[Joyce C]

I am looking for a recipe for a Homemade dog treat. Must have natural ingredients and easy to make. Roll out and mold before baking. Stored in airtight container. Any suggestions?

• This topic was modified 4 years, 3 months ago by Mike Sagman.

[Joyce C]

I am looking for a good homemade dog treat that I can make at home and keep in an airtight container. Any Suggestions

• This topic was modified 4 years, 3 months ago by Mike Sagman. Reason: Fix Duplicate Topic Title

[Anonymous]

She had a 2 for tyrophagus putrescentiae.
http://purelypetcare.blogspot.com/2012/02/what-are-storage-mites.html
Commonly referred to as the mold mite, tyrophagus putrescentiae is a grain storage mite. Increased moisture and humidity are the perfect environment for storage mites to develop. Colonization of the storage mite generally goes unnoticed until your dog or cat develops symptoms. Such mites are often found in dry kibble dog and cat foods as well as boxed pet treats.

[theBCnut]

I also use different treats for different situations. The come-in-from-the-back-yard treat is kibble. The Micah-I-want-you-to-do-the-dogwalk treat is baked liver. Stockwork needs no treat, it is its own reward.

[C4D]

I use a variety of treats when working with my dogs. The first time I brought my lab to a class years ago I had just basic treats. The instructor looked @ me and the fact that my dog wasn’t really that interested in following and said I need to bring the “A” treats. So I brought very small pieces of hot dog and it worked all the way through canine good citizen training.
Now I have fosters that need to learn and respond to me and a reactive dog that I adopted. I do vary the treats within the bag. My favorite is a mix of freeze dried liver and lungs along with all natural human hot dogs and boiled chicken cut in very small pieces. It keeps them alert since the treat will vary each time.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by C4D.

[aquariangt]

Yay it let me log on today!

There is a big difference between treats to use in classes and treats around the house. Kibble can work for certain games around the house. Working for dinner-make it fun! When im teaching group classes though, ESPECIALLY where the dogs are working in close proximity to each other, I need something more hardy to keep their attention. I use a lot of freeze dried meat with my own, the one I do a lot with trains easily and doesn’t need a ton of motivation. The other one with issues I keep it coming, and I keep it varied. My training bag generally has 2-4 types of treats, plus a treat tube of peanut butter. The pouch I wear while im teaching also has 3-4 types of treats in it, I never know what I need to pull out for a certain dog. My agility dog could work for kibble since we only get treats at the end of a run for the most part, but I need other treats when im working certain skills and drills, so I just use the same treats through the whole evening.

[Elizabeth P]

Dori, I’m afraid I’d have to disagree with you based on my own experience. If what you do works for you, though, great. I teach an obedience class, and just tonight I gave my spiel on high value treats for training. I said don’t use your dog’s kibble. Go for something that really floats their boat. After all, if someone offered you a rice cake or a birthday cake as a reward for completing a task, which one would YOU choose. 🙂 For some dogs, that birthday cake is string cheese, for others it is green beans. My dogs usually work well for really smelly stuff, or things they rarely get in other contexts. Tonight it was tiny pieces of stew beef.

[Bailey N]

I was really excited to see this treat sitting on the shelf at my local walmart. I was excited because it said 100% human grade ingredients, 100% natural ingredients, and when I grabbed the bag of Full Moon Chicken Strips and squeezed it between my fingers it broke apart and didn’t splinter (which is something i look for in my dogs treats to help prevent choking and such). I was curious to know if they made dog food so i googled it. I came across this forum and after reading it I got a little alarmed but couldn’t read more because I was in a college class (and obviously not paying attention) so I had to shut the alarm down till I got home. When I arrived home I went to check on Jack, my Welsh Pembroke Corgi, and much to my displeasure there was yellow foam vomit on the floor. The ingredients of the Chicken Strips as opposed to the Freeze Dried Chicken Treats does not have Rosemary/Rosemary Extract in them. I am debilitating the fact that Rosemary/Rosemary extract may be bad for dogs I am just wondering what else would be causing it if Jack is also vomiting and their is no Rosemary/Rosemary Extract present in the treats? Something that upsets me is that I was so naive. My pup depends on me to give him the best and obviously I failed. It looked great, the packaging looked great, the ingredients looked great, and worse of all Jack LOVES them. Very upsetting.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Bailey N.

[zuponicafe]

My input on treats~anything that keeps a 15 w/o puppy interested while training!
So far I’ve found just putting various things (ie:slivers of hot dogs, small cubes of hard cheese & some home made chicken liver brownies) into a crinkly ‘sample bag’ of kibble work OK, but it’s not that I AM THE UNIVERSE moment while trying to get my puppies attention back to me.
He is still young, so I want to instill manners in a relatively head strong guy. I’m thinking something that smells awesome to him.

[Susan]

Hi Christine, German Shepherds are prone to IBD EPI & SIBO, boiled rice is a no no for some dogs, can you get the Vet Diet “Eukanuba Intestinal” not the Intestinal Plus just the Intestinal, I even think there’s a Eukanuba puppy Intestinal…The Eukanuba Intestinal was the only diet that help my boy get stable.. also join this Face Book group “Dogs With Inflammatory Bowel Disorder” make sure you start to fix this problem now when he’s still young & don’t let him keep going with the irritated bowel like my rescued boy did…. a lot of dogs with IBD are real stress heads, don’t keep still, eat everything in site (Pica) anxious… see a vet that specialises in IBD… some vets wouldn’t have a clue about IBD & say “Oh its just a sensitive stomach” when it isn’t, he might have food sensitivities or food allergies have you tried boiled potatoes & a protein that he has never eating before like kangaroo, rabbit duck…. on another Face Book group called “Dog Allergy International group” I’ve listed limited ingredients kibbles in the files section…. have a look at “Natural Balance” Limited Ingredients http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/ on ur top left click on “Dog Formulas” thin click on the Limited Ingredient Diets the Kangaroo, Rabbit & Duck have the least ingredients, a few dogs with IBD are doing really well on this kibble…also NO TREATS nothing just his kibble & NO CHEESE it has diary & FAT….then when he’s doing firm poos & only 1-3 a day for a good 3 months then give him a new food & see does he have sloppy poo, see what happens if everything is good in the poo department give again the next day & the next day as some dogs wont react for 5-10 days like my boy he does really well the first 5-6 days them BOOM diarrhea… hope to see you in the F/B groups you’ll get some help when needed from a few German Shepherd owners…

[Christine M]

We have a white German shepherd dog, he just turned 5 months in March. I was looking forward to take him at least twice a day for walks, but he poops too much. I have degenerative disc disease and can use the very helpful pooper scooper in our backyard, but there is no way I carry that thing around with me on walks.
The dog cannot sit still, so I basically would have his leash in one hand and try to scrape his soft stool from the sidewalk, but would need a third hand to put the poop into the poop bag.

We talked with my friend from Germany about it. Her female collie had soft stools until she was 1 year old, so she believes that’s normal.

Our vet wanted us to stop feeding him Eukanuba Large Puppy kibble (supposedly it has too many fillers, she recommended Taste of the Wild kibble instead) and to start feeding him a bland diet (white rice and ground chicken or ground beef) until his stools get firm again. That’s what we were doing the past 3 weeks, the rice did NOT firm the stool.
Do I have to stop giving him Lean Treats, 5 tiny little cheese cubicles and Abady dog cookies (1 cookie per day) which I give him in-between his breakfast at 8 a.m. and his dinner at 4:45 p.m.. He gets water the last time at 6 p.m., because we have to put him in the crate by 9 p.m., so he can make it through the night until one of us lets him out in the backyard at 5:30 a.m..

Our vet said that some dogs have a sensitive stomach. In case he has such a sensitive stomach what else could we feed him?
We cannot continue not exercising the dog properly. I was so much looking forward to start walking with him and when I took him for walks in February, he pooped in the garden first and then we started walking and sure enough: on those short 20 minutes walks he pooped again. Thank God there were very high snow banks left and right of the sidewalks where several other dogs from our neighborhood pooped and their owners didn’t pick it up, because nobody could witness it, but the snow is unfortunately gone now and I need advice very desperately.

Thank you,

Chrissie from MA

[Dawn R]

My puppy Bella is an 8 month old 9 pound schnoodle that has been suffering from severe diarrhea accompanied by occasional blood & mucus as well as vomiting since November 2014. I have spent thousands of dollars at the vet to eliminate other possibilities such as addisons, parvo, liver shunt etc etc. She had giardia when she was very little and treated with metronidizole. Good news is so far all tests are good (liver enzymes very slightly elevated as is potassium), bad news is we still don’t have a definitive diagnosis, however the vet seems pretty sure it is colitis/IBD/HGE. What the vets are not helping me with is putting her on a diet other than the Hills W/D which she doesnt want to eat. I started her on Merrick dry kibble when I first took her home. When she stopped eating that, I mixed in Merrick wet food. This worked for a month before she had terrible diarrhea. In addition she seem to be allergic to something in the merrick food which caused a chronic cough & eye discharge. Then She went on Natures VAriety for a short while, but would ONLY eat the freeze dried raw bits and not the kibble. So because of this I then I put her on Stella & Chewys freeze dried lamb & duck patties. That also worked for about a month and then she had another bout, this time extremely severe. Through each bout (which seems to happen 1-2 times per month) they put her back on metronidizole again, so I never really get the chance to see if a food is working or not. Vet wanted to try the whole novel protein diet and put her on Hills prescription D/D. Tried it for 2 weeks and she would not touch it and lost 1.5 pounds. At that point I gave up and needed to just get food into her system so I put her back on Merrick but this time tried the grain free duck. One week into it and she started back with diarrhea again and is now back on metronidizole. This time the vet wants me to put her on Hills W/D because of the low fat/high fiber. I already use a probiotic (restore) and give her a tablespoon of pumpkin everyday (which incidentally seems to make the diarrea worse). Took her off all bully sticks (still love the brand BEST bully stick, but never again). No treats either. I have read extensively and there seems to be many different opinions on what to give a dog with GI inflammation of sorts. I have read everything from Canine cavier to Addiction and more. Having had signed up for the editors choice, I am hoping for some good solid recommendations. I do not want to give her Merrick or Hills anymore. Cost is not an issue, but I don’t think puppies this tiny are ok with raw food (just my experience since the worst she ever was when I fed her Stella & Chewys, even though I think its a great product for most). She is going in for spay surgery on May 7th (health permitting) and the vet is saying if I am not able to regulate her with diet in the next month that they want to do an intestinal biopsy which I have a real problem with especially if the intestine is ALREADY inflamed. I have an appointment for her with a holistic vet tomorrow and am really hoping to get some suggestions that I can speak to the holistic vet about. I have read all about pre/pro biotics, digestive enzymes, glucose, fructose, hypoallergenic, L-glutamine and plan to ask the holistic vet which of those she thinks I should try, but I find it troubling that I have not gotten any viable food options from my vet to date. Any advice would be greatly appreciated by Baby Bella & her Mom!

• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dawn R.
• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dawn R.
• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dawn R.

[John T]

Thank God you got them off of it! The SAD thing is that it take a whole lot of companion animals both dog and cats to get sick, suffer and die before they identify the cause as BAD food!! ALL these companies, and I mean ALL of them are out for profits! That is why they sneak and put bad products in their foods. Think about it, they throw bad meat in a batch and save thousands! I had always trusted Blue until we could not find any reason why my dog had constant loose loose stools and high ATL levels. Amazing, with in one week of taking him off ALL commercial products he is back to normal! I make all his food and give him a daily vitamin and probiotic! It may take more time but oh well, I love him that much!! He gets 1/4 chicken, 1/4 white organic and washed rice, and 1/4 sweet potato and 1/4 vegi mix, mostly peas, carrots, green beans. I make a big batch for the week then take some and bake it for 6 minutes each side to use as treats and he loves it!! NO MORE COMMERCIAL FOOD! People are killing their companions and don’t even know it. Why do you think so many are dying with kidney and liver failure not to mention cancer! I am SO glad you got them off in time! PASS THE WORD – SAVE ANOTHER PET!

[Ginny N]

I have 2 dogs both of which are older ladies, one is a Sheppard/Lab and the other is a Mastiff/Lab. The Sheppard has always had stomach issues and last year, my little baby developed a food allergy where I almost lost her. It WAS commercial food and treats. She can’t eat anything commercial and quite frankly I don’t trust them.

Long story short, I opened a business where I make fresh biscuits that I use as my kibble and treats for my babies. Dogs love these treats, I usually have a following of dogs when I go to the dog park as I do try to carry free samples which I give to the owners if they wish.

I am quite passionate about what anyone feeds their dog. I don’t think any pet should be fed anything that contains items that are harmful to them. I don’t mean to offend anyone, but my opinion both as an pet owner and business owner is this:

1) If the ingredients are not human grade, then you are giving your pet/your child food that you would not eat. You are what you eat – your pet is what they eat.
2) Both food and treats should be healthy and not compromise your pet’s health including their weight.
3) Balanced diet including treats – meat, grains, fruits and veggies – always. Diet and exercise DOES make a different.
4) Any food or treat should not have additives, preservatives, artificial sugars or ingredients that are not good for dogs. Dogs don’t eat stuff like this in the wild – why should we be feeding it to them because we can purchase the food from a store?
5) Only deal with companies that stand behind their products – your pet/your child should be before profits.
6) Fresh is the best. If your dog was living in the wild – they would hunt daily in the hope that what they eat is fresh.
7) Always listen to your dog – if they gobble it down, it’s probably good but watch for any signs that the treats and/or food isn’t the best. We all like to eat things that aren’t the best for us. Eating gas, different behaviours, rashes, scratching etc. I have found to be key signs to look for as signs something is wrong. When in doubt – See a Vet – they are the experts.

[Lori]

I just got some sample food (4 different) from Brothers Complete. It’s a little on the high price end. The samples were free, but the shipping was $3.95, plus they sent a full sized bag of dehydrated sweet potato treats, which was a surprise and a nice gift. However, all the products have chicken liver or fat so I don’t know if you dog can have tolerate that.

Just as an example, the Turkey and Egg Allergy formula has 28% carbs (if I did the math right).

Guaranteed Analysis:

Crude protein, minimum 37.00%
Crude fat, minimum 17.00%
Crude fiber, maximum 4.00%
Moisture, maximum 10.00%
Vitamin E, minimum 200 IU/kg
Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), minimum 100 mg/kg
Zinc, minimum 200 mg/kg
Calcium 1.51%
Phosphorus 0.96%
Ash 8.04%
Omega 6 fatty acids, minimum 3.07 %*
Omega 3 fatty acids, minimum 0.73 %*
Omega 3 DHA (Doxosahexaenoic Acid), min 0.04%*
Encapsulated Probiotics – Lactic acid bacteria 2,000,000 cfu/gram dog food*
Enzymes (Amylase, Protease, Cellulase, Lactase, Hemicellulase, Lipase) 10.0 FCC DU/g*

*Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles.

CALORIES: (M.E. Calculated) 3,780 kcal/kg 415 kcal/cup

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Lori.

[Kathleen C]

When I use the Dog Food Advisors food calculator there is no difference in how much he should eat to lose weight of the two kibbles we’re discussing here, 346 k/cal or 0.96 of a cup of kibble. He’s only getting 0.50 of a cup each day and is still not showing any real weight lose after all this time. I’ve been trying to get him to lose the same 1 1/2 lbs since last summer. I realize he’s getting food besides the kibble and that has something to do with this, but the treats are 2-3 cal apiece and the green beans are very low fat. I’ve had him down to as low as 19.4 and that’s a real plus. I weigh his kibble so I’m pretty sure he’s getting the right amount. Maybe I’m just trying to do something that’s not really necessary. If I can keep him at or around 20 lbs maybe I should be happy. But I wanted that extra leeway of 18.5 so I could raise his kibble amount a little bit and that’s what he weighed when I got him 14 months ago.

[Kathleen C]

The Annamaet has 350 cal. per cup and the Wellness has 360 per cup. Not that much difference if that’s what you mean. I just know that Jack is getting 1/4 cup twice a day and that’s way below what the bag says he should be able to lose weight on. He walks every day and goes to the dog park for a little running and some playing, but not all that much. He’s just not a play boy. His treats are low cal like Zukes and green beans with a few pieces of kibble as a cookie (usually 5-6 pieces). I have to watch closely when he poops because he’s started eating it if I can’t find it and pick it up. That tells me he’s hungry and that bothers me.

[Scott S]

My dog Duke is really picky about the kind of treats he likes. We tried the store brands and some he would eat but he wasn’t really that interested in them. I found http://dapperdogdelights.com/ on instagram and gave them a shot. He really seems to like them and their made in America with human grade chicken and no preservatives so I’m happy he loves them!

[theBCnut]

As far as pork body part treats, like pig ears, they are part of the reason that pork got a bad name. If your 5-10 lb dog eats a whole pig ear, it might eat way too much fat and get pancreatitis. I don’t think that makes pork bad, but the owner of the small dog might.

What LM said about all the chemicals in them is very true of the cheap ones. They have some pretty awful stuff in them. There are natural ones. They cost more and you still have to make sure your dog doesn’t eat too much of them.

[Gloria K]

Dawn M, Dog Food Advisor considers Blue Buffalo wilderness in the five-star category. That’s why I feed it to Mickey as his non-homemade treats. He absolutely loves it and from what I can see on the packaging it’s pretty healthy stuff. What have you read about it that’s negative?

[dawn m]

Gloria, do you mean BB Wilderness? I’ve heard/read so much against BB dog food. I will get some Zukes, and eventually make Bella treats when I have more time and desire to spend time in the kitchen.

[Gloria K]

Again I make my dogs treats but I keep a bag or two of Zuke’s in the house and in my car because they don’t need to be refrigerated and Mickey loves them. Wilderness is another brand he goes crazy over.

[Rhonda L]

New to the forum, and loving all of the great info here. We rescued a precious little doggie about 2 weeks ago, and want to transition him to a great diet. Best guess, he’s a cockapoo, but others have guessed Maltese, along with other assorted possibilities. He’s 2 years old and about 17 pounds. Would love info about frozen, freeze-dried, air-dried foods. Not sure I’m knowledgeable enough yet to go totally homemade raw. Have a dehydrator and have made some tasty treats… beef and chicken livers, sweet potatoes, carrots, bananas, apples, etc. plus some pumpkin/peanut butter/rolled oats no-bake balls. Am interested in a rotational diet, but don’t know how to go about it… rotate daily, weekly, monthly, AM/PM. What’s the best way to go about designing a rotational diet for my sweet boy… and anything else I need to know to pamper a formerly tossed-to-the-curb angel?

[Deborah J]

I use Charlee Bear treats. All natural, all ingredients come from US & Canada. Grain free ond no chemicals of any kind. Dogs LOVE them and only 3 calories each. A bunch of flavors. Our dogs love them all. I can only find them in Petco or on line. Not very expensive either.

[Susan]

Hi Sally, I’d say who ever owned her before you has let her lick human plates & bowls & has probably feed her left overs from their plate, she probably even had a biscuit dipped in coffee, When I first rescued Patch he wouldn’t eat kibble either but he has health problems, IBD, kibble gives him pain, he too can’t eat water foods like stews, he brings them back up…..
Your girl may never eat kibble or dog tin foods, she has had a taste of good food fresh human food, If I owned her I would be googling some easy to make dog recipes, then make the meal all up & then you freeze them in little containers & take out the night before & put in fridge…there’s even places that cook meals for dogs, the ladies on this group may know some names of home cooked meals for dogs in America as I’m in Australia, I did have the name of a few in America but I can’t find the links..
I get 1 kilo turkey breast mince (grounded) mix in 1 egg & I make little bite size rissoles, you roll the turkey breast mince into little bite size balls & put the little balls on a baking tray, they bake in about 15mins, then I freeze them all, they thaw in about 15-20mins when left out on bench, you can feed the turkey rissoles as treats or I put some in the blender add some boiled pumkin that I have thawed out & some sweet potates that I have also thawed out…once a fortnight I boil half a butternut pumkin cut into pieces & freeze, I also freeze sweet potato, I have boiled rice frozen in the freezer aswell…there’s a few cook books that are balanced diets & real easy to make, google Lew Olson, Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs her book cost about $12 online, it has real easy recipes too follow & are balanced…I cooked for my last dog & I never balanced her meals & she was so healthy, shinny coat, she had all her teeth, her teeth were still nice & white at the age on ten, I never ever gave her any bones or kibbles, so that’s not true how kibble cleans a dogs teeth…

[Sally H]

I have been feeding her chicken and she only wants the brown meat. She does love liver but I am not up to cooking her chicken rice and green beans every day. I wouldn’t get the combination right and I want her to eat nutritionally. I have never had a dog that wouldn’t eat dry dog food and I never let them have people food so this is a real problem. I am 70 and walking her three times a day is tough enough as she loves long walks and chasing squirrels and I do love for her to be able to do that. She does seem to have trouble with hard
food and will not eat hard treats so I need to stick to soft foods. She sticks her nose up at all of the canned foods I have gotton her so far and the refrigerated food I got her at Publix. Someone suggest Dyno bites as being supposedly very tasty.??? She does love Cesar softie treats and hard bits of liver. as well as the greenies. She licks my coffee cup after I have drained it and even tried to lick my bowl that I had tomatos and okra in yesterday. Couldn’t believe it She throws up when she eats stews so those are out. She only gets treats once or twice a day when she does something special that she is getting trained about. Any one who can help me I will bless forever. Thank you for reading. Sally

[Akari_32]

Got all this for $31.15! Stay tuned for a break down 🙂

http://i765.photobucket.com/albums/xx294/Akari53/2014-06/F0C5BF03-2FDB-4B3C-9235-F560AD159F67_zpsyunnf4tx.jpg

I did three total transactions, two at Pet Smart and one at PetCo.

First one at PetSmart:
3x 5lb Purina Pro Plan Savor Salmon and Rice
–Original Price: $13.99 ($14.97 after tax)
–Clearance Price: $8.37 ($7.62 after tax)
1x 5lb Nature’s Variety Prairie Puppy Chicken Meal and Brown Rice
–Original Price: $14.99 ($16.04 after tax)
–Clearance Price: $8.37 ($7.62 after tax)
Coupons:
–3x $2 off any Purina product (found on random Purina products through out the store)
–1x $3 off and Nature’s Variety Instinct, Instinct RAW, or Prairie pet food (received in the mail with samples from Nature’s Variety)
–1x $5 off $25 purchase Pet Supermarket coupon
–1x $3 off any purchase $3 or more PetSmart Coupon

Total after clearance and coupons: $18.27
–Total before clearance and coupons: $60.95
–Total savings: $42.68!

Second transaction at PetSmart:
1x 5lb Nature’s Variety Prairie Puppy Chicken Meal and Brown Rice
–Original Price: $14.99 ($16.04 after tax)
–Clearance Price: $8.37 ($7.62 after tax)
1x 2oz Omega One Algae Wafers
–Original Price: $4.99
Coupons:
–1x $3 off any purchase $3 or more PetSmart Coupon
–1x $2 off $10 purchase for Pet Supermarket
–1x $3 off and Nature’s Variety Instinct, Instinct RAW, or Prairie pet food

Total after clearance and coupons: $5.95
–Total before clearance and coupons: $21.38
–Total savings: $15.43!

And at PetCo:

2x Temptations Cat Treats 2.1 oz (manager approved replacement for Friskies Cat Treats)
–Original Price: $2.13
2x 5.5oz Royal Canin Radiant Shine canned dog food
–Original Price:$1.81
1x PetLinks cat toy
–Original Price: $5.99
Coupons:
–2x Free 2.1oz Friskies cat treat PetCo coupon (manager allowed me to substitute with Temptations because they no longer cary Friskies)
–1x 10% off any PetLinks cat toy PetCo coupon
–2x 15% off any one can of Royal Canin dog or cat food PetCo coupon
–1x $2 off $10 purchase for Pet Supermarket

Total after coupons: $6.93
–Total before clearance and coupons: $14.28
–Total savings: $7.35!

Total savings for my whole trip is $65.46 🙂 Some of this is for donations.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Akari_32.

[Mary M]

Hi,
I just discovered a new brand called “Small Batch.” They are a small company based in the Bay area of California. I’m not sure if the food is sold outside the west coast, but they certainly use high-quality ingredients. They make raw patties, and dehydrated meat treats (jerky). My dog loved the turkey jerky (notoriously picky girl). Would love to at least see a review of this food on the website.

[Bobby dog]

Hi Tammy:
For Bobby’s extras I like to make treats so I know what’s in them. If you want some recipes let me know, I realize not everyone is into making treats. lol I do feed freeze dried treats because they have minimal ingredients and are low fat. He likes Stella & Chewy’s Carnivore Kisses or Stewart’s treats. Other treats are kefir, blueberries (or other dog appropriate fruits) and organic virgin coconut oil. Once a week he gets a beef tendon to chew. I have been buying Merrick’s lately. Several posters recommend The Honest Kitchen Beams, I haven’t tried them but plan to in the future.
http://www.merrickpetcare.com/consumer/products/product.jsp?categorySort=3&id=67&page=1&view=list&sort=cpjc.level_3_category_id&order=asc&name=Doggie_Wishbone_Tendon_Treats&cat1=6&cat2=9&categories=–&age=All_Life_Stages
http://www.stellaandchewys.com/products/dog-treats/
http://stewartpet.com/our-products/pro-treat-freeze-dried-treats/

Check out this thread for some more suggestions:
/forums/topic/your-most-recommended-dog-treats/

[Dori]

In lieu of the fact that you’ve chosen a food that is low in fat I’m going to assume that you believe that fat makes dogs fat. It doesn’t. Please choose a food that is low in carbs. Carbs are what cause weight gain and also makes it very difficult to lose weight. So look for a food that has a decent amount of protein, moderate fat, and low carbs and you should see your dog start to lose weight.

People have the misconception that since “fat” is a word that has been used to describe overweight people and animals that they must be getting that way due to eating fat. Nope! It’s the amount of carbs in their diet. Also check out the carbs in their treats.

Why do you feel they need blood work because they are over weight?

[crazy4cats]

Hi Kevin-
So far treats have not been rated on this site. I too have dogs that like to gnaw. Bully sticks are their favorite. My dogs each get one 6 inch bully per week. I have to attach them to vice grips to make sure they are not swallowed. I have 80lb golden labs. I mostly buy the Cadet brand at Costco with no issues for the last 3 years. If Costco is out, I have bought them from best bullysticks.com.
I also give them large raw marrow bones, pig ears, and most recently Fish beams from THK occasionally.
Another thing they enjoy is when we prepare a kong for them. You can stuff one with canned food, pumpkin, wet kibble or any combination of ingredients they like and then freeze it. This is the most time consuming chew toy I’ve come up with for them. Unfortunately, I rarely take the time to do it. Lol! 🙂
I hope you get some ideas that work for you.

[Susan]

Hi, yes the Losec (omeprazole) could be making her feel like crap, it made Patch lethargic, not well in himself, & whinging after eating his food, sloppy poos & small her mouth, see if she has a weird smell coming out of her mouth…it takes about 12-24hrs for the Losec to leave her system so she will become & feel better in about 1 day.. with the Zantac that’s the right one the 150mg you would give 1/4 of a tablet 40-60mins before food every 12 hours, Patch weights around 36lb & I have to give 1/3 of the tablet, its hard to cut a third of a tablet especially when rounded, so sometimes its more like half a tablet so I cut off the corner..cutting 1/4 is easier just half the tablet then half again…
if you can buy some turkey breast mince (grounded) 99% fat free add 1 egg to 1 kilo turkey breast mince, mix thru, then make little small balls like a rissole put on a baking tray & bake for about 15mins then freeze some & take out as needed they thaw in about 15mins she will love them I eat them myself I use as treats as well,
Come to think about it Patch got worse after I had him on the Wellness Simple, the vet told me to stay away from kibbles that have probiotics in them, you can read the ingredients, they are all down the bottom dried Lactobacillus Casei fermentation product etc, it seemed to make Patches problem worse, then I had the Endoscope + biopsies done in December..He had the Helicobacter infection, I think once you stop the Losec she’ll be eating in a day & make some turkey breast rissole something she has never eaten.. oh another thing the Carafate seem to make Patch worse as well, so that made me think back then that he may not have a ulcer like I thought….

I’d stop everything & I bet in a day or 2 she be back to normal & happy self…just feed low fat foods, cause the more fat we eat the more stomach acid we make & maybe look up slippery elm powder, if the Zanatc doesn’t seem to help…a lot of ladies swear by it for their dogs with acid reflux…I bought some of the slippery elm powder & mixed up a paste with hot water & had about 1 teaspoon, it stopped me feeling sick, I use to give Patch some & he was sleeping thru the night then for some reason when he gets better I stopped using it… I add 1 teaspoon powder & add boiling water in a cup & keep stirring & add hot water until its like a slurry paste, it goes like jelly, I keep in the fridge, I’ve been using liquid Mylanta 3ml in a syringe whenever Patch is licking & swallowing & if he wakes thru the night grinding his teeth, he grinds his teeth when he has his acid, I might make up some slippery elm, I forgot about it…I hope Bella is feeling better soon.

[Susan]

Hi RebeccaRose, the Losec {Omeprazole} gave Patch very very sloppy poos…. Zantac is the only ant-acid that only works on the stomach & doesn’t affect the bowel, like other ant-acids do, my vet said, so perfect for dogs with IBD, Colitis etc…… PPI’s Losec & Somac do affect the bowel giving, bad wind, gas, diarrrhea google side effect to Omeprazole…..Bella would of been having the nasel Bordetella spray…poor girl, she has had a ruff time…. the Bordetella spray is dearer & doesn’t work aswell as the injection, I don’t get the Bordetella injection anymore, its a waste of money, its not 100% they can still catch Kennel cough, my vet asks, are you going away or boarding Patch, I said No, she said well you don’t need the Bordetella shot…

Shop around for an Endoscope the ladies from the F/B group “Dogs with inflammatory bowel disorder” were talking about this the other day, how some places are cheaper then other places… it was only $600 for the Endoscope that’s drugs everything & $80 each biopsies, Patch only had 2 biopsies, 1 from his stomach & 1 from his esophagus….after you start adding up cost of an Ultra scan, X-rays, blood test its cheaper to have Endoscope done….& you know exactly what’s wrong & then they can be treated properly for that illness…. Helicobacter can be caught from the mother when they are pups especially when pups come from puppy farms….Patch was a grump when he was feeling sick & had his bad acid reflux, you could just tell he wasn’t his happy self, some days were better then others..

Maybe after cutting down on fat in Bella diet & using the Pepcid (famotidine) she may feel better, but the Pepcid made Patch feel sick & he vomited up the tablet, I had to use Zantac & that helped him the best, stopped him feeling sick, normal firm poos & no wind at night….also routine, stick to a routine to help stop with the stress & lots of walkies… I’ve found when Patch is feeling un-well, I take him for a little walk to the shops or beach, he says hello to the other dogs & people & seems to come back home feeling better & walks straight in the kitchen & sits near his cupboard that has all his food in it….maybe the salt air makes him hungry……also read the fat% in treats as some treats are high in fat, its best to make your own little cookies, like Oatmeal-Apple Cookies they have cinnamon in them excellent for feeling nauseous……Applesause is good for diarrhea & so is cabbage juice they both contain pectin same as what’s in diarrhea meds…

[Linda M]

I have a 14 y/o bRat Terrier whose has been on Stella & Chewy’s frozen patties since late last summer. Since switching her to raw, her Trygycerides have been rising, but I was alarmed when they doubled on her last blood panel (they are now at 2200). The rest of her blood panel is normal, aside from an elevated Liver ALP (now at 174…but that is down from 600 about 4 years ago, thanks to a daily dose of Denamarin).

Her weight fluctuates between 18 and 20 pounds. She is sedentary for the most part (sleeps most of the day while we are working), but otherwise has tons of energy and always happy to go for walks (thankful that Chicago weather is finally breaking and we can get some exercise again).

She has always had a heart murmur (around a Grade 2 for most of her life)…about 3 years ago we were told it was a 3 borderline 4…last summer she started coughing and the vet told us her murmur was a 4 borderline 5 and she was in the early stages of Congestive Heart Failure. She was put on a daily dose of Enalapril (2.5mg twice per day) and Vetmedin (5 mg. per day split into two doses). That was also when we switched her to a raw diet, and within weeks her cough disappeared. That was last September…at her visit this past week, she no longer shows any signs of CHF and her murmur is now at a 2 borderline 3…the vet is shocked and amazed that her murmur has improved and told us that he wouldn’t believe us if hadn’t seen it for himself…he says murmurs NEVER improve. He is skeptical of the raw food, however, I attribute her improvement to the change in diet more than anything (not to say the meds haven’t helped…I have no doubt they have).

This is a dog who shed like crazy until switching her to Raw – now she barely loses any hair and her coat is thick and shiny. The muscle mass along her spine was deteriorating (you could see her pointy spine bones sticking up along her back) and she was developing spondylosis…with a “clicking” sound that you could also feel along her spine. After a month on raw, her bones no longer protruded through her back and now she can once again race up & down the stairs and on the furniture (to my dismay)…the clicking is gone. Raw had done wonders for her health, and I’m sold on it being the best for her.

She is, however, sensitive to birds…no chicken, duck, pheasant or we start dealing with itching along her lips and paws that quickly devolves into infections. We have been rotating her on beef, venison, lamb & rabbit (tho I have my concerns about the rabbit being an issue with her lip…so lately I’ve avoided feeding it to her).

She is fed strictly 2 1/2 small patties of Stella & Chewy’s twice per day, 12 hrs apart…and her only treats are carrot chips. I keep a bag of Taste of the Wild Lamb on hand…I leave handfuls of them in her bowl to eat at her leisure if she get’s hungry between meals, but she rarely touches it (unless I’m late with a feeding).

Because of her high triglycerides, my vet would like to get her onto a lower fat diet. He suggested kibbles & prescription kibbles…but I will not go down that road again…Royal Canin Hydrolyzed Protein nearly brought her to the brink of a malnourished death prior to Raw…no way I will go back.

So…any suggestions on how to lower the fat content while still keeping her on raw and not feeding any “crap” foods?

My working theory is to use SOJOS grain-free fruit & veggie mix (the kind you rehydrate with water) and combine that with 1 Stella & Chewys patty per day (half 1.5 oz patty at each feeding). I am having a difficult time working out how much of each to feed her while keeping the fat under 15%, the protein and fiber in a higher range, and the calorie amounts appropriate for her size/age & slower-pace lifestyle. Would love to see all of her blood panel numbers in the normal range at her next test…not just for her sake, but to prove to the vet how beneficial this raw diet has been.

ANY suggestions or help would be GREATLY appreciated!!

• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Linda M.
• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Linda M.

[Kevin C]

I actually joined this site with the hope of finding out whether bully sticks would or would not be recommended for use considering the concerns outlined in the Tufts study surrounding contamination and caloric intake as well as my own concerns about whether or not they are obtained humanely. If recommended overall by Mike, I was wondering if he had suggestions for specific brands. If not, what safe, healthy and humane alternatives might be out there for dogs who like gnaw.

My little rescue loves nothing more than a bully stick to gnaw on, but I have refrained from giving them because of not feeling that there is definitive recommendation out there by a trusted expert regarding their use. Nothing makes him happier than to gnaw, and really only the bully stick or tendon has proven to provide him the most happiness. Some alternatives like humanely obtained deer antlers are too tough for him (when we rescued him he had to have several teeth removed) and he just isn’t interested in anything synthetic.

If Mike has any suggestions, I would be immensely grateful and this type of recommendation regarding dog “treats” would be specifically helpful to someone like me and my little guy.

[Dori]

I use the Vital Essential Tripe treats for the girls. If you’ve ever used Vital Essential Freeze Dried food (they only make it in beef), then just to let you know that their tripe treats are much smaller in size and they are hard and crunchy like the food, not soft. I can hear them crunch as the girls eat them. It’s my only way of getting some tripe into their systems. They LOVE them. As DogFoodie said, there are a lot in the bag and they do vary a little in size.

[aquariangt]

@naturella I may test that out and see if it works so I don’t have to waste the whole bag, and stuff it in a monster mouth or something. I’ve used exactly 4 treats out of the bag

@DogFoodie I may try those next. I usually keep 1 freeze dried and 1 chewy treat (let’s be honest, I usually have quickies and some others around too…) so I like freeze dried, and don’t mind breaking up big ones, my hands are used to be being gross after training anyway 🙂

[DogFoodie]

I’ve used the VE tripe treats. The dogs love ’em. There are gobs in a big bag, too. Most are pretty well sized, but some are scrawny.

[Dori]

D. O. I think he’s referring to the “cheeseburgers”. In their description on line somewhere they described them as snack size meatball treats. When I looked at the site I thought of them as being crunchy since they’re freeze dried but I can certainly see them as a choking hazard for larger dogs them mine. They look about the size of Vital Essential Freeze Dried Beef food. I’ve never fed Grandma Lucy’s treats so don’t really know anything about them other than what’s on Grandma Lucy’s site.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dori.
• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dori.

[Naturella]

@aquariangt, are you talking about the treats? The Tiny Tidbits treats look like meatballs, although they are not called that. I didn’t see anything titled “Meatballs” on the Grandma Lucy’s website. Maybe they are supposed to be rehydrated like the food? IDK…

***EDIT*** – They do call them “Snack-Size Meatball Treats for Dogs”. But yeah, I’ve never used them, and if they are treats, they shouldn’t NEED to be rehydrated, but maybe it will help if they’re that hard…? And then you could mush them up and stuff them in something, and freeze them instead of giving as a treat? Just an idea.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Naturella.

[BlackandBlue]

I’d like to post a few ideas about feeding cats. About a year ago, I noticed my cat obsessively licking the fur off his belly. Eventually figured out he’s got chicken intolerance. And, although I put a liquid dental additive in water that I add to his canned food everyday, his teeth were looking yellow. Here’s how I solved both problems: I feed my cat canned large breed chunky lamb dog food (Nutro Natural Choice large breed lamb and rice formula works great but there’s others such as Hills Ideal Balance lamb cans) a few times a week.
1. It’s really hard to find a resonably priced canned cat food that doesn’t contain either chicken or fish, the dog food works great for these reasons. The Nutro is often $1.78 on sale for a large 12.5 oz can.
2. Kitty has to really chew up the large chunks so it’s really helping his teeth. (It also slows down his eating which I think is good.)
I do feed daily his dry cat food and canned cat food but it is tuna fish based.
As a side note, I think the dental dry cat foods (the large nuggets by Royal Canin or Science Diet), given as treats everyday, do help with cat’s teeth, but I can’t use them anymore as they are always chicken based.

[Akari_32]

Ugh, I’m gunna start smacking people. My grandparents came over today, the same ones that have no self control over how many treats they give the dogs, and they left the front door open when they came in! I was out back, in the garage, so I didn’t even know, and I come back in through the back door to mom yelling, and the front wide open. Mom comes around the corner with the cat (who had a terrible, angry, defeated look on his face) draped over her arm. I took him from mom, tossed him in my room, and shut the door.

We leave to go fishing, come home a few hours later, they come back in, guess who leaves the door open AGAIN? Luckily the cat was still locked up. I made some very nasty comments, disguised as “jokes”, both times. What the crap is so freaking hard about CLOSING THE FRONT DOOR WHEN YOU WALK THROUGH IT????? *bashes face on wall* And why does MY cat have to suffer being locked away in the bed room because some idiot can’t close the door? Why do I have to suffer the stress of my cat getting out because someone else can’t function? What happens when my cat get hits by a car because some retard can open a door but NOT CLOSE IT? Do you think they leave the front door open at their house? I can guarantee you they don’t.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I assume you are talking about the dental treats? Here are the ingredients I found:

Potato flour, rice flour, glycerine, water, natural flavor, gelatin, canola oil, titanium dioxide (color), monoglycerides of edible fatty acids, flaxseed oil, citric acid, magnesium stearate, tetrasodium pyrophosphate

Not horrible, but not great either. I’m not a fan of the ingredient glycerine, (more info here) but other than that they look okay. There isn’t much nutritionally redeeming about them though.

Since they are a edible chew, a dog could potentially swallow a large piece. It is important to know your dog’s chewing style and always supervise when giving chews. Occasionally, less digestible chews can cause digestive upset or an intestinal blockage. I don’t know about the digestibility of these, but that is something to be aware of.

It says on their website that all ingredients come from North America. There can be loopholes in these claims, but it is a good place to start.

On a final note, these treats look pretty high-calorie, at 89.5 calories for a small and 179 calories for a large. They wouldn’t be something I would recommend feeding daily.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[Susan]

Hi, try lower protein % & lower fat % diets, & milk bones are the worst they are high in fat… get a limited ingredient, low fat, single protein kibble, Have you tried a Hypoallergenic & Gluten free kibbles, something like “California Naturals” Lamb & Rice limited ingredients, it just has 4 ingredients or their Kangaroo & Lentils… or try the “Natural Balance” limited ingredients Kangaroo & Potatoes or the Rabbit & Potatoes or the Duck & Potatoes as these flavours have the least ingredients.. here’s a really good group to join & for help, Face Book “Dogs with Inflammatory Bowel Disorder” once you find a diet & while ur trying a new kibble, do not give any treats, NOTHING just the low fat limited ingredient kibble, if everything is going good, then after say 3 months introduce something new like home made treats that are Gluten free, wheat free…
http://www.californianaturalpet.com/products

[Bobby dog]

Also, since you are unsure if it’s a food intolerance at this time I would start keeping a list of ingredients now of any foods (including treats) fed in the past or you are currently feeding. Comparing what ingredients these foods have in common and how your dog responded to each food is something that needs to be done in order to find the offending ingredient(s). It can be a long process or it may be simple, diligence is the key if it is a food intolerance.

If food intolerance turns out to be his problem it is important to treat your dog as the individual he is and find his specific intolerance; each dog is different and each will be intolerant to different things.

[Derek P]

We have an 8 month old Bulloxer (American Bulldog, Boxer Mix) and cannot find a food that will not give him diarrhea. He has had a couple solid poops, but then goes straight to diarrhea after that period. First we started him on Orijen Large breed puppy, we fed him 3-4 26.6 pound bags and still nothing but diarrhea and bad gas. We eventually switched him to Wellness Core Puppy food (which he is currently on). He started out fine for the first week or so, but now we are back to diarrhea and bad gas. He never has any table food and only has Milk Bones for treats. The only thing we could come up with is that he may just have a sensitive stomach, or dog food intolerance specifically to chicken since both of those food main ingredient was chicken. Any help is greatly appreciated, in order to get our pups stomach under control!

[Dori]

Hi John. Just saw your post here and I’d like to reply and help if I can.

Nope, it wasn’t me that suggested that you keep your dogs on the same protein. That’s totally against what I do or would recommend. I may not have explained things correctly. What I had said is that I would suggest that you find a few different (proteins) that your dogs do well on and rotate within the brand if, in fact, there are different proteins in that brand that you can feed. Also find other brands with proteins you dogs do well on and rotate within all the brands all the proteins that your dogs can eat. Rotate proteins and brands. It is never, in my opinion and the way I feed, a good idea to keep a dog long term on any one protein and on any one brand.

I can’t comment on the Acana line or any dry food as I’ve mentioned before. My allergy, intolerant girl can actually eat Nature’s Logic kibble but only the dry and only the sardine formula and only in my way of rotating which is often.

Other foods I thought you might want to consider to add into their diets are Nature’s Variety Instinct Freeze Dried Lamb (doesn’t contain any poultry, fowl, or beef)

Nature’s Variety Limited Instinct Kibble Rabbit or Lamb.

Stella and Chewy’s Freeze Dried. They have a rabbit, a lamb and also a venison formula. None of which contain beef or fowl of any sort.

I think adding freeze dried to their diets in rotation would be a little more cost effective with the kibbles you’ll be feeding because this way, at least, they’ll be getting some of the benefits of raw on occasion. The other is that if freeze dried is too expensive as their entire diet in rotation you might consider rotating through the freeze dried foods that I mentioned and use them just as their treats. You’ll be sure they’re getting healthy treats and they’ll benefit health wise and you don’t have to worry about what’s in the commercial “treats” which usually contain something dogs with food intolerances have issues with. I hope this has helped. Sorry, but I hadn’t realized that you were on the road 9 months of the year. Hopefully when you stationary from time to time if your room has a fridge with small freezer you may be able to just buy small bags of raw frozen to add into their diets. Nature’s Variety Instinct is sold in most, if not all, Petco and Petsmarts and they seem to be everywhere in the country. I love that you travel with your dogs and that they are a priority in our lives. Yes, we are all rather companion animal obsessed (or most of us are) and we like it that way. So, never fear, you’re not in the minority in the world of dogs and your wanting to do the very best you can for them. I’m pretty sure it would be a safe bet that most of us dog obsessed people on this site feed our dogs healthier diets that we do ourselves and our families. I’ve been known to do a McDonald’s drive thru from time to time for myself and my husband yet would rather die than feed my dogs any low quality garbage dog food. They become our children and, as such, we commit ourselves to their health and welfare. As typical parents, we usually put ourselves last. In my opinion that’s a good thing. They can’t choose what they eat, we do it for them so we should try to do the best for them. It’s the least we can do for them when you consider all they give us in return.

[Diane D]

How safe are the dog treats Checkups?

[Akari_32]

Psh, I don’t get any money from her. It all goes to mom for the extra water and electricity she uses up (good lord, this woman is laundry crazy and doesn’t turn ANYTHING OFF!!). Not looking forward to her living here again. She’s got to be one of the most stupid, ignorant people I’ve ever met. Thankfully mom said she’s only staying here until she finds another place to live. *Please* let that be soon!

I moved all the dog food to my closest (well over 100 pounds, I’d say), all the dog and cat treats and random etc type items to the stand under one of the reptile tanks (were I keep the canned dog and cat food), and the litter went out in the garage (or next to the liter box, in the case of two of the tubs lol probably about 100 pounds in all). Now I have to do some rearranging to make some space in my bedroom. Had to quickly move stuff out of the closet to fit all this dog food…. Let’s just say the place looks like a tornado went through.

….Multiple times…. Lol

I’ll get to you as soon as I can go through and get out all the ones I don’t want/can’t use 🙂 I’ll try and do it tonight. I’ve been meaning to get them all out cut out and organized anyways lol If you’ve been through this years calandar and know what’s in there, feel free to make requests!

[Akari_32]

😀 you guys are the best!

Ugh, so bad news. I lost my stock pile room 🙁 Our room mate moved out several months ago, so I moved all my dog food and treats and goodies and cat litter into the spare bedroom, and mom just texted me that she is moving back in tonight and to clean the room up. Maaaaaaan! Now what am I gunna do when I go on big shopping trips?? 🙁

Oh, and I gotta talk to you about these PetCo coupons I got, Naturella! Maybe you can use some lol I bought two calendars, like a nut job XD I’ll email you in a bit lol