Dog Birthday Cake Recipe: Meatloaf & Veggies

Last week we celebrated Basil's 7th birthday and spoiled every last ounce of him with a homemade meatloaf cake complete with sweet potato frosting and edible toppings. This dog-friendly cake appears perfectly sweet from the outside, yet is made primarily from savory ingredients.

No-Bake Dog Treats: Sweet Potato, Peanut Butter & Oats

These sweet little dog treats are so quick to make, come together with three completely natural ingredients (peanut butter, oats and sweet potato) and require no baking time. They take shape well in most any silicone ice mold — our go-to choice is usually hearts in honor of showing our big guy a little love!

Pup In The City Natural Dog Treats Giveaway

Today we're excited to be hosting a giveaway for Pup In The City all-natural dog treats:

Pup in the City is an all-natural dog treat company specializing in American-made jerky, sweet potato chips and mongrelbread cookies that are all homemade, free from fillers, flavorings or preservatives and safe for both pet and human consumption. You gotta like that!

Natural Dog Treat Recipe: Peanut Butter Protein Bites

While recently dreaming up new recipe ideas for homemade dog treats (that's a thing, right?), it dawned on me that I could use our mini muffin mold to make little bite sized "tarts" with a peanut butter filling.

Natural Dog Treat Recipe: Frosted Peanut Butter, Sweet Potato & Oats

We're big fans of making homemade natural dog treats for our big guy around here. Not only is it a budget-friendly and fun activity, but it helps us know exactly what ingredients are going into Basil's food. When we recently got low on dog cookies and I needed to whip up a new batch, I thought it would be fun to come up with a new recipe combining some of his very favorite foods — sweet potatoes, peanut butter, oats and eggs.

Dog Birthday Cake Recipe: Basil's 4th!

Yesterday we shared our dog, Basil's, 4th birthday photo roundup post with a sneak peek of this doggie birthday cake we made for him. Yes, we made him a cake and yes, my dad texted me today after scrolling through yesterday's post to heckle me about how much we spoil the boy — and yes, Mary says bake Basil a cake and that is just what happens — no questions:

Dog Treat Recipe: Peanut Butter & Banana Smoothie Bon Bon Bites

In the summer months (who are we kidding, anytime really), our dog, Basil, loves a food frozen treat. We're big fans of making natural treats from home and today we're sharing our latest creation in hopes your pups might enjoy them as much as Basil does. These yogurt, banana and peanut butter smoothie bites make for a natural protein-packed treat your pup will appreciate during the summer heat. They are made with 3 simple and natural ingredients that are perfectly safe for humans to eat.

Frozen Turkey Dinner Natural Dog Treats Recipe

I don't know about you, but we've been seeing a few 100 degree days during this Richmond summer — you could call them the "dog days." Speaking of dogs, let's talk about cool summer treats you can whip up at home to help your favorite four-legged friend beat the heat.

Valentine's Pets: DIY Natural Frozen Dog Treats

In honor of Valentine's Day and our favorite four-legged family member, we pulled out the heart-shaped ice tray again this year to whip up some super simple and natural frozen treats. Peanut butter and Greek yogurt are some of Basil's favorite goodies, so we came up with this fun twist on the frosty paws recipe we like to make for him. What's great about these treats is how simple they are to make and store. They require minimal and completely natural ingredients, can be made in large batches to store in a freezer bag.

Our Dog Treats In American Lifestyle Magazine

Back in early spring we began working with American Lifestyle Magazine to recreate our natural carrot and banana dog treat recipe for their holiday issue. Now that the issue is finally on newsstands, we were so thrilled to see how it turned out and find a project spread of our own across the pages of a print publication! Basil even made a little cameo — can you spot him in the top right image up there?

How To: Make Spent Beer Grain Dog Treats Recipe

Basil appreciates a good brew day just as much as we do, but for his own selfish reasons — he knows he's going to get some fresh dog cookies made with the leftover spent grains from the brew!

Best Bully Sticks: Basil's Two Thumbs (paws?) Up

When Best Bully Sticks, a local dog treat producer specializing in all natural dog treats contacted us about sending some bully sticks especially for Basil to review, we (and Basil) jumped at the chance. The amazing folks behind Best Bully Sticks are also offering up a chance for one lucky reader to win an entire 25 pack of odorless bully sticks, so check back here on the blog tomorrow for the giveaway.

Homemade Peanut Butter Dog Treat Recipe: "Nana Treats"

Today we're back with a new homemade dog treat recipe that has consistently been one of Basil's favorites. They're his favorite because they're made with love and delivered by his Nana (Tim's mom) whenever she and Pop stop by for a visit — and they've got a little sweet side to them that we're sure he's nuts about too. Nana was kind enough to lend her recipe for the treats to us so we could take a stab and making them at home and share them here on the blog!

Apple Recipe Roundup

We're nearing apple picking season here in VA — this time last year we were planning a trip to Showalter's Orchard in the mountains of Virginia where we picked and brought home 2 bushels of apples.

How To: Make Natural Raspberry Peach Fruit Leather

I don't know what it is about those fresh little pints of raspberries from Agriberry Farm at our local Farmer's Market, but they always get me in the mood to make fruit leather.

How To: Homemade Frosty Paws Recipe

Hey guys, Basil here! In case you missed my guest post yesterday over on daddy's blog, the parents have kindly allowed me to double post here today with my homemade version of frosty paws dog treats.

How To: Plant Sweet Potatoes Indoors

As promised, we're back with a final indoor planting project for the week. Our kitchen window is beginning to get overrun with plants in various stages and we're loving it.

How To: Make Sweet Potato Dog Chew Treats

After making and sharing two variations of natural dog treats for Basil (apple treat recipe here and carrot & banana treat recipe here), we had a few requests for some gluten and grain free natural variations. We've pined here on the blog before over our love for Sam's Yams natural sweet potato dog treat chews, and this past weekend we tried our hand at making our own version.

How To: Carrot & Banana Natural Dog Treat Recipe

We decided it was high time to make another bulk batch of homemade natural dog treats for Basil. Our last batch of fresh apple treats ran out fairly quickly and we've been wanting to try something new. Not only can the recipe base we use allow for all sorts of natural ingredient combinations, it really helps us cut down on the amount we spend on natural treat varieties from the store (plus, we can't help but think they are a tiny bit healthier knowing exactly what goes into them).

How To: Homemade Natural Dog Treat Recipe, Fresh Apples

We've been wanting to try our hand at making homemade natural dog treats ever since we brought Basil home. We've even found a few treats we love including Whoofles and Sam's Yams — both very simple treat concepts we love giving Basil.