Kibble balls are my all-time favorite training food for my dogs. It meets all the criteria I have for a perfect training treat: bite-sized, soft, not greasy, no crumbs, easy to hold (not falling through my fingers), bounce/roll when tossed, nutritionally complete, and my dogs absolutely love it. I’ve shared it with folks here and there, but I get so many requests for the recipe I needed to make it sharable. So, here it is!
The inspiration
I was turned on to frozen Bil-Jac about 10 years ago when I was in Ohio learning how to train my dog in tracking with Dean Calderon. Some years later, I learned about making little balls out of it to use as a training reward, thanks to Dave Kroyer. If you live in the western US, you might not be familiar with this stuff because it isn’t sold here. Frozen Bil-Jac is dog food that is the consistency of play dough. It’s great for training because it can easily be molded into different shapes and sizes, depending on what you need for training (big bits for big dogs, tiny bits for small dogs), it’s soft and can be swallowed quickly (no crunching or chewing), and no crumbs.
Since I live in Western Washington and can’t buy this perfect training food, I decided to develop my own version. Here’s what you need:
Kibble: I grind it into a powder using a Magic Bullet or a blender
Egg: This is used as a binder
Yogurt: Use plain, full-fat yogurt.
Coconut Oil: I use refined oil, it’s smoother, less chunky
I decided to use kibble because it’s already nutritionally complete. I use a lot of food in my dogs’ training so I want to make sure I’m not filling them up with food that throws their diets out of balance. This is really important for puppies who are eating a lot and also need a lot of training! And, the last thing I want is a dog with diarrhea!
To get the kibble to stick together and be rolled into balls, I used a combination of binders: protein and fat. I originally used egg and raw ground beef and it worked great. My dogs love it and I don’t have an aversion to handling raw meat (my dogs have been on some version of a raw diet for over ten years). However, I wanted to make a recipe that people who don’t feed raw meat could use and also save myself the hassle of double-grinding my meat to get the right consistency.
The recipe uses raw egg because I have not found a better binder. However, there are pasteurized egg products that you can buy if you’re concerned about salmonella.
Coconut oil can be gritty or chunky. You really need to mash it up to get an even distribution throughout the dough. I usually still have little chunks in my dough, and I don’t worry about it as long as I have enough oil mixed in to get the right consistency.
If your dog is picky and not crazy about kibble, you can make the recipe tastier with things like powdered bone broth or crushed freeze dried raw nibblets (like Steve’s, Stella & Chewy’s, or Northwest Naturals). Avoid adding liquids because water will make the mix mushy. If you need to add more moisture use more egg or yogurt. I have also used kefir instead of yogurt.
Note that different kibble formulations have different ratios of nutrients. Some may be more fatty or more dry than others. You may need to slightly adjust the amount of yogurt or coconut oil depending on the kibble you are using. This recipe was developed using Nature’s Logic Distinction Beef.
The recipe
1.5 cups (175 g) ground kibble
1 large egg
1/4 cup whole milk yogurt
1 tsp refined coconut oil
Grind the kibble into a fine powder using a blender or magic bullet. Combine all four ingredients. I use a fork, but you can also do this in a Kitchen Aid mixer with the paddle attachment. Once the ingredients are combined, knead the mixture into a dough until it forms a ball and there are no crumbs. If your mixture is too dry, add more egg or yogurt as needed.
Form training treats by rolling the dough into little balls or into the shape of your choice. Store in the refrigerator and use within three days. Kibble balls store well in the freezer, so you can make a big batch and thaw more as needed.
Happy Training!!
