Name: Carrot and Catnip Kitty Cat Treats
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 17 min
Cuisine: Cats
Ingredients: 2 tbsp coconut oil (or olive oil); 1¼ cup flour (Plus additional flour for rolling); 1 tbsp dried catnip; ¾ cup shredded carrot; 1 large egg

One of the best ways to show your cat some love is to give them some treats. Not only are treats a great way to bond with your pet, but they also provide a sense of fulfillment and joy to pet owners as well, especially when prepared at home. Other times, owners prefer to make treats at home to have better creative control over what goes in their cat’s food (and eventually their tummy).

Fortunately, there are many simple recipes with short ingredient lists and easy instructions, so you do not have to spend hours away from your cat and in the kitchen. Here is a list of easy homemade treats for all kinds of cats. They'll be ready in no time, and you will be sure to score some brownie points from your cat.

Important: You should seek a veterinarian’s approval before incorporating these treats into your cat’s diet. Though these ingredients are generally safe for cats to eat, individual factors and underlying conditions may render some of them not safe for your cat. Treats are not a replacement for a balanced meal plan and should only comprise 5-10% of your cat’s total dietary intake.

Top 9 Homemade Cat Treat Recipes

1. Carrot and Catnip Kitty Cat Treats

Carrot and Catnip Kitty Cat Treats

This homemade recipe is a tasty delight for many cats. Carrots are safe for cats and offer some crunch, while the addition of catnip will leave your cat feeling happy and relaxed. This treat is pretty easy to prepare and uses common baking ingredients, so you don’t have to shop around for special ingredients. Feed your cat this delicious snack, and you’ll definitely receive a lot of love from your appreciative furbaby.

5 stars from 1 vote

Prep time

5 min

Baking Time

12 min

Total time

17 min

Equipment

Mixing bowl
Baking sheet
Fork
Rolling pin
Parchment paper

Ingredients

2 tbsp coconut oil (or olive oil)
1¼ cup flour (Plus additional flour for rolling)
1 tbsp dried catnip
¾ cup shredded carrot
1 large egg

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 375°F (190 °C)
Mix oil and 1 cup of flour in a medium bowl until mixture looks sandy.
Incorporate catnip and carrots.
Mix in the egg, and if the mixture isn’t holding together, add water a little at a time.
Sprinkle flour on a flat surface and roll the dough to a thickness of ¼ inches.
Use a fork to prick the dough all over.
Use a pizza wheel to cut the dough into half-inch squares.
Line baking sheet with parchment paper and place squares on the baking sheet.
Bake for 12 minutes or until the squares start to brown.
Let treats cool completely before feeding to cats.

Notes

Image Credit: Patrik Kraus, Shutterstock

2. Tasty Tuna Crackers

canned tuna on a plate — Image credit: Canned tuna fish served on the plate, Marco Verch Professional Photographer, Flickr, Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

If your cat’s a fish fiend, it will love this yummy recipe. It contains a good amount of tuna and has a nice, crunchy texture that your cat will obsess over. Best of all, it only contains four ingredients and does not contain any common food allergens.

It is also super easy to make, so you can quickly whip up a batch if you run out of cat treats. Just make sure to use canned tuna that’s sodium-free.

Ingredients

6 oz. undrained canned tuna
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
⅓ cup water

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (approximately 175 °C).
Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl.
Roll the dough into ¼-inch balls and place on a greased cookie sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes
Cool completely before feeding to cats

Please note that you should opt for low-mercury tuna variants. It is also best to substitute tuna for other forms of fish, if possible.

3. Three-Ingredient Salmon Cat Treat Recipe

Abyssinian cat eating a boiled chicken egg — Image Credit: Vladimir Zhupanenko, Shutterstock

This simple recipe is very easy to make and packed with tasty salmon flavor. It has a very simple ingredient list that only contains salmon, egg, and flour. The limited amount of ingredients makes this treat a great option for cats with sensitive stomachs.

You can cut these treats into easy squares and call it a day, but if you're feeling extra creative, you can use cookie cutters to give your cat treats in the form of fun shapes and different sizes.

Ingredients

10 oz. canned salmon
1 beaten egg
2 cups whole wheat flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (approximately 175 °C).
Put the canned salmon in a food processor and pulse until the salmon is in finely chopped pieces.
Combine the salmon, egg, and whole wheat flour in a bowl to create a dough.
Flour a flat surface and roll out the dough to about ¼-inch thick.
Cut the dough into bite-size pieces.
Place the dough pieces onto a lined baking sheet.
Bake for about 20 minutes or when slightly browned and crunchy.
Cool completely before serving.

4. Hairball Control Cat Treats

cat eating treats with its tongue sticking out — Image Credit: Daria Bondina, Shutterstock

This delicious homemade treat combines fiber and oil to possibly help cats pass hairballs through the digestive system more easily. It also contains pumpkin, which is known to be gentle on the stomach.

Despite the lack of preservatives, this recipe has a relatively long shelf-life for homemade treats. These treats are safe to eat for 4-6 weeks if they are stored in air-tight containers. You can also freeze them for up to 3 months.

Ingredients

1¼ cup brown rice flour
⅓ cup canned pumpkin
1 egg
3 tbsp. ground flaxseed
3 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. catnip (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (approximately 175 °C).
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and mix until a dough forms.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for 5 minutes.
Unwrap the dough and knead it a few times. Then roll out the dough until it reaches ¼-inch thickness.
Cut dough into bite-sized pieces.
Transfer pieces to a lined baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
Take out the treats from the oven and use a spatula to break apart the pieces.
Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes until the edges turn golden brown.
Remove from the oven and cool before serving.

Please note that like all oils, olive oil is calorie-dense. This treat should only be offered sparingly. In addition, this recipe shouldn’t be used as a remedy for hairballs. If your feline friend is experiencing hairball issues, you should have them examined by your veterinarian.

5. Chewy Cat Treat

bowl of baby food — Image Credit: MaraZe, Shutterstock

If you have an older cat or a picky cat that doesn’t like crunchy foods, this soft and savory treat may pique their interest. The treats use baby food with chicken and brown rice recipes. When you look for baby food, make sure that it does not contain ingredients harmful to cats, such as onions or garlic.

Other than buying baby food, the rest of the ingredients are easy to find. If you plan on using brown rice, just remember that it can contain high amounts of fiber which causes digestive issues in some cats. So, if your cat has a sensitive stomach, it might be best to skip this recipe.

Ingredients

1 large egg
4 oz. chicken and brown rice baby food
2 tsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. water
1 cup brown rice flour
½ cup cooked white or brown rice

Directions:

Place the oven rack in the middle rung and preheat the oven to 325°F (approximately 160 °C).
In a medium bowl, mix all wet ingredients first. Then add dry ingredients.
Spread the dough onto a lined baking sheet at about ⅓ inches thick.
Bake for 12–15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let it cool enough to handle.
Slice the dough into bite-sized pieces.
Place the dough in the oven and bake for another 8 minutes.
Cool completely before serving.

6. Grain-Free Cat Treat

an orange domestic cat tries to get treats out of a glass — Image Credit: absolutimages, Shutterstock

This grain-free cat treat is nutritious, and it’s also great for any cats that have difficulty digesting grains or have food allergies. It contains pumpkin, seameal mineral powder, and coconut flour.

Best of all, it’s mixed with tasty salmon, so your cat will love snacking on this savory and nutritious treat.

Ingredients

2 cans of salmon (can be substituted with trout).
½ canned pumpkin
3 egg yolks
3 tbsp. seameal mineral powder
½ cup coconut flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (approximately 175 °C).
Place ingredients in a food processor and pulse until dough forms. Use water if needed.
Scoop ¼ teaspoon-sized dough balls and place on a lined baking sheet.
Press each dough ball down slightly to create a disc.
Bake for 12 minutes or until the surface is golden brown.
Use a spatula to turn over treats and bake for an additional 3-5 minutes.
Cool before serving.

7. No-Bake Healthy Cat Treats With Pumpkin and Turkey

cat eating meat balls — Image Credit: Nalaphotos, Shutterstock

If you don’t have a lot of prep time, you can still feed your cat yummy homemade treats without using an oven. This creative cat treat recipe is one of the simplest ones that you can try out. It uses gelatin to bind the treats together, so you don’t have to hover over an oven and worry about treats burning.

The recipe also doesn’t contain any grains and only uses three ingredients. Canned pumpkin is another binding agent, and it’s very nutritious and soothes the digestive tract, so it’s great for cats with sensitive stomachs.

Ingredients

7 oz canned pumpkin
5 oz cooked chicken or turkey
Enough plain, meat-based gelatin powder to set 3 fl oz of water

Directions:

Prepare the gelatin according to the instructions on the package.
If the canned pumpkin is runny or watery, place it in a cheesecloth and squeeze to drain the liquid.
Place cooked poultry meat in a food processor and pulse until it forms into small crumb-sized pieces.
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook on low heat.
Cook until the gelatin has melted completely and the mixture has a consistency similar to toothpaste.
Wait for the mixture to cool.
Take small pea-sized amounts, roll them up into a ball, and place them on a lined baking sheet.
Place the sheet in the fridge and set for at least 8 hours.

8. Spinach and Chicken Cat Treat

A bowl of spinach on the table — Image Credit: ponce_photography, Pixabay

This recipe is perfect for cats that love a nice crunch in their treats.

You can also add catnip to this recipe for extra enjoyment. Overall, it’s a simple yet irresistible treat for your cat to munch.

Ingredients

½ lb. cooked chicken
1 cup fresh spinach leaves
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 egg
¼ cup flour
1 tbsp. catnip (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (approximately 175 °C).
Place all ingredients except for the flour into a food processor and pulse until well mixed.
Place mixture into a bowl and incorporate flour to create a dough.
Flour the surface and knead the dough until it’s not sticky.
Roll out dough until it’s about ½ inch thick.
Cut treats and lay out on a lined baking sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Cool before serving.

9. Cat Treats From Canned Cat Food

cat licking mouth after eating — Image Credit: mik ulyannikov, Shutterstock

If your cat enjoys its regular canned food, you can transform it into a treat. It’s a great option if your cat’s picky because it’ll provide a familiar taste.

If the treat is a pate, you can simply place it in the oven and bake until it dehydrates. If it’s a wetter gravy, you can add a little bit of flour to thicken it up. Since this recipe is so simple, you can make it extra fancy by using cookie cutters to create fun shapes for your cat.

Ingredients

1 can of wet cat food
Flour (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (approximately 175°C).
Scoop out canned cat food onto a lined baking sheet.
Flatten the food until it’s about ¼ inches thick.
If the food keeps spreading, mix a small amount of flour until a dough forms. Only add enough flour for the dough to hold its shape.
Cut the food into bite-sized pieces.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until the pieces crisp up.
Cool completely before serving.

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Conclusion

There are many different ways to serve up delicious treats for your cat, and it doesn’t have to be a complicated process. Making homemade treats also ensures that you know exactly what’s going into the recipe.

As you try out these recipes, you will notice that you can easily replace ingredients with food that your cat loves, so the possibilities are endless. However, it’s best to get your vet’s approval before incorporating these treats into their diets. Making homemade treats can easily become an activity that both you and your cat can enjoy, and it’s so satisfying when your recipes get your cat’s seal of approval.