Admittedly, buying ready-made dog treats from the zooplus dog shop is quicker. But it’s nowhere near as much fun! And there are plenty of other good reasons to bake your own dog biscuits. Find out what they are, how to bake and store dog biscuits, and discover simple dog biscuit recipes your dog is guaranteed to love right here.
© Africa Studio / stock.adobe.com
Our furry friends simply can’t resist homemade dog biscuits made from wholesome ingredients
Baking your own dog biscuits has one key advantage above all: you know exactly what’s in them! Many commercially produced dog biscuits and treats contain colourings, preservatives or even sugar – things your dog doesn’t actually need and that aren’t healthy either.
If you pick up the whisk yourself, you decide which ingredients go into the dog biscuits for your beloved pet. After all, you know best what your dog enjoys and which foods they tolerate well. Another benefit: you save money, as the cost of ingredients is usually very low – especially since you probably already have many of them at home.
Is Easter or Christmas just around the corner and you’re still looking for a suitable gift for your own four-legged friend or for a dog-owning friend? Homemade dog biscuits are a real hit here too. Nicely packaged in a biscuit tin or a decorative fabric bag, these homemade treats make a very personal and unique gift for all dog lovers.
If you already have some experience in the preparation of dog food , for example if you BARF your dog, you’ll quickly work out which ingredients you can use and combine for your homemade dog biscuits.
But even if you’ve only ever fed your dog ready-made dry or wet food so far, baking dog biscuits is a great way to start exploring your dog’s diet in more detail and to ease yourself into homemade options. After one or two trial runs, you’ll soon get the hang of it – and your dog is guaranteed to be delighted with the new homemade treats.
When choosing ingredients for your homemade dog biscuits, there are hardly any limits – anything your dog likes and tolerates is allowed. Ideally, choose ingredients that also offer your four-legged friend some nutritional value . That way, you can give the treats with a clear conscience, of course, always in moderation. As varied as the ingredients are, so too are the different dog biscuit recipes.
Here are some examples of suitable ingredients for your dog biscuits:
The following ingredients are off-limits in dog biscuits:
Be very careful when selecting ingredients, some foods are difficult for dogs to digest or even toxic.
If your pet doesn’t have an allergy or intolerance, you can also use different types of flour such as wheat, rye or spelt flour – ideally wholemeal varieties.
If your dog is gluten-intolerant, you should avoid flours containing gluten. Instead, you can use gluten-free alternatives such as rice, millet or maize flour. It’s also possible to bake dog biscuits completely grain-free, for example using potato flour.
It’s best to use high-quality oils such as olive or corn oil for your dog biscuits. You can also make treats with meat or fish. In that case, use minced meat or tender fish fillets, which you can purée so they mix well into the dough.
© RoJo Images / stock.adobe.com
The great thing about homemade dog biscuits is that you can easily make them using ingredients you’d normally have at home. You also don’t need any special kitchen equipment to prepare the ingredients or bake them. Of course, a good food processor with a powerful blender will make things easier, but you can also prepare dog biscuit dough using a hand blender and a simple hand mixer or whisk .
To bake your homemade dog biscuits, all you need now is a baking tray and a working oven. Special silicone baking mats are ideal for making dog biscuits, as you can simply fill the dough into the small moulds and save yourself the effort of cutting out shapes or forming them by hand. The mats come in lots of cute designs, such as small bones or hearts.
You’ll find countless recipes for homemade dog biscuits in guidebooks or online. But with so much choice, it can sometimes be hard to find the right one for your own dog. Our tip: don’t get lost searching for recipes – just get started.
Take a look in your fridge to see what ingredients you already have and what you could whip up from them. Or think about what your dog enjoys eating most and look for a suitable dog biscuit recipe featuring that ingredient.
Very popular, and not just with dogs who have allergies, are grain-free dog biscuits. That’s because grain is often hard for dogs to digest and can lead to intolerances.
There are hardly any limits to your imagination when baking. Once you’ve tried one or two recipes, you’ll quickly get a feel for which ingredients make tasty dog biscuits and how you can vary them.
With a bit of practice, you can easily adapt the following dog biscuit recipes too, ensuring there’s the perfect dog biscuit for every dog and every owner.
Ingredients:
Method: Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and leave to rest in the fridge for about 1 hour. If the dough is still too wet to roll out afterwards, add a little more oat flakes or (potato) flour. Then roll out the dough to about 1 cm thick on a floured work surface. Cut out bone shapes and bake at 150°C (fan oven) for around 30 minutes. Leave to dry thoroughly in the switched-off oven.
Ingredients:
Method: Mix everything together and shape into small balls. If you use polenta, leave the dough slightly wetter. You can vary the size of the biscuits depending on your dog’s size and preference. Then bake at 150°C (fan oven) for about 30 minutes. The baking time may be shorter or longer depending on the size of the balls. Leave to dry in the switched-off oven.
Ingredients:
Method: Mix all the ingredients well in a bowl and shape into small balls or other shapes as desired. Then bake the dog biscuits at 180°C for about 25 minutes.
Ingredients:
Method: Grate the carrots and mash the bananas with a fork. Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. If you use polenta instead of oat flakes, make sure the dough is slightly wetter overall. If the dough is too dry, add a little water. Then shape into balls about 1–2 cm in size and bake for 25 minutes at around 150°C (fan oven). Leave to dry overnight in the open oven.
If you like, you can then decorate the biscuits with small shop-bought treats. Simply stick them onto the cooled, homemade biscuits using stiffly beaten egg white and bake again for about 10 minutes at 150°C (fan oven).
Ingredients:
Method: Mix all the ingredients well and shape the dough into small balls or finger-length sticks. Then bake the dog biscuits at 180°C for about 25 minutes. Leave to dry in the switched-off oven.
Ingredients:
Method: Mix everything well and roll out the dough to just under 1 cm thick. Either cut out round shapes or use festive cutters. Bake the dog biscuits at 150°C for about 45 minutes. If you prefer them drier (which makes them last longer), leave them to dry out afterwards at a low temperature.
How long can you keep homemade dog biscuits? Whether you’re giving them as a gift or storing them at home, it’s important to dry the dog biscuits thoroughly after baking. The drier the treats, the longer they will keep . Since no preservatives are used when baking them yourself, there is naturally a higher risk of mould forming compared to shop-bought, industrially produced products.
If thoroughly dried and stored correctly, the homemade treats will keep for several weeks without any problem. However, dog biscuits containing meat or fish have a slightly shorter shelf life than wholemeal biscuits and should therefore be fed within three to five days . Meat- or fish-based dog biscuits must also be stored in the fridge.
To enjoy your homemade dog treats for longer, you can simply freeze them in portions and defrost as needed. When frozen, the biscuits can be stored for several months (up to around a year).
We hope you enjoy baking dog biscuits and wish your dog bon appétit!
The zooplus editorial team consists of a dedicated team of experts with many years of experience in the field of animal husbandry: Luisa with her White Swiss Shepherd Elyos, Laura, Julio, and Florian. Together with a large network of animal experts, we work to make the zooplus magazine a trusted source of information for all animal owners and lovers. Our goal is to provide exciting animal knowledge and relevant information on the proper care of pets.
Nowadays, the selection of dog food is greater than ever before. Whilst the variety of products should offer something for every dog's taste, the buyer is spoilt for choice: which food is the right one? Is dry food better than wet dog food or vice versa?
There's nothing better than refreshing ice cream on hot summer days. The longing looks of dogs at frozen delicacies prove it. But did you know, you can easily make your own tasty dog ice cream and treat your dog to a cold, healthy surprise this summer.
Most people know the term “cold-pressed” from olive oil, but have you ever wondered what is behind the term “cold-pressed dog food”? We will explain the difference to conventional dog food and give tips on searching for the right dry dog food.
