It’s just a few months until the scariest night of the year comes. There will be lots of chocolate and even more candy — two things your dog can’t have!
Chocolate is toxic to your dog, all dogs actually. The compound theobromine is found in chocolate, cola beverages, and tea. It’s easy for humans to process theobromine in our bodies because we can do it at a much faster rate. It’s a different story for dogs though. Their bodies metabolize theobromine much slower and when theobromine changes into xanthine in your dog’s liver, this is where the problem lies. Xanthine is responsible for increased heart rate and central nervous system activity which can be fatal to our furkids.
Candies are also toxic to dogs because they are usually made with xylitol. This artificial sweetener can cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), liver failure, and seizures in dogs. Most sugar-free candies contain xylitol so better keep these sweets out of your dog’s reach.
But poor Fido shouldn’t have to miss out on eating treats just because chocolate and candies are not good for them. Let him have some fun munching on DIY nutritious treats as well while you enjoy your haul of confections. Bring out your baking utensils, put your chef hat on. Let’s fire up the kitchen with these five lip-smacking Halloween doggie treats.
Ⅰ. DIY Skeleton Bones Dog Treats Recipe
Your pup’s going to love the crunch in these spooky treats. They actually sound like bones when they break! Eeek!
What You’ll Need:
For the bones
- 2 1/2 cups of non-bleached flour
- 1 egg
- 1 cup of water
- 1 chicken bouillon cube
For the icing
- 1 cup non-fat plain yogurt
- 1/2 cup water
- A nonstick bone-shaped cookie pan
Procedure:
- Preheat oven to 350°F and grease your pan using non-stick spray.
- Mix all the “bone” ingredients together. Knead until it forms a ball.
- Take a small piece of dough and roll into elongated strips.
- Place the dough in the pan and press firmly until it takes on the shape of the bone.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Take out of the oven and place on a cooling rack.
- For the icing, mix yogurt and water. Mix well until the lumps disappear.
- Take one of your cooled bones and place it into the bowl. Cover the bone completely with the icing. Place the dipped bone on wax paper. Repeat until all the bones are covered.
- Freeze bones until the yogurt is frozen.
Ⅱ. Pumpkin and Cheese Dog Treat Recipe
These treats look like they’re daunting to make but they’re pretty easy and won’t take much of your time. You’ll have fun decorating this adorable doggie indulgence!
What You’ll Need:
For the cookies
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3/4 cup Fruitables Canned Pumpkin Supplement
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
For the filling
- 1/2 cup Fruitables Canned Pumpkin Supplement
- 1 egg yolk (set the egg white aside to brush cookies for a glossy look)
- Optional: 1 heaping teaspoon of fresh parsley
- For the decoration
- K9 Cakery Royal Icing and food writer pen
- or Wilton Candy Eyes
Procedure:
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- Beat eggs, then mix in oil and pumpkin. Stir in cheddar cheese, flour, and baking powder. Mix well. It’s best to use your hands to knead the dough and get the right consistency. The dough should not be stiff or dry.
- Set aside 1/3 of the dough.
- Dust your countertop with flour and roll out the remaining dough to about 3/16” thick.
- In a small bowl, combine pumpkin, egg yolk, and parsley. Spread the mixture in a thin, even layer over the dough.
- Roll out the 1/3 dough to about 3/16” thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into thin strips. Layer the strips and press gently on your base dough.
- Cut cookies into circles using a round cookie cutter or a shot glass.
- Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 17 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and cool cookies.
- It’s time to decorate! If you’re using Wilton Candy Eyes, make sure the cookies are still warm so you can set them in place. Cool completely and remove eyes before serving to your dog. If you’re using K9 Cakery Royal Icing to make your own eyes, mix icing to a thick consistency. Place the icing in a piping bag and use a #1 tip to pipe two round dots into each cookie. Let the icing dry before drawing “pupils” using the food writer pens.
Note: Wilton Candy Eyes are sugary treats so it’s important to remove them before serving to your dog. They were used for decoration purposes only.
Ⅲ. Peanut Butter Halloween Dog Cookie Recipe
Get everyone in the family baking! These delicious doggie cookies are so easy to make that you can ask your kids to help you out in the kitchen.
What You’ll Need:
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons wheat germ
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dry yeast
- 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 1/3 cup peanut butter
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/4 cup unbleached flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1-2 tablespoons turmeric
- 1-2 tablespoons beet powder
Procedure:
- Place all the ingredients in your bread maker, according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- When the dough is ready, roll it out to 1/4” thick.
- Using the cookie cutter, cut a circle and use the plunger to emboss the cookie.
- Lightly grease the cookie sheet and bake the cookies for 1 hour.
- Turn off the oven but leave the cookies inside to dry them overnight. Cookies should be hard and crisp.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container, preferably in the fridge for longer storage.
Note: turmeric and beet powder are for coloring. You can use 1 or 2 tablespoons, depending on how intense you want the color to be. The yellow turmeric and red beet powder will result in an orange hue.
Ⅳ.Halloween Zombie Dog Treats Recipe
It’s a zombie apocalypse! Uh, no. They’re just ultra yummy doggie cookies that your furkid will happily munch on. It’s a dog vs zombie kind of Halloween! We’re pretty sure your doggo’s winning this one.
What You’ll Need:
- 1/2 cup finely pureed green vegetables (choose only veggies that are safe for your dog)
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup brown rice flour
- Water as needed to adjust consistency
- Garnish to make zombie faces
Procedure:
- Preheat oven to 180°C
- Pour your veggie puree into a bowl and add flour in increments, mixing it into a firm dough.
- Add water or flour as needed to achieve the consistency to a nice workable play dough texture
- Hand roll into small balls and place them into lined or lightly greased baking sheets.
- Flatten gently and decorate with garnish.
- Bake for approximately 15 minutes. Cool before serving or storing.
Note: The author used green vegetables to give the treats a nice greenish hue. You can choose a different color base and add dog-safe food color as well. The garnish used were pepitas for the eyes and unsalted pretzel for the mouth.
Ⅴ. Gluten-Free Pumpkin Spice Dog Treats Recipe
What’s Halloween without pumpkins? Treat your furkid to these delicious gluten-free pumpkin treats that are naturally sweet (no sugar added!) and packed with nutrients and fiber that your sensitive dog needs. They’re good for your senior dogs as well!
What You’ll Need
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin puree
- 1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup cooked sweet potato, mashed or riced
- 4 teaspoons pumpkin spice
- 2 1/2 cups coconut flour
- 1 1/2 cups rice flour
- 1 1/2 cups almond meal
- raw pepitas
Procedure:
- Whisk the oil and xanthan gum together in a large bowl. Add the pureed pumpkin, apple sauce, sweet potato, eggs, and pumpkin spice. Whisk until smooth.
- Fold in coconut flour, rice flour, and almond meal and then use your hands to knead the dough until thoroughly mixed.
- Shape the dough into couple disks and cover in plastic wrap. Chill dough for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 250°F
- Between two pieces of parchment paper, roll out dough to 1/4” thick.
- Cut out shapes using your cookie cutter. To make pumpkins, stick pepitas on the stem part and use a straw and wooden skewer to make faces.
- Line your baking sheets with parchment and place the cookies on them.
- Bake for two hours, rotating the pans every 30 minutes.
- Adjust the oven to warm setting and open the door slightly to vent.
- Dry the dog treats until they have a good snap if broken in half.
Note: This recipe is for a big batch and will also require about 7 hours and 30 minutes of prep and cook time. Make sure to store in airtight containers.
We hope you had a great time baking these paw-licking, mouthwatering treats for your dogs. Let us know how yours turned out in the comments section below.
Disclaimer: We don’t own any of the recipes. Please click on the links to view the original recipe posts.
