I have always been a pet lover. I got my first cat when I was 2 years old and had her until I was 15. As a kid I also had gerbils (can’t count how many or how many the cat got) a few fish, a dog, a lizard and various toads we captured. That love of animals has extended into adulthood. When I was single and living in Chicago I had ferrets. Man, are those little creatures a blast! We used to go “ferret bowling,” sliding them down a long, hardwood floored hallway, trying to knock them into each other or various obstacles, usually socks. They loved it and would coming running back and wait to get slid down the hallway again. We often tired out long before the ferrets did. When I met my wife, she added her to cats to the household. Currently, our house is home to not only three humans, but 2 dogs, 2 cats and an aquarium full of fish. It makes for tight quarters, sometimes, in our small house, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

We try hard, to treat our animals well, and that means keeping table scraps and feeding them “human” food to a minimum. Of course we don’t always succeed and our 2 dogs have become pizza hogs, willing to do almost anything to get their grubby little paws on a slice or 2, or whole pizza. They have also quickly learned the joy of having a 2 year old around. She often walks around with food dangling from her hand that just screams to be snatched or she will often walk away from a bowl of snacks, leaving it unguarded, and in the dogs minds, fair game. As treats we usually try to give them dog biscuits (aka Milkbones), usually store bought, but on occasions we have made treats for them. Luckily the web is full of recipes for healthy dog treats. Just make sure that the recipes don’t include a lot of added sugar or salt, which can be unhealthy for dogs. The recipe below is one my wife found a few years back. We haven’t made them in awhile, but when we have the dogs go nuts for them. In fact, when I came up with the idea for this post it reminded me that it was time to treat the dogs to these again, besides I think the 2 year old would enjoy cutting them out.

Cheddar Dog Biscuits

1 cup boiling water
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup butter
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup milk
1 each egg, beaten
1 Tbsp. Sugar
1 teaspoon chicken or beef bouillon granules
2 1/2 to 3 cups AP flour or whole wheat flour

Stir together water, oats, and butter and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Add cheese, cornmeal, egg, sugar and bouillon to oat mixture. Add flour, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition, until a stiff dough forms. Knead dough for 5 minutes, adding more flour if sticky. Roll out to 1/2″ thick. Cut into desired shapes (of course dog bone cutter cutters are cute, but your pooch won’t care what shape you cut them into) and place on a greased baking sheet, 1″ apart. Bake at 325 for 35-45 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool and dry on wire racks.

While somewhat bland by our tastes your dog will love them. Heck, you might even like them too. They’re not bad, and they are definitely a good source of fiber. So go ahead and try one yourself!

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