely home cook for your puppy, then you need to be aware that they have different energy requirements and need a different ratio of proteins – fats – carbohydrates than adult dogs. We recommend you seek out the help of a canine nutritionist for this, or follow vet formulated recipes to ensure your puppy gets the right nutrients for growth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
You\u2019ll tend to see the following ingredients when following a homemade puppy food recipe<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Protein – turkey or ground beef mince are common ingredients<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Fruits and vegetables – blueberries, leafy greens, carrots, peas and apples. Dogs do not tend to like anything citrusy, and poisonous fruit such as grapes and cherries are to be avoided.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Starchy or fibre-rich carbs – pumpkin, sweet potato or butternut squash are good for these and super tasty for puppies too! <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Fats – animal fats or oils, including olive oil and flaxseed<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Vitamins and minerals – these are usually a supplement. Puppies need calcium for healthy bone growth.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
![\"small](\"https:\/\/zigzag.dog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/kacper-chrzanowski-HdayCbHgAWY-unsplash-683x1024.jpg\")
Photo by Kacper Chrzanowski<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Best homemade puppy treats to bake<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
So I expect you\u2019ll want to know what our favorite homemade puppy treats to bake are? We\u2019ve got a couple for you, and we hope your puppy likes them!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Peanut butter and banana homemade puppy treats<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Ingredients<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
300g of wholemeal\/wholewheat flour<\/p>\n\n\n\n
100g of rolled oats<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 eggs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 ripe bananas<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1 teaspoon of honey<\/p>\n\n\n\n
250g peanut butter (without artificial sweeteners)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Method<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Preheat the oven to 180\u00b0C (170\u00b0F fan).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- In a mixing bowl, mash the peeled bananas with a fork then mix in the eggs, peanut butter, and honey. (You can also just stick it all in a blender\/food processor if you have one!)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Combine the flour and oats in a separate bowl, then add it to the wet mixture<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Combine the ingredients with a spoon or your hands until they form a dough<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Flour your work surface and lay out the dough to about 1cm thickness. Cut biscuits from the dough with a cookie cutter – yes we like bone shapes, so why not grab a bone-shaped cookie cutter<\/a> and have some fun with this? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Place the biscuits on a lined baking sheet and bake in the oven for around 20 minutes, or until golden brown<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Allow to cool and then let your puppy have a try! <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
Sardine baked homemade puppy treats<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re looking for a delicious homemade puppy treat that you can also use for training then look no further. Sardine cake is a delicious training treat and most puppies love it! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cut up and freeze what you don\u2019t need so you always have treats to hand when you need them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ingredients<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 large tins of sardines in tomato sauce<\/p>\n\n\n\n
225g self-raising flour or wholemeal flour<\/p>\n\n\n\n
225g porridge oats<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3 eggs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 \u2013 3 cloves of garlic (I have always used this in my dog\u2019s treats but you can leave it out if you\u2019d rather not feed it)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1 tablespoon oil<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Method<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Crack the eggs into a large measuring bowl. Finely chop the garlic, and add to the eggs along with the tin of sardines. Blend to a smooth consistency with a fork – or in a food processor if you have one<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Mix in the flour then add the porridge. The mixture should be a reasonably firm consistency. Add more flour if necessary<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Pour contents into a well greased loaf tin and spread evenly. Silicon pans work really well for this as they won\u2019t stick<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Bake at 180 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until springy when pressed and when stabbed with a knife, the knife comes out clean. Allow to completely cool before removing<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Divide into portions and freeze<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- For training, chop the sardine cake into \u00bd cm sized squares<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Alternatively, you can use one of these pyramid pans<\/a>, they are excellent at making small dog treats as you just push them out after. Reduce the cooking time if you\u2019re using these so they don\u2019t burn<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
![\"dog](\"https:\/\/zigzag.dog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/aditya-joshi-BHKUCWK3HKU-unsplash-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Aditya Joshi<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n What recipes for puppy homemade food and treats can I follow?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
There are so many recipes for homemade puppy treats online, that you\u2019ll probably be spoilt for choice in trying to choose between them. Here are a few things to think about when trying to pick a healthy or homemade treat recipe for your puppy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Choose a puppy treat recipe that has easy to buy ingredients<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s no good finding an amazing healthy puppy treat recipe then not actually being able to buy the ingredients is it? A good example of this is canned pumpkin, it\u2019s really quite hard to find in UK supermarkets, so might be one you avoid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Puppy treat recipes should have safe ingredients<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
While not so common in the UK, peanut butter sold in other countries often has Xylitol in it, this is known to be dangerous for dogs to eat. Also avoid chocolate, grapes and anything else which would be dangerous for your puppy to eat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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