Easy Homemade Dog Food Recipes

Photo: Petsmart

Banana Bacon Ice Cream

Did you know National Ice Cream Day is July 19? For this cool day, PetSmart has created three pup-friendly, vet-approved ice cream recipes that your pet can enjoy.

Ingredients:

1 cup plain or low-fat yogurt
1 banana, mashed
1 tbsp. organic raw honey
Optional: Bacon flavoured treat

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a blender or whisk together. Place mixture in an ice cube tray or small cups. Freeze overnight, then remove one serving and top with a bacon treat for your pup to enjoy. [Source: Petsmart]

Photo: Petsmart

Peanut Butter Treat Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 cup plain or low-fat yogurt
1 tbsp. natural peanut butter
1 tbsp. organic raw honey
Optional: Savory treat

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a blender or whisk together. Place mixture in an ice cube tray or small cups. Freeze overnight, then remove one serving and top with a savory treat for your pup to enjoy. [Source: Petsmart]

Photo: Petsmart

Sweet & Savory Apple Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 cup plain or low-fat yogurt
1 apple, chopped
1 tbsp. organic raw honey
Optional: Savory treat

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a blender or whisk together. Place mixture in an ice cube tray or small cups. Freeze overnight, then remove one serving and top with a savory treat for your pup to enjoy. [Source: Petsmart]

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Photo: Julia Zavalishina/Shutterstock

Doggie Birthday Cake Recipe

Here’s an extra special cake that you can feel good about offering your dog.

Makes 1 cake with 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

⅓ cup (50 g) flour
⅓ cup (50 g) polenta (cornmeal), bran or rolled oats
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
500 g minced chicken
30 ml honey
1 large egg
¼ cup (60 g) live-culture plain yogurt
4 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 container (125 g) spreadable cream cheese
Delectable Dog Biscuits, as needed to decorate cake

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). In a medium bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. Make a well in the centre and add the chicken, honey, egg, yogurt and oil. Stir just until mixed.
2. Pour into a greased cake tin and bake for 25 minutes or until the chicken is done and a toothpick inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
3. Turn out onto a cake rack to cool.
4. Ice the cake with cream cheese (thin cheese, if needed, with a little milk) and decorate with the dog biscuits. Refrigerate in a covered container for up to 1 week.

Photo: Chendongshan/Shutterstock

Calcium-Rich Dog Food Recipe

This easy-to-make recipe will appeal to dogs and help to strengthen their bones. Although it is not inexpensive, it costs less than many canned dog foods and you can vouch for the quality of its ingredients.

Makes 6 servings, 1 cup each

Ingredients:

500 g minced chicken or beef
4 cups (about 750 g) cooked oatmeal or brown rice
½ cup (50 g) dry breadcrumbs
¼ cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
3 teaspoons bonemeal (available at garden centres)
1 dog vitamin, crushed
½ cup (60 g) grated cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. In a frying pan over medium heat, brown the meat, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat.
2. Stir in the other ingredients and enough water to keep the mixture from being crumbly.
3. Cool and store in the refrigerator for 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Note: Feed according to the weight of your dog. Feed a 5 kg dog 1 cup (about 240 g) daily; add 1 cup for every 5 kg of body weight. Monitor your dog’s weight—you may need to adjust portions to avoid obesity.

Photo: Pixel-Shot/Shutterstock

Low-Fat Chicken and Rice Dog Dinner Recipe

If you want a nutritious beef- and wheat-free diet for your pet, this is an economical dog food option made with fresh ingredients.

Makes 6 servings, 1 cup (about 360 g) each

Ingredients:

1.4 kg chicken, with skin and bone
1½ cups (280 g) cooked oatmeal or brown rice
1 dog vitamin
500 g fat-free cottage cheese

Directions:

1. Poach, bake or microwave the chicken until well done. Cool and cut into cubes. Drain and reserve pan juices to use as soup stock. Discard the bones.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cubed chicken and oatmeal or rice. Crumble the vitamin and stir it in. Drain the cottage cheese and fold it into the mixture.
3. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Note: Feed according to the weight of your dog. Feed a 5 kg dog 1 cup (about 360 g) daily; add 1 cup for every 5 kg of body weight. Monitor your dog’s weight—you may need to adjust portions to avoid obesity.

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Photo: cynoclub/Shutterstock

Delectable Dog Biscuits Recipe

The combination of dog food and oatmeal makes these biscuits a healthy and tasty treat for your dog. For a nutritional boost, add a crumbled dog vitamin.

Makes 16 medium biscuits

Ingredients:

900 g Calcium-rich Dog Food (see above) or canned dog food
¼ cup (35 g) wholemeal flour
¾ cup (110 g) oat bran
1 cup (100 g) rolled oats
1 dog vitamin, crushed (optional)
¼ cup (25 g) grated parmesan or cheddar cheese (optional)
½ cup (125 ml) vegetable oil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 250°F (120°C)

1. Mix the dog food, flour, bran, rolled oats, vitamin (if desired) and cheese (if desired for a flavour boost).
2. Add the oil slowly, mixing the dough to a consistency that can be rolled and cut with a cookie cutter.
3. Roll and cut or mould the biscuits; place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 3½ hours, or until hard.
4. Cool and store in a covered canister in the refrigerator for 1 week, or in a freezer for up to 1 month.

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Photo: AVAVA/Shutterstock

Doggie Salad Recipe

Dogs like carrots, which aid in digestion, freshen breath and provide vitamins. The yogurt used here is digestion-friendly, too.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup (155 g) grated carrots, raw
⅓ cup (60 g) cooked brown rice
½ cup (125 g) fat-free plain, live-culture yogurt
¼ cup (60 ml) vegetable oil

Directions

1. Mix the carrots and rice in a bowl and set aside. In a second bowl, stir together the yogurt and salad oil. Pour this mixture over the carrots and rice and toss.
2. Store salad in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Serve ¼ cup (about 100 g) every day along with meals or as a treat.

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Photo: 4 PM production/Shutterstock

Lucky Liver Treats Recipe

The secret of many successful show and obedience trainers is nothing more than a little baked chewy liver nibble that dogs can’t resist. Try it—your pet will jump through hoops for this homemade treat!

Makes 117 liver treats

Ingredients:

500 g beef or chicken livers
1 egg
1 cup (150 g) flour
¼ cup (20 g) unprocessed bran (wheat or oat)
¾ cup (110 g) polenta (cornmeal)
3 teaspoons garlic powder

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Chop the raw livers, and then liquefy them in a blender. Add the egg, pulse to blend, and then pour the mixture into a mixing bowl. Stir in the flour, bran, polenta and garlic powder.
2. Spread the mixture evenly into a greased 23 × 33 cm slice tin and bake for 15 minutes.
3. While still warm, cut the mixture into 2-3 cm squares. Turn the squares out onto a baking rack to cool and harden.
4. Store the cooled treats in a plastic self-sealing bag in the freezer to preserve freshness for up to 3 months. Serve either frozen or at room temperature.

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Photo: ANURAK PONGPATIMET/Shutterstock

Sweet Breath Dog Treats Recipe

Here is a specialty dog biscuit that you don’t have to shell out a fortune for at a pet shop. Puppies often have “puppy breath” that they naturally outgrow by the age of 6 months. If an adult dog has occasional bad breath, this tasty dog food recipe will combat the problem. If bad breath persists, however, it may be a sign of dental or digestive problems that a vet should treat.

Makes 24 medium biscuits

Ingredients:

3 teaspoons activated charcoal (available in fish section of pet shops)
½ cup (75 g) wholemeal flour
1 cup (150 g) white flour
¼ cup (20 g) bran cereal
½ cup (75 g) polenta (cornmeal)
¼ cup (60 ml) vegetable oil
1 egg
½ cup (30 g) chopped fresh basil, wintergreen or mint
½ cup (30 g) chopped fresh rosemary or thyme
1 cup (250 ml) acidophilus milk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Process the charcoal in a coffee grinder until finely ground. Mix the flour, bran, polenta and charcoal together in a bowl. Stir in the other ingredients.
2. Form into bite-sized patties and place on a greased biscuit tray. Bake for 20 minutes, or until dry and hard.
3. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator for 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Now that you’ve got these homemade dog food recipes under your belt, find out which human foods are good for your dog.