A Year of Blogging: February 23, 2011

February 23 was 'Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day'. Do you sense a theme this week? Love Your Pet Day, Walk the Dog day, and Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day all in one week. As a human, I am not very fond of dog biscuits. But my beagles truly appreciate dog biscuits. Their favorites are Milk Bones- the ones that come in red, green, browns; and the marrow bone treats which have some sort of a meaty center. We recently started buying Blue Buffalo biscuits, which are all natural. We switched to Blue Buffalo food in the summer, hoping it would eliminate some of the skin problems the dogs had. It has helped them. They do like the biscuits, especially the ones that are about the size of my hand. They really enjoy the big ones! We have become more vigilant about the biscuits and treats we buy since the pet food recalls a couple of years ago. Now I read the packages, and make sure the treats are 'Made in the USA'. You wouldn't believe how many treats are made in China! I started worrying about that after the Avian flu in Asia. Of course, the best thing is to make their treats myself. I do that occasionally, but I just don't have the time. I make a peanut butter bone that they adore. It's whole wheat flour, natural peanut butter, and skim milk. There might be a couple of ingredients that I have forgotten. I have a dog bone shaped cookie cutter, and I usually make a double batch which makes about 100 bones. The dogs happily taste test them for me. I know they are good when they sit at my feet and beg for more. I am glad my dogs didn't know it was 'Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day'. They would sat in front of the dog cabinet all day (we have an old microwave cart in the kitchen that holds all the dog treats. As soon as I open the doors, there are two little noses pushing my hand out of the way to get at the goodies). I did give them each a bone today to make up for missing the day on the 23rd, and they are happy beagles tonight.