Fresh Breath in Time for the Holidays

    Fresh breath is important, even for our fur babies. If you dog's breath is horrific there's no need to worry! You still have plenty of time to get their mouths clean and fresh before your holiday guests start arriving!

Bayleigh is feeling festive already!

Fresh Breath in Time for the Holidays

    The holiday season is upon us. Turkey Day is just ten days away! Santa told me there are only forty two sleeps until his arrival. All of this means that for many of us, family and friends will be visiting. That also means your pets will be kissing the loved ones. You don't want them to have bad breath. So get them some Whimzees!

The Thirty Day Challenge

    We recently took part in the Whimzees Thirty Day Challenge with Chewy.com. This challenge is simple. Simply grab a thirty day supply from Chewy and treat your furry bff to one Whimzee per day. Honestly, after the first treat, you will notice a difference in their breath.

    That's because Whimzees aren't just a tasty snack. They're also yummy toothbrushes for dogs. While your canine bestie is chewing on their Whimzee, the treat is working to scrape unsightly and smelly tartar and plaque from their teeth. This nasty stuff is what makes their breath so foul. So, if they eat a Whimzee each day, their teeth are getting brushed. Wiping away all of that smelly gunk! 

Don't let Josie's stank face fool you! Her breath is super fresh!

They Don't Just Taste Good 

    That's because Whimzees are good for our fur babies too. They're made with limited ingredients, and the ones they do use are the best. These treats are gluten and grain free, as well as artificial color and flavor free. Oh and they're made using non GMO ingredients. We all want what is best for our children, even our furry ones!

So don't wait! The countdown in on! Head to Chewy.com and grab a 30 day supply of Whimzees. Your dog will love you for it, as will your holiday guests!

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Savory Beef Left Over Cookies

    If you follow my blog, you know I hate to waste. I try to use every bit of leftovers from our home. Whether it's feeding our dogs raw diets, or freezing them to use in pet recipes. Over the weekend, I created a new recipe. I took some savory beef scraps and drippings from a roast. I want to share this with you because my girls went bonkers for these and I know your fur babies will too!

Savory Beef Left Over Cookies

    Back home, our loved ones raise farm animals for meat. When we were moving, they stocked up our freezer with grass fed beef and pork. (We have amazing family!) Last week, I cooked up a hearty beef roast. I took the drippings from the crock pot and froze them, as well as scraps from the roast that we didn't eat. I knew these would make fantastic cookies for our dogs. Using just a few other ingredients that I had in the pantry, I whipped some tasty vittles. Are you ready to get started?

What You Need:

• Cooked Beef Scraps (I'm not one to measure when I cook or bake. My best guess was about half a cup of shredded beef)
• Beef Drippings (I used about a 1/4 of a cup.)
• 1 cup of Oats
• 1 cup of Flour
• 1/4 cup of Water
• 1/4 cup of Applesauce (unsweetened, but cinnamon in it is fine.)
• 1/4 cup of diced (cooked) green beans

PREHEAT OVEN to 400°

    Normally, I used my Ninja and blend up the meat and veg, however, that somehow ended up in the attic. I actually didn't even find it until Sunday afternoon. (Thank goodness because I love that thing!) So I just sliced and tore up the beef. Then I cut the green beans into smaller pieces.

    Add in the beef drippings, water, and applesauce. Mix well. Next you'll add the oats, and stir. Lastly, add your flour a little at a time. Once you get a thick dough, you're ready for baking. I lightly greased my cookie sheet. Then, using a tablespoon, I dropped dough onto to pan. (I didn't use the entire tablespoon, so if you want a measurement, I would say the cookies are about half of a tablespoon.)

    Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool, and let your fur babies enjoy! You can store these in the fridge for a week or so. Since there's no preservatives, I freeze mine. I take out a few each morning to thaw. They last that way for months.

Yields approximately 3 dozen

Dog Breath Stinks....Literally!

  I love my fur girls. However, I do not enjoy their stinky breath. Bayleigh loves to have her teeth brushed, but not Josie. To say her breath is horrid is putting it mildly. So what am I to do?

Dog Breath Stinks....Literally!  

Chewy.com asked if we’d like to take part in their Thirty Day Fresh Breath Challenge with Whimzees. To be honest, my fur girls already love Whimzees. Josie actually got her first one when she was spayed as her get well soon treat. When we saw how much she loved it, we started keeping them on hand, and when Bayleigh joined the family, she too enjoyed Whimzees.

Better Than a Treat

    Okay, so I knew they loved them. I also knew that they’re a better treat alternative than most. That’s because they don’t include Gluten. Which, for a dog with sensitivities like Josie, is a huge deal. Another reason they’re a better treat is because they’re made using all natural ingredients. Fur babies are part of our family, and they too deserve the very best.

A Tasty Toothbrush

    You may be asking, what do Whimzees have to do with fresh breath? Well, to answer your question, they have everything to do with nasty breath. Whimzees help to scrape tartar and plaque from your dogs (and cats) teeth. Those two things are what makes your pups breath wreak so badly. So, think of these treats as tasty toothbrushes for pets. They’re even shaped like toothbrushes which is pretty cool!

    Does your dog let you brush his/her teeth? Bayleigh loves to have her teeth brushed, but Josie refuses. She’s a sweet girl, but come at her with a toothbrush, and you’re risking your life! (Kidding….Maybe….) For that reason, I really wanted to take part in this challenge. I wanted to see if they helped Josie’s breath. However, whether or not your dog will let you brush their teeth, they can benefit from Whimzees. And besides, dogs love them. So you’re giving them a yummy treat, and cleaning their teeth and breath at the same time.

The 30 Day Whimzee Challenge

    For this challenge, I simply feed Josie one Whimzee Brushzee per day. Even though Bay lets me brush her teeth, she is still taking part, because it just wouldn’t be fair. I will check back in a couple of weeks, and let you know what we think so far. In the mean time, grab some Whimzees from Chewy.com and join us!

Turkey Cheeseburger Pet Bites

    I've been on a baking spree lately. It's been chilly and damp here in NEPA, so that's when I heat up my oven. My girls actually love this weather, because they know that treats will be coming their way. This week I created a new recipe. It's Turkey Cheeseburger Pet Bites, and my girls are head over heels for these goodies.

Turkey Cheeseburger Pet Bites

    I had fun creating this recipe. First of all, it used up some leftovers, and I love being able to "upcycle" foods because there's no excuse for waste. Secondly, these differ from the traditional fruit or veggie treats I make my dogs. Lastly, I had all of the ingredients on hand, which is super convenient. As I said, the main ingredient was leftovers I had in the fridge. Also, as a side note. When you're cooking meat for your family, save those grease drippings! I pour mine into freezer safe bowls, let them cool, and pop in my freezer. When it comes time to bake, I break some off, and then warm it up in the microwave. It's good for your dogs coat and skin, and makes for wonderful flavor. Remember, moderation is healthy, so you don't need a lot of it. (I save all of my red meat grease in a bowl, and all of my white meat grease in another.)

    With only six ingredients, these treats are simple to make, and easy on the food budget too. So let's get started with what you'll need.

Ingredients:

• 3 cooked hamburgers (I ground mine up in a food processor.)
• 2 jars of Turkey baby food (the small 4 ounce jars.)
• 1/3 cup of coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of grease drippings
• 1 cup of flour
• 1 cup of shredded cheese

    Preheat your oven to 400°. In a bowl combine ground hamburgers, baby good, oil and grease. Next, mix in shredded cheese. Add flour into bowl slowly, and mix well. Place mixture on cookie sheet by the rounded teaspoonful. Bake for twelve minutes. See? Easy peasy!

Ground up cheeseburgers make a tasty cookie base for pets.

    This recipe yields about 32 cookies. It will keep fresh in the fridge for about a week. So freeze some, and just defrost as they will be eaten. Josie and Bayleigh are head over paws for these cookies. We'd love to know what your fur baby thinks of them.

Chicken Chews for Your Furry Friend

    I created a new tasty recipe for my girls today. I have to tell you, they could barely wait for me to get them out of the oven and cooled! These Chicken Chews are a huge hit here and I know your fur baby is going to love them too!

Chicken Chews for Your Furry Friend

    My husband used to give me the weirdest looks when I was cleaning up from dinners. Any meat that wasn't super seasoned, I would grind up in my food processor. Then I would put it in containers and freeze it. I even do this when I'm packaging up bulk meat. I take all the scraps, and fattier parts, cook them, then blend the drippings and meat. When thawed, these ingredients make for amazing all natural pet cookies. And best yet, nothing is going to waste that you have spent your hard earned money on! 

    Today's recipe is Chicken Chews. The main ingredient is cooked chicken. I froze it in a baby food jar, and since it was packed so tight, that four ounces almost filled a one cup measuring cup. So that's going to be the bulk of these natural treats. Let's get the rest of our ingredients!

Ingredients:

• cooked and blended chicken
• 1 container of Apple Chicken Baby Food
• 2/3 cup of Kind Cinnamon Oat Granola Clusters
• 2/3 cup of Flour
• 2 tbsp Coconut Oil
• 2 tbsp Water

Let's Get Baking!

    Those are the only six ingredients you will need. Preheat your oven to 400°. Mix them all up in a bowl. Then spoon them out onto a greased cookie sheet. (I do about a teaspoon for each cookie.) Bake for ten minutes. I let mine cool and freeze them. Remember, there are NO preservatives in these natural treats, so their shelf life is short. You can store them in the fridge for a week, or months in the freezer. I just take two out each day for my girls.

Recipe yields about 3 dozen teaspoon sized cookies.