It’s holiday time again and I kinda like it. Lots of get-togethers, lots of food and lots of kids. Eh.. they’re okay to play with but what I really like is all the food they throw down. The little ones drop it and the big ones hand it over willingly, whatever they’re eating, even cookies. I know my mom is getting things ready to make cookies. She does it every year. She gives them away to everyone else in the family, but she gives me zero! And then all of a sudden I can smell it; she’s at it again.

Dad takes me outside and I am glad. My friends Blackie and Blonde Puppy are here. Whenever my friends come over, I am told to “PLAY NICE!” My mom and dad say I play rough. I just play hard, that’s all. I never hurt nobody. Mom opens the window and hollars, “Play nice.” But I can’t, so my friends left. Eh…. those two never stay long and I get a treat when they go home anyway; my dad says that’s because I stay. I know I’m not allowed to follow them when they leave the yard. He goes and grabs me a treat and I can smell Mom making her stupid cookies… not that I’ll get one.

After I eat my treat, Dad throws me the ball (that always makes me happy) I catch the ball and run my usual victory lap around the yard. Then Dad tries tellin’ me Mom’s gonna make me some cookies. Yeah, right! I had to wonder because she always likes to make chocolate and Dad says I can’t have it.

My mom’s always up to something and if it has anything to do with dogs, it usually spells trouble for me. But not this time. As soon as I walked in, she started letting me taste the cookie dough….!! Wow.. maybe Dad wasn’t kidding. Maybe she was making me cookies. Dad came in and they gave me a taste of the peanut butter, something I’ve never even tried before; (and why not? I love it).

Soon Mom’s got these cookies and it looks like they are for ME. We go outside and my friend Roxie comes over. Mom gives us both one. We like ‘em! They taste like peanut butter. Then along comes Blackie and Blonde Puppy again. I guess word’s out on Mom’s cookies. They even stayed and played a little longer this time. Meanwhile Mom says there is a reason I don’t usually get cookies. There are lots of things dogs shouldn’t eat. With the holidays here, it’s time to watch out that us dogs don’t eat certain things. Here are a few to watch out for.

A FEW THINGS DOGS SHOULD ALWAYS AVOID:

• Chocolate

• Xylitol – found in sugarless candy, some  peanut butter,

sugarless gum

• Cheese & dairy products

• Onions & Garlic – can destroy dog’s red blood cells-

too many or too often can lead to poisoning

• Raw Meat, Fish & Eggs

• Grapes & Raisins – said to cause renal failure in dogs;

kidneys can shut down. Find more at DogTime.com .

Peanut butter dog biscuit recipe

You can buy a dog biscuit shaped cookie cutter, shape them by hand at 1/4“ thick, or cut round cookies with a small drinking glass.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 cup oats

1/2 cup nonfat dry milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup peanut butter (Make sure it is made WITHOUT Xylitol)

1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon cold water

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 300°F. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets.

Mix together the flour, oats, dried milk, and salt.

Add the eggs and peanut butter, stirring well; mixture will become crumbly.

Add about 3/4 of the water; add more slowly until just enough so mixture becomes a workable dough.

Using a rolling pin, roll the dough about 1/4″ thick; use a small drinking glass or a dog bone shaped cookie cutter to cut biscuits. Collect and re-roll scraps of dough, until you’ve used all you can. Bake  40 to 60 minutes, depending on size of biscuits (cook larger biscuits longer.) Biscuits should bake until they are dark golden brown to make sure they are crunchy. Remove the biscuits from the oven, and cool before serving. Makes about 40 to 60 depending on size.

Store a week’s worth in airtight container. Keep excess in freezer.