Spent Grain? Make Your Best Friend Cookies!

Dog poop is good conversation!

Brewing a Kolsch this weekend. Looking forward to making my Rot some treats!

Chloie LOVES these, just made them from a belgium I brewed today. They are still in the oven drying out now, but we took a couple samplers out for her.

chrislehr said:

I agree with this.. we raw feed our dogs.. because the existing food out there commerically available isn't really great for them.

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Wha???
I would love to hear some science or proof behind this comment, because all the literature and research that I have ever read would beg otherwise. I grant you can make a nutritionally sound BARF diet for a dog, but other than waxing philosophic, have yet to see it be in any way superior to some of the commercially available diets.

BTW, back on topic ... I still make these treats on a regular basis for my dogs, and they love them. I will probably be making extra batches to use as treats at my clinic as well as soon as I get a chance to brew again.

Roughage, fiber, good for everybodys digestive tract. Eat with extra liquid.

But its a lot of roughage, too much is probably no good. Would not want to get plugged up.

Question...I brewed Sunday and put a few cups of spent grains into a tupperware container so that I could make these the next day. Well, I got busy and it was Wednesday before I got around to it. The grain smelled rotten, like ass, very sour smelling. I threw it out. What would be the longest you would hold onto the grains before tossing them? Is there a better way to keep them aside from tupperware?

did you put them in the fridge?

Jason_Merritt said:

Question...I brewed Sunday and put a few cups of spent grains into a tupperware container so that I could make these the next day. Well, I got busy and it was Wednesday before I got around to it. The grain smelled rotten, like ass, very sour smelling. I threw it out. What would be the longest you would hold onto the grains before tossing them? Is there a better way to keep them aside from tupperware?

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If I'm making the treats in the next few days I'll just bag up the grain and keep it in my fridge. Longer term, I've had no issues with freezing the grain in plastic bags, it's always been fresh.

Same here. I typically don't want to bake the same day I brew (after spending 6hrs brewing/cleaning last thing I want to do is spend another 4 hours making several batches of dog treats). I dry mine out a little bit in the oven before storing. Then I separate into gallon bags. 1 bag goes in the fridge, the rest are frozen. The fridge bag is typically used within a week. Freezer bags can last months. Smart thing to give them the sniff test first though.

Well that's definitely where I screwed up then. I didn't put them in the fridge. dumb move on my part! I guess my Rott will have to wait awhile longer for some "beer" treats!

I brewed last Saturday and put the grains in a garbage bag...smelled like a$$ that night!

Jason - BTW, we are brewing tomorrow at 5:00 am so I will have 15 pounds of grains for you (Blonde Ale) if you want to make treats tomorrow! PM me if you want them (Or want to drop by and help with the brewing)

SWMBO is leaving town for the day tomorrow about 6:00 am or I would come brew this time. I have my 3 girls all day by myself! aarrrrggggghhhhhh Wish me luck. So I won't be able to come by. Soon!!! Thanks for the invite though.

Have a good brew.

We're brewing tomorrow and we're definitely going to try this. My parents' dogs will be the guinea pigs (I'm sure they won't mind though). I like the idea of selling them to local pet shops, too. Not something I can do on such a small scale, but breweries around here give their spent grain to wineries to place around their grape fields and keep the deer away.

SnallygasterBrewery said:

We're brewing tomorrow and we're definitely going to try this. My parents' dogs will be the guinea pigs (I'm sure they won't mind though). I like the idea of selling them to local pet shops, too. Not something I can do on such a small scale, but breweries around here give their spent grain to wineries to place around their grape fields and keep the deer away.

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Yeah, here's a great article for other uses for spent grain. It's fun and well received, but I'm definitely not quitting my day job any time soon

Dave
http://doggiebeerbones.com

AnthonyD said:

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Where did you get that bandana?

Cool thread! I didn't even think of using spent grains for bread but that should have been a no-brainer for me. I composted the contents of the steeping bag from my first batch (my herb garden loves it). Maybe I'll bake up a nice loaf of multi-grain with the spent grains from my next batch.

I would consider making doggie cookies but my little eskimo dog is already fat enough

I've been using mine for the rat colony I keep in the basement, they love a nice toasty spent grain cake made with some flour and whatever else I have lying around. The last one involved some breakfast stout specialty grains, some leftover eggdrop soup, and some leftover chicken noodle soup (in place of water) and some flour and some eggs (shells and all). Bake the crap out of it till it's nice and crusty and dry, it'll last for days before it gets moldy or anything, long enough to be eaten for sure.

Dr_Deathweed said:

Wha???
I would love to hear some science or proof behind this comment, because all the literature and research that I have ever read would beg otherwise. I grant you can make a nutritionally sound BARF diet for a dog, but other than waxing philosophic, have yet to see it be in any way superior to some of the commercially available diets.

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I'm a little disappointed that a vet would not at least acknowledge the potential benefits of a raw food diet. Where is the literature you're reading coming from? I find this Wikipedia article has some good references to read through: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_feeding

Grains are common source of allergy for dogs, and the very reason that sensible companies like Natural Balance and Solid Gold put of grain free and limited ingredient diet foods. I've not done a TON of research on the subject, but what I have read was enough to show me that feeding a dog or cat the big name brand foods is not a good idea. I stick with Natural Balance for the bulk of the food and supplement a few times a week with some tasty treats like raw marrow bones, raw beef, the occasional raw egg (shell and all), and some fresh veggies. My vet knows this and not only approves but supports it.

Think about it, we haven't forced dogs to get use to the food we feed them now through evolution. We've only started feeding our dogs the processed food available no for 60-ish years. Until the advent of commercial dog food the dogs got the meat bones/scraps and leftover veggies, which is what they were used to eating in the wild before we domesticated the wolf.

I've personally known many dogs that were eating bigger name brands dog foods that had bad allergies and once they switched over to limited ingredients food (no soy, wheat, barley, oats, etc) they allergies cleared right up. Dogs just aren't mean to eat and process things, like grains.

I'm not going to tell you to not feed your dog these treats, but if you notice the excessive scratching/itchiness, sores, weepy eyes, among others, then you may not want to feed these treat to your dog. As always, check with your vet when making big changes in your pet's diet!

Gremlyn1 said:

I'm a little disappointed that a vet would not at least acknowledge the potential benefits of a raw food diet. Where is the literature you're reading coming from? I find this Wikipedia article has some good references to read through: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_feeding

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The Dr. did acknowledge that a healthy diet can be created with raw food only. He was only questioning the statement that there are no adequate commercial foods available.

And for further reference it doesn't really bolster your argument to tell a professional that the journals they read are inadequate because you have a wikipedia reference that disputes them.

dantodd said:

The Dr. did acknowledge that a healthy diet can be created with raw food only. He was only questioning the statement that there are no adequate commercial foods available.

And for further reference it doesn't really bolster your argument to tell a professional that the journals they read are inadequate because you have a wikipedia reference that disputes them.

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That's why I asked for his literature; I'd like to see who sponsors it the research. And if you read my post, I didn't say read the article, I said check out the references for the article. That's how you use Wikipedia...you read the article and if you find something you agree or disagree with, check the reference provided to determine the validity of the information. And yes, you're right he did say you could make a BARF diet nutritionally sound, I guess I meant that I'm still surprised that more vets haven't jumped on the healthy food bandwagon for pets. Read this section of my end-all-be-all Wikipedia article (and of course check the references): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_feeding#Controversy

I may not be a 'professional' in the veterinary world, but I have spent a vast portion of my life working in biotech (and a lot of that was with animals no less) and got very good at reading and understanding literature, where it's from, the problems with the biases behind certain work, etc.

billtzk said:

I've recently been feeding raw beef and chicken to my dogs. They go nuts over it. And then afterwards they want a Milk Bone... go figure.

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Thats way to expensive for me. Do you cook the meat??

jonbomb said:

Thats way to expensive for me. Do you cook the meat??

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Nope, raw = uncooked.

hehe, I may just try this. Can give 'em to my mom for her dog and all of my friend's with dogs.

I will be trying this tonight with my grains from a Belgian Wheat I'm making. Belgian Biscuits!

I made some last Sunday and added another egg and some more peanut butter. They were much easier to cut than before. Our most recent addition had never had them before but she loves them now. Everytime she hears that can open she comes running into the kitchen.

Well, I've made two batches of these, and my snob of a dog won't eat them. Dirty little bast.

Gremlyn1 said:

Nope, raw = uncooked.

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The afforementioned dirty little bast has some health issues when we adopted him as a puppy. Skin problems, digestion problems, and horribly undernourished, so we were advised to avoid giving him kibble or other store bought dog food, and make our own. It actually worked out cheaper (he gets kibble now, albeit high end stuff mixed 2:1 with Nature's Balance rolls) than store bought food - although it did turn him into (as mentioned) a food snob.

ok now how do you think these would handle being shiped. i am in the military aqnd my dog lives with my parents now i just dont have the hart to take her from 10 arcers of fredom to my little back yard. but i would def like to make some for her. i no she likes spent grain( i dont no much she wont eat) in clouding a yogert lid and a sock.

My dogs love these things more than any other treat out there. I'll have to do a test to see if they will go for meat over these though.

I love the dog food debates though, they are hilarious. Precisely the reason I don't visit any dog forums anymore. I couldn't handle all the "I'm a better dog owner than you, because they eat better than my kids" crowd. Sorry, not spending $50 for a 10lb bag of food for an animal that will eat 3 week old unidentifiable carcass and cat rockets for dessert. More power to you if you do though!

ndsgr said:

My dogs love these things more than any other treat out there. I'll have to do a test to see if they will go for meat over these though.

I love the dog food debates though, they are hilarious. Precisely the reason I don't visit any dog forums anymore. I couldn't handle all the "I'm a better dog owner than you, because they eat better than my kids" crowd. Sorry, not spending $50 for a 10lb bag of food for an animal that will eat 3 week old unidentifiable carcass and cat rockets for dessert. More power to you if you do though!

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I cooked better for my wife and I than I feed my dog... and the Natural Balance food is $40-45 for the 28lb bag IIRC, and you can ALWAYS find coupons for $5!

ndsgr said:

My dogs love these things more than any other treat out there. I'll have to do a test to see if they will go for meat over these though.

I love the dog food debates though, they are hilarious. Precisely the reason I don't visit any dog forums anymore. I couldn't handle all the "I'm a better dog owner than you, because they eat better than my kids" crowd. Sorry, not spending $50 for a 10lb bag of food for an animal that will eat 3 week old unidentifiable carcass and cat rockets for dessert. More power to you if you do though!

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Well, when I used to make food for my mutt, I'd get one of those four packs of ground turkey from Costco (something like $12) and maybe the same money's worth of whatever veggies were on sale at the local store, plus a few cups of cooked brown rice. Basically, I'd lob all the raw veggies (broccoli, zucchini, sweet potato, spinach... like I said, whatever was on sale) into the food processor, put them in a giant pot (my old 5 gallon aluminium boil kettle, actually!) along with a little bit of beef stock, cooked that for a few minutes, let it cool, mixed in the rice and the meat, then just portioned it all up. A batch of food would last him about three weeks, and cost maybe $25. (He's a 55lb dog, used to get about a cup and a half of it a day, mixed with a little kibble).

*shrugs*

Guess I don't see it as any different than baking your own dog treats? I don't do it anymore, mainly because it was a pain in the backside and time consuming (not so much the making it, but the parcelling it out and storing it sucked), it turned my dog into a picky little fecker, and it kinda stank.

You should be careful when putting your dog on a BARF diet. Raw meats you buy packaged in the grocery store are meant to be cooked and therefore can contain parasites and bacterias that can cause salmonellosis among other things which normally are killed in the heating process. The longer the meat has been packaged the higher the risk. Dogs and cats are not immune to e.coli and salmonella, though tests suggest they may have better resistance than humans. The meat should be the freshest possible and thawed in the refrigerator, not out on the counter.

I raised my golden on a bones and raw food diet for the first year of his life and he was perfectly fine. I was very particular about what meat I fed him though. I gave it up mainly because of the time involved and the cost.

No one here is nearly as bad. I told them I was planning on moving to puppy chow after feeding some expensive food to them and they were miserable. I could hear the bubbly guts and they would just lay there. They were on it for a month, before changing them out for cheaper stuff. I got told to give them to someone who would love them and I was a terrible dog owner.

I don't feel too bad, since they act a lot better now and don't have nuclear gas anymore. My inlaws have always had long living dogs with no health problems and they have never bought anything except cheap stuff. Just never Ol' Roy. The 15 year old golden retriever could clear out the house with that, plus it caused *shudder* leakage...

Yeah that Ol'Roy and other el cheapo foods are nasty... the equivalent of feeding yourself Big Macs and Fries every day... see how you feel after a month of that.

There ARE real differences between the good food and the bad foods. However many ultra premium foods are not really much different than say IAMS, Eukaneuba or Purina Pro Plan. The amounts of filler, quality and cuts of meats (or often guts and hooves) all contribute to the selling price point.

But don't always listen to your vet either. My wife IS a vet and she is always complaining how so many of her colleagues push brands of dog food because its what the company reps drill into their head during vet school. The companies inundate students with free pet food, etc to get them to push their brand food when they graduate.

I am by no means an animal owner snob. We don't feed our dogs anything other than IAMS. I don't think the ultra premium is necessary, nor do I think the ultra cheap is very healthy. Though we do have one cat that is on "Hills KD" (low protein) for kidney health since he has bad kidneys - that stuff is amazing and I'm sure he would be dead by now without it.

This is a cool document regarding various ingredients in dog food:
http://www.grandadventuresranch.com/articles/ingredient_definitions.pdf

brrman said:

You should be careful when putting your dog on a BARF diet. Raw meats you buy packaged in the grocery store are meant to be cooked and therefore can contain parasites and bacterias that can cause salmonellosis among other things which normally are killed in the heating process. The longer the meat has been packaged the higher the risk. Dogs and cats are not immune to e.coli and salmonella, though tests suggest they may have better resistance than humans. The meat should be the freshest possible and thawed in the refrigerator, not out on the counter.

I raised my golden on a bones and raw food diet for the first year of his life and he was perfectly fine. I was very particular about what meat I fed him though. I gave it up mainly because of the time involved and the cost.

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I usually don't even thaw the raw foods. I stick mostly to raw steak from the grocery stores and buy some frozen patties specifically made to be dog food. My dog loves chewing them frozen...

Gremlyn1 said:

I usually don't even thaw the raw foods. I stick mostly to raw steak from the grocery stores and buy some frozen patties specifically made to be dog food. My dog loves chewing them frozen...

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awesome... lol. Good for the teeth too!

On the topic of food, I don't have much of a choice for our mini-doxie's. They will only eat Kibbles and Bits. Every time we try something else they go on a hunger strike! Experts aren't kidding when they say dachshunds are a very stubborn breed. I think I am going to try and switch them to the wellness brand next time we buy dog food. Hopefully they respond well to it.

So glad this came up on the "new posts" for today! I just brewed my first AG batch this week. The dogs wouldn't leave the spent grains alone! I think if one of them could have took off down the hall with the grain bag, I would have found her hiding under the bed with it!

Thanks for the recipe! Saves me the time of trying to put one together!

Our dogs go crazy for the grain treats. I freeze the spent grain a lot of the time cuz I don't have time to make the cookies right away.

My dog loves these things. And as we were making them for her, we ate a little and they're not bad. So we decided to drop some sugar in a batch and make some for us too. We didn't use enough sugar and the next batch will be better, but for the most part they were pretty good. These may not only be our "go-to" dog treat but also our "go-to" human treat!

Jason_Merritt said:

My dog loves these things. And as we were making them for her, we ate a little and they're not bad. So we decided to drop some sugar in a batch and make some for us too. We didn't use enough sugar and the next batch will be better, but for the most part they were pretty good. These may not only be our "go-to" dog treat but also our "go-to" human treat!

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I eat the batter when I'm making it as well. I've always wondered what they taste like with honey and brown sugar. Might have to experiment with that sometime soon

brrman said:

Our dogs go crazy for the grain treats. I freeze the spent grain a lot of the time cuz I don't have time to make the cookies right away.

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I was going to ask this very question if I could freeze grain and make the treats later.
My last brew, I scooped grains out of the mash tun adn put it back into the plastic bag they came in and places it in the freezer. When I get ready to use them do I just thaw them out and measure?