3 Easy Dog Lick Mat Ideas

One of Diesel and Annie’s favorite dog enrichment activities is to enjoy a healthy snack on their Lickimats! If you’ve never heard of a Lickimat for dogs, or what the benefits of a lick mat for dogs are, let’s get into that really quick!

There are many benefits of a lick mat for dogs, but some of my favorite are:

• Anxiety reliever
• Boredom buster
• Training aid
• Slow feeder

Now if you’re wondering what to put on a Lickimat, I’ve got you covered! The beauty of Lickimats is you don’t have to do anything complicated to create a great reward and experience for your dog. In this post I’m sharing 3 easy dog lick mat ideas that use items you most likely already have in your fridge or pantry!

Banana Dog Lick Mat Idea

With each dog lick mat idea, I’ll be sharing which Lickimat is featured and what size so you can have that for reference. I only have two designs right now (I want more, ha!) and the two smaller mats featured here come in a two-pack that I’ll link for you guys! 

The first dog lick mat idea is the easiest 1 ingredient dog treat, using Annie’s personal favorite, the banana! I chose to put this banana dog treat recipe on the XL Lickimat Buddy because I learned a super easy trick for getting this homemade banana dog treat perfectly smeared across the Lickimat for dogs!

Step 1: Grab half a banana and put it in the center of your Lickimat

Step 2: Grab a corner of your XL Lickimat Buddy and pull it across from one side to the other, smearing the banana in one direction. 

Step 3: Repeat this using the other corner to smear even more of the banana. That’s it!

If you want you can continue to use all four corners to really spread it across or you can leave certain areas a bit chunky. Your dog won’t mind either way, ha! 

Pro Tip: Create an added challenge and a longer dog enrichment activity by sticking any of these ideas in the freezer to create tasty frozen Lickimat recipes! Lickimat idea shared here also double as great frozen Lickimat ideas! I always stick mine in the freezer (especially in the summer!) so my pups can enjoy a healthy frozen dog enrichment treat!

Important Note: Don’t feed your dog the banana peel. Even though they’re not toxic, they are hard to digest and can result in a blockage. 

Pumpkin & Yogurt Dog Lick Mat Idea

The second dog lick mat recipe combines two tasty ingredients, canned pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix) and plain Greek yogurt! Make sure you’re always using plain yogurt because otherwise, regular yogurt has too much sugar (also known as Xylitol) in it which isn’t safe for dogs. 

Fun fact: Did you know that pumpkin is great for dogs constipation and upset stomach? Pumpkin has many health benefits for dogs, making it a fantastic healthy 

Let’s make this easy Lickimat recipe featuring the Lickimat Soother:

Step 1: Combine 1-2 spoonfuls of plain Greek yogurt and pure canned pumpkin in a bowl

Step 2: Grab your spoon and spread across your Lickimat Soother. This Lickimat design works really great for soft foods like yogurt, pumpkin, peas, etc.!

Like before, you can easily stick this in the freezer for 1-2 hours or overnight, making this a great frozen Lickimat idea!

Want to see these 3 easy dog lick mat recipes being made in person? Check out my YouTube video that shows how to make these Lickimat recipes plus some helpful information on the benefits of lick mats for dogs!

Blueberry Dog Lick Mat Idea

The third dog lick mat idea features another one of my dog’s favorites, blueberries! This blueberry dog treats recipe is also extremely simple and only requires one tool, a blender. 

This dog lick mat recipe is on the smaller Lickimat Buddy (This design holds liquids best in my opinion). Here’s how to make this healthy homemade blueberry dog treat:

Step 1: Grab a handful of blueberries and a blender (I use my Ninja Blender).

Step 2: Add your blueberries and 1-2 splashes of water to your blender (this helps everything blend well). If your blender isn’t blending easily, add a bit more water but don’t go overboard!

Step 3: Pour your blended blueberries across your Lickimat Buddy. Sometimes I use a spoon to spread around a bit, just don’t scoot it across the Lickimat too hard or you’ll have blueberry juice fly everywhere (speaking from experience, ha!).

Step 4: Place in your freezer for 1-2 hours or overnight and you’re all done!

This Lickimat recipe really works best as a frozen Lickimat idea because otherwise your dog will be slurping up and getting blueberries all over your floor.

Weren’t these 3 dog lick mat ideas super easy? Sometimes I think the words “homemade dog treats” can sound super intimating or give the impression that there’s a lot of steps that’s not the case! I love using my Lickimats as weekly dog enrichment ideas with Diesel and Annie and I love coming up with tons of new healthy Lickimat recipes for dogs!

Want to see even more easy dog lick mat recipes? Check out some of my favorite lick mat recipes for dogs below plus more of my favorite dog popsicle recipes, KONG filling ideas and more homemade frozen dog treat recipes like:

• 3 Ingredient Yogurt Dog Treat Recipe With Lickimat Soother (The perfect beginner lickimat recipe)
• Dog Lick Mat Idea: Halloween Night Sky Dog Treat
• Lickimat Buddy Recipe Idea: Halloween Frankenstein Dog Treat 
• Lickimat Soother Recipe: Fall Pumpkin Dog Treat 
• 3 Ingredient Homemade Pupsicle Recipe  (Super refreshing! One of my faves!)
• Peanut Butter, Yogurt & Banana Homemade Dog Popsicle Recipe 
• 3 Ingredient Dog Treat: Tropical Dog Popsicle Recipe 
• Frozen Yogurt Fruit Dog Popsicle Recipe (Perfect patriotic/Fourth of July dog treat!) 

Plus, don’t forget to check out some of my most recent posts below & subscribe to my newsletter to get more dog lick mat ideas delivered straight to your inbox:

Photography: Kate Kelley Collection