Easy and Healthy Homemade Treats for Your Puppy

Easy and healthy homemade treats for your puppy can be a great snack for him. Aside from harmless ingredients, these homemade treats can make an ideal reward when you're training your puppy.

While there are many commercially available puppies treats you can buy at any pet store, making homemade treats is a great way to ensure your puppy has a healthy and well-balanced diet.

If you are still wondering what kind of homemade treats to give to your puppy, take a look at these ten homemade treats recipes that are easy to follow!

10 Easy and Healthy Homemade Treats to Give to Your Puppy

Peanut Butter Bacon Dog Donuts

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/3 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup oats
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• Two eggs

For the toppings:

• Greek yogurt
• Bacon bits

How to Make:

First, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Celsius. Then, spray the donut pan with cooking spray and allow it to set.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix until a dough forms.

Next, use your hands to press the dough in the donut pan. Then, fill each donut cavity and press firmly to make sure everything sticks together.

Bake the donut in the preheated oven at 375 degrees Celsius for 14 minutes or thoroughly cook.

Allow the donuts to cool, then remove them from the pan. And you're ready to add the toppings!

Set out the Greek yogurt and the bacon bits for the toppings in each small bowl. Dip each donut in the yogurt bowl, then sprinkle with bacon bits.

Once finished, place the donuts in the freezer to harden the yogurt before distributing it to your dogs.

Healthy Pumpkin Puppuccino

Ingredients:

• 1 cup goat or coconut milk
• Dash ground ginger
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• Dash ground cinnamon
• Organic whipped cream (optional)

How to Make:

Place all ingredients in the blender and blend for 1 minute. After mixing, you can already serve it to your dog!

You can top it with whipped cream but with no xylitol.

Lastly, put the rest of the cappuccino in an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator. It will last up to a week.

Carrot Peanut Butter Pupcakes

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup finely shredded carrots
• 1/4 cup applesauce heaped cup
• One egg
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour

For the frosting:

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup yogurt
• Two tablespoon honey
• Bone-shaped dog biscuits for décor (optional)

How to Make:

First, preheat the oven to 350F. Put liners in the cupcake tin and set them aside.

Mix the peanut butter, applesauce, and yogurt thoroughly in a bowl. Then, add one egg and shredded carrots. Mix again until combined.

Next, add the whole wheat flour and baking soda, mix using a spatula until the batter forms. Divide equally the batter into 6-7 cupcakes.

Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes until the toothpick in the center comes out clean.

Then, allow the cupcakes to rest in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to the cooling rack. Once cooled down, you can now start with the frosting.

For the frosting, mix the honey, yogurt, and peanut butter. Then, transfer to a piping bag fitted with a nozzle of choice and start frosting the cupcakes.

Lastly, top the cupcakes with your puppy's favorite treat.

Apple Pretzels Homemade Puppy Treats

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of almond flour
• One egg
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce

How to Make:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.

Crack the egg, beat it, and set it aside in a small bowl. In another large bowl, mix the almond flour and applesauce.

Next, scoop one tablespoon of egg into a separate bowl, then pour the remaining into the flour mixture. Stir until it reaches a dough consistency.

Take two tablespoons, ball the dough, and roll into a tube. Then, twist the dough into a pretzel shape.

Place the pretzels on the baking sheet and brush with the reserve egg wash. Next, bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and firm.

Lastly, allow it to cool before giving it to your dog.

Cranberry, Honey, and Oat Treats

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (or any berry substitute)
• 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed (optional)
• 1 cup oatmeal
• One tablespoon honey
• Three tablespoons of water

How to Make:

Initially, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, scoop out 1/4 cup of oatmeal in a separate bowl.

Put the remaining oatmeal in a food processor until it reaches flour consistency. If frozen, you need to process them into smaller pieces.

Add the cranberries and other ingredients into the large bowl, including the whole oatmeal. Then, mix into a dough.

Allow the flour to sit on the countertop, cutting board, or parchment paper. Put the dough on top of the area and roll it out to the desired thickness.

Next, cut the dough into the desired shape and place it on the baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15-18 minutes.

After baking and cooling, you can now serve it to your puppy and store the rest in an airtight container.

Frosted Pumpkin Treats

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• Two eggs
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (with no xylitol)
• 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup oats

For frosting:

• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 2 1/2 tsp whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp water

How to Make:

First, preheat the oven to 350F and then line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Beat the pumpkin with the peanut butter and eggs until combined in an electric mixer. Then, gradually add the whole wheat flour and oats.

Next, transfer the dough to a well-floured surface and gently knead as needed to form a cohesive ball.

Use a rolling pin to roll the dough up to 1/4″ thickness. Then, use a cookie cutter to cut into the desired shape.

Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to a baking sheet. Bake for 20-24 minutes.

Allow cooling before adding the frosting.

Warm 1/2 cup peanut butter in a microwave for 15 minutes for the frosting. Then, add water and stir well.

Add flour and start again. While the frosting is still warm, spread it over the cooled cookies.

You can now serve these treats to your puppy anytime!

Spinach, Carrot, and Zucchini Treats

Ingredients:

• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• Two large eggs
• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 3 cups whole wheat flour (or more as needed)
• One peeled and shredded carrot
• One shredded zucchini
• 1 cup chopped baby spinach

How to Make:

Preheat oven to 350F. Then, line a baking sheet with parchment paper on a silicone baking mat and set it aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the pumpkin puree, peanut butter, and eggs for 1-2 minutes until combined. Slowly add old-fashioned oats and 2 1/2 cups of flour at low speed, beat until mixed.

Add 1/4 cup of flour until the dough is no longer sticky. Then, add the carrot, zucchini, and spinach. Beat until incorporated.

Knead the dough 3-4 times until it comes together on a floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough up to 1/4″ thickness.

Next, cut out desired shapes and place them into the baking sheets. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the edges are golden brown.

Lastly, allow it to cool completely.

Watermelon Pupsicles

Ingredients:

• A quarter of watermelon (seedless)
• One can of coconut milk

How to Make:

First, scoop out about 1/4 of the melon. Then, blend with the coconut milk.

You can add more watermelon if you want it to be in a darker shade of pink.

Next, pour the mixture into an ice tray. It would be nice if the ice tray had shapes!

Lastly, allow hardening in the freezer before giving it to your dogs as a refreshment.

Breath-Freshening Treats

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup fresh mint
• One large egg
• 1/2 cup freshly chopped parsley
• One tablespoon activated charcoal (or 12 capsules cut open)
• Two tablespoons Brewer's yeast
• One tablespoon diatomaceous earth
• 1/2 tablespoon grass-fed gelatin
• Three tablespoons melted organic coconut oil for pets
• One tablespoon melted Ghee
• 1/2 cup bone broth or warm filtered water
• One tablespoon liquid chlorophyll (or freshly juiced wheatgrass)
• 4 cups garbanzo bean flour (chickpea flour)

How to Make:

Combine the mint, parsley, charcoal, diatomaceous earth, Brewer's yeast, gelatin, and egg in the food processor. Process until smooth.

Next, add melted coconut oil, ghee, bone broth, and chlorophyll. Process until mixed thoroughly.

Add 1/2 cup of garbanzo bean flour at a time, combine until the mixture becomes a dough, or press together to make a dough. The mix should not be dry. If so, add a few drops of water or an additional flour if it's too wet.

Roll out the dough in parchment paper to 1/4 of its thickness, then cut to the desired shapes. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

After baking, transfer to a cooling rack before storing in an airtight container.

Frozen Yogurt Dog Treats

Ingredients:

• One banana
• 32 oz. plain Greek yogurt or regular yogurt (unsweetened and no xylitol)
• Two tablespoons peanut butter (no xylitol)
• Small-sized dog biscuits (optional)

How to Make:

Put the yogurt, banana, and peanut butter in a blender or food processor until it becomes puree. If the mixture is too thick, add water as needed.

Next, place the mixture in ice cube trays. You may add dog biscuits in the ice cube tray for a tasty handle to pull out the frozen treats.

When already frozen, remove from the ice cube trays and transfer for storage in a Ziplock bag until ready to give to your puppies.

Easy Homemade Puppy Treats: Is It Healthy?

We often ask if homemade treats are healthy for our puppies as pet owners.

The answer to this is yes!

Aside from being healthy, homemade treats are cheaper than commercial ones. If you buy the ingredients in bulk, you can save a lot of dollars!

You can try doing the recipes above to start providing cheaper and healthy homemade treats for your pal.

Large adult dogs also love homemade treats!

What Ingredients to Include?

The great thing about making treats at home is the availability of the ingredients.

Many recipes require eggs, oatmeal, flour, water, or broth. It also needs some flavor, like adding vitamins, protein, and fiber.

Almost all homemade treat recipes are pureed pumpkin, apples, carrots, sweet potato, and cheese.

Also, peanut butter is safe for puppies as long as it does not contain artificial sweeteners like xylitol and should give in moderation.

What to Avoid?

Puppies need lots of food since they require energy for their growth. However, owners should be cautious in overfeeding them.

Owners tend to lose track of the calorie intake of their puppies when feeding homemade treats. Large breed puppies will require more food than more miniature breed puppies.

If you ever noticed that your puppy is already gaining weight than the required weight for them, consult your veterinarian on what to do.

And never feed them food that contains:

• Chocolates
• Grapes
• Macadamia nuts
• Raisins

RELATED ARTICLE: Toxic Foods for Dogs That You Need to Avoid

How to Store?

What's good in making homemade puppy treats? The thought of having to feed your puppy with preservative-free treats!

The downside of this is its shelf-life. Homemade puppy treats have a shorter shelf-life than commercial treats because they lack preservatives.

To extend its shelf-life, it's a great idea to have it stored in a refrigerator or a freezer.

When storing in a refrigerator, store the treats in an airtight container or a Ziplock to make them last up to 3 weeks.

As for storing in the freezer, store in a resealable freezer bag, and the treats will last up to 3 months.

If you choose to store the treats at room temperature, store them in an airtight container or Ziplock, which will last up to 7 days.

Appropriate Age for Puppies to Eat Homemade Treats

According to ASPCA, when puppies turn 3 or 4 weeks old, they have already started nibbling solid foods. They started becoming acquainted with puppy food when they turned 7 or 8 weeks old.

By this time, you can already give your puppy occasional treats. You can put your mind at ease with the nutrients your dog takes if you are the one that makes and bakes these puppy treats.

Still, it's best to consult your veterinarian if you want to introduce homemade treats to your puppy.

Benefits of Homemade Puppy Treats

The advantage of making healthy homemade puppy treats is that you can customize these treats according to your puppy's needs.

Homemade treats allow you to make your recipe and completely control all the ingredients that go in with your dog. Also, you can add some flavors that suit your furry friend!

What's great is that you can make a special diet for your dog with an illness or want to control his weight without compromising him!

Helpful Tips for A Successful Healthy Homemade Puppy Treats

Homemade puppy treats need to be made with the right ingredients to avoid feeding your dog with something that can potentially make him ill.

So, to help you, here are a few tips to make these homemade treats successful:

• Be sure to check the peanut butter ingredients before using them in any recipe. Make sure it does not contain xylitol because it is poisonous for dogs. Preferably, choose an all-natural peanut butter with no sweetener as this is safer for dogs.
• Use whole wheat flour as this has more nutrients and is more beneficial for dogs. But if you don't have whole wheat flour, you can substitute it with all-purpose flour.
• If you want to add spice to your puppy treats, make sure you don't add nutmeg. Nutmeg is toxic for dogs and should not be present in any recipe, e.g., pumpkin pie spice, as this always contains nutmeg.

Easy and Healthy Homemade Treats for Your Puppy: Conclusion

As you prepare these homemade treats, consider any allergies your dog has to specific ingredients. Avoid adding elements that you noticed have side effects on your puppy.

If you are exploring new flavors and ingredients, have your dog eat the treat in small portions and observe if he has any reactions to it. If none, you may feed him the whole food.

Remember to always check on your veterinarian before giving anything to your dog aside from dog food, commercial treats, and prescribed medicines.

Once you already have your vet's approval, go and purchase those baking tools and try out recipes where you can put your mind at ease, knowing you're aware of what you are feeding to your dog.

READ NEXT: 20 Tasty Homemade Christmas Dog Treat Recipes