I need ideas for treats

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I need ideas for treats

So I'm on a quest to find small - or able to be broken into small - soft treats that are mostly meat/protein and won't break the bank. I like them about the size of kibble pieces since Sammy takes *forever* to chew anything larger!

I've been using some old west baa-baa or moo-moo treats, and they're okay, but they come in a 1lb or 3 lb tub that doesn't reseal very well and I've been lazy about re packing them into small baggies so they tend to get hard after a while. And since I'm always looking for a bargain, I went with the 3lb tub. It was only like $11 or something.

It just seems that to find something with meat as the first ingredient means the cost is outrageous. Maybe I just haven't looked hard enough. Time to find more variety!

Published Sep 23 2007, 02:06 AM by NicoleS

Filed under: soft treats

Comments

	mollymoo said: These are cheap and easy to make and soft. Heres the recipe. www.mydogtrainer.com/.../dog-treat-recipe.htm Guarantee your dog will like them. September 22, 2007 9:40 PM
	Jewlieee said: I buy Natural Balance food rolls. They're between $5-$6 and last a long time. www.naturalbalanceinc.com/.../DFRolls.html I cute slices and then break into pieces then I stuff kongs with it. Both dogs will work on those kongs forever to get every last morsel out. They love this stuff. It works great for training treats too. Another option is Zukes. They are good quality and small bites so no breaking necessary. The bags are kind of expensive though - around $10 for 1 lb bag. September 23, 2007 7:34 AM
	NicoleS said: Oooh, I like the recipe since it shows pictures! Hahaha. I will have to try that.... I am just afraid that I'll forget to defrost or they'll be out too long and spoil or something. Maybe I can quarter the recipe or something and try it smaller..... I've seen the NB food rolls, but aren't they mushy like wet food? Or is it the consistency of a soft treat? I always thought it was like wet food in a tube...... Thanks! September 23, 2007 3:28 PM
	Jewlieee said: It's the consistency of a soft treat. It's not mushy at all - well, unless you mash it with your fingers ;p September 23, 2007 5:01 PM
	NicoleS said: Until I can get to a store that carries NB food rolls, I came upon this site: www.dogaware.com/treatref.html Which has some great treat recipes as well as the site posted above. Also, a thread search revealed that several folks bake canned dog food and cut that into treats - I'm trying it with a small amount of canned and will see how that goes. I'm still somewhat hesitant to put beef or chicken liver into my blender, but I may try that next weekend after I find some liver.... but hopefully I can get to the store that carries NB before heading to the liver in my blender!! September 23, 2007 5:47 PM
	mollymoo said: Here is a recipe that uses canned dog food. I use Evangers as I can get it for 99 cents a can. Super easy dog biscuits: (Makes about 3 dozen 3" biscuits) 13 oz. can of dog food (this is easier if it is a ground food rather than a chunky food) 2 cups whole wheat flour (if you're dog can't handle wheat, you could probably use something like oat flour) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir the dog food and flour in a small bowl until it is well mixed and forms like dough. Roll on lightly floured surface to 1/4" thickness. Cut into shapes your dog prefers. Place biscuits on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes. Store in wax paper when cooled. I put them in the freezer. Just take out enough for a couple days and keep in the ref until I use them. Or microwave some if you forgot to take some out of the freezer. Another homemade treat that is easy is this one. Salmon Treats 15oz. can of salmon or Jack Mackerel flour (I use 1 and 1/3 cup to 1 and a 1/2 cup) 1 tsp baking powder Mix together fish & baking powder. Add enough flour for texture. Spread in cake pan ( I use a 9 by 13 pan) bake at 350 for about 30 min. I take out of pan and use either a pizza cutter or shears to cut into bites. Again I freeze them and use as needed. September 23, 2007 9:05 PM
	NicoleS said: I'm going to be baking more for the dog than I do for DH and I! I tried just baking canned dog food as I saw recommended on here, but it didn't turn out well. No wonder - since no one had mentioned the flour! LOL. I really do like these ideas, though, thank you! September 24, 2007 10:52 AM
	Cassidys Mom said: I love the Natural Balance rolls too! You can chop it up into little pea sized pieces and freeze them - pull out only what you need for a few days, and store in the fridge. It's not at all mushy, and actually smells pretty good too, like sausage. Other things I like for training treats are Zukes Mini Naturals, they're already the perfect size, not too expensive, and they don't need refrigeration. Also, the Solid Gold Jerky treats, but those I cut up into much smaller pieces, or you can break them with your fingers as you go. September 29, 2007 11:24 PM