5 Benefits of Homemade Treats for Dogs (and Other Pets)
Pet owners love spoiling our pets, giving them a little something ‘special’ from time to time to show them how much we love them. There are many different options for treats easily available at your local retail outlet, but are you familiar with the benefits of homemade treats for dogs (and other pets)? If not, you need to read this…
Confession: We share our hearts and our homes with 4 furry family members, and they are all SPOILED!
Don’t get me wrong, our dogs are well trained, and our cats aren’t destroying our house by scratching the furniture… there’s a difference between spoiled and misbehaved.
But they aren’t hurting for anything.
From the most comfortable orthopedic dog beds that we could find (after doing thorough research) to baskets of dog and cat toys placed strategically around the house.
There is no denying the fact that they are well-loved!
When it comes to treats, we always have a variety of different flavours and options on hand.
However, they all have one thing in common. All of our pets’ favourite treats are homemade. Not only do they love them, we love them too! Why?
If you find yourself torn between buying commercial treats or making your own at home, this is for you…
Check Out These 5 Benefits of Homemade Treats for Dogs (and Other Pets):
#1 – Save Money
High-quality pet treats aren’t cheap! However, you don’t want to cheap out on lower-quality options.
Making your own pet treats is a great way of saving money.
I did a little ‘shopping’ to show you exactly what I mean…
A 11.6 oz bag of Sweet Potato Chews at our local pet store runs, on average, $15 CAD. They have one ingredient, sweet potatoes.
Sweet potatoes here are approximately $1.50/lb.
If you are willing to take the time to dehydrate the sweet potatoes, making your own homemade sweet potato chews, that’s a significant savings!
#2 – Healthier Ingredients, No ‘Fillers’
Have you ever read the ingredients list on a package of your pet’s treats and found yourself stumbling through words that you couldn’t pronounce?
If so, you’re not alone!
While there are some brands that do a great job of delivering high-quality ingredients, there are many that leave much to be desired.
Why pay for a treat packed with fillers when you can make a healthier option at home?
You can also limit preservatives, fats and other chemicals that may be found in the commercial varieties.
Related: ‘6 Dog Dental Care Tips Every Owner Should Know‘
#3 – Customize Treats for Your Pet’s Needs
No two pets are the same and neither are their nutritional or health needs!
Whether you’re trying to work around a food allergy or intolerance or looking to benefit from the nutritional benefits of a specific ingredient, you can customize your homemade treats for your pet!
For example, we make a lot of treats using pumpkin since it helps to improve digestive health.
My girl Daviana has been diagnosed with IBD, making pumpkin a GREAT option for her!
As for our boy Indiana, pumpkin has been associated with many health benefits for him too including promoting a shiny, healthy coat and boosting his immune system.
What’s not to love?
Your pet’s treats should never be considered a replacement for a balanced diet, but they can be used to help encourage better health!
#4 – Homemade Treats Are Safer
One of the biggest risks associated with purchasing commercial treats is the possibility of a recall.
We have all seen those scary social media posts, sharing that a specific brand of pet treat or food has caused serious illness or death in someone’s beloved pets.
Often, these concerns don’t come to light until a family somewhere has paid the ultimate price.
While some are promptly pulled off the shelves, news briefs making the recall known, other companies deny the allegations or work to cover up these issues in order to avoid any financial loss on their part.
The best example that comes to mind is the big FDA investigation into jerky dog treats imported from China and sold across Canada, the US, Germany, Switzerland, the UK and Singapore, among other countries.
In an article from the FDA, they revealed that they received 5,200 complains associated with these treats between 2007 and 2015, including more than 1,100 associated fatalities.
Throughout those years, however, the treats were still available on store shelves.
In fact, many of those same treats are still available for purchase today… As a pet owner, does that make you nervous? I know I am!
Related: ‘Easy and Effective Ways to Entertain Your Dog at Home‘
Rather than taking chances or worrying about which brands can be trusted, you can eliminate the risk with one simple decision – Make your dog treats at home!
You control every ingredient that goes into your treats, making homemade treats the safer option.
For Recall Information in Canada, visit the Government of Canada – Recalls & Safety Alerts website.
If you live in the United States, the American Veterinary Medical Association maintains an up-to-date list on their website.
#5 – It’s Fun!
The best reason to make homemade dog treats for dogs, cats and any other pets in your home?
It’s a fun activity for you and your whole family! Even the dogs, in some situations…
There are plenty of people who bake or cook for the joy of it, creating elaborate dishes, pastries, and cakes for their families.
Why not do the same for the pets in your household?
I spend more time baking for my dogs than I do for my husband and I… Although, I’m sure he would love it if that changed!
Save a few fun recipes that you want to try and make a day out of it.
Baking is a great form of self care!
Looking for suggestions to get you started?
With such a wide variety of recipes, there is sure to be something for every pup.
Have you ever tried your hand making homemade treats for dogs (or other pets)? If so, what are your favourite recipes?
Honestly, I’ve never tried making homemade recipes for my pets in the past, however, this post is very helpful and has great ideas.
I love making homemade treats for our cats and dogs! There are some super easy recipes out there for those who are getting started. I’ll be sharing a really easy 1-ingredient option for cats later this month!
I cook Laylas food and I make her treats, she is not such a biscuit doggy LOL but I do dehydrate meats in the oven for her plus other kinds. I believe home cooking is the best way to keep your pet happy and healthy as you have control of what is going into their mouth
Dehydrated treats are such a great (and healthy) option!
I have never made treats for my cat before – to be honest, I never even thought about it or realised I could make my own! I now realise that it would make so much sense though!
It’s a lot of fun – there are a bunch of great recipes on Pinterest. I will also be bringing some different cat treat recipes to the blog later this month.
This is such a great idea! I would love to do this! I never really considered making homemade treats, but now I will for sure! I really enjoy baking in general so I would have a lot of fun with this.
It really is a lot of fun! I love making them something a little special.
Oh we spoil the hell out of our furry friends. Of course with 2 chocolate labs comes naughtiness including counter surfing and dumpster (trash can) diving. I would love to make them homemade treats. You are right, good quality store bought treats are expensive.
We’ve done a lot of work to train our pups to avoid the counter surfing and trash can diving for the most part (Indy came to us with a few bad habits including a LOVE for Kleenex, paper towels and toilet paper that we haven’t quite overcome lol). That being said, I feel you! I have literally come to bed to find a roll of toilet paper or a few random tissues tucked in the blankets (usually clean, but not always when it comes to the tissues lol)
I love this list! When we had our pug I used to make him some homemade treats. He really seemed to enjoy them. I actually shared my recipes with friends who also had pets. I did love the fact that I knew exactly what went into the treats, and I was also able to make it healthier for him. It was great knowing that, and just seeing him enjoy them really made me happy. As always, great post!!
Knowing what’s in them (and avoiding foods that my girl is allergic to) is the biggest reason in our house!
I still yet to be a dog owner but I can see how can help saving money by making the dog treatments at home.
It’s really no different than cooking our own meals at home vs eating out, from a budget perspective.
I’ve been wanting to make something for Hugo for a while now but just haven’t found the time to do it and research recipes properly yet. He has a really sensitive stomach so he gets the higher quality treats with no filler ingredients in but they can come with a hefty price tag so point one is very relevant for us!! x
Sophie
Our girl Dav has a list of allergies a mile long and she’s also been diagnosed with IBD, so I understand the struggle. I recommend checking out the peanut butter banana treats I shared. There are only 3 ingredients and my two LOVE them!
I totally agree! Homemade treats are so much better and that way you know exactly what is in it!
Exactly! My girl is allergic to A LOT. It’s exhausting trying to read packaging all the time when I can just make them myself.
It is great when you can make your own treats at home! I found it so much cheaper and you can even control the ingredients, making it healthier at the same time. I don’t like how some brands use filler ingredients that are not the best for pets. I do agree that it is a fun experience overall. Big plus to your mood when your pet is excited for them! Thanks for sharing these benefits 🙂
Nancy ✨
Yes! Seeing them running in circles (literally) because I’m pulling them out of the oven – it never fails to make me smile!
We don’t have a pet right now, but when we get one again, we’ll make homemade treats.
It’s a fun way to give them a special little treat!
That’s such a good idea to make home-made treats your dogs. I might look into seeing if I can make something nice for my cats.
I will be sharing some cat treat recipes later this month! Stay tuned!
We have a home filled with four spoiled (well behaved) animals too! I also love making homemade treats. One of our pups once has a terrible allergic reaction to treats, and when I looked at the ingredients it had 20+ ingredients. I was in complete disbelief. Since then treats have either been homemade, single ingredient, or very limited ingredients. Homemade treats are awesome because you know exactly what’s in them, you can use fresh fruits/veggies, and it’s just overall easier to know what’s going in your pets body when you’re creating it. Thanks for sharing!
There are so many commercial treats that sneak in far more ingredients than most dog owners realize. It took raising a dog with allergies for me to really open my eyes to just how over the top they can be.
This is a great post! When my dog was still alive, I baked her dog treats because she was allergic to grains & during the summers I made her doggy ice cream too!
Yes! My Dav girl has a long list of allergies, so making her treats is MUCH easier for me than trying to find treats that are safe for her to enjoy lol
I’ve never made homemade treats for a pet before but this honestly sounds like such a good tip! Especially for saving money and having better ingredients x
It’s a win/win – better quality ingredients AND easier on the bank account lol
I am glad that there is the option to make homemade treats. It allows the dog parent to keep an eye on all of the ingredients and remove anything nasty. With these days of food recalls this is becoming more and more important. Opt out of the profiteering pet food race and make your own treats.
There have been SO many scary recalls. I can’t imagine being a loving dog mom only to find out that a treat I purchased has made my pup sick…
Home made foods are certainly healthier, cheaper and safer for humans and pets. Pls, cooking/baking is great self care in these indoor times too. I’m sure they enjoy home made treats you make.
Exactly! I love baking for them. Not only do I love the process (turn on some music and rock it out while I get to work) but I can’t help but feel good when I see them get overly excited for the final product lol
Homemade treats are fun and amazing. I am not a pet owner but would share this with few friends who has pets.
They are so much fun to make and it’s like instant gratification when you see your pets get excited lol
We often make treats for our pets, it makes us all happy. Mostly though, I just use fresh vegetables like carrots and zucchini for their everyday treat. They love them and it is so affordable and easy!
Ours go CRAZY over carrots. The second that you open the vegetable crisper drawer, you have 2 dogs beside you giving you ‘the eyes’ lol
We’ve had three dogs and all have LOVED our homemade treats! I’ve done all kinds, including birthday cakes!
Pupcakes are such a fun way to celebrate holidays with your dog, aren’t they?
I spend a lot of money on Bella’s food and yet I’ll give her almost anything under the sun for treats. You remind me that I need to do a better job at understanding everything I give her. And homemade treats are the best route to take.
I wasn’t as diligent about it until I had to deal with all of Dav’s allergy issues. It was really an eye-opener in the beginning!
I don’t know about the fun part but home-made treats are fantastic. Our dogs prefer meat stuff, so the most common treat we make is home-made jerky. We used ground meat, beef hearts, beef liver …. they loved it all.
I think the fun part comes more into the baked treats – A lot of people enjoy baking lol Ours love dehydrated sweet potato treats and those are far less fun!
I love this post. Not only do you let us know why we should make homemade treats for our pets (spot on!), but you also nicely distinguish between spoiled and misbehaved. There is a huge difference, I would draw this comparison with kids as well :). I am going to search the articles to see how you get your cats to stop scratching your furniture though. Or if there is one, maybe you could link it below.
There is definitely a big difference. I own the fact my pets are spoiled, but we are complimented all the time on our travels about how well behaved they are. I don’t have a post about that yet, but I can definitely write one! We had to deal with that struggle with our youngest cat Jinx.
I will be looking forward to that!
It is fun! I so agree! Somehow my Huskies seem to know when I’m making treats for them and their excitement make me happy! Pumpkin is a staple here, too. One of my Huskies was an epileptic, so clean nutrition was so important and I started making homemade foods and treats for all five. And in this world, with treats being tampered with in the past, it is such a peace of mind to know we are making healthy snacks for our pups! Great post!
Ours are very much the same way! The second I start baking pet treats, I find myself stepping over dogs and cats as I move around the kitchen lol They all have to be as close as they can get.
If I cooked, I’d love to make homemade treats for my cats.
I don’t cook or bake often (my husband does most of the cooking here) but I do love making treats for the pets haha