Let’s make some peanut butter treats for Fido!
Step 1: Check that your peanut butter does not contain xylitol. Xylitol is a sugar substitute that is potentially toxic for dogs. Cheap or reduced fat peanut butter may have this ingredient. If you want to be extra fancy, you can always grind plain peanuts in a food processor/ blender until you make your own peanut butter. (Salted peanuts are not good for dogs.) Two to three tablespoons of peanut butter are needed.
Step 2: Grind 1 cup of whole oats (Quaker Oats currently sells an overnight oats that has only one ingredient) in a blender to make a powder.
Step 3: Put the oat powder in a mixing bowl and add two tablespoons of peanut butter. Mix the ingredients until you get a dough. If it is still dry, add a tablespoon more peanut butter or some fish oil for your dog’s health.
Step 4: Once the dough is formed, think about how large of a treat you need for your dog’s mouth. I have a Miniature Poodle, so I make half-inch sized balls for his small bite. I pull out a baking pan with a lid (think brownie or sheet cake pan), cover it with parchment paper and place each peanut butter ball in a way so that they are not touching.
Step 5: I then put them in the freezer for an hour. Afterwards I take them out, and put them in a glass food storage container. They are less sticky and easier to get to now! I tried using reusable plastic food storage bags, but the bags were so cold, that it was hard to reseal them when I wanted to pull out a quick treat. So a Tupperware or other reusable container with a removable lid is the best fit for this storage job.
Since these treats are so malleable, they double as a sneaky pill-hiding snack! I use these for giving my dog pills when he get a painful flair up from his disk disease. I find this to be a much quicker solution than trying to go out and get commercial pill-hiding treats at the store. This only take 5 minutes to make and I can give my dog medications immediately with a room temperature treat. No baking, no preservatives, and cost affective!
My dog has gotten wiser about when I am making his treats. He now sits and whines when I pull out the peanut butter.
I also feel good about using up the peanut butter in my cabinet. I bought a couple jars for sandwiches but never make them because after the first pb&j sandwich, I remember that I don’t like them! lol. Now if I could find a way to use up all that jam I have…. On crepes or pinwheel cookies!
I have a vegetarian life partner, and not having to buy/ cook meat for a dog treat is a plus. While he is understanding about the dog eating meat, he prefers vegetarian options. How has the vegetarian movement not gotten into the dog food/ treat market yet? I used to buy bacon-flavored treats that turned my dog’s feces a dark red color. This made me a little worried about missing blood in my dog’s stools because of the food coloring. Plus these treats were expensive! So knowing exactly what is in his treats gives me some peace of mind.
