Spent Grain? Make Your Best Friend Cookies!

[ndsgr]

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...

 

[brrman]

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

 

[Gremlyn]

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.

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...

 

[brrman]

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...

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

 

[schweaty]

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.

 

[dndlyon]

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!

 

[brrman]

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.

 

[WildGingerBrewing]

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!

 

[schweaty]

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!

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

 

[ibbones]

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.

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?

 

[ndsgr]

I have to freeze it so I can wait to cook it when the wife isn't around. She hates the smell of malt (brewing or baking). It's been worse since she has been pregnant.

 

[brrman]

Just let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Then measure as normal.

 

[Gremlyn]

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.

Mix in the new stuff with the old stuff to transition. Start with something like 75% old food, 25% new for a week, then bump it up 25% until they are eating the all new stuff.

 

[jonbomb]

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.

Wellness is a great dog food. Thats what I always give them. I switched them to the core brand though. My pit/chow chow mix had mean gas so my doctor thought it had way to much grain in the food so I switched her to a more meaty dog food with more protien.

I hope her gas doesnt get to bad when I make these treats....

 

[dndlyon]

Wellness is a great dog food. Thats what I always give them. I switched them to the core brand though. My pit/chow chow mix had mean gas so my doctor thought it had way to much grain in the food so I switched her to a more meaty dog food with more protien.

I hope her gas doesnt get to bad when I make these treats....

It's not a bad idea to have their bloodwork checked regularly if you are going to go to a high protein diet. Of our 4, we only have one that could tolerate it over a long period of time. I usually mix the Core with a bit of a more "mainstream" dog food - something with a bit more grain to make sure she gets the fiber (or I add pumpkin to her meals). Some dogs do best on high protein, but especially as they get older, this can take a toll on their kidneys, liver, etc.

 

[jonbomb]

Can I let them sit in a pot with the lid on overnight?? or maybe even a day or two before i do it?? whats the best way to preserve it because I dont have time till saturday night to do it.

 

[Grimster]

Heh, I let mine sit in the oven for days. I mean you're making dog food basically. Last I checked my dogs would eat raw cat **** without much argument, 4 day old spent grains I can't imagine that's gonna bother them.

Plus you cook them so any nasties that propagate in that time will be just that much more protein in the final product.

 

[jonbomb]

sounds good to me. in the basement in a pot they go!

 

[bad coffee]

they're gonna start to rot. Use them or freeze them. Plus, you're really not gonna like the smell in a day or so.

B

 

[pjcampbell]

for a few days, i would just put them in the fridge.

 

[jonbomb]

Ok When i get home from work I will throw them in a bag and freeze them.

 

[jonbomb]

It's not a bad idea to have their bloodwork checked regularly if you are going to go to a high protein diet. Of our 4, we only have one that could tolerate it over a long period of time. I usually mix the Core with a bit of a more "mainstream" dog food - something with a bit more grain to make sure she gets the fiber (or I add pumpkin to her meals). Some dogs do best on high protein, but especially as they get older, this can take a toll on their kidneys, liver, etc.

I don't no but we mix the core with this new dogfood chef michaels. I usually do get blood work taken regulary like every year.

 

[MetallHed]

Made these up for the pups. They love 'em! Thanks for the tip!

OT: One of my dogs found my spent grain pile in the yard. He ate quite a bit of it before the GF found out what he was eating. He had the worst beer farts today and his poop looked like a granola bar! I laughed my butt off! LOL

 

[indigi]

I brewed up a batch this weekend planning to make dog biscuits, but I didn't have a chance to get to it because the brewday went long with some complications. I saved four cups of spent grain in a sealed plastic bowl and put it in the fridge; will it be ok to use to make the biscuits this weekend, or should I toss it because of possible spoilage/mold growth/whatever? It's still pretty moist in the bowl.

 

[Grimster]

Well, if you don't see any mold I wouldn't sweat it.

 

[DrinkNoH2O]

I thought I was doing my dog a favor by making these things and he absolutely hated them, wouldn't touch them.

 

[ZehBaron]

I love this recipe; it gives me something to do while the wort's cooling, and my Bernese Mountain Dog can't get enough of them.

Of course, he also likes mulch, but I like to think these are tastier.

 

[billtzk]

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

I boil chicken so that it is thoroughly cooked. I pan-fry beef quickly to sear it and take the chill off it, but it is mostly raw. These are the two main meats my dogs have been eating now for a couple of years. I also give them boiled liver. For carbs, they prefer boiled white rice over everything else.

My dogs are old and they are chihuahua's so they don't eat much. I don't find it to be expensive to feed them. I buy meats at Costco, portion them into two or three meal portions, vacuum bag them, and freeze them. Then I just thaw out meat as needed. I feed them twice a day.

 

[Gremlyn]

I boil chicken so that it is thoroughly cooked. I pan-fry beef quickly to sear it and take the chill off it, but it is mostly raw. These are the two main meats my dogs have been eating now for a couple of years. I also give them boiled liver. For carbs, they prefer boiled white rice over everything else.

My dogs are old and they are chihuahua's so they don't eat much. I don't find it to be expensive to feed them. I buy meats at Costco, portion them into two or three meal portions, vacuum bag them, and freeze them. Then I just thaw out meat as needed. I feed them twice a day.

Have you tried frozen beef nuggets? My dog loves it when they're frozen, though she is much bigger and likely has a much stronger jaw than some ageing chihuahuas.

 

[billtzk]

No, I haven't tried those. I haven't actually ever heard of them. I'll look for them in the store. Are they breaded, or just plain meat like stew meat?

My girls love fried chicken tenders, fried boudin balls, and pizza bones, but those are all very rare treats, as I don't think that sort of food is really good for them.