That brings me to the topic of this blog post. As you know, Fuji loves peanut butter and is the Peanut Butter Eating Champion of San Antonio.
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| Peanut Butter Champion of San Antonio in Action |
Store bought pill pockets = $$$$
I looked around online and found a few recipes with complicated ingredients and found lots of unhelpful suggestions on what to hide the pills in. But I wanted something fast and not messy. Then I found this great, short and sweet recipe. I'll post it as an image here in case you want to share or pin to pinterest:
They work great! Fuji doesn't even chew them, just swallows them whole. Apparently they smell really good because the vultures (ie dogs) came out when I started making them.
You can also make them in larger quantity using the 1:1:2 parts. For example, this amount makes about 30 pockets:
- 1/2 cup Milk
- 1/2 cup Crunchy Peanut Butter
- 1 cup Flour
Helpful Hints
- In my experience, dogs prefer whole wheat flour to all-purpose, but they'll eat anything with pb.
- If your dog is allergic to wheat, you can use any kind of other flour you want.
- I like the chunky pb because then your dog won't be able to easily detect the pill forms hiding in the pocket. Although, with Fuji, not a problem since he didn't chew it.
- If your dog is allergic to dairy, you can probably use water.
- Store in the fridge a week or two, or in the freezer for longer.
Very simple ingredients that you'll already have at home. Stores beautifully. No mess. My favorite - Cheap
I give the homemade pill pockets 5 buttons up!
But don't worry too much! Most peanut butters are safe and your dog will love the pill pockets!
136 comments:
These were great! Thank you for this recipe! Greenies has gone to an all-natural formula that includes cultured milk, but my husband is allergic to milk. The allergy formula without milk is hard to find. I tried this last night using water instead of milk and creamy peanut butter and my dog gobbled up his pills! Using just peanut butter, sometimes he would spit out the pill, so this seems to be working better for us.
Thanks for letting me know the water substitution works. I find just peanut butter is messy, and yes, they do sometimes spit out the pills with it. I'm so glad they work well for you and your dog!
I made these yesterday and it works great.
I had to substituted gluten-free flour and it came out perfectly.
This recipe, even using expensive gluten-free flour, cost me about $4 for 60 pockets. I pay almost $9 for 30 regular pockets and have to use plain peanut butter for the wheat intolerant dog when he needs meds.
Thanks so much for this awesome recipe.
I'm so glad to hear than an alternative flour works just as well. They ARE soooo much cheaper!
Our epileptic dog take 33 pills a day; half of them are large capsules. Since these are spread throughout 4 dosing times in a day, we are able to combine multiple pills into a pocket, but it is still at least a dozen per day. I just tried these and my dog loves them. I happened to have a small amount of Trader Joe's Buckwheat Pancake Mix that I used instead of plain flour (added a little extra, too). At this rate we will be saving approx. $50 per month on medicine pockets. Since a spit out pill means a reduced dose, which can then lead to cluster seizures, I thank you for a homemade recipe that will help to ensure her pills are completely encased in "people food" thereby increasing our success.
Diane in Northern Calif.
It makes me so happy to know that my post helped you! That's fantastic that you can save that much money!
How are you forming them into the pocket shape? Roll them into a ball and stuff a pencil eraser end into the ball?
To form them, it really doesn't matter. However you can do it to get the pills hidden. btw, they don't actually look like that picture ;)
This recipe is FANTASTIC. My dogs been through three knee surgeries and we've tried everything to get her to take her medication. Just recently though, she's started to catch on to the pills in her food and won't even touch meat! We even tried the Greenies Pill Pockets, but she'd spit them out. I was a little iffy to try this because she's not the biggest fan of peanut butter, but she loves them. Thank you so much for sharing.
I'm so glad your dog likes them! I know that tramadol (for pain) is SUPER bitter, and one taste of it and dogs will be wary of whatever they associate that taste with, even meat.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for the pill pockets recipe - really, need I say more! On another note, do you have any relief salves for hotspots?
You're welcome, you're welcome, you're welcome! I do not have any hot spot solutions, and since I'm not a DVM, I couldn't give it to you anyhow. I just know keeping it clean and trying not to let them lick them will help them to not get infected, which is difficult to do. I hope you find a solution!
I've been using a similar recipe with my miniature dogs - just mix SMOOTH peanut butter with dry milk or non-dairy cream until its no longer sticky. I cover & refrigerate the whole mess, pulling out a small dab to surround the pill whenever its time... Even those HUGE fish oil capsules are scarfed down whole if coated (my guys turn up their noses if I prick to give in liquid form).
I'm a single male who never cooks, but lately I've been buying either steak or fish and throwing them on the grill. I bought some milk recently for some reason (I never buy it), and I have peanut butter because my 2 beagles, Sam & Sophie love it. Sam was acting strangely this past Saturday morning, and he wouldn't climb stairs or do anything that required him to put weight on his hind legs. Took him to the vet, and he has a disk that is giving him pain. Sophie is much heavier, and I suspect she hurt him unintentionally by jumping on his back. So anyway, I did a Google search for pill pockets, because I decided a long time ago to boycott Greenies because their products are way overpriced. I found this, went next door and borrowed flour, and just made a batch. Sam has to take 3 different pills for 2 weeks, and this is genius. He just swallows them whole, so creamy peanut butter did the trick. Thank you! Frankie in Charlotte.
I'll have to include in my directions that they're so easy even a man who doesn't cook can make them :). So glad they can help you. I'm also sorry to hear about your pup's back problems. When I did canine rehab, half of my patients had back problems. I'm glad that it's not more serious like paralysis. I did have a few beagle patients. Follow your vet's instructions, and keep Sam's weight at a healthy level. That will help to not put extra pressure on the spine. I know beagles love to eat! If you're looking for a low cal treat try green beans or carrots. They usually like one or the other. During the summer, you can try mixed frozen veggies as a cool off treat. Hmm, maybe this should be a post all on its own :).
I have a beagle bulldog mix with congenital joint problems and possible hip dysplasia, and she requires glucosamine pills daily. While she will eat them without the pockets, she loves some peanut butter. We don't usually have milk in the house but I substituted soy milk in its place and it worked great! Thank you for the recipe. BTW, she has been to the vet and she is not in any pain but she can't run or jump. She stumbles when she runs.
@Martina Weysham, I hope you read my blog post on Toe Grips. The can really help if your girl is slip sliding on the floor!
Thank you, thank you!! My husky was diagnosed with heart disease and now has three pills twice a day. She is the WORST at eating things she doesn't like. And the pill pockets are so costly!
Tried this today and worked like a charm! She ate them right up!! Sharing with all my friends!!
@ Anonymous with the hot spots. I have heard a ton of treatments for these but have only found one that really works. I clean the spot by pouring Hydrogen Peroxide all over the area- don't rub, and then blot dry. After that, I smear on triple antibiotic ointment. Most important, I cover the spot with a product called NeoPredef - an antibiotic powder. The powder seals the damp from the ointment. You have to get this powder from the Vet. It's not expensive. Many Vets will go for the "wet" treatments but with this method it has the antibiotic plus the powder to dry out the weepy hot spot. Hopefully, your Vet will listen to you when you ask to try this method. Good luck!
I was totally going to try to make my own recipe, so I'm really excited that this is already tried and tested! I didn't think about freezing them - I'm going to make a big batch!
Also, I just wanted to say that I'm really proud of everyone in the comments who takes SUCH good care of their pets. Hugs to you all.
Much easier to just stick the pill in a small piece of a hotdog!
Yes, while hot dogs are easy, they're not really good for your dog to eat every day. Some dogs have to take pills multiple times a day for long periods of time. Hot dogs are also more expensive. These pockets are not harmful if eaten frequently and they are super cheap to make. Once made, they're very easy to use, but to each his own.
Try some Vetricyn VF for the hotspots.
http://www.probioticsmart.com/pets/vetericyn-vf-wound-and-infection-treatment.html
Thanks for the recipe. I'll be trying it today. My dog cannot have any dairy while on doxy, so I think I'll try apple juice for the liquid.
I haven been buying the Greenie Pill Pockets for awhile now. With the addition of a new puppy and while both dogs are currently taking medications for kennel cough I was going through the pill pockets like crazy. I made these this afternoon and the dogs love them for a fraction of the cost. Thanks for the recipe!!!!!
I hope y'all don't make Greenies go out of business ;)
Thank you thank you!!! I am up at 1 am with a dog who has severe allergies, and anxiety. He re-started the steroid/antihistamine yesterday, but has worked himself into a frenzy licking and chewing. I was going to add water instead of milk in case dairy is a trigger, but instead I cut open two fish oil capsules and put them in. Personally, I think they smell terrible, but my dogs give them 2 paws up! (the other dog had to have one, just because. They were begging for them like treats!) Sorry so long... this got his medicine in no problem, plus fish oil, and it will save a ton of money! (maybe not as much as if I use water...)
I will also ask about the hot spot powder next time we go to the vet.
So happy to hear that my recipe is working for you. My dogs look forward to their daily fish oil pills. They're just all around good for them. According to another one of my readers, the water works fine as well. Have you tried a thunder shirt for the anxiety? Even though it's not thundering, it can be comforting, like swaddling. Good luck!
Thank you so much for this recipe! My poor Labrador has allergies and need to take meds everyday. The Pill Pockets are costly but we still buy them to prevent him from "cheeking" his pills.
Great recipe. Since it's best for dogs to avoid gluten and the casein in dairy, I used almond milk and rice flour with organic smooth peanut butter. They're dynamite human taste-tested! Thanks so much!
I just made these pill pockets and first formed them into balls then used the end of a small wooden spoon and made small pockets into them, will use them like the original pockets and put the pills in them close the end.
Just curious ... is that amount of raw flour okay for dogs? My dog needs medication twice a day. Does anyone know? Thanks!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I just got home from spending $8.99 on Greenie Pill Pockets at Petsmart. I'm so irritated by how fast the price has risen on these that I came home to see if there was a recipe and found your blog. I've saved your recipe for future use.
Thanks again!
Iris
My pet dog and one of my suggies just recently got out of an illness, and I had a hard time giving them medicine and feeding them in general. Dogs are quite choosy of their food especially when they're not feeling well. And while suggies eat everything, it's the exact opposite when they are sick. I had to use a dropper to feed them and it took a lot of effort, but I guess it paid off because they were well again after a few days of meds bought from the vet and some TLC. This post of yours gave me an excelent idea on how to face any future problem when it comes to giving medicine to sick pets. But I do hope they never get sick again. I hope you and Fuji are in good health this year. More power to your blog!
Priscilla Price @ thepetglider.com
hi becky i just made them for my 3 dogs and they love them well i give pills to my 2 old dogs and they like them thank you for showing me this
My Dobi has really bad arthritis in his left hip and is on pain meds. I had great difficulty making him take the pills. Yesterday I've prepared the above recipe and added a little bit of bacon grease. OMG, he absolutely loves it. Thanks so much for such wonderful idea.
Hi. How long can you store the pill pockets for? (How long do they last?). And how do you store them? (Do they need to be refridgerated?)
Sophie H, I could swear I put in the directions how to store them. So sorry. I've updated the directions with storage info. The fridge will work for a week or two, but the freezer will make them last a long time.
Thank you so much for doing what I've been wanting to do for some time. I do think Greenies is a good product, however, they have raised their prices so quickly & high, it makes it sort of a hardship for owners who have multiple ill pets especially when we find a copy so inexpensive & satisfactory. Thank you from the bottom of my heart & my three doxies.
You're welcome! And you're right, you're going to need cheap pill pockets for 3 doxies. They're notorious for back problems. 1 in 5 have it. I hope all yours are ok, though!
Those store pill pockets are ridiculously high priced and this is a blessing for those that have dogs that like peanut butter, unfortunately my dog doesn't care for it.
I'm going to do a search for something else, but if you or a reader have an alternate recipe, that would be nice.
Thanks so much for figuring out an inexpensive alternative to Pill Pockets. My dog Petey is on a maintenance dog of a mild chemotherapy in pill form which is costly enough without adding in the expense of store-bought pill pockets.
I was a little concerned about using raw white flour and whole mik for my dog and game up with these alternatives:
I substituted Carnation nonfat dry milk for most of the liquid whole milk. I also substituted Gerber's baby multi-grain cereal for the white flour. It still has a smooth texture and isn't "raw" plus the baby cereal has lots of vitamins. I still had to add a little liquid milk the form a smooth enough dough to work with.
I made enough pill pockets for a month. I shaped the pockets using the end of a chopstick, shaping the mixture around the end to form a capsule-shaped pouch. I put each pill pocket in several ice cube trays so they'll hold the shape and into the freezer they went. Petey and my 2 other dogs, Max and Roxy, taste tested and gave them 4 paws up (or rather 12 paws up)!
I am glad that everyone is able to customize this recipe to meet their dogs' dietary needs.
We rescue senior dogs, which mean lots of pills. All of our dogs started spitting out their Tramadol, which is really bitter, even when encased in pill pockets. This recipe is not only saving my sanity getting the dogs their meds, but a ton of $ too! All three woofed down their pills and didn't even know it tonight. Thank you!
Tramadol is really bitter. I'm glad the pockets are working for you. Be careful not to let the pills dissolve a little in the pocket or the dogs will associate the pockets with the bitter taste :P.
Thanks so much for the recipe. My poor service dog, River, has terrible allergies. The Greenies have stuff in them she is allergic to, but I still have been using them. It was the only way to get her to take her allergy meds!
I set her meds up in a planner box for the week when I set mine up. I'm a little leery of using the milk, because they will sit in the box all week. Think I will try the powdered milk variation.
Here I've been shelling out all this money every week for Greenies the last 4 years. It's also a 5 alarm emergency when we run out. Costco stopped carrying them.
Just the other day I thought SOMEONE must have a recipe online for these. All but yours were really complicated and called for weird stuff. Who has time to go to a health food store to get ingredients for dog food?
Thank you again in advance. When I actually make them, I will post a "review".
I did try to leave the pill pockets unrefrigerated, and they get moldy. I think it would be that way regardless of using milk or not. You could always put the whole pill box in the fridge!
I have to keep her medbox with mine, or I forget to give them. I made a huge batch in my stand mixer with the dough hook. I figured out 1/2 tablespoon of dough is a little more than each large pill pocket. My version of the recipe makes enough for 4 months. I put the big recipe in two week big balls, and stuck them in the deep freeze. I balled up the 1/2 tablespoon balls for the next 30 says, just like a bag of pockets would be. She eats it no problem. In fact, my 17 year old kept eating the dough! He wanted me to bake them into cookies! So far so good on keeping them at room temp in the pillbox.
My version:
2 cups peanut butter
2 cups dry milk
2 cups of vegetable oil
Put all ingredients in mixer with dough hook until it looks combined. Work dough into balls about 1/2 tablespoon.
SUCH a great trick!! Thank you so so much for sharing!
I've been using your recipe for over a year and it saves me so much money! Lord knows after yet another infection which results in a very big vet bill it's nice to save money on the pill pockets. :-)
My dog actually looks forward to her medicine and I like knowing what is going into her little body. Love this!
-Honey's Mom
PERFECTION!
SAVES MONEY and I can give a small "treat", (sans pill,) to the other two interested pups!
Thanks also to those who gave ideas about freezing. I'm making a 2-cup batch at a time but if they freeze okay... nice!
Just a FYI for your readers. I saw someone above say something about pancake mix.
It's important for people to know that baking powder is toxic to dogs in large amounts. The amount in pancake mix is probably okay, except that like dough, it will expand a bit and can cause a blockage in the intestines.
For this reason, plain flour and not any self-rising or mixes would be best.
Thank you for your recipe! Sorry to hear about your old dog. Have you though about laser therapy or acupuncture? One good turn deserves another.
Fuji is no longer with us :(. I do know about laser therapy and acupuncture. I am actually certified in canine physical rehabilitation. I did do some rehab with Fuji when he was alive.
Becky,
Thank you SO much!! I have 2 very spoiled Basset Hounds. I tried ever1wything over the years to get them to swallow medication. I no longer have any problem getting them to take pills is no longer a problem. The "Caspaw Cwew" says Thank You for sharing this with everyone.
Thank you very much! My dog went from needing the occasional bag of 30, to 1 bag of 30 per month, to 1 bag of 60 per week. You recipe is saving me nearly $100 per month.
It's saving so many people money, I hope that Greenies doesn't come after me! :)
Well, here is what I discovered. No matter which of these recipes I use, they are ok to set up in a pill box for the week. They DO NOT store well at room temperature in larger amounts. (Moldy grossness ensues.)
I make a big batch at a time. I separate them into 1/2 cup balls. I leave one ball in the fridge, and freeze the rest. I pull the one in the fridge out an hour or so before I ball them up. This system has been working well.
So sorry for your loss by the way. I had to go on antidepressants over the loss of our Rusty. Wish doggies lived longer lives. They are the sweetest creatures.
SO EXCITED to find your recipe! Our beagle takes seizure meds every eight hours and we go through pill pockets like crazy! I was just about to sign up for Amazon subscribe and save for Greenies when I came across your recipe.
Thank you also to MagnoliaSouth for the info about the baking powder - I didn't know that and only have all purpose flour at home; I don't want to take any chances so I'll head to the store before making them.
Thinking of also trying baby food chicken, beef or turkey in place of the PB for some variety.
Very excited to not only save money but also give her something without all those added ingredients.
Thanks sooo much!
Baking soda is harmful to humans in large amounts as well. It is a strong base (opposite of an acid) which can significantly change the pH of whatever it is added to (ie your dog's stomach). However, the amounts that are in the food humans eat, are also ok for dogs. If you think about it, generally a 1/2 to 1 teaspoon is used for a whole batch of muffins. So the amounts in such foods is minimal. I also brush my dogs' teeth with baking soda. I recommend not feeding your dog any human food until you research the effects they have on dogs. And PLEASE do Not feed your dogs grapes or raisins. I cup of grapes will cause a small dog's kidneys to fail. Always, when in doubt, ask your vet!
Anything with peanut butter will distract my dog. Using chunky peanut butter is a stroke of brilliance.
I am so excited to find this recipe! I do have a question though after a bit of introduction. I have a 100lb, 10 1/2yo great pyr with osteoarthritis who is now on 16-18 pills a day, which include the dreaded bitter tramadol and several capsules. She recently totally quit eating for 6 days and only last night started eating a tiny amount of food. I have had to force the pills down, alone or with lean turkey. Today she bit into a tramadol in turkey and that was it - tonight she won't touch it. NOW to my question - did you put more than one pill in a "pocket" at a time without the dog chewing? If so, up to how many. I can't give her 18 of these a day..or can I? :) Thanks again for taking the time to experiment and post the recipe for others!
First and foremost, always check with your vet to be sure it's ok. I think if your dog hasn't eaten for 6 days, but will eat the pill pockets, I'd say hooray that she's eating something! Given her size, she should be ok to eat more than a couple of pockets. Just watch how she tolerates them. Weight gain would be my only concern, but again, she's big enough to tolerate more of them than other dogs.
Beware, tramadol is very bitter and if it gets broken up into the pocket or she bites down on it, she's stop wanting the pockets. You may want to just put that one in something else. Good luck!
Thanks for the response! I went ahead and made some up and so far so good. She lives up to her name "Priss" - she has to see me take a bite (or pretend to) and then she gobbles them down. With the small capsules I pretty much mold the pocket around 3 and she takes it fine. I give 2 Tramadol by hand and the others I slip in LF cream cheese. Thankfully, the morning after I wrote my first post she started eating again. Not back to normal but close. I did call her vet and they said "whatever works" to get her meds down. Thanks again for the recipe!
I came across your recipe as I was looking for an all natural pill pocket for my little old girl (a 14-yr old Japanese Chin). I hope to be able to use this, but to find a way to vary it somehow. I just wanted to add that our (holistic) vet will not allow us to use peanut butter to medicate with as IT IS INFLAMMATORY. So if any of your fur babies have JOINT ISSUES, DO NOT USE PEANUT BUTTER.
Is it possible to bake these pill pockets so they are either chewy, semi- crunchy, or crunchy all the way? That way they would probably have longer shelf life
If your dog is allergic to wheat, you can use any kind of other flour you ... petsmartstepsdogs.blogspot.com
Thank you!! My Great Pyrenees is allergic to chicken and every flavor of Pill Pockets has chicken as the first ingredient. I have 1000 tramadol pills for him for his arthritis, hot dogs no longer working. This will be perfect!
Whole wheat flour is also better for dogs. My dog has allergies and he needs pills daily so I'm definitely going to try this out because pill pockets are expensive and the food he's being switched to doesn't have canned food which is what I've been using for his pills lately. Thank you
Just made these tonight. My dog was glued to me the whole time. I put them in the fridge to harden a little. I warmed the peanut butter and milk up in the microwave for two 30 sec sessions. The way I rolled them they looked like they had already been eaten. 😊
I will try them out tomorrow. Thanks for the recipe.
Thank you for this tip! My elderly dog loves them and it's so much easier to give her the bitter medication she must take in order to be mobile and enjoy life the way she should! I used brown rice flour since he has a wheat allergy! Love the tip about the chunky P'butter so as to hide the texture of the pill!
Thank you so much! My dogs medication for Cushings Disease is so expensive, I was thrilled to find a money saving recipe that my dog loves!
I noticed a comment on here about using hot dogs...be careful of using high fat products on a long term basis. it will cause problems. my cousin had a small ankle bitter, was using hot dogs/bologna for medicine and it cause major issues. the fat built up in the system and the poor dog ended up losing her eye -as in it basically exploded. her vet said it was from all the fat in the dogs system.
just wanted to say.. I found this blog and it is great, especially the pill pockets! Please dont stop blogging!! love it!
Thanks for sharing this, but I also just wanted to add a little something for thought......None of us wants to feed our animals any of the products from China, instead wanting foods/items prepared in the USA. As we all know, labor costs tend to be much higher in this country, meaning that our end costs as consumers will be higher. I have no affiliation with any sort of dog food company but cannot help but wonder if our attempts to create our own treats could ultimately have a devastating effect on the hard work and diligence in providing quality products by the Greenies company. We want high quality products and I feel strongly that we need to be willing to pay for them.....our deisres in this country for low cost items are one of the biggest impetus' in the growth of the super sized discount stores. I, too, used to have a giant breed dog who was on many medications daily and so used many pill pockets so I completely understand the need for some savings, but perhaps if we all still continue to support Greenies as well as supplementing it might be a good idea?
Thank you for an actual recipe--I have been mixing a concoction on demand with mixed results. I imagine there will be another flood of comments since I found this link on one of my daily blogs. I have read all the comments and wanted to share a few thoughts. When I needed to give pills to either of my dogs-- I would give a plain peanut dough ball to the healthy one and then give a medicated ball to the ailing one; and since neither dog wants the other to have something she didn't get, the medication gets scarfed down. However, since we lost our 15 yr old the other dog no longer has to compete for a treat. So this is what I do now. I make 3 peanut butter dough balls. The first is plain & she scarfs it down--there is no medicine taste so she eagerly awaits the next. The next has the pill. I give this to her while dangling the other one in front of her. With her eyes on the third one she scarfs down the pill. The third I give to her slowly so she actually chews it. It tastes good so tomorrow she looks forward to a repeat.
Crazy what d do for our pets.
@thouzndwords: While I would love to think that my little blog has the power to take down a company the size of Greenies, somehow I do not think that will happen. I can see what you're saying that you want people to support good companies, and that is up to each individual to do what they feel is best. I think that cost is only a part of the reason people use this recipe. It's my favorite part, of course.
Just remember, the fact that we can make hamburgers at home will never put McDonald's out of business. :)
@Anonymous (1/12/15): I love the idea of feeding them to everyone so that they all think it's a treat!
@M Jo: it's been so busy lately I haven't had time to make any new posts. But I will try to in the near future. I appreciate the love!
wow this is some thing really impressive. Lost and found
Hello Becky, and thank you so much for this recipe. My little dog just went on vetprofen as a 1-2 times daily regime. I want to make sure she always is feed treats or goodies so her liver and tummy don't suffer. This will make her happy. I can also try this with my other, (I'm not a dog), dog. I would like to start her on Glucosamine and she hates all meds or natural products. So here is to hopin.
Thanks very much for this recipe! My 15 year old Standard Schnauzer loves it. In no time at all, I made a large batch with ingredients already in my house. I had half a jar of peanut butter in fridge, so I added soy milk, and microwaved it in 20 second increments, stirring after each time period. I then added flour in teaspoon increments until I had the consistency I wanted. I rolled the "dough" between my hands (it doesn't stick to skin at all!) to make a log, and then simply cut the log into the size pockets I wanted. I spread out the individual pockets on a cookie sheet and put into the freezer to harden so that they would keep their shape and remain separate. Then I bagged them up, putting some back in the freezer for later use, and keeping a few days' supply in the fridge.
I didn't read the comments but physical therapy is available for dogs (look for canine rehabilitation practitioner) and there are 3 programs that certify. Additionally surgery can be an option.
Becky, thank you so much for this great recipe! Like everyone else, I was spending a fortune on Greenies Pill Pockets, and it never even occurred to me that I could make them until I stumbled across your blog. My dogs gobble it all down lickety-split, even with the dreaded Tramadol. I make up a big batch and use water instead of milk, don't notice any difference. They freeze beautifully. This is the best thing I've discovered in 2015 - thank you!!!
Y'all are so nice! Good to hear my post is helping people and their pets.
I just found your recipe and will be trying it because my 14 year old is now in medicine for seizures. I just wanted to let you know that my vet did lazer therapy on her for arthritis in her neck and she moves like a new dog. I don't know if this is something you could look into it not. It cost me $140 for five sessions. She is picky in her old age and won't eat store pill pockets. She loves pb so hopefully this will work.
Hi Stacy, you'll see in some of my other blog posts that I am a (no longer practicing) Certified Canine Physical Rehabilitation Practitioner. We didn't have a laser at the facility where I was, but I have had laser done on my own neck. It can speed tissue healing and reduce inflammation, so that's probably why you saw an improvement in your dog. I hope she goes for these pill pockets. I haven't had anyone turn them down yet!
I am making them as I speak. My little Pekingese keeps trying to take the older ones food that I put the medicine in. So I am crossing my fingers.
I made these tonight. I doubled the recipe (1 C p/b, 1 C milk, 2 C wheat flour). I rolled them into small balls and packaged them into 9 zip lock backs (9 weeks worth). Very easy to make and Mattie Lynn (Yorkie) loves them! Thank you, so very much, for sharing!!!
I ABSOLUTLY LOOOOOVE THIS. it works great my dog eats this with his medicine and doesn't even know it. he use to spit the medicine out if we used just peanut butter. but now he just gobbles it all up thanks for the recipe
Thank you for this recipe! My dog just got diagnosed with IVDD and he has never been good with pills, and seems to find them in anything I hide them in, so am looking forward to trying this.
Been having problems giving my dog his tablets for arthritis. We started hiding it in his food, but he soon cottoned on and now he's very weary of his dinners. Tried hiding in bread, but he tends to chew it and find tablet. Was running out of options. Tried this tonight and it was a success! Gobbled em straight down without chewing! Yay! Thanks for the idea, hopefully he'll carry of gobbling them down *fingers cossed*
I am a certified pastry chef from San Antonio we specialize in custom cakes and dog treats / cakes for us and our four legged friends. My wife found this recipe and we are excited to try thanks!
Please let me know if you come up with any improvements to them. They're pretty popular!
Our 3 year old pit bull came home after 5 days in the hospital. He swallowed a wooden skewer and had to have surgery to remove it from his intestines. He came home with 4 difference pills to take. I had a hard time trying to get him to take them. I finally find your recipe and its working! He loves the peanut butter. Thank you so much for posting.
I use turkey dogs too. I stock up when they go on sale for $1 and freeze them. So quick and easy!
Dogs will eat all kinds of things! I'm glad he's enjoying pill time. :)
Thanks for this... going to try it today. With three dogs ALL on medications for everything from allergies to anxiety, joint issues, and thyroid, Pill pockets get expensive very quickly (not to mention I just discovered that they are 9 calories each! No wonder my dogs gain weight when we use them!). One of our dogs with allergies just started on Apoquel, and while it is working great for him, it's also very expensive (about $75/month). I found one from last night that he spit out. He cant afford to not have them because of how bad his allergies are, and I can't afford for him to not take them after how much I paid for them! ;-)
I'm just now finding your post. I wonder if you have tried creating a recipe with chicken flavor or hickory flavor? My son takes care of the dogs meds but can't handle peanuts (super allergic).
@Hilary, definitely my recipe is cheaper than store bought, but the number of calories is probably the same. If you've got a big dog, it shouldn't be an issue, but if you have a tiny dog, then 9 calories means a lot. If your dogs have allergies and thyroid issues, their meds and/or conditions could cause the weight gain. Talk to your vet about finding a healthy balance that's acceptable for treating their conditions and keeping their weight from causing more issues. If you're not doing it already, I would measure out the food you give them (all day including treats and handouts). You'll easily be able to see what their caloric intake is that way. If the amount of food looks normal to you, talk to your vet about it. If it looks like a lot (in proportion to your dog), then cut back on treats, handouts, and possibly switch to a "light" dog food. Also, determine if they are exercising appropriately. Anxiety can be caused by pent up energy (or breed, or trauma, or lots of things). If their exercise and food intake are good, then definitely talk with your vet, since there could be something else going on. Always discuss any medical conditions with your vet.
@Anonymous, I have not tried any other flavors because the peanut butter is part of what gives the pill pockets their consistency. You may be able to find some sort of potted meat :P, or a semi-soft tofu that your dogs might like. You may need to add flavoring with broth, bullion, or something else, and play around with the recipe in order to get them to taste good, though. Most dogs LOVE peanut butter. The other thing you could try is for your son to wear gloves and a mask, if that's something that might help.
Thank you so much!My dog was diagnosed with IVDD and we are looking at a long long time of 3x daily pills. I also have senior dog that gets all kinds of supplements. I was on Amazon about ready to order a 6 pack of Pill Pockets and just decided to search for an alternative. when I came upon your blog. I was eager to try the PB recipe but had no flour in the house so I experimented with 2 different kinds of oatmeal and with chunky and plain PB. They both loved them! I made the batch into smaller "meatballs" and put them into fridge. I am grateful that people like you make it easier for me. Thank you!!
Thanks so much for this. I had the Greenie pill pockets on my shopping list today and was thinking I really need to find an cheaper alternative, the price is ridiculous when your dog take medication twice a day all summer for allergies. Matix used to take the pills plain, right out of my hand but that time has passed so I have to disguise them slightly now. I love your recipe and will try it tonight. Looks better than the cut up hotdog suggestion I saw elsewhere.
Thank you,
I believe information like this should be shared. I'm happy to help! :)
You should know I used your recipe and then added TUG to it. TUG is tumeric spice, coconut oil and cracked black pepper and watere mixed in certain proportions. One of our dogs who needs it the most just wouldn't take it. By using your recipe and adding 1 tablespoon of the TUG and mixing well we've had success. Now he eats it without fail. Thank you. You have no idea how glad I was to find this. If you want to see my post about it, it's on the Tumeric Users Group on FB. You have to ask to join but its a great site. I ghosted on it for months before I believed enough in the results to start myself, mom and our 8 dogs on it. Thanks again. You have been so helpful.
I have bad hips and used my last pill pocket this a.m. Getting in and out of the car and trudging to the store that has no electric carts is a real pain. In avoiding that dreadful task I found your blog. Eagerly copied your 3-line recipe and kept on reading. Wonderful suggestions. Didn't have flour but I had a box of hummus into which I had stuffed a small bag of hummus powder from the bulk bins at the health food store. Followed your recipe and just coated the spoon with EVOO then rolled it up in my hands. It is now resting in the fridge. One of my little ones was just diagnosed with Valley Fever. He'll be on ketokonezol (?) twice a day until who knows. I liked the baby food suggestion. My suggestion if people/dogs are allergic to or don't like PB, try almond butter or any other nut butter. Thank you, so glad I found you.
I think I love you, and I know my puppy does. These pill pockets saved my sanity. My pup was diagnosed with extreme allergies at 6 months of age. Kayla is too smart and knows when a pill is in her cheese, she'll spit out the pill and eat the cheese til we're forced to give her more cheese to take her meds.
Once I found your recipe in the following 6 months she's only spit one pill out, I didn't coat it well enough. This baby is the happiest dog ever and she gets a minimum of 3 pills a day, one of them is the size of the tip of my thumb. Without you there's no way I'd be able to get her to eat it.
Thank you so very much, for caring about your animals and giving me a better way to take care of my own.
Wow! Thank you so much for the kind words! I think I'm blushing. That made me feel really good. I'm glad to know that I'm making a difference for people. :)
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS RECIPE! I roll them out and cut small bits, keeping them in the freezer and taking out what I need weekly and storing them in the fridge for use. (The first batch I kept all in a glass baby food jar the fridge and they got moldy in little over a week.)
I have a 19 year old Persian male kitty who gets homeopathic and blood pressure rx pills daily that I've been using this recipe for and he LOVES THEM! Purrs like crazy as he gets them! ;)
Well, now we know that it's a hit with dogs *and* cats. :)
here is a list of PB which contain Xylitol.
(1) Go Nuts, Co., (2) Hank's Protein Plus Peanut Butter, (3) Krush Nutrition, (4) Nuts 'N More, and (5) P28.
There is a good article on it here:
http://www.preventivevet.com/dogs/is-peanut-butter-safe-for-dogs
Thanks for the tip! I've added that link to this post.
Instead of milk i always use chicken broth (which my dog loves!) they is a great recipe thanks!
Nuts 'N More peanut butter is soooooo good! That's the company that aired on SHARK TANK.
but it does contain xylitol, never something you want to give to pets, nor gum or alot of the wholefoods toothpastes.
Thank you for sharing this recipe - I made sure to pin it! I enjoy making homemade goodies for my pups, especially when they can save some $$$.
Just a quick FYI regarding allergies: Our pups are Boxer mixes and used to have ear infections, and ever since we started feeding them a raw diet they are cured of it! Their coats look amazing and their teeth are kept in great shape, too.
Thank you so much for the post! Feeding my dog Charlie his allergy pills has always been a struggle in my household. This technique and recipe has helped me out immensely in terms of time and headaches.
We'll see how this goes. Our chihuahua Harley was taking the pain Med okay but refusing antibiotics after oral surgery. I got thru 2 days disguising the pills before he caught on, and two more days wiping them bacon grease but not trying to hide them. Two days ago Dummy Dog tangled with (we think) a coyote, bit his back end and snagged a tooth in his rectum as Harley was escaping. Now he's stitched up BOTH ends and refusing all pills no matter what I try. Today he didn't want anything, food, water, treats, nothing. I made a batch of these pockets, adding a little bacon fat and beef broth that he loves. I gave him a couple with no meds, and didn't think he would take them. He wouldn't so I left them near his bed. And he did eat them. So far I've gotten both antibiotics and a pain Med down him, I hope this keeps working!! I'd hate to lose him now to infection. We spent more in a week on one 'almost-a-dog" than we have in 42 years on all our other dogs combined!
I always make peanut butter "cookies" for Sam and that's all this is, just not baked :) I like to add cinnamon too. Even with these, if there's too much of the pocket on the tramadol, he'll spit it out. He won't stop trying (good thing about a beagle sometimes) but he figures it out. I wanted to add some coconut oil to it, kind of in place of the milk and it totally changed the texture and it's a little messier to use but it also works for him. I wrap it around the pill, just barely covering it and he just swallows it down. I do hold up either version for him to take BEFORE he gets his breakfast... I think the coconut oil slides down even easier but just barely covering the other works too so there's no chewing. Thanks!
where do I find the toe grips post?
You can find the toe grips post at http://muttnut.blogspot.com/2012/10/review-of-dr-buzbys-toe-grips-for-dogs.html
In place of the flour, I use raw oatmeal. Place raw oatmeal in food processor and grind until consistency of flour. Great if pet has allergies to wheat. Instead of milk, I use Nirvana coconut water. Those of you using vegetable oil, pure coconut oil is a healthy choice and pets love the taste as well as the benefits.
I'm a vet tech and have never given so many poillas before... Is your dog that large? Or is it that hard to control? I would try to find out about different meds if not... Seems like more pills than food for the poor pup- sorry you have to do that, you are awesome dog parents for it too!!
Thank you so much for this post. I'm a vet tech so of coarse I always pick up the "hard cases" of dogs because I cant bare to see them suffer if I can afford to fix them with out too much cos-t to their quality of life. That being said, I have 3 dogs. Between them, they take 8-10 pills twice daily. Even with my amazing discount at work, I am still paying $50 a month for Pill Wrap ( like pill pockets but in a putty form). My oldest takes the most and she is very experienced in avoiding the pills. They will all take them in Pill Wrap but nothing else... I am going to try this tonight. If it works (probably will from the other comments), not only will you have saved me $50 a month, but also the stress of whether or not they are getting their meds since they all three need all of them in their full doses to get through daily life. Once again, thank you so much!!!
Oh my gosh!! THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH FOR THIS!! My huge yellow lab (120 lbs. and not overweight!! Vet says he's the biggest he's ever seen!) has had hip dysplasia for over 6 years, but has done pretty well with periodic Adaquain injections. Sadly this past spring, he started having problems and it wasn't his hips - his knees have deteriorated due to having to "pick up the slack" for his hips. He's been miserable! He has always been so great about taking meds, but not now! Our vet put him on tramadol and he digs it out of everything we put it in! I have a thing that looks like a syringe - you put the pills in it and inject them down the throat. He gags and gags until he gets them up! He's been in so much pain and I was going shopping for Greenies tomorrow. I decided to just google a home made version, and there you were!! I whipped up a batch and he took all three pills with no hesitation at all! And of course, all three of the fur babies had to get some and LOVED it, so I see happy pill giving experiences from now on!! Thank you, thank you, thank you - and Rufus says "DITTO"!!
My dog has seizures and gets 4 different anti-seizure meds (Phenobarbital, Keppra, Zonisamide, Gabapentin) at 4 different times during the day (all 4 at breakfast, 3 mid-afternoon, 1 at dinner, and 3 at bedtime). The dose of one of the meds requires 2 pills, so this is a total of 13 pills a day (it's been like this for years). I've tried just about everything possible to hide the pills in. Some things he'll gobble down like it's a real treat (peanut butter, cream cheese, liverwurst, lunch meat, meatballs, Pill Pockets, the solid Velveeta "brick", etc.) until he decides he won't eat it anymore. I will definitely try this recipe and hope that he likes it at least some of the time!
Thank Goodness for your recipe! I am in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and Greenies do not exist here. My dog developed kidney disease and didn't want to take his pills , much less eat anything. These pass
his test, Phew! He still has a long road to travel, as do I, but at least taking pills will not be part of the difficulty. Thank you !
I am so happy to hear that everyone is having such success with the recipe!
I just made them now with creamy jiff, whole wheat flour and water. They're in the freezer. Thank you SO MUCH for this recipe! I can't wait to try one with the next dose. He loved licking the spoon, so I'm pretty sure these will get a paws up:) I love the pill pockets, but the cost adds up when you have a sick pet, so this is great.
If you substitute with water, do you still have to refrigerate them?
You can always try it out an see, but I would guess that they'd still need refrigeration. Unless maybe the water were distilled, but even then, not sure. Who knows what's in the flour or peanut butter that might be activated by water.
Thanks so much for posting- this works great! Our 10 year old Great Dane is now taking meds for heart arrhythmia and hates them! He has eaten around them with everything except Greenies, but the pills are so large, even broken up, it was taking 8-10 Greenies a day, very expensive! Now I make a huge batch and refrigerate, it lasts about 2 weeks and he loves it!
I was trying to see if someone else commented this but couldn't find it. Do you have a recommendation for a substitute to peanut butter?
Hi Stephanie, you could probably try another kind of nut butter if there's a peanut allergy. Something like hazelnut butter, just make sure there's no chocolate in it.
Great idea! Thank you! Sorry if this has already been asked and I missed it in the thread- how long will these keep in the refrigerator? The freezer?
Thank you!
Do these actually need to be refrigerated? When my dog is boarded I need something for the attendants to administer his pill in and it needs to be something that doesn't require refrigeration. Thanks.
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