Are peanut butter dog treats safe for dogs?
The answer is yes, it’s a good dog snack if the peanut butter is the right kind.
Peanut butter is high in protein, has no cholesterol, no transfats, and is a good source of niacin and folate. That’s why humans include it on their list of good energy foods.
Peanut butter dog treats – seashells made by Road Apples LV bakery:
If you are making homemade dog treats, grocery-store peanut butter is not the best way to go. Here’s why:
- It’s high in calories – 2 tablespoons have 190 calories
- It’s high in fat
- Commercial peanut butter contains high amounts of sodium (salt)
and has added sugar - It contains preservatives
Commercial brands are okay to use if you need to hide a pill for your dog, but the high fat, salt, and sugar content makes it unhealthy to use on a regular basis.
Good news! There is a relatively new all-natural product available to use to make healthy pet treats. It’s called peanut butter powder. These are the benefits:
- Peanut butter powder has more protein than regular peanuts (peanut butter powder is about 50% protein, and peanuts are about 25% protein)
- It is naturally low in fat – lower than peanut butter because part of the peanut oil is removed in the processing
- It is relatively low in carbohydrates
- It is gluten-free
- It stays fresher longer than peanut butter
- The peanut butter powder is easier to work with than peanut butter
If you are making a dough mix, the powder mixes well with your other ingredients and will not separate or clump. Organic peanut butter or all-natural peanut butter are both healthy alternatives but require quite a bit of mixing to blend the ingredients in the jar as the oil tends to separate from the spread.
