Wheat Free Pumpkin Dog Biscuits

After my oldest son's dog died, we ended up with Leo, a typical sassy, aloof cat. He has been a great addition to the family, but little man wanted a dog. So, I finally relented with a promise that we'd look for an older rescue dog after school let out. Well, that's not quite how it happened. A few weeks before the end of school a friend of mine posted photos of the cutest little puppy to her Facebook timeline. He was in need of a home. My friend is a foster for dogs and had been at the local shelter after hours to pick up a couple dogs that were going to foster homes when a man drove up with the puppy. His intentions were to drop the puppy off at the shelter. Did I mention the shelter was closed? So, yeah, he was dumping the little guy on the shelter steps with the off chance he'd be found alive in the morning. Like a puppy was just going to sit there until they opened their doors. My friend rescued the little guy and took him home, but couldn't keep him due to a house already full of dogs. You can guess where this story is headed. Yes, weeks before school was out we adopted a slobbery, energetic, uncivilized mess of a puppy, and we couldn't be happier.

Julius

His name is Julius, evidently taken from Paul Frank's Julius Jr. ( little man named him). He has chewed up more than one shoe left unattended. He sneaks off with the kids stuffed animals and hides them in his crate. He irritates the cat, though I think Leo secretly likes him. But what cat can admit to liking a dog? Julius loves to play fetch and go on walks. We even took him with us to South Padre Island, where he seemed perplexed by the never ending waves and loved frolicing in the sand.

At the Beach

I picked up some treats for Julius at our local pet store out of their bulk bin. There were three different kinds because I wasn't sure what he'd like. He ate the fresh breath minty biscuits, but wasn't totally sold on them. His favorite were the pumpkin flavored ones. I decided I could probably make them at home cheaper, while also making use of that darned dog bone shaped cookie cutter that has been sitting in the cookie cutter drawer untouched for who knows how long. Eons, maybe. So today little man helped me bake up a batch for Julius. And apparently, he approves. He gave me his sappy-eyed "please can I have another" look after gobbling up the one little man had given him.

Brown rice flour is easy for dogs to digest. Evidently pumpkin is supposed to be calming to their tummies too, though as I type this there is an uncanny smell wafting up from the dog sleeping at my feet, so I am unsure if that is true. But, then again, he's a living vacuum eating what ever food the boys drop on the floor so that might not be a fair assessment.

Wheat Free Pumpkin Dog Biscuits

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 2 Tbsp dry milk
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 2 1/2 cups brown rice flour

Preheat oven to 350. Whisk together pumpkin and eggs until smooth. Add dry milk, sea salt, and brown rice flour, combining with hands to form a stiff dough. Roll dough out on floured surface, 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick, depending on the size of your dog. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutter or biscuit cutter. Bake 15 minutes, turn biscuits over, then bake for 15 more minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely. Store in air tight container in the refrigerator.