These healthy dog treats are easy to make and full of ingredients that are good for your dog. These treats help freshen breath, improve skin and coat health, and are packed with fiber, and nutrients your dog needs. Best yet, dogs love them!!
I love making homemade dog treats as store-bought treats can be so expensive and full of questionable ingredients and preservatives. Homemade dog treats are easy to make, and my dog Chickpea LOVES them. In fact, the dog treat recipes I have posted over the years have gone a bit viral and are some of the most popular recipes on my blog! It's time to congratulate Chickpea on her food critic skills. She's actually a very picky dog and doesn't even like most store-bought treats (isn't homemade always best)? And our pets deserve the best!
I've already shared recipes for Homemade Sweet Potato Dog Chews, Pumpkin & Peanut Butter Dog Treats, and my Easy Homemade Dog Treats (which contain just banana, peanut butter, and oats). This time I wanted to share a new snack recipe that contained natural ingredients that are very healthy for our dogs. Even though these treats are packed full of healthy ingredients, dogs go crazy for them! Chickpea even tried to steal one while I was doing food photography!
Ingredients:
Ground Flaxseed: good for skin and coat health, immune system support, and healthy digestion. If you have whole flaxseeds you can grind them in a blender or coffee grinder.
Unsweetened Applesauce:Â a good source of vitamins A, C, K, calcium, and phosphorus. The antioxidants may help ward off cancer, help with joint disease symptoms, and can improve dental health and breath. Make sure you use unsweetened applesauce. Alternatively, you could substitute applesauce with unsweetened pumpkin puree or cooked mashed sweet potato (without any added oils or seasonings).
Natural peanut butter:Â A small amount of peanut butter is added for flavor to make these treats more delicious, but peanut butter also contains protein, healthy fats, vitamins B, E, and niacin. Make sure that the peanut butter you use is natural peanut butter. The only ingredient should be peanuts. Do not use processed peanut butter that contains added oils, sugars, and salt. That stuff is basically frosting and is bad for our pups.
Dried Parsley: a good source of vitamins and minerals and also has antimicrobial properties that help freshen breath!
Cinnamon: in small amounts, cinnamon is safe and healthy for dogs. It can help support brain function, improve focus and memory, and also has anti-inflammatory properties. Omit this if preferred.
Whole wheat flour: is packed with fiber, and protein, and is a good source of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, including vitamin B9 (folate), vitamin E, copper, iron, manganese, and selenium. You could alternatively substitute this with oat flour or another dog-safe flour.
How to Make This Healthy Dog Treats Recipe:
Preheat your oven to 350F (180C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or leave it dry (the treats shouldn't stick).
In a small bowl or measuring glass mix the warm water and flax. Set aside for about 10 minutes to thicken.
In a large bowl add the thickened flax mixture, apple sauce, peanut butter, parsley, and cinnamon, and mix well. Add the whole wheat flour and mix to make a stiff dry dough (it won't come together just yet).
Dump the dough and any remaining flour and bits from the bowl onto a clean work surface. Gather the dough and knead to incorporate all the flour. If your dough doesn't come together and is too dry, sprinkle over 1 teaspoon of water at a time until the dough comes together into a stiff dough.
Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to about ½ inch (1.3 cm) thick. Cut the dough into dog biscuits. I used this bone-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the treats but you could use any cookie cutter, or just cut them into squares with a knife or pizza cutter. Gather any dough scraps, and reroll to make more treats.
Lay the treats out in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 45 mins - 60 mins until the treats are golden on the bottom and dry.
Let cool before giving one to your pup. I like to let my treats cool on the baking sheet and sit out in the open overnight to dry even more and become more crunchy. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or you can freeze them. I hope your dog loves this healthy dog treats recipe!
This healthy dog treats recipe is...
- Full of ingredients that are good for your dog
- Made using pantry staples
- Always a hit with dogs- they love them!
More homemade dog treats recipes:
Homemade Sweet Potato Dog Chews
Easy Homemade Dog Treats (banana, peanut butter, oats)
Pumpkin & Peanut Butter Dog Treats
If you try this recipe let us know by leaving a comment, rating it, and don't forget to tag @itdoesnttastelikechicken on Instagram.
Bon appetegan!
Sam Turnbull.
Healthy Dog Treats Recipe!
Ingredients
- ½ cup warm water
- ¼ cup ground flax, for skin and coat health
- ½ cup unsweetended apple sauce, for dental health and breath (or sub pumpkin puree)
- 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter, for protein and healthy fats (smooth or chunky)
- 2 tablespoon dried parsley, for fresher breath
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon, for brain function
- 2 ½ cups whole wheat flour, for fiber, protein, and minerals (or sub oat flour)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F (180C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or leave it dry (the treats shouldn't stick).
- In a small bowl or measuring glass mix the warm water and flax. Set aside for about 10 minutes to thicken.
- In a large bowl add the thickened flax mixture, apple sauce, peanut butter, parsley, and cinnamon and mix well. Add the whole wheat flour and mix to make a stiff dry dough (it won't come together just yet). Dump the dough and any remaining flour and bits from the bowl onto a clean work surface. Gather the dough and knead to incorporate all the flour. If your dough doesn't come together and is too dry, sprinkle over 1 teaspoon of water at a time until the dough comes together into a stiff dough.
- Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to about ½ inch (1.3 cm) thick. Cut the dough into treats. I used this bone-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the treats but you could use any cookie cutter, or just cut them into squares with a knife or pizza cutter. Gather any dough scraps, and reroll to make more treats.
- Lay the treats out in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 45 mins - 60 mins until the treats are golden on the bottom and dry. Let cool before giving one to your pup. I like to let my treats cool on the baking sheet and sit out in the open overnight to dry even more and become more crunchy. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or you can freeze them.
Nutrition
TT says
I made this for my beagles and they love them! But they have been showing some small signs of irritable bowels so I’m thinking subbing oat flour may be a better fit for my fur babies. Just to be clear my dogs don’t get any sort of store bought biscuits so I’m sure the wheat is a bit more of a shock to their system than dogs already getting a treat like that regularly.
Only wish the dough was easier to knead and roll. It’s quite dense and takes some strength to manipulate. I’m thinking of using my stand mixer next time to take out some of the work.
Thanks for a great recipe!
Jess @ IDTLC Support says
Thanks for sharing your experience, TT!
Karen says
Super easy to make, and our sweet little rescue Chihuahua Kowalski loooooves them. I used a pizza cutter to make them into little squares, so it made a LOT. He was kind enough to share them with his canine cousins, who also loved them. These are a WIN!
Sam Turnbull says
Yay!! Glad they are a win!
jacquie says
i want to make these for my pup as i'm sure he would like them. However, I think i would likely use a different flour as he has IBD. You mentioned to use a dog safe flour. I wasn't aware that some flours might not be safe for dogs so was curious as to what those flours were.
thanks.
Sam Turnbull says
I would recommend using oat flour! Other dog-friendly flours are brown rice flour, coconut flour, and almond flour. I think oat flour would be your best bet for this recipe.
Amanda says
Can you skip the flaxseed in this recipe, or is it an essential binder or would it be better to use one of the other recipes instead? I ask because my dog is allergic to flaxseed (he's allergic to... many ingredients. Including wheat. And soy. And most proteins. It's a whole thing.)
Sam Turnbull says
You need it for the binder but you could sub ground chia seeds instead which are also super healthy for dogs! 🙂