Happy National Dog Biscuit Day! Make sure to celebrate your dog’s favorite day of the year with treats, treats, and more treats. Just make sure they’re dog biscuits and not human biscuits.
History of Dog Biscuits
Prior to the late 1800s, dogs would chew on old grain biscuits – and they were usually moldy, stale, or rock hard. Thanks to James Spratt (behind the biscuit company Spratt’s), dog biscuits changed for good: he spotted stray dogs devouring hardtack, a centuries-old stale cracker kept on ships, and came up with the idea for “dog cakes.” The cakes were a mix of meat, grains, and vegetables and called “Meat Fibrine Dog Cakes.” Shortly thereafter, in 1908, the F.H. Bennett Biscuit Co of New York started to manufacture hard bone-shaped dog biscuits made of milk and meat products.
Nowadays, dog treats and biscuits clean teeth, provide nutritional supplements, and hide medicine or pills. They’re also still the number one way to reward your pup.
Homemade Dog Biscuits
Nothing says ‘I love you’ like homemade baked goods. You can avoid store-bought dog biscuits that may have allergies or additives by cooking up your own:
For homemade chicken & rice dog biscuits, sweet potato banana biscuits, and pumpkin oat biscuits among others, try our “Best Homemade Dog Biscuit Recipes.”
For the apple-a-day crowd, remember dogs can eat apples too! Try our “8 Apple Dog Treat Recipes” article, which includes peanut butter-apple sauce cookies, oat and apple pretzel dog treats, kale apple mint dog biscuits and more.
And for the sweet potato lover, try this D-I-Y Sweet Potato & Pea recipe from our friends at Ollie:
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, then combine 3/4 cups of sweet potato puree with one beaten egg. Slowly add in one and a quarter to a half cups of whole wheat flour (or use gluten-free if your dog has a wheat sensitivity) until the mixture is thick. Stir in the peas, then roll the dough into a quarter inch disc. Use a cookie cutter to cut on shapes—or you can just roll the dough into balls. Place the dough on parchment paper and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Allow to cool thoroughly.
While this treat requires a little more effort than picking up a box of biscuits, we think it’s worth it to know what you’re putting into your pup’s tummy. Plus, it has sweet potato and peas, both of which help maintain healthy bacteria in the gut (and have the added bonus of vitamins and fiber), and eggs, which are a great source of digestible protein for dogs. Bone appetit!
If you’re making your dog homemade treats (and celebrating dog-specific holidays), you probably consider your pup to be part of the family. At Healthy Paws, we understand how important it is to be able to take care of our pets. By offering up to 90% reimbursement on vet bills, you won’t have to make hard choices. Join our pack by getting a free quote today.
