We are letting you on our secret to getting our dogs to do anything! It is our simple, homemade chicken (can be any meat/fish you and your dog love!) jerky. We love these dog training treats because they are;
easy to make – one ingredient that can be prepped within 10 min, and you’ll have a month’s worth of treats!
healthy – uses lean meat with less fat, so this is good to give in large quantities
affordable – Not only is it healthy, but making chicken jerky at home will only cost you 1/5th of the price of buying them from a treat shop!
easy to break into little pieces/ easy to chew – making them perfect for training so you don’t have to wait too long between commands
less messy – dry treats are always less messy than wet treats!
Most of all, our dogs love it! We only use them during training, making it a special treat they won’t get bored of!
Preferably you will need a dehydrator to make this chicken jerky at home, but you can also use an oven. If you’d like to know our preference for food dehydrators read our previous blog post here. You can also replace the chicken with any muscle meat that your dog likes, options are endless!
Dog Training Treats Recipe
Ingredients
3 kg chicken breast fillet – or another meat or fish fillet of you/ your dog’s choice
You’ll also need a food dehydrator, oven/freezer / sharp knife/plastic, or silicon cutting board
Instructions
Leave the meat in the fridge for 1-2 hours, making it easy to slice into thin pieces.
Slice the meat into thin (3-5 mm) pieces using a sharp knife.
Lay the pieces flat on a dehydrator /oven tray with gaps between the pieces.
Preferably leave it to dehydrate at 70ºC for approximately 10-12 hours.
Alternatively, leave it in the oven at the lowest setting for 2-3 hours.
When the meat pieces are crispy, turn off the dehydrator and let it rest for 10-15 minutes.
Store in a dry place in an air-tight container for upto four weeks.
Dog Training Treats Recipe Notes
Note 1 – You can rub supplements such as turmeric, seaweed powder, Psyllium husk etc., to make it extra special.
Note 2 – Dehydrating time depends on the thickness of the pieces. If you have solar energy, leaving the dehydrator to run during day time will help save on electricity bill.
Note 3 -Dehydrated chicken breast can sometimes attach to the stainless steel dehydrator tray. Give a little push from the back of the tray, and it should easily come off.
Note 4 – Increase the shelf life by adding a food-safe desiccator packet into the container. Storing in the fridge can also increase the shelf-life; however, it can result in less crispy/chewy jerky overtime.
If you make these at home, let us know in the comments!
Woof!
