Veggie treats
Frozen veggie treats are cheap and cheerful: they are also a healthy, hydrating, low-calorie, fun treat for dogs. At the same time very offer numerous benefits, from dental health to a healthy gut. Vegetables like carrots, celery, sweet potatoes and broccoli pack a punch with a range of essential nutrients that support overall health. What better way to use up cooked vegetables?
Flavour boost
One way of flavour-boosting these veggie treats is to take the vegetables used in a doggy broth (i.e. made without onions, salt and flavourings). Don’t slice vegetables too small when making a broth (be it beef, chicken or fish). For example, keep medium-size carrots whole and if using celery, just snap the stalks in two. In this mixture I also used sweet potatoes, scrubbed but unpeeled.
Once the broth has cooled, remove the vegetables.
Vegetables removed after cooking broth
Freezing
Now they can be sliced into bite-sized pieces, which are placed on a flat tray (not touching each other) and open frozen for a couple of hours. They can then be placed into a container and kept in a convenient place in the freezer, within easy reach to be given as a delicious treat.
Open freezing bite-sized pieces
You might find that some vegetables are a little too soft, for example the sweet potatoes. Once you have pulled the skin off (which is really easy to do), they mash quite easily and to prevent mess can be put into small moulds for freezing. Like these, which I froze in my repurposed chocolate moulds:
Ices made from broth-saturated vegetables
THE TASTING
Important Considerations:
- Always consult your veterinarian before making any significant dietary changes, particularly where there are pre-existing health conditions or dietary restrictions.
- If you are feeding commercial food, check the label for ingredients before giving more. Excessive intake of any foods can have adverse effects.
- Ensure (where possible) that you use high-quality, organic products specifically formulated for pets (or better still, human grade ingredients) to avoid any potential adverse effects.
- Introduce new foods gradually to avoid adverse effects such as gastrointestinal upset or diarrhoea.
- I provide nutritional information purely as a helpful guide. Nutritional information on ingredients is obtained from the US Department of Agriculture’s FoodData Central site (https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/index.html) and any nutritional information provided in recipes is based on an online calculator: calories and other information will vary based on brands, ingredients and other factors.
- Check nutrient levels and recommendations for your dog’s weight, age and activity. For example this nutritional guideline produced by FEDIAF.
- I am not a professional canine nutritionist but supporting research is cited.
- The recipes shared were created by me and tested in my kitchen – and tasted and approved by our doggy friends!