Homemade Dog Bones

by Christie
(South Africa )

Most commercial store-bought dog bones treats contain chemicals, preservatives and additives. I only want the best for my dogs, so I make all their own food and I make their treats for them too.

It's quick and easy to make homemade dog bones to use as treats. It's very cheap and it's much healthier for your dog. Besides, my dogs absolutely love them, so I can use them as rewards for when they're training.

Here's the recipe I use to make my homemade dog bones.

Ingredients

- 1/2 cup powdered milk
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/3 cup shortening or lard
- 1/2 teaspoon peanut butter
- 1 egg
- 3 cups wheat flour
- Bone-shaped cookie cutter (optional)

If you remember, turn on the oven before you begin to about 320-325F to preheat the oven.

Mix the powdered milk, water, peanut butter and softened lard (or shortening) in a bowl. Then add a little bit of flour at a time and mix it in with a wooden spoon. Keep adding more flour until the mixture turns into a thick dough. You might need to get your hands dirty towards the end and knead in the rest of the flour

Sprinkle some flour over your counter and when your dough is ready, put it onto your counter. Knead it into a ball shape and then roll it out until it's about 1/2 inch thick.

Use a cookie cutter to cut shapes into your dough. I use a bone-shaped cookie cutter, but your dog really won't notice what shape they are. You might even want to cut them into strips if you don't have a cookie cutter.

Put your dough shapes onto a cookie sheet that you've lined with wax paper and put them in the oven. You need to bake them at 325 degrees for about 40-45 minutes. Don't let them burn ;-)

You should store your biscuits in a paper bag so they don't build up any moisture and go moldy. They'll stay hard if you keep them in paper or even in a cardboard box, like an old cereal box.

These dog bone biscuits come out fairly hard, but they're good for your dog and they love the taste. It only takes me an hour or so to make a week's worth of treats for my dog, but it's worth it to know they're getting the best I can give them.