Dog owners swap Starbucks puppuccinos for homemade treat that drives pups wild

As we enter National Pet Month, celebrate your dog with some indulgent canine-friendly treats that look so good humans will want to eat them too

(Image: Clive Chalice)

Britain has always been a nation of dog lovers, but it seems that today’s pet-owners are taking their devotion to new levels. Pet birthdays are taking off – according to Moonpig, Google searches for “how to throw a pet party” soared by 75% in 2023.

And Pets At Home found that UK pet owners spend up to £1.1 billion on their animals at Christmas – with 43% of ‘grandpets’ receiving a gift from their owner’s parents. So how better to celebrate your pooch and its pals than with some doggie delights that take treats to the next level?

Nutritionist Justin Bland, the head of technical and new product development at baked dog treat brand Ruffingtons, says the key thing to remember when indulging your dog is to keep the portions small. “A guideline is that when you’re giving them treats you should be aiming for 10% of their daily calories,” he says.

Also, ensure you’re sticking to safe food, steering well clear of ingredients that are toxic to dogs. The list includes the sweetener xylitol, avocados, which contain a fungicidal toxin called persin; grapes and raisins; and chocolate, which contains the stimulant theobromine, which is dangerous for dogs.

A picture of a dog-friendly layered Celebration cake

The Celebration cake containing banana, peanut butter and mashed potato icing is the perfect centrepiece for a puppy party(Image: PA HANDOUT)

A picture of a dog looking at a cake stand loaded with dog biscuits

Take your dog biscuits to the next level by making them from scratch out of bone broth, oats and peanut butter(Image: PA HANDOUT)

READ MORE: Many dogs are allergic to the food we give them every day

“Fruit is a good option, anything that you can portion off, such as bananas or blueberries,” says Justin. But if you’d like to go all-out with a birthday bonanza, or the perfect pup party, here are some cakes guaranteed to make your canine howl with delight. All recipes should be served in small slices as a treat. Not suitable for dogs with special dietary requirements.

PERFECT PUPCAKES

Makes 12

Ingredients:

2 ripe bananas

2 tbsp unsweetened pumpkin puree.

150g (*Xylitol free) peanut butter

2 medium organic eggs

75g honey

100g wholemeal flour

50g rolled oats

125 ml water

Method:

1 Preheat your oven to 180C and line a cupcake tin with paper cupcake cases. Add the banana to a bowl and mash.

2 Add the pumpkin, peanut butter, eggs, and honey and mix together until fully combined.

3 Add the flour, oats and mix well, until combined. Add the water, a little at a time until all mixed in.

4 Divide the mixture evenly between the 12 cases, and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden.

5 Allow the pupcakes to cool fully before serving.

This layer Celebration cake looks good enough for humans to eat too(Image: PA HANDOUT)

CELEBRATION CAKE

Serves 18-20, small slices.

Ingredients:

200g wholemeal flour

1 ripe banana

1 small sweet potato, cooked and mashed

Half a large carrot, grated

2 tsp coconut oil, plus a little for greasing

250ml oat milk

1 medium organic egg

To decorate:

3 large potatoes, mashed

Ruffingtons Terrier Truffles to decorate

Method:

1 Preheat your oven to 200C degrees and line and grease 2 small cake tins with baking parchment. Add the banana to a bowl and mash, then add the egg, grated carrot, coconut oil and oat milk and mix together until fully combined.

2 Add the flour and stir into the mixture until fully combined. Divide the mixture between the cake tins.

3 Bake the cakes for 45 minutes to 1 hour until completely cooked through. (The cakes won’t rise much as there is no baking powder in the recipe.)

4 Once cooked, Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack. Whilst your cakes are cooling, make the frosting. Peel and chop your potatoes into pieces, then boil in a saucepan of water for 20 minutes until soft.

5 Drain leave to cool before mashing. Spoon half the mashed potato onto one of the cakes and sandwich together.

6 Then add the remaining mash to the top of the cake with a palette knife and decorate with Ruffingtons Terrier Truffles.

A picture of a dachshund wearing a bow tie sitting at the table covered in cupcakes

The secret ingredient in these dog-approved ‘pupcakes’ is pumpkin puree(Image: Clive Chalice)

A picture of a dog in front of a puppiccino treat

A mixture of whipped cream and pumpkin puree makes a ‘puppiccino’ (Image: PA HANDOUT)

BONE BROTH BISCUITS

Makes 24

Ingredients:

100g (*Xylitol free) peanut butter

4 tbsp of honey

1 tbsp olive oil

100ml chicken bone broth

2 tbsp of rolled oats

175g wholemeal flour, plus a little extra for rolling out.

Method:

1 Preheat your oven to 200C degrees.

2 Whisk together peanut butter, honey, oil and chicken broth until smooth. Add the flour and oats and mix until fully combined.

3 Add a little flour to your work surface. Turn out the dough and knead for a minute on the floured work surface, then roll the dough until it’s about 5mm thick.

4 Using a bone cookie cutter, stamp out the cookies.

5 Stamp out as many cookies as your cutter allows (roll up the leftover scraps and re-roll). Transfer the cookies to a baking parchment lined baking sheet.

6 Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes, until golden. Transfer to a rack to cool. Store them in an airtight container for up to two weeks.