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Energy Bunnies
Healthy Dog Treat Recipes
Healthy dog treat recipes, based on famous Cornell bread. This dog bread is as close to being dog health food as it gets! Early research to back nutrition for this recipe was done at Cornell U. You can make these healthy high energy dog treats at home. They are especially great for working or hunting dogs. You'll soon be adding this dog treat recipe to your healthy dog treats recipes collection!
Use different size cookie cutters
to get different sized Energy Bunnies.
For more homemade dog treats, including cakes and cookies,
see Sheri Fisher's
Treating Your Dog Right.
The Original Cornell Bread Recipe
The original Cornell bread recipe was developed by Clive M McCoy—who was a professor of animal nutrition at Ithaca, New York’s Cornell University. I found his recipe for healthy bread when I was looking for super nutritious foods for my growing family of 5 children.Like many of my peers during the 1970’s, I was a “health food nut”. It wasn’t in vogue yet for most people to seek out healthy foods or even to take food supplements. Our parents were still enamored with convenience foods and white flour! So most of us grew up without any knowledge of good nutrition. But the “hippie” crowd was a bit more knowledgeable about health and nutrition – and a bit eccentric. They were of my generation, and I was part of the organic foods movement then, even if I wasn’t a full-fledged hippie. When I found Dr McCoy’s recipe, it was like a dream come true for a young mother with a growing family. The bread recipe, which he originally designed to help people in the slums of New York get the nutrients that were missing from their diets, was almost perfect! It provided great nutrition and every one of my children enjoyed eating the homemade bread.
Results of Dr McCoy's Studies with Animals
Here is how the bread recipe was developed. In the late 1930’s Dr McCoy added soybean products, dry milk and wheat germ to the food that he gave to his laboratory animals, including over 40 stray dogs that he had adopted. He kept careful records about the health, weight gain, etc. of each of the animals.His tests (over many years) showed that his recipe--limiting calories but enriched with vitamins, minerals and protein—allowed the animals to live twice as long as he had expected. And they lived twice as long as similar animals under his care that were eating a “normal” diet. This last part was important because it showed that the animals were living longer, specifically because of the diet—not just because Dr McCoy had them in his care. In other words, it ruled out other factors that could have contributed to their longer life spans--like emotional support and TLC. Even though Dr McCoy's experiments took place a long time ago, their results are still significant. We can extend the lives of our dogs and keep them healthier--simply by feeding them better diets.
Dog Health Food
Healthy Treats for our Pets
In my search for healthy dog treat recipes, I rediscovered the original Cornell recipe. It seemed perfect for healthy dog treats! So I adapted it for ease of baking and to make smaller portions in the form of dog treats.In some ways, our version of the Cornell bread recipe is even better than the original recipe, which used unbleached white flour. We use whole wheat flour which adds roughage and healthy vitamins and minerals to the mix. In addition, soy flour (included in the original Cornell bread recipe) provides amino acids that are not present in either unbleached white or whole wheat flours. The two flours—whole wheat and soy--combine to yield a complete protein.
Healthy Dog Treat Recipes
So, if you’re looking for healthy dog treat recipes to supplement your pet’s diet, you’ve found the place. My healthy dog treat recipe for Energy Bunnies will add nutrients to your pet’s daily diet and you can give him treats without worrying that he is replacing his food with less nutritious foods. One last thing to remember—even though Energy Bunnies are really healthy for your dog, they are not meant to replace his regular diet. No dog treats are meant to do that. First and foremost, make sure that your dog gets a healthy diet daily. And then, and only then, you can use some healthy dog treat recipes to zip things up a bit.
Energy Bunnies
I make Energy Bunnies cookies in 3 sizes:Large Energy Bunnies are 5 1/2" across.
Medium Energy Bunnies measure 4" x 2 3/4".
Baby Bunnies measure 2 ¾” by 2 ½”.
Bunny cookie cutters are especially fun since there are so many variations. Your local Michael's or Ben Franklin store should have these at reasonable prices, especially around Easter or in the spring.
Energy Bunnies used as treats should help to keep your pet recharged for his next rigorous activity! Here’s the recipe…
Ingredients for Energy Bunnies Dog Bread
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dry yeast
- 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cups unbleached flour
- 3 tablespoons dry milk
- 3 tablespoons soy flour
- 3 tablespoons wheat germ
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 egg
- 1 1/4 cups water
Directions
- Place all the ingredients in your bread maker.
- Set the bread maker to the dough cycle.
- When the dough is finished, remove it from the bread maker and divide it into 3 parts.
- Roll each dough ball into a sheet that is ¼” thick.
- Using cookie cutters, cut your bunnies and place them onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.
- Bake the dog treats at 300 degrees F for 45-60 minutes. When they are done, they will be lightly browned.
- Turn off the oven and let the dog treats dry overnight in the oven.
- Store the treats in an airtight container. They can be kept at room temperature for about 2 months.
I hope you enjoy making this recipe from my healthy dog treat recipes collection. If you like it, why not share a link to my website with your friends so they can make my free dog treats recipes too?
Healthy Dog Treat Recipes to Dog Cookies
Healthy Dog Treat Recipes to Best Dog Treats
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