There is something about the first chilly mornings of autumn that pulls us straight into the kitchen. The oven goes on, the windows fog up a little, and the whole house starts to smell of roasted pumpkin and warm oats. If you share your home with a dog, you know exactly what happens next: a nose appears at the kitchen door, a tail starts thumping against the cupboards, and someone settles in by the oven to supervise.
That cozy feeling is what this little cookbook is all about. We gathered our favorite fall dog treat recipes, baked every single one in our own kitchen, filmed them step by step, and put them together in a free printable PDF. No fancy ingredients, no special equipment and no complicated techniques. Just honest, homemade treats made with the best of the season.
Download the free Homemade Autumn Dog Treats cookbook (PDF)
Why we love baking for our dogs in the fall
Autumn is the most generous season for homemade dog treats. Pumpkins are piled high at the market, apples are at their sweetest, and carrots are cheap and plentiful. These are some of the most dog-friendly foods around, and for a few months of the year they are also some of the most affordable.
Baking at home also means you always know what goes into your dog’s treats. Many store-bought snacks come with long ingredient lists, added sugar, salt or preservatives. When you make them yourself, the list is short enough to read in one breath: pumpkin, oats, apple, egg. You can see it, smell it and trust it.
And honestly, it is just a lovely way to spend a slow weekend afternoon. Put on some music, pour yourself a warm drink, and let the oven do its thing while your dog keeps a very close eye on the proceedings.
Cheap and easy treats, made with what you already have
We wanted every recipe in this cookbook to be something anyone can make, on any budget, in an ordinary kitchen. Here is what that looks like in practice:
- Short ingredient lists. Most recipes use between two and six ingredients. The jelly bites need just two.
- Budget-friendly pantry staples. Rolled oats, eggs, apples, carrots, a little coconut oil and a spoonful of peanut butter. One small sugar pumpkin makes enough puree for several batches of treats.
- Make your own oat flour. No need to buy specialty flours. Blend plain rolled oats for 30 to 60 seconds and you have fresh oat flour for a fraction of the price.
- No special equipment. A mixing bowl, a baking sheet, parchment paper and a blender will cover almost everything. A pressure cooker helps for the bone broth, but it isn’t essential.
- Freezer-friendly. Nearly everything freezes well, so you can bake once and have treats ready for weeks.
A full batch of homemade treats usually costs less than a bag of premium store-bought biscuits, and you get far more of them. The training nibbles alone make more than 150 tiny rewards from a single baking sheet.
What’s inside the free cookbook
The Homemade Autumn Dog Treats cookbook is an 11-page printable PDF. Inside you will find:
- 5 autumn treat recipes, from soft muffins to extra-crunchy biscuits
- 3 homemade basics that form the foundation of every treat: pumpkin puree, dog-safe applesauce and chicken bone broth
- A real photo of every recipe, taken in our kitchen
- Clickable video links, so you can watch each recipe come together step by step
- Clear storage times for the fridge, freezer and pantry jar
- A “Before you bake” safety page with the ingredients to always avoid
- Printer-friendly A4 pages, one recipe per page, ready for a kitchen folder
Get your free copy of the cookbook here
The autumn treat recipes
Every recipe below has its own full article on our blog, with metric measurements, step-by-step instructions, tips and the video.
Pumpkin Apple Pup Muffins
Soft, moist and gentle on older teeth, these muffins are perfect for senior dogs, puppies and anyone who prefers a tender snack. Pumpkin, diced apple, eggs and oat flour come together in one bowl and bake in about 20 minutes. They are the kind of treat that makes the whole kitchen smell like a bakery.
Read the Pumpkin Apple Pup Muffins recipe
Peanut Butter & Pumpkin Pup-Rolls
These chewy pinwheels look impressive but need only five ingredients. A soft oat dough is spread with pumpkin and peanut butter, rolled up and sliced, so every piece shows off a bright orange swirl. Just remember to check your peanut butter label for xylitol.
Read the Peanut Butter & Pumpkin Pup-Rolls recipe
Pumpkin Bark-scotti with Carrot & Oats
Our playful take on biscotti for dogs. These firm, crunchy biscuits are baked and then dried slowly in the cooling oven, which gives them a satisfying snap and lets them keep for weeks in a jar. Grated carrot adds a little sweetness and color.
Read the Pumpkin Bark-scotti recipe
Mini Autumn Crunch Training Nibbles
Tiny, crunchy and low in calories, these nibbles are made for training sessions. Three ingredients are rolled into one thin sheet, scored into a grid and baked, then snapped apart into more than 150 bite-sized rewards. Perfect for a treat pouch on autumn walks.
Read the Mini Autumn Crunch Training Nibbles recipe
Savory Broth Jelly Bites
A no-bake treat with just two ingredients: homemade chicken bone broth and unflavored gelatin. They set into firm, chewy gummies in the fridge, and many dogs find them completely irresistible. A great option for dogs who prefer savory over sweet.
Read the Savory Broth Jelly Bites recipe
The three homemade basics
These are the building blocks of the whole collection. Make them once, freeze them in small portions, and you will always be ready to bake.
Homemade Pumpkin Puree for Dogs
One ingredient, oven-roasted, blended and strained. We show you which pumpkin to buy, why straining matters and how to freeze it in handy two-tablespoon cubes.
Read the Homemade Pumpkin Puree recipe
Dog-Safe Homemade Applesauce
Sweet apples and a splash of water, simmered for about 20 minutes. No added sugar, no preservatives and no risk of hidden xylitol. We also explain why every seed and core must go.
Read the Dog-Safe Applesauce recipe
Pressure Cooker Chicken Bone Broth
A gelatin-rich broth made without onion, garlic or salt, ready in about an hour in an electric pressure cooker. It’s the base for the jelly bites and a lovely warm topper for your dog’s dinner on a cold evening.
Read the Pressure Cooker Chicken Bone Broth recipe
Bake once, treat all week
The easiest way to enjoy homemade treats all season is to set aside one cozy afternoon for batch baking. Here is the rhythm that works for us:
- Start with the basics. Roast a pumpkin and simmer a pot of applesauce while the bone broth is in the pressure cooker.
- Bake one soft and one crunchy treat. For example, a tray of muffins and a sheet of training nibbles. That gives your dog some variety through the week.
- Freeze in portions. Spoon leftover puree and applesauce into ice-cube trays, and freeze muffins and pup-rolls in bags so you can take out just what you need.
- Keep the crunchy treats in a jar. Fully dried bark-scotti and nibbles keep for weeks at room temperature.
One afternoon in the kitchen, and your treat jar stays full well into winter.
A few safety notes before you start
Homemade treats are only as good as the ingredients that go into them, so please keep these simple rules in mind:
- Check every label for xylitol, also sold as “birch sugar”. It is highly toxic to dogs and can hide in peanut butter, applesauce and sugar-free products.
- Never add onion, garlic, salt, nutmeg, grapes or raisins, chocolate, macadamia nuts or artificial sweeteners.
- Keep treats under 10% of your dog’s daily calories, and trim meals a little on heavy treat days.
- Introduce new foods slowly. Start with one small treat a day and watch for any tummy upset.
- Talk to your vet first if your dog has diabetes, pancreatitis, kidney disease, food allergies or a prescription diet.
Download your free autumn cookbook
If you’ve read this far, your dog is probably already sitting by the oven. Grab the free cookbook, pick a recipe, and make this autumn a little cozier for both of you.
Download the Homemade Autumn Dog Treats cookbook (free PDF)
Want to see every recipe come together? Watch the step-by-step videos on the Husky Advisor YouTube channel.
Frequently asked questions
Is the cookbook really free?
Yes. The PDF is completely free for personal use. Download it, print it and keep it in your kitchen. We only ask that you don’t resell or redistribute it.
Do I need any special equipment?
No. A mixing bowl, a baking sheet, parchment paper and a blender are enough for almost every recipe. A pressure cooker makes the bone broth faster, but you can also simmer it on the stovetop.
Can I print the PDF?
Absolutely. The pages are A4 and designed to look good on a home printer, with one recipe per page so you can pull out just the one you’re baking.
Are these treats suitable for puppies?
Most of them are, once your puppy is eating solid food. Cut treats into small pieces, introduce one recipe at a time, and check with your vet if your puppy has a sensitive stomach.
Can I use canned pumpkin instead of homemade?
Yes. Plain canned pumpkin works in every recipe, as long as the label lists 100% pumpkin and nothing else. Never use pumpkin pie filling, which contains sugar and spices like nutmeg.
Happy baking, from our kitchen to yours.
These recipes are occasional treats, not complete meals. The information in this post is for general education and isn’t a substitute for advice from your veterinarian.
