Homemade Pet Treats | Healthy Home Economist

How to make budget-friendly, grain-free treats for your pets at home with a few simple, whole food ingredients.

Pet treats are a must to spoil your furry friends, but one glance at the label of these products at the store reveals a toxic cocktail of ingredients and synthetic vitamins.

Fortunately, it is very easy and inexpensive to make your own at home.

The recipe I prefer to use contains chicken livers, which cost just a few dollars a pound at the supermarket.

They are also an incredible nutritional boost to your pet’s diet.

This is the brand I typically buy.

If you want to go gourmet, it will cost you roughly double the price at your local grassfed farm for similar cuts. I prefer to save livers from my farmer for my homemade pate.

Despite their finicky reputation, even cats don’t mind cooked chicken livers.

If yours still object, I suggest mixing a few pieces in with their regular food.

When it comes to dogs, most will happily eat liver… raw or cooked!

While raw liver is certainly best, I have not had much luck getting cats to accept it. Raw livers are also a bit messy to handle.

Cooking the livers improves the texture and makes the treats more appealing to cats.

The pieces are simple to store in a small container in the refrigerator for dispensing a few at a time.

Note that these liver pieces also freeze well for later use.

Homemade Pet Treats

How to make budget-friendly treats for your pets at home with a few simple, whole food ingredients.

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).

2. Heavily grease a stainless steel baking pan with tallow or lard. Set aside.

3. In a blender or food processor, combine the livers, eggs, and chicken broth (or water). Blend until smooth, forming a thick paste.

4. Pour the mixture into a well-greased baking pan. Spread evenly to about 1/4″ – 1/2″ thickness.

5. Bake for 30 minutes until firm and slightly dry to the touch. Do not overcook.

6. Let cool to room temperature. Cut into small, bite-sized pieces suitable for your pet’s size. The recipe makes about 100 small pieces.

7. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Freeze what you will not use in a week for up to 3 months.