Archive for August 2012

Vegetable patches all over the country are producing wonderfully tasty food this summer. We at Best Bully Sticks could not be more excited about the array of vegetables and herbs this time of year! Tomatoes, squash, zucchini and cucumber are just some of the wholesome food that you can grow in your own back yard, or find fresh in farmer’s markets! If you enjoy these summer eats, then include your dog, too!

Remember, your dog’s ancestors were wild animals who scavenged and ate fruits and vegetables readily. Sharing vegetables with your dog is a great way to add healthy, nutritious vitamins and minerals to his diet. Read more to find out which vegetables you can share with your dog.

Pumpkin
Not just for Halloween and Thanksgiving anymore, pumpkin is a great source of vitamins and minerals for your dog. Beta-carotene, which is a great source of Vitamin A, and fiber are two of the biggest benefits pumpkin provides your pup. Just like humans, dogs need a healthy amount of fiber in their diet to keep their digestive system “regular.” Boiling fresh pumpkin and adding to your dog’s food is a great way to bring this vegetable into your dog’s diet.

Sweet Potato
These orange root vegetables are another great source of beta-carotene, Vitamin A and dietary fiber. Sweet Potatoes are also full of Vitamin C, K, manganese and potassium. Dogs love sweet potato and whether it’s dried into jerky or mashed into their food, your dog will be getting a tasty treat with tons of nutrients! Best Bully Sticks has a full line of Sweet Potato dog treats that your pooch will drool over!

Squash/Zucchini
Squash is similar to pumpkin in its digestive benefits, but is also great as a raw crunchy snack too. This gourd veggie is full of beta-carotene as well.

Zucchini is full of beta-carotene, calcium, potassium and folates. Give zucchini slices to your dog raw or frozen for a great green snack!

Green Beans & Peas
Frozen or thawed, dogs love green beans and peas! Your dog will benefit from the plant fiber, Vitamin C & K and manganese in green beans.  If your dog is overweight or constantly seems hungry, green beans are a great food replacement and snack. These empty calorie beans are a great all-purpose, round the clock food for your dog.

Peas are similarly nutritious for your pup and can be added straight to your dog’s food as well. Peas are a great source of B vitamin Thiamin, phosphorous and potassium.

Cucumber
Instead of sneaking a crunchy chip to your dog, sneak him a crunchy cucumber! These great dog snacks are low in calories and have lots of good calcium, potassium and beta-carotene.

Baby Carrots
Like cucumber, baby carrots are a great crunchy snack for your dog. Carrots are chock-full of beta-carotene! Raw, cooked or cut into carrot chips are great ways to give carrots to your dog. An added health benefit of feeding your dog carrots is the breath freshening property! Read more

We've had a great week on the Blog! But, if you've missed the fruit, mutt, cookie, Sheltie action, catch up before Monday with all the great BBS Blogs!

So snuggle up to your favorite pooches (or pooches) and read the BBS Blog! Happy Weekend Reading! Click the links below to find out more about:

Fruits To Share With Your Dog • Why We Love Mutts 
Sweet Offal Dog Cookies • Shetland Sheepdogs

Scottish in origin, intensely loyal and loving by nature; the Sheltie is a great addition to just about any family! This “Miniature Collie” is an agile and highly energetic medium-sized dog that is a constant joy and surprise.  Read more about this dog in the Best Bully Sticks Breed Spotlight on the Shetland Sheepdog below!

History & Background: Like it’s larger counterpart the Rough Collie, the Shetland Sheepdog is a descendant of the Border Collie. However, unlike other miniature breeds, the Sheltie wasn’t developed by selectively breeding continually smaller sizes each generation. When Border Collies were brought to the Scottish isle of Shetland, they were bred with highly intelligent, long-haired, small dogs. Some of these breeds could have been King Charles Spaniels (not Cavalier), Pomeranians, and the now extinct Greenland Yakki. The first Shelties were more Spitz-type working dogs and then were bred with other Collies and taken to England.

When first developed, breeders called this dog Shetland Collies but Rough Collie breeders didn’t like the name association with their breed.  It was then this breed was given the name Shetland Sheepdog. The Sheltie was used as a herding dog, watchdog and general all-purpose farm helper. Shelties were first recognized by the AKC in the early 1900s.

Height: 13-16 inches

Weight: 16-20 pounds

Coat: A Sheltie’s coat consists of two layers, both very abundant with fur. The outer coat is long, straight and rough. The undercoat is fuzzy, downy and very dense, which gives the Sheltie have a puffy look. The outer coat is water repellent and the undercoat provides relief from temperature extremes. This breed does have a lot of frill and feathering, particularly in the form of a mane and on the fore and hind legs. Sheltie tails are thick with hair as well.  However, Shelties have smooth hair on the face, tips of ears and feet.

Color: There are typically three colors or combinations recognized for the Sheltie; black, sable and blue merle. Black coloring can be present with white or tan, ultimately making this tri-coloring. Sable coloring can range from golden to deep mahogany color, also combining with colors of white and tan. Blue Merle coloring consists of blue, white and tan in combination. Read more

If you don’t know what offal is, it might make you squeamish. Best Bully Sticks doesn’t want to gross you out, but offal is all of the parts of poultry, or any animal, that you take out of the bird to cook it. Yes, that means the internal organs. For instance, when you’re cooking a whole turkey for Thanksgiving, you take out the heart, liver, kidney and neck meat. It may sound strange, but these “leftovers” are actually great for making dog treats!

Lucy Norris proved this to us with her Organic “Sweet Offal” Cookies for Dogs. Lucy, author of Pickled: Preserving a World of Tastes and Traditions, and academic foodie, is also a very loving doggy mom. She also writes the BrinyLife blog to document her adventures with fresh foods. Her dogs, Cassius and Roxy are always pictured Lucy’s photos and always look interested in sharing whatever Lucy is whipping up in her kitchen. BBS came across Lucy’s organic recipe for cookies using the offal she saved in the freezer from her last Thanksgiving turkey. BBS is glad to feature Lucy’s original post for Organic “Sweet Offal” Cookies for Dogs!

I’m a dog mom.  That means that my dogs Cassius and Roxy are like children to me.  I cook most of our “people meals” at home but I’ve never made homemade dog food or treats.  We’ve always fed our dogs very high quality food so I never really felt it was necessary.

During a recent visit to Texas, my mom and I got to talking about a recipe for dog treats she created for her doberman pinscher Suzy.  Suzy had not been feeling well and was off her food, but she really loves my mom’s homemade cookies.  I decided today to make a batch of dog cookies.  It’s based on my mom’s recipe but I used all organic ingredients, and instead of store bought ground turkey, I used up the organic turkey offal that has been sitting in my freezer since Thanksgiving.  This cookie recipe is very simple to make, and most of the ingredients I had on-hand without a trip to the market.  The dogs were willing and enthusiastic taste testers so this recipe seems like a winner.

Ingredients
1 large organic sweet potato or jewel yam, baked and mashed (or a 15 oz can pureed sweet potato or pumpkin)
Offal from 1 organic turkey, baked and diced (heart, liver, kidney, neck meat- no bones!)
Handful organic Italian parsley leaves and stems (about 1/3 cup) roughly chopped
2 organic, free-range large eggs
3/4 cup organic old fashioned oats (I used Bob’s Red Mill)

Directions
1. Heat the oven to 350 F. 

2. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until ingredients are pureed. 

3. Chill the mixture in the freezer for about 5 minutes.

4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a small ice cream scoop, spoon out mounds the size of a heaping tablespoon and place onto the sheet -making sure the mounds are about an inch apart. 

5. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden brown on the bottom.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool.  The cookies will also harden as they cool- but not too much.  Depending on the size of your cookie sheet, you may need to bake the cookies in two batches.

6. Allow the cookies to completely cool and then transfer to a airtight container or baggie and store refrigerated.  Your dogs will thank you.

Makes 30 Cookies

Thank you to Lucy Norris at the BrinyLife blog for sharing her great recipe! And thanks to Cassius and Roxy just for being adorable!

Check out all the great Weekly Drool Recipes on the BBS Blog! Summer recipes are a-plenty every Wednesday throughout the season! Fresh Watermelon Salad, Bully Stick Popsicles and Blueberry Pie Dog Treats are just a few great summer recipes that are sure to please your pup this summer.