Organic Pumpkin Oatmeal Dog Treats

Happy New Year! My New Year celebrations were cut short by a lot runny poo-poo. 

My boyfriend and I returned from New Year's Eve fireworks only to find a very sad puppy sitting next to a pile of watery poo on the carpet. Maybelle kept us awake with diarrhea New Years Eve night and into the first few days of twenty-fifteen. We figured my dad or my brother-in-law snuck Mabelle some Christmas dinner underneath the table when we weren't looking. Or perhaps she got into my nephews' stockings. (Come to think of it, I did she her swipe an M&M off of the coffee table). Later  After awakening to the sound of puppy gagging in the middle of the night, we had finally found the perpetrator-- a chewed off fuzzy dog toy limb swallowed whole! The toy had upset Maybelle's digestion completely. Sorry for the grueling details about my dog's stomach issues, but I am sure most dog owners can handle the gross facts. With dog ownership comes gross poops and an array of weird things being ingested.     

For three or four days, my boyfriend and I tried just about everything to ease her stomach. We replaced her dog food with boiled chicken and rice (she hated rice), we had her fast for 24 hours, we gave her chicken broth one day, we tried cooked oatmeal (she hated it), and eventually we resorted to giving her Pepto bismol hidden inside of a piece of chicken twice a day. I realized she had to eat something else, and I could not keep going out to the store to buy chicken. Then I remembered what a wonderful digestive aid pumpkin can be after reading Home Cooking for Your Dog (A very handy Christmas gift from my Dad. Perfect timing, Dad!). Thankfully, I had an extra can of pumpkin puree lying around from making pumpkin muffins the night before. I gave a little bit of pumpkin to Maybelle on my finger, and she licked it clean. Pumpkin was my answer. I wouldn't say pumpkin cured her diarrhea, but it was another healthy option when we [at first] did not know the cause of her alignment. The following recipe came to be because of Maybelle's belly ache, but really these treats are good for any occasion.

WHAT YOU NEED AND WHAT TO DO:

• 1 15oz can organic pumpkin puree* 
• 2 tbsp organic honey
• 1 cup organic oats
• 2 cups organic whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp. baking powder
• 1 cup organic unsweetened soy milk 

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl, mix pumpkin, honey, and milk. Add flour, baking powder, and mix. Roll in the oats. Chill dough for at least 2 hours. For minimal clean-up, flour a piece of wax paper and scoop and handful of dough. Use more flour for less sticky-ness. Place another sheet of wax paper onto and roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Place on an un-greased cookie sheet and poke holes in the dough with a fork. Bake for 20-22 minutes. 

*Do not use pumpkin pie filling. It contains added sugar, and that is no bueno for dogs.

**Some dogs and people have soy allergies. You may use almond milk instead. When making this recipe, I used whatever I had in my refrigerator at the time.