Looking just like soft and sweet cookies, cranberry dog treats are the perfect homemade treats to make for your furry friend.
Perfectly festive and seasonal, homemade dog treats with fresh cranberries are a great way to include your fur baby in the festivities of the holiday season.
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Why This is the Best Cranberry Dog Treats Recipe
These little cookies are great holiday treats. If you are looking for Christmas stocking stuffer ideas, these treats would be great. Wrap them in plastic or put them inside a holiday treat bag and fill up your puppy’s stocking on Christmas Eve.
Benefits of Cranberries for Dogs
Cranberries have many health benefits for dogs. A little bit of cranberries goes a long way – it doesn’t take much to be good for them.
Cranberries are high in vitamin C (to boost their immune system) and are packed with antioxidants, to fight and prevent oxidative stress.
If your dog is prone to UTI problems, make them some cranberry dog treats for UTI prevention too.
Ingredients
The exact ingredient amounts and step-by-step directions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this article. First, I want to share some information about the natural ingredients I used in these cranberry dog treats.
You’ll need to use organic ingredients if you want to make organic dog treats.
- Uncooked Old-Fashioned Oats or Brown Rice – to make the flour
- Baking Soda – Adds a little fluffiness so the treats aren’t too dense.
- Egg – Helps to bind the dough and adds protein.
- Unsweetened Applesauce – Adds both moisture and a little sweetness.
- Coconut Oil – Healthy fat
- Fresh Cranberries or whole frozen cranberries (you’ll need to thaw the frozen ones).
- Unsweetened Dried Cranberries or dried cranberries made with unsweetened apple juice.
Ingredient and Recipe Notes
I use oat flour or brown rice flour instead of all-purpose or whole wheat so the treats will be gluten-free.
You can use almond flour, but it will add a lot more calories and fat to the treats. If you want to use some, it would be best to substitute half of the oat flour with almond flour.
You can use coconut flour but you will need to increase the amount of liquid or the dough will be too dry. Oat flour absorbs much more liquid than oat flour. Either increase the applesauce or add water or chicken broth to add moisture to the dry dough.
You can substitute coconut oil with olive oil. Melted butter is another option but only use it as a last resort. Read about dogs eating butter.
Equipment Needed
You probably have most of the kitchen items you need to make these homemade cranberry dog treats. You can use your favorite cookie cutters or ones shaped like dog paws or bones.
- Measuring Cups
- Large Bowl
- Rolling Pin
- Parchment Paper or Silicone Baking Mat
- Cookie Cutters for Dog Treats
- Baking Sheet
You can use a pizza wheel or biscuit cutter if you don’t have cookie cutters.
How to Make Cranberry Dog Treats
These are the recipe steps and some photos of the process for making the treats. I hope they help you make this healthy cranberry dog treat recipe.
- Grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
- Pulse the whole oats or brown rice in the blender or food processor to a flour consistency.
- Combine the flour and baking soda in a bowl.
- Place the egg, applesauce, and coconut oil in a small bowl.
- Stir the wet ingredients until thoroughly combined.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and use a spoon to mix them together.
- Add the dried and fresh cranberries and stir them into the dough.
- Place the dough onto a lightly floured surface.
- Roll the dough out to ½ inch thickness.
- Cut out shapes with your favorite cookie cutter.
- Gather dough scraps, re-roll, and cut until all the dough is used.
- Place the dough cutouts on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes.
- Transfer the baked treats to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
Recipe Variations
- Additional Fiber – Add a tablespoon of ground flax seed or chia seeds for extra fiber and health benefits.
- Blueberry Cranberry Dog Treats – Substitute half of the cranberries with organic whole blueberries and unsweetened dried blueberries.
- Peanut Butter Cranberry Dog Treats – Substitute applesauce with unsweetened creamy peanut butter. Make sure it does not contain xylitol, an artificial sweetener toxic to dogs.
- Pumpkin Cranberry Dog Treats – Substitute applesauce with pumpkin puree.
- Sweet Potato Cranberry Dog Treats – Substitute applesauce with plain mashed sweet potatoes.
Serving Size
How many dog treats should you give your dog at once? That depends on what else you gave your pet to eat that day. These cranberry cookies are a healthy treat, but it is still a treat.
Treats should not make up the bulk of your dog’s calorie intake, they should be something eaten occasionally, along with healthy dog food.
Dogs shouldn’t overeat too many carbohydrates – even healthy ones from cranberries and oat flour. For this reason, I suggest only giving your spoiled hound one treat daily.
How to Store
To preserve freshness, store these homemade dog treats in a container for dog treats. You can store your cranberry dog treats in an airtight container at room temperature, and they will last up to 7 days.
You can freeze them for up to 4 months for more extended storage.
A dog treat jar is best, so they are not mistaken for human treats. Here are some cute ones on Amazon:
- Metal Farmhouse Style Dog Treats Jar
- Rae Dunn Good Dog Ceramic Dog Treats Canister
- Clear Plastic Paw Print Air-tight Container
Can humans eat these cranberry dog treats?
Yep, everything in the treats is safe for human consumption. However, I doubt folks would enjoy them since they aren’t sweet.
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Popular Homemade Dog Treat Recipes
Do you want to make more treats for your dog? Here are some different ones to make:
- Banana Pumpkin Dog Treats
- Christmas Dog Treats
- Dog Carrot Cake
- Gingerbread Dog Treats
- Peanut Butter Dog Cookies
- Pumpkin Dog Biscuits
- Sweet Potato Dog Chews
Find more easy dog treat recipes here on Spoiled Hounds!
Want to get the best store-bought dog treats instead of making homemade ones? Check out these favorite dog treats on my Amazon dog treats ideas list.
Cranberry Dog Treats
Ingredients
- 2 cups Uncooked Old-Fashioned Oats or Brown Rice
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 Egg
- ½ cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- 2 tablespoons Coconut Oil
- ½ cup Fresh Cranberries
- ¼ cup Unsweetened Dried Cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper or silicone mat.
- Pulse the oats or brown rice in the blender or food processor to create flour.
- Combine the flour and baking soda in a bowl.
- In another bowl, combine the egg, applesauce, and coconut oil.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Add the cranberries and stir them into the dough.
- Place the dough onto a floured surface and roll it out to ½ inch thickness.
- Cut out shapes with your favorite cookie cutter.
- Gather dough scraps, re-roll, and cut.
- Place the cutouts on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Transfer the treats to a wire rack to cool completely.
Warning: some of the non-cranberry ingredients are not good for dogs prone to calcium oxalate bladder stones!