St. Patrick’s Day Dog Treats
Hello! This morning the 6 pack ate the last of their treats. Since I’m working on St. Patrick’s Day ideas for the blog, I figured I’d whip up some green treats for the dogs.
I had 1 bunch of spinach in the fridge, so I figured I’d start there. There are benefits to feeding your healthy dog spinach in small amounts. There are those who aren’t sure about feeding dogs spinach, so let’s break this down so you can decide.
Here are the two sides of the spinach controversy:
Pros: Spinach contains large amounts of vitamins A, B, C, and K. It also contains iron, antioxidants, beta-carotene, and roughage, which stimulate the digestive tract. Presumably, you feed your dog a healthy, nutritious dog food that contains everything he needs, but small amounts of spinach can provide benefits.
Cons: Spinach is very high in oxalic acid, which blocks the body’s ability to absorb calcium and can lead to kidney damage. There’s some science to back this up. Soluble oxalates, which contain oxalic acid, bind with magnesium and calcium in the blood, which limits the availability of these electrolytes. It leads to a low level of blood calcium, which can cause a sudden metabolic imbalance. Calcium oxalate is excreted through the kidneys and a large amount can cause kidney damage, even kidney failure.
Many sources agree that a dog would have to eat very large quantities of spinach to cause damage. Dogs that have healthy kidneys can easily process small amounts of soluble oxalates.
Since raw spinach is difficult for a dog to digest, I boiled it and then pureed it.
If you’d like to make these for your pooch, here’s what you’ll need:
1 bunch spinach
3 cups flour
3 TBSP olive oil
2 TBSP parsley
1 TBSP oregano
1 TBSP sage
1 egg
2 TBSP milk
1/4 cup water from boiled spinach
Ok. Let’s do this!
Preheat oven to 350°
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add spinach and allow to boil for 5 minutes.
Drain spinach, reserving 1/4 cup of the water.
Place boiled spinach into food processor and puree.
In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients.
Knead dough until a soft dough forms with the consistency of Play Doh.
Press dough out to approximately 1/4 inch thickness. Cut shapes with a cookie cutter or top of a glass.
Arrange on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from cookie sheet and allow to cool completely before giving them to your dog.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for one week. To keep longer, store in refrigerator.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day from me and the 6 pack!
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St. Patrick’s Day Dog Treats
Ingredients
- 1 bunch spinach
- 3 cups flour
- 3 TBSP olive oil
- 2 TBSP parsley
- 1 TBSP oregano
- 1 TBSP sage
- 1 egg
- 2 TBSP milk
- 1/4 cup water from boiled spinach
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add spinach and allow to boil for 5 minutes.
- Drain spinach, reserving 1/4 cup of the water.
- Place boiled spinach into food processor and puree.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients.
- Knead dough until a soft dough forms with the consistency of Play Doh.
- Press dough out to approximately 1/4 inch thickness. Cut shapes with a cookie cutter or top of a glass.
- Arrange on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove from cookie sheet and allow to cool completely before giving them to your dog.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for one week. To keep longer, store in refrigerator.