Doggy home made treats

When it comes to our best friends we often times find ourselves not doing right by them and that includes feeding them things they shouldn't have or plain shouldn't have excess of.

When we got Zazu, we were afraid we might land up feeding him stuff  we were not supposed to so we did a lot of research on what is the best for our four legged friend, to make sure we have a happy and healthy puppy. Im so glad we did that because the few things that I do excess of are actually lethal for our canine friend. Yup you guessed it right avocados, chocolate, Grapes, raisins and most plants (what do I say I have a green thumb). So we began by not leaving the edibles where he could reach them and that includes kitchen counters. And I moved my plants out of reach for him. 

The most important thing for us was to make sure that he is fed right . And since Zazu comes from a reputed , responsible breeder we have had the luxury of her expert guidance. Zazu's vet is another valuable resource besides the scores of websites guiding new pet owners like us. So to begin with we started feeding him  what he was being fed at the breeders, after being weaned from his mommy (Eagle brand Puppy formula). And for treats the breeder suggest Old Mother Hubbards Classic Puppy Oven Baked Biscuits.  At 7 months he is still on the same puppy food and treat and will likely continue on it for another couple of months. But being a lab is all about pleasing and being treated for that. Especially in the puppy stage when you are training them, they learn faster with food than with praise or toys (in our experience with Zazu). It is very easy to run the risk of an obese pooch. Labs don't know when to stop eating. They will go on and on until their tummy bursts thus killing them (Im serious) . Then there is the matter of teething. When they loose their baby teeth, they want to bite onto everything . Zazu wasn't that bad considering the horrible stories we've heard. But he did get to the window ledge, bar stools, leash, stones, wood and his bed before we worked on correcting his behavior, while he was teething to soothe those aching bleeding gums.  He still loves to chew on things.. but that is what chew toys are for.. more on that in a separate blog..

So when he was teething, to numb his pain, we provided him with wet frozen rag towels and freeze toys besides the occasional ice cube. These for most part kept him from chewing and gnawing on the things that he wasn't supposed to chew on like furniture. Then comes his voracious appetite for food and treats. One very important lesson the breeder taught me was , for something as small as a pea, this pooch will even stand on two legs and trust me when I say that he does..So we spent some quality time at holistic organic pet food stores and found a few treats that he LOVES and are not that bad calorie wise. You can buy them online as they are more cost effective.  Sams Yams , Holistix cookies, Wellness treats , and Yaks milk dog chew  are some of the store bought treats that Zazu loves .

Some others things from your pantry & fridge go a long way too . Things such as Carrot, Peas , Apples (yes it turns out "an apple a day" is true for dogs too ), Banana, Strawberry, Sapote/ Chikoo, Oranges, Grapefruit, Blueberry, Red Pumpkin, Mozzarella  Cheese, Cooked Tofu, Paneer or cottage cheese, Boiled egg (Never Raw), Cooked rice  are some of the  "Human Grade " food Zazu enjoys. These are never from our plate and begging doesn't get him anything. He loves ice and you can't open the freezer without Zazu begging you with  a "puss in boots" look to get at least one ice cube . We figured we'd get creative and make him some frozen treats for in between meal treats. Heres what we are whipping for Zazu.

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Fruit n Veggie Ice Cream

1 inch banana, 1 inch pumpkin (de-seeded) , 1 carrot, 4-5 peas , 2 inch string beans, 1 tsp honey, 1 strawberry, 4-5 blueberry , 1 quarter slice apple (peeled and de-seeded), 1/4 cup rice milk .

Cook pumpkin, carrot, beans and peas in 3 tbs water until they are tender (typically 2 mins in Microwave or 3 mins on stove). Let it cool.

Add all the ingredients in a blender until a smoothie is made. Transfer it onto another container and add Kong's or organic peanut butter, 2 tbs water and whisk to mix in the peanut butter. Transfer this into an ice tray and freeze it  for a handy healthy treat for ur four legged friend.

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Fruity Fruity Ice Chuski

1 inch banana,  1 tsp honey, 1 strawberry, 4-5 blueberry , 1 quarter slice apple (peeled and de-seeded), 1 lychee, 1 inch watermelon.

Add all the ingredients in a blender until a smoothie is made.Transfer this into an ice tray and freeze it

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Slush or should we call it Clush

1 segment orange (deseeded and de skinned) , 1 segment grapefruit (deseeded and de skinned), 1 strawberry, 4-5 blueberry, 1 inch water melon.

Add all the ingredients in a blender until a smoothie is made.Transfer this into an ice tray and freeze it for a handy treat  packed with Vitamin C , this is yet another summer time treat for a hot afternoon.  I add a teaspoon of this in Zazu's water (8-10 Oz) if he is not drinking enough water especially when he is dehydrated.

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Soupy Freeze

1 inch pumpkin (de-seeded), 1 carrot, 4-5 peas , 2 inch string beans, 1 inch broccoli, 1 tbs spinach, 1 inch cauliflower, 1 inch sweet potato, 1 tbs kale leaves.

Boil all the vegetables in 1 cup water to make vegetable stock. When the vegetables get cooked,  let it cool down for sometime.  Filter out the Vegetables and  freeze the broth . Grind the vegetables. I freeze these and either give it as frozen treats or as Vege Soup* with his meal.

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Vege Soup

The 2 tbs of Vege Soup(above) , 1 tbs cooked white rice, 3 oz warm water,  2 Oz rice milk, 3/4 serving of Dry dog food. 

In your pet's bowl  add all the ingredients except rice milk and let it stand for 3-5 mins. Add rice milk before serving. And if your pet is like Zazu he's gonna lick his bowl clean and smack his lips for quite a while :)

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Protein Bonanza

2 inch cube tofu and /or  cottage cheese (crumbled) , 1 boiled egg(crumbled), 2 tbs Vege Soup,  1 tbs cooked white rice, 3 Oz warm water, 3/4th serving of Dry dog food.

In your pet's bowl  add all the ingredients except egg and let it stand for 3-5 mins. Add egg just before serving.

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A Diet for upset Stomach

Vegetarian

1/2 cup rice, lemon size cube of tofu , 1.5 cups water.  Pressure cook the rice and tofu in 1.5 cups of water. Let it cool to room temperature before serving . * Paneer or cottage cheese can also be used with or instead of tofu. Vegetable broth (with NO SALT/ Sodium) can be used instead of water.

Non Vegetarian

1/2 cup rice, 1 piece chicken , 1.5 cups water.  Pressure cook the rice and chicken in 1.5 cups of water. Let it cool to room temperature before serving . Vegetable broth (with NO SALT/ Sodium) or chicken broth (with NO SALT/ Sodium) can be used instead of water.

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Bhurjee

1-2 medium egg,  Grated Carrot, 1/2 tsp vegetable oil or coconut oil, 4-5 peas , 2 inch string beans, 1 inch broccoli, 1 tbs spinach, 1 inch cauliflower, 1 inch sweet potato, 1 tbs kale leaves.
In a Pan heat oil and saute the vegetables for 5 minutes until they are cooked (You can add 1 tbs of  water to help cook the vegetables). Once the vegetables are cooked , add the egg with or without yolk and let it cook while continuously stirring like you would for scrambled egg. When all the liquid evaporates or solidifies you know its cooked .
Let it cool down to room temperature before serving it to your canine friend.


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Right until Zazu was 15 months old, he used to eat grass like a goat. Yanking him or physically lifting him from the grass or commanding him to leave it just wouldn't work so naturally we were calling the vet to find out what we could do. They thought it was normal especially if the pooches are feeling nauseous (Labs especially love to eat grass amongst other things after all they are mouth with 4 legs). But that was a habit we wanted him to leave so we tried Coriander leaves. He absolutely loved it and a couple of stalks a day for a few days weaned him off grass. I wouldn't say he's completely avoiding grass but on a scale of 1-10 (where he was at 10, his grass craving has come down to 3 and I think thats a HUGE success !  One or two stalks of fresh coriander leaves are not only good treats but also help freshen their breath. It also doubles as guilt free training treats.

Did I tell you that carrots and apples are good for their teeth? Well carrots (grated or minced) are good to loosen stuck on food and help tarter control, while a slice of Apple (without peel) cut into small  pieces not just helps tarter control but also freshens their breath and whitens their teeth!