DIY Homemade Dog Treats

We’ve been experiencing temperatures in the triple digits (Fahrenheit), and while it’s way too hot for us humans, I can’t imagine how miserable it must be wearing a fur coat! So I decided to make my dogs a special frozen dog treat to keep them cool and hydrated in the heat. These frozen homemade dog treats are super easy to make, and you probably have all the ingredients already at home!

First, I went in search of some freezable items to put in the dogs’ frozen treats. I would recommend a combination of big items and little items – the big items so that they stick out a little and the dogs can see what they’re going for. And the little items just to ensure there are lots of treats in there without taking up all the space.

As you can see, I put a Kong toy, a Greenie (they’re like minty teeth-cleaning chews), a rubber bone, and a beef treat in a silicone bundt cake mold. I wouldn’t recommend putting kibble or biscuits in there, because they will absorb the water and get soggy and weird. It doesn’t have to be a bundt cake mold, but I thought the ridges on it would add some good texture and interest the dogs. Additionally, you could use a metal cake pan, it will just be a bit more difficult to get the ice out of the mold.

After I put the toys/treats in the mold, I added water and sodium-free chicken stock. I would say keep the mixture about half water/half chicken stock (if you don’t have sodium-free chicken stock I would put even less chicken stock in there). The chicken stock is basically just to get the dogs interested in eating the treat, so you don’t need too much.

(Remember, water expands when it freezes, so don’t fill the pan all the way to the top because it will overflow all over your freezer – eek.)

Freeze your DIY dog treat for a few hours, until it is solid, and then remove it from the mold/pan. Again, I would definitely suggest a silicone baking pan in order to get the frozen dog treat out easier. If you only have a metal pan however, just run some hot water over the bottom of the pan for about 30 seconds, and it should loosen it up enough for you to get it out.

My pug dogs enjoyed the icy homemade dog treat from the beginning till the end. It was a great way to keep them occupied, but also cool them down a bit and get them a little extra water. The lab wasn’t too interested until he started seeing toys and treats coming out of the ice, and then he got in on the fun!

I don’t have any pictures of the lab eating the homemade dog treats, but I wanted to include a picture of him in this post. Just in case he reads my blog, I didn’t want him to feel left out.