Pumpkin season is officially here! While you’re enjoying everything from pumpkin spice lattes to traditional pumpkin pies, why not include your cat in the fun? Treat your cat to a taste of pumpkin with these easy homemade cat treats!
DISCLOSURE: THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS, MEANING I WILL EARN A COMMISSION IF YOU PURCHASE THROUGH MY LINKS, AT NO COST TO YOU. FOR MORE INFO, PLEASE READ MY FULL DISCLOSURE.
If you have followed our ‘pack’ here on Shed Happens for any length of time, then you know that I share my life with 2 adorable cats – Pippen and Jinx.
Of course, I love spoiling these little furballs whenever I have the opportunity.
Not only are homemade treats fun to make for your cat, but they are also a healthy choice free from fillers and preservatives.
Pumpkin is full of fiber, promoting a health digestive system.
It’s a great natural solution for preventing constipation, stopping diarrhea and preventing hairballs.
Plus, it’s packed full of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E and beta-carotene.
Related: ‘5 Benefits of Homemade Treats for Dogs (and Other Pets)‘
This is combined with tuna, which is a great source of protein.
Tuna is also high in omega-3 essential fatty acids, which help to improve your cat’s skin and coat health while also working as an anti-inflammatory.
With so many health benefits in a one easy to make treat, what’s not to love?
Celebrate pumpkin season, your cat’s birthday and any day that ends with ‘y’ by baking up something special for your cat today!
They always leave our cats begging for more…
Easy Homemade Cat Treats with Pumpkin
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup of Oat Flour
- 1/3 Cup of Canned Pure Pumpkin Puree
- 1 5 Ounce Can of Tuna in Water
- 1 Teaspoon Dried Catnip (Optional)
Directions
#1 – Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
#2 – In a bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix until well-combined and a dough forms.
#3 – Roll out dough between 2 sheets of wax paper. Cut dough into small squares or use small cookie cutters for unique shapes. Alternatively, treats can be made with small, round balls of dough.
#4 – Place on lightly greased cookie sheets.
#5 – Bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until firm and browning on the edges. Allow to cool and place in an airtight container for storage. Refrigerate until ready to use.
NOTE: If you do not have oat flour on hand, you can create oat flour by placing rolled oats in a blender. Blitz for approximately 10-15 seconds or until you have a fine powder.
Related: ‘Is Catnip Good for Cats?‘
Add A Halloween Twist
Are you looking to add a Halloween twist to your homemade cat treats?
Purchase small cookie cutters with a spooky shape or freehand tiny ghosts and pumpkins out of your dough.
Sculpey Products makes mini metal cutters in a variety of shapes, including options for nearly every holiday.
While these are designed for clay and jewellery projects, they are made of stainless steel, and therefore safe for use on your cat’s treats.
Have you ever made homemade cat treats before? What are your cat’s favourite treat flavours?
53 Comments
Clarissa Cabbage
October 21, 2020 at 2:29 amAww I love fall and all the fall food. These sound pretty irrisitable for a kitty – healthy too! Side note: my grandpa had an orange cat named pumpkin. He was about as big as a pumpkin too!
Britt
October 21, 2020 at 7:28 pmAww, your grandpa’s cat sounds adorable!
Sarah
October 21, 2020 at 8:34 amI need to make some treats for my cats!! xx
Britt
October 21, 2020 at 7:27 pmLet me know how it goes!
Sophie
October 21, 2020 at 10:06 amI love how natural they are! I don’t have cats but this sounds like a great healthier treat for them x
Sophie
Britt
October 21, 2020 at 7:27 pmThat’s the main reason that we started making them ourselves. We wanted to give them something that we knew was healthier.
Markus + Micah
October 22, 2020 at 3:01 amThis looks like a fun project. Now I am super curious what our cats will think of pumpkin treats. Thank you for the inspiration!
Britt
October 22, 2020 at 3:50 pmIf you do try them with your cats, let me know how it goes!
Sophie Harriet
October 22, 2020 at 7:32 amI never knew pumpkin was good for cats! I’m going to have to try making these for my cat xx
Britt
October 22, 2020 at 3:28 pmMy cats love them and they are super easy to make.
Sue
October 22, 2020 at 9:53 amI want to try these! Is regular all-purpose flour ok to use or is it something that should be avoided?
Britt
October 22, 2020 at 3:22 pmAs long as your cat doesn’t have any issues with wheat and wheat products, you’re good!
Rosie Ireland
October 22, 2020 at 12:02 pmI didn’t know that pumpkin wasn’t toxic for cats which is really good to know as there is a lot of waste when it comes to carving pumpkins! This post, as ever, is super informative and helpful! I like the idea of making my pets food from scratch so that I know exactly what is in it!
Rosie
Britt
October 22, 2020 at 3:03 pmThe biggest problem with pumpkin comes when people don’t pay attention to what they are buying when purchasing canned pumpkin. It has to be pure pumpkin, no extra ingredients that may have been added in a canned pumpkin pie filling.
Maria @ Handful of Thoughts
October 22, 2020 at 9:13 pmWhat a great idea. Although I don’t have a cat, I love the concept of making your own treats. Just like I don’t want to consume too many preservatives it’s good to also treat our pets like that.
Britt
October 23, 2020 at 4:33 pmExactly! We make homemade treats for our cats and our dogs – it’s a healthier choice and the process of baking them is fun too!
shyla
October 23, 2020 at 8:38 amBookmarking this for later! My daughter and I would love to bake some pumpkin cat treats for our sweet house kitty. He would absolutely love this! Thanks so much for sharing!
Britt
October 23, 2020 at 4:19 pmIf you do end up trying them, let me know how it goes! Our cats really enjoy them.
Katherine
October 24, 2020 at 7:36 pmIt’s funny, just like people go nuts for pumpkin (spice) in the autumn animals do too! Thanks for sharing this! I don’t have cats, but I bet if I make this for my moms cat, she might warm up to me a bit! Thanks!
Britt
October 25, 2020 at 4:35 pmOur cats love them and pumpkin has so many great health benefits!
Maritime Meg
October 24, 2020 at 9:22 pmOh so cute!! <3 I definitely need to share this recipe with my cousin, her cat will LOVE these! Perfect for fall and so much fun!
Britt
October 25, 2020 at 4:34 pmRight? Nothing screams fall quite like pumpkin – so why not embrace it for our pets too?
Hamza
October 28, 2020 at 2:45 pmI’d like to add a few things.
If you feed pumpkin to your cat, it will help in getting rid of Diarrhea, constipation, and weight loss.
Note: Moderate quantity 🙂
George Spain-Warner
November 3, 2020 at 9:53 amThe fact you care so much for your pets paints an incredible wholesome picture of your home in my head!
My partner actually does pet portraits which are MINDBLOWING… she’s doing a giveaway a month at the moment, you’ve just missed this one but check out her insta for the next one: lucyspetportraits
I don’t have cats anymore but got a little schnoodle called Ruby, sure she’d love to play with your gang!
Britt
November 3, 2020 at 9:40 pmHer work is incredible! Thank you for sharing
I’m sure that my gang would love to play with Ruby. They get excited to meet pretty much anyone that will play with them lol
Lyosha
November 4, 2020 at 9:31 amI am sending it my bestie. She has a pumpkin ‘situation’ at home, she even gives away pumpkin because she has more than she can store and utilize. Cat treats are a great option for her 2 cats, esp as one is expecting
Britt
November 5, 2020 at 1:08 pmI’m sure that any cats she knows (her cats, family cats, friend’s cats, etc.) will love that you’re sending this over lol
Liz Bayardelle
November 6, 2020 at 5:57 pmIf I made these for my dogs, I bet they would love them. Just please no one tell them I made them cat treats of I’ll never hear the end of it.
Britt
November 6, 2020 at 6:53 pmHaha! I’m not going to lie, our dogs have enjoyed them when we made them for the cats in the past!
Sam
December 3, 2020 at 10:31 pmHey, these treats sound like a blast to make, and I’m looking forward to it.
I was wondering roughly how long they last? They will have a longer storage life then most of the recipes I was finding because there’s no egg included! (Yay!)
Thank you so much for you help! 😊😊
Britt
December 4, 2020 at 8:31 amThese will stay fresh out at room temperature covered for approximately 1 week, longer if they are refrigerated. However, they can also be frozen for up to 6 months. We tend to do large batches all at once and freeze a lot to use moving forward.
Nkem
November 7, 2020 at 2:13 amAnything homemade always sounds like a great idea to me. I love that you’re sharing this. I hope people will be inspired to make healthy food for their animals.
Britt
November 7, 2020 at 8:59 amI LOVE baking for our pets!
Tigger's Mom
May 15, 2021 at 7:54 pmMy kitty Tigger loves these, and they aren’t even in the oven yet, lol!
Britt
May 16, 2021 at 2:17 pmI’m glad to hear this! They are a HUGE hit in our house.
Bethan Taylor-Swaine
November 7, 2020 at 7:53 amNo cats here, but my dog really loves pumpkin and it really helps his digestion! If we’re having it for dinner I roast a couple of extra cubes just for him. He wolfs them down!
Britt
November 7, 2020 at 8:59 amThese treats work really well for dogs as well. My two love them lol I make them for the cats, but always end up having to share.
Malika Thomas
November 8, 2020 at 2:42 amI also have 2 spoiled cats and all of the ingredients except for the pumpkin! Will be trying this recipe soon!
Britt
November 8, 2020 at 12:30 pmIt’s a good thing that pumpkin is so readily available this time of year! I’d love to hear your thoughts after you try the recipe with your cats.
Yemi King
November 8, 2020 at 12:30 pmI never knew you could make things like this for cats! What a great idea! We will be getting a kitten soon. I will have to make a note of this.
Britt
November 8, 2020 at 12:34 pmCongratulations on your plans to add a kitten to the house!
If you check out my ‘New Pet’ section (https://shedhappens.net/new-pet/) there is a free, downloadable new kitten checklist that can help you to get organized as you prepare for the new kitten’s arrival.
Nilakshi Pathak
November 8, 2020 at 9:26 pmI am planning to get a dog on my birthday next year. Your post literally prepped me for it!
Britt
November 9, 2020 at 9:15 amThat’s so exciting! Have you considered what breed(s) you’re interested in?
Check out my New Pet section for a free, downloadable new puppy checklist – https://shedhappens.net/new-pet/
Clarice
November 10, 2020 at 9:10 amWow! This is nice. I have been worried about the treats that we give to our furry friends but this homemade pumpkin treat is just a wonderful idea. Not to mention it’s really healthy. Thank you for sharing this. Will definitely try making this on Saturday.
Britt
November 10, 2020 at 9:27 amI would love to hear what you think when you try it out!
Judy
May 6, 2021 at 4:05 pmI was wondering if I can substitute ground turkey for the fish. Our cat loves turkey and pumpkin but won’t go near fish of any type 😂.
Britt
May 6, 2021 at 8:56 pmYou definitely could, although you may want to blend it for the right consistency and you may also need to add a little water to the batter to make sure that it’s not too dry.
Quinn Gillen
July 6, 2022 at 3:17 pmHow long do these stay safe for your cat to eat?
Britt
July 6, 2022 at 6:04 pm3-4 days when refrigerated or longer if your freeze them
Dawn
August 11, 2022 at 1:14 pmHi Britt ,
I was wondering if instant oatmeal will work to make the flour and does the tuna need to be drained. ?
My 9 year old cat Puma sometimes has issues with her anal glands. She’s been on medication in the past. It has taken about 2 years to find the right mix of food that works for her where she no longer needs medicine.
About 3 months ago I got a kitten, Izabele, from the humane society, that’s also where I got Puma. The food mix was to strong for Izabele so I had to take the important brand of food for Puma out.
I’ve looked on line for cat treats to support anal glands and only find they make it for dogs. I’m at the end of that food as I was giving it to her as cookies during the day so it wouldn’t hurt Izabele.
Now at the point where I want to make the cat treats myself for a few reasons. I know what’s really in then… It’s good for both my cat’s 9 years in age… It’s cheaper in the long run and I love to bake lol.
Back to my question of,
Will plane instant oatmeal work to make the flour?
Do I drain the tuna water? (If so they get it anyway LoL
Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.
Hope you and your fur babies are well 😊
Britt
August 12, 2022 at 10:42 amYes, we weren’t sure but tried instant oatmeal once and it worked well with ours. The one thing that I did notice was that we needed to add a little more than the recipe called for because it wasn’t quite as ‘hearty’ as the standard rolled oats.
For the tuna, yes we drained ours. Otherwise, the treats didn’t firm up as well as we would have liked.
Mom to ELnJ
December 21, 2022 at 11:20 amI have a cat who is skittish and when anything happens to ‘upset’ him, he will have bowel issues. I’m tired of spending $30 and stressing him out because getting him to take the paste to stop the diarrhea is also upsetting – it really is a catch-22 situation. I tried to give him just straight pumpkin, nope. He won’t eat it. I tried to read through the other comments to see if the question was answered, but didn’t see it. So, sorry if this is a repeat. Can I substitute salmon for the tuna? My fur baby is not a big fan of tuna, but LOVES salmon.
Britt
December 21, 2022 at 7:25 pmYes, you can definitely swap tuna for salmon and still make a delicious treat that will encourage him to eat his pumpkin.