3 Summer Dog Lick Mat Treat Ideas
Hey everyone! This post is originally going live right after Memorial Day weekend which means it’s officially summer and you all know what that means…summer dog treats! As if I needed a reason to make more healthy frozen treats for dogs, ha!
To kick off summer in the most fun way possible, I’ve created 3 new dog lick mat ideas, inspired by classic summer items, that make the perfect summer treats for dogs! You only need a total of seven ingredients (that you probably already have!) to make all three dog lick mat recipes and you can make them in minutes. See how to make one of my favorite dog enrichment ideas, dog lick mat recipes, below!
P.S. Are you new to dog lick mats? Make sure to check out one of my top-visited posts: 3 Easy Dog Lick Mat Ideas to learn how to get started!
Dog Lick Mat Recipe Ingredients/Tools
To make all three of these dog lick mat ideas, you’ll need the following dog safe ingredients and tools:
- 1-2 Strawberries
- Pure canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
- Plain Greek Yogurt (don’t get flavored yogurt, including vanilla, because of the sugar added)
- Handful of Blueberries
- Banana
- Dog Safe Peanut Butter (featured here is one of our favorites, Poochie Butter!)
- Dog Treats/Food
- Blender (I love my Ninja Bullet!)
- Lickimats (I’m using the Lickimat Buddy and Lickimat Soother in this post in both the regular sizes and XL sizes)
Dog Lick Mat Recipe 1: Bikini
Okay, I have to start with probably my favorite dog lick mat idea out of the three which is the summer bikini! Funny story too, when I was shooting these photos, all I wanted was a cute photo of me holding the dog lick mat in front of Annie so it would look like she was wearing it, but it was nearly impossible to keep her from licking it, ha! She ended up getting a bite off it so I had to remake part of it before I even got a photo. Here’s the funniest shot from that attempt because she looks so annoyed that I was barely successful hahaha!
Alright, now let’s make this healthy Lickimat recipe!
Step 1: Grab your pure canned pumpkin, piping bag, and your Lickimat Buddy (featured here is the XL Lickimat Buddy since it’s easier to make the full design).
Step 2: Fill your piping bag with 2-3 spoonfuls of pure canned pumpkin. On your Lickimat Buddy, draw one large triangle on the bottom half of the dog lick mat and two smaller triangles above. Fill in all of the triangles with pumpkin and connect the two smaller triangles with a short line (making the first string).
Step 3: Freeze for 15-20 minutes and play with your dog!
Step 4: Rinse out your piping bag, dry, and refill with 2-3 spoonfuls of plain Greek yogurt.
Step 5: With the piping bag, add polka dots (or any design!) wherever you’d like all over the orange pumpkin triangles. Then, draw the string at the top of the two smaller triangles to finish your bikini. Freeze for another 20-30 minutes or overnight!
Dog Lick Mat Recipe 2: Dog Popsicles
The second dog lick mat idea is to make dog popsicles but on Lickimats! The idea behind this one is to make whatever kind of dog popsicle recipe flavor you want on your dog lick mat, and I’ve given two ideas below.
Recipe 1: “Cookies & Cream”
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
- Crumps Naturals Sprinkles (1/2-1 tsp, view serving sizes on container)
- Treat stick or a few pieces of dog’s food (Featured here is one of our favorites from Full Moon)
- Dog Safe Peanut Butter (Featured here is Poochie Butter)
Recipe 2: “Creamsicle:
- 1-2 spoonfuls of plain Greek yogurt
- 1-2 spoonfuls of pure canned pumpkin
- Treat stick or a few pieces of dog’s food (Featured here is one of our favorites from Full Moon)
- Dog Safe Peanut Butter (Featured here is Poochie Butter)
Note: My original Creamsicle dog popsicle recipe includes carrots too! You can easily add that in here and blend together or keep it simple with the two ingredients above!
No matter what recipe you make, the steps are the same!
Step 1: Create an outline of your popsicle oval on your dog lick mat using a piping bag (I’m using the regular Lickimat Soother for the creamsicle and the regular Lickmat Buddy for the Cookies & Cream).
Step 2: In a bowl, mix together your chosen flavor ingredients.
Step 3: Fill in your outline of your popsicle oval with your mixed ingredients on your dog lick mat
Step 4: Grab either the few pieces of your dog’s food or a treat stick, add a little dog safe peanut butter, and stick to your dog lick mat right under your popsicle oval to finish!
Dog Lick Mat Recipe 3: Beach Ball
Did I save the best for last? Paw-sibly! For this final frozen dog treat, we’re making the classic beach ball using four of our dog safe ingredients!
Pro Tip: Grab a baking sheet for this recipe if you have one. It’ll be much easier to transport to the freezer since liquids can make the Lickimat a bit heavy and uneven as you walk it over.
Step 1: Grab your piping bag and fill with 2-3 spoonfuls of plain Greek yogurt. On your dog lick mat (using the XL Lickmat Buddy), draw a giant circle. Then, draw two curved lines in the middle to create the lines on your beach ball. Freeze for 15-20 minutes and play with your dog!
Step 2: On a plate, mash a banana. Grab your Lickimat Buddy from the freezer and in the middle section, fill in with your mashed banana.
Step 3: Chop up your strawberries or grab your handful of blueberries and add to your blender with a splash or two of water and blend.
Step 4: On either side of the mashed banana, fill in your blended strawberries or blueberries. I recommend using a spoon here to fill in to keep the mess at bay!
Step 5: Repeat for the other fruit you did not do first and freeze for 2-3 hours or overnight.
Which dog lick mat idea are you excited to make first? I definitely think I’ll be making the bikini again today, ha! Also, if you’re new to dog enrichment ideas and are looking for more information on what to put on a Lickimat, the benefits of lick mats for dogs and more, check out my healthy dog treats section! It’s filled with dog lick mat ideas, kong filling recipes/stuffing ideas and regular healthy treat ideas! Plus my dog enrichment ideas section has tons of DIY dog puzzle ideas and more to keep your pup mentally stimulated and happy!
Check out some of my favorite and most-visited dog lick mat ideas and healthy dog treats below:
- Benefits of Bone Broth For Dogs + Brutus Beef Bone Broth Dog Lick Mat Recipe (Learn the many benefits of bone broth for dogs + use any flavor for the recipe!)
- 3 Easy Summer Frozen Dog Lick Mat Ideas
- Dog Bone Broth Fresh Breath Dog Treats
- 3 Easy Dog Lick Mat Ideas
- Acai Bowl Dog Lick Mat Idea
- 3 Ingredient Yogurt Dog Treat Recipe With Lickimat Soother
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Photography: Kate Kelley Photo