As a child, I thought it would be a super fun idea to make homemade dog treats, and thanks to the internet, it’s easy to find some that’ll even accommodate a college student’s budget. I went shopping at Target right up the street from me for the ingredients. In addition to following 6 different treat recipes, I teamed up with one of my closest friends, PJ Huggins, the owner of PJ’s Wigglebutts Dog Spa, and we had our dogs review them.
Let’s meet the pups!
First, I have my dog Tiger, a 9-year-old Beagle mix who I recently adopted in August.
Next, I have PJ’s pack consisting of 5 dogs:
- Ripley, a 14-year-old, miniature, long-haired Dachshund
- Spanky, a 13-year-old, short-haired Dachshund
- Cinnamon, a 12-year-old, short-haired Dachshund
- Cosmo, a blind, 12-year-old, miniature, long-haired Dachshund
- Chase, an 11-year-old hound mix
Each dog will be rating these recipes out of five toe beans. The score is based on if the dog ate the treat and how much excitement they had while eating the treat. Which one will be their favorite? Let’s get to baking so we can find out.
Peanut Butter, Banana, & Oat Flour Biscuits
This is the Easy Homemade Dog Treats recipe is by Sam Turnbull, from the vegan food blog, It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken.
If you don’t own a food processor, this recipe will not be easy. The dough was extremely temperamental and I was genuinely concerned that I would not have some semblance of a dog treat at the end of it. The total cost to make these treats is $3.60 for 20 to 40 treats depending on the size of the cookie cutter you use.
After closely reviewing the behaviors of each dog, these are the scores:
- Tiger: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Ripley: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Spanky: 5 out of 5 toe beans.
- Cinnamon: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Cosmo: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Chase: 0 out of 5 toe beans
Total: 22/30 toe beans
Most of the dogs seemed to enjoy the flavor combo. The biscuit itself just seemed to be extremely dense, making it difficult to break it down enough so it could be safely swallowed.
Sweet Potato Puree & Gluten-Free Flour Biscuits
This is the Homemade Dog Treats recipe by Stacey Garska Rodriguez from The Soccer Mom Blog.
This recipe is definitely beginner-friendly, especially if you swap out the sweet potato puree for sweet potato baby food. You don’t need a machine to mix the dough at all and can easily mix it together with your hands. As long as you have a working oven, it is honestly a breeze. The total cost to make this recipe is $2.94 for twenty to forty treats depending on cookie cutter size.
Scores:
- Tiger: 3 out of 5 toe beans
- Ripley: 3 out of 5 toe beans
- Spanky: 3 out of 5 toe beans
- Cinnamon: 3 out of 5 toe beans
- Cosmo: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Chase: 0 out of 5 toe beans
Total: 16/30 toe beans
For this one, the dogs seemed eager until they began to try eating it. The biscuit was tough as a rock and lacked any visuals that could hint at it being sweet potato flavored. Thankfully most of them left no crumbs behind.
Applesauce & Oats Pretzels
This is the Oat and Apple Pretzel Dog Treats recipe by Becky Hardin from The Cookie Rookie.
Even though you still have to make the oat flour, I still consider this recipe beginner-friendly because you can still combine all of these ingredients in a bowl with your hands. This dough was the least temperamental. This recipe costs $4.08 for about 15 pretzels.
Scores:
- Tiger: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Ripley: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Spanky: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Cinnamon: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Cosmo: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Chase: 5 out of 5 toe beans
Total: 27/30 toe beans
Although the treat was on the bigger side, each dog was determined to consume every last crumb!
No-Bake Pumpkin & Coconut Oil Treats
This is the No Bake Pumpkin Dog Treats recipe by Laura from Sunny Day Family.
As long as you have a stovetop and a freezer, this recipe is a breeze. Even someone who is a novice in the kitchen can whip this up without issue. Just make sure to use a small spoon when pouring into your silicone molds or you could have a huge mess on your hands! This recipe costs $3.57 for 10 treats, depending on the size of the molds you choose to use.
Scores:
- Tiger: 3 out of 5 toe beans
- Ripley: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Spanky: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Cinnamon: 4 out of 5 toe beans
- Cosmo: 3 out of 5 toe beans
- Chase: 0 out of 5 toe beans
Total: 19/30 toe beans
Sadly, Chase continued to be deeply offended while the other dogs seemed uncertain while they were chewing it.
Oat, Carrot, & Peanut Butter Biscuits
This is the Peanut Butter & Carrot Homemade Dog Treats recipe by Sam Turnbull from It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken. This recipe is not easy to make in the slightest, especially if you don’t own a food processor. Combining those three ingredients somehow created a dough that was as dense as a hockey puck. Only give this recipe a shot if you have plenty of patience in the kitchen. This recipe costs $3.18 to make 20 to 30 treats.
Scores:
- Tiger: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Ripley: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Spanky: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Cinnamon: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Cosmo: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Chase: 0 out of 5 toe beans
Total: 25/30 toe beans
Most of the dogs went crazy for these. The crumbliness of the biscuit makes it easy for even smaller breeds to consume without issue.
Yogurt, Broth, & Peanut Butter Ice Cream Bites
This is the 3-Ingredient Frozen Dog Treats recipe by Kait Hanson from her blog, Communikait. She claims that this recipe is a dupe for Purina’s Frosty Paws.
This was genuinely my favorite recipe to make. I would consider this recipe to be very beginner-friendly because you’re mixing everything and pouring the mixture into molds before putting it in the freezer. If you want an easy, bite-sized way to keep your dog cool during hot summers, this is definitely the way to go. The overall cost for this recipe is roughly $4.53 for 20 to 30 treats, depending on the size of the silicone mold.
Scores:
- Tiger: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Ripley: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Spanky: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Cinnamon: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Cosmo: 5 out of 5 toe beans
- Chase: 2 out of 5 toe beans
Total: 27/30 toe beans
This recipe caused a lot of tail-wagging and would definitely make most dogs happy!
Who Won?
In the eyes of the dogs, the treats that kept the pups at their happiest were the Applesauce & Oats Pretzels and the Yogurt, Broth, and Peanut Butter Ice Cream Bites. In regards to cost-effectiveness, the Sweet Potato Puree And Gluten-Free Flour Biscuits won, thanks to its simple recipe. Even if you can’t take the time to go out of your way to make fresh treats for your pup, please remember that it doesn’t make you any less of an amazing parent to your furbaby.