One of the easiest ways to cool your dog down in summer is by giving them homemade frozen dog treats to eat. They are a great way to keep your dog cool in the heat and provide healthy nourishment and hydration at the same time.
We have discovered a ton of great recipes for dog treats over the years, so here are a few of our favorites for the summer.
When making any of these dog treats make sure you are using good quality products that are the healthiest for your dog.
What You Need to Make Your Own Frozen Dog Treats
There are a few items you might need to make some of these frozen treats for your dog. You will need something to put your frozen dog treats into so you can put them in the freezer. This can be some ice cube trays you may already have around the house, or you can buy some of these cute dog-inspired ones.
Ice cube trays These cute doggy ice molds make great shaped frozen treats for your pup.
Popsicle molds Ready-made popsicle molds make a great container for your frozen treats.
Cake tins also come in handy if your dog loves larger icy treats. A bundt cake tin is a good type to use.
Cupcake liners like these are also another option to put your frozen treats into.
Blender or food processor is a quick and easy way to mix everything together. The Kitchen Aid blender is a good one for larger recipes, or the Nutribullet is great for smaller batches.
You can really make your own frozen dog treats any way you like and most of the recipes we have found follow a few simple rules. Here’s all you really need to create your own frozen treats for dogs.
The base:
Yogurt. Use natural or Greek yogurt with no added sugar.
Water. Filtered water is best.
Broth. Chicken, beef, or vegetable broth make a wonderful base for frozen treats. Choose a low sodium broth, or make your own.
Fruit juices. Make your own fresh juice, or buy juice without any added sugar.
The filling:
This can really be any food your dog loves. Get creative and come up with your own tasty concoctions or use the recipes below as a guide.
Fruits like berries, bananas, and apples.
Vegetables like pumpkin, sweet potato, carrot, and beans.
Tasty foods like peanut butter and honey
Superfoods like kale, oily fish, and broccoli.
Rawhide sticks make a great addition to popsicles or cupcake style treats.
Yogurt Dog Treats
When making dog treats with yogurt, try to buy the best quality yogurt you can. Natural or Greek yogurt with no added sugar is best. Do not use a particular food if you know your dog doesn’t like it or is allergic to it. With many of these recipes, you can substitute in foods your dog likes and leave out ones they don’t.
Banana Pup Pops
BitznGiggles have a great recipe for frozen banana pup pops that look so cute and tasty for your dog. Yogurt, banana and peanut butter make up this easy frozen treat for your dog.
Frozen Yogurt Dog Treats
This simple frozen yogurt treat recipe from Petguide is easy to make and you can adjust the recipe to your dog’s taste. The basic recipe has yogurt, peanut butter, honey, and banana. But you can add in berries or any other fruits or veggies that your dog loves.
DIY Frozen Apple Dog Treats
Irresistible Pets have a great recipe for DIY frozen dog treats using yogurt, apple, and water. Apples are a great healthy treat for your dog, packed with vitamins and fiber.
Frozen Pumpkin Dog Treats
Dogvills has a fantastic recipe for frozen pumpkin dog treats. Yogurt, pumpkin puree, honey, and banana is all you need to make this bright healthy dog treat.
Frozen Strawberry Banana Dog Treat
These frozen strawberry and banana smoothie dog treats by the Cottage Market look so tasty. With yogurt, strawberries, banana, skim milk, and honey, your dog is sure to love these bright looking treats.
Water Based Frozen Dog Treats
If your dog doesn’t like yogurt or doesn’t do well with dairy, there are plenty of other types of frozen treats you can make. These are simple water based ones that are easy to make.
Peanut Butter Strawberry Frozen Ring
Doggy Dessert Chef has a recipe for a frozen ring of fruit that can be tasty and fun for your dog. For this one, you need a bundt or cake pan, peanut butter, fruit, and flax seeds. It makes a much larger treat than the ice cube tray treats and will last your dog a lot longer.
Peanut Butter Popsicles
These peanut butter popsicles from the Humane Society are so easy to make. Just peanut butter, banana, and water will make a tasty frozen treat for your dog to enjoy in the heat.
Peanut Butter Jam Freezies
Pawsh Magazine has another peanut butter frozen treat for dogs. This one is made with just strawberries and water with a dollop of peanut butter on the top.
Broth-Based Frozen Dog Treats
Bone or veggie broth is great for the health of your dog. It is good for their joints and gut and provides plenty of nourishment.
Apple Broth Pup Pops
These pup pops from Frugal Coupon Living are so cute and a great healthy and tasty treat for your dog to cool off in the heat. They are made with just broth, apple, and water. You will even find easy instructions for making your own chicken broth.
Peanut Butter and Parsley Frozen Dog Treat
Damn Delicious has a great recipe with only 3 ingredients, broth, peanut butter, and parsley. So easy to make and the parsley is great for bad dog breath as well.
Recommended Reading: What is Causing Your Dog’s Bad Breath and How to Fix It
Dog Friendly Popsicle
This recipe from Oh Lardy is a nourishing frozen popsicle treat with loads of tasty flavors for your dog to enjoy. With bone broth, coconut oil, blueberries, grass fed meat, and an edible stick, your dog will find plenty to love about this cool treat.
Beef Crunch Dog Treat
Lola the Pitty have a very simple recipe with beef broth and ready made dog biscuits. So quick and easy to make if you already have these two ingredients on hand.
Other Frozen Dog Treats
Frozen Coconut Oil and Blueberry Dog Treats
Coconut oil is great for your dog’s health, especially their coat and skin. These frozen coconut oil and blueberry dog treats by Hello Nature are a great way to reward your dog with something tasty and good for them.
Peanut Butter and Coconut Oil Dog Treats
Live Laugh Rowe have another great coconut oil recipe. These frozen treats are so easy to make and use peanut butter for flavor.
Fresh Breath Dog Treats
While not frozen, these fresh breath treats from DIY Dog Mom are cold. With coconut oil and parsley or mint, these cold treats will help to keep your dog’s breath fresh as well as helping to cool him down in the heat.
Always use a good quality coconut oil for dogs in your recipes.
If your dog has a Kong toy you can also stuff this with your pup’s favorite food and put it in the freezer. This adds a bit more of a challenge for your dog to get to the treat, which is great for mental stimulation.
Recommended Reading: How to Tell if Your Dog Needs More Mental Stimulation
You really can just turn any food into a frozen treat for your pup. Plain yogurt, mashed pumpkin, leftover veggies, tuna, broth, or whatever else your dog loves.
Make sure you give your dog somewhere to enjoy his treat that is easy to clean, like outside on the grass or patio. They do tend to make a bit of a mess.
Make your dog some of these fantastic, healthy dog treats this summer and your dog will love you for it.
Recommended Reading: Best Cooling Pad for Dogs – Why You Need One and How to Choose
