- Not a substitute for professional veterinary help.
This layered, frozen confection of fruity goodness combines frozen berries, goat milk, and pureed fruit into a gorgeous frozen treat. It’s like the healthiest version of a rocket pop!
The great part about this DIY treat is that it can easily be tailored to both your dog and your budget. If your canine prefers to stick with the basics, strip this recipe down to its bare bones and include only one or two types of fruit.
You can always use fresh fruit in season, but we opted for what was on sale in the grocery store’s freezer aisle.
What You Need to Create an Ice Lick
In its simplest form, an ice lick is just a big lump of frozen goodness that helps your dog beat the summer heat. You can combine most any dog-friendly ingredients into a wonderful long-lasting treat.
Here’s what you need to have on hand before making one:
- Room in the freezer—this is a must!
- A bowl, bucket, or bundt pan to freeze your concoction in. The container should be large enough that the contents don’t melt immediately once they hit that summer air, but not so large that it won’t fit in your freezer.
- Tasty snacks like dog treats, veggies, fruit, cheese, or meat to decorate your dog-sicle.
- A liquid such as low-sodium beef broth or chicken broth, sugar-free fruit juice, watered-down peanut butter, goat milk, yogurt, or just plain water.
- Lifehack: Some kind of container to keep the ice lick mess to a minimum—a water bowl, washtub, or paddle pool could all work.
Assembly Instructions
Creating an ice lick for your dog is pretty simple. You can do it in multiple steps to create layers as desired.
- Place a few choice nibbles in the bottom of your bowl
- Add your liquid to cover and freeze for 30 minutes
- Repeat multiple times for multiple layers and flavors
- Freeze for a few hours or until it’s frozen solid
Once your frozen treat is ready, you’ll need to run hot water over the outside of the mold in order to unstick the contents.
Serve outside, preferably, or any place where sticky cleanup won’t be an issue. It gets messy as it melts!
Print
Berry Delicious Summertime Ice Lick
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 ice lick 1x
- Category: Summertime Coolers
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup frozen berries
- 1/2 cup yogurt
- 1 cup goat milk (we used powdered)
- 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
- 1/2 cup frozen watermelon
- 1 cup frozen pineapple
- 1 cup frozen cantaloupe
- Water
- Optional: cooking spray
Notes: You can make your layers as fruity or as plain as is best for your dog and your budget. Use just a handful of fruit and lots of water for a low-calorie treat, or plenty of fruit and a little water to create a heartier dish.
Instructions
This recipe is well-suited to a fancy mold with little divots designed to hold toppings.
Part I
- First, spritz your mold with cooking spray if you’re using it.
- Next, place your berries in the divots, and ‘glue’ in place with some yogurt.
- Pour in goat milk (or watered-down yogurt) to cover berries.
- Freeze for at least an hour to set.
Part II
- Next, blend strawberries and watermelon with water until smooth.
- Pour the mixture into the mold and freeze at least an hour or until set.
- Repeat with the pineapple and cantaloupe and fill up the rest of your mold.
You can always add extra water to thin out the fruit or to fill the mold.
Freeze for 4 hours or until the ice lick is completely solid.
To serve, hold the mold upside down under hot running water until the pan loosens from the ice.
Serve somewhere you don’t mind getting a little wet and sticky!
But Wait, Can My Dog Have Ice?
You may have heard that ice cubes are dangerous for dogs because they lead to bloat. Turns out, however, that this is a myth.
The real danger lies in your dog drinking water or ingesting ice too quickly, which is a risk factor for bloat. So, we want to make sure our licks are big enough that your dog can’t swallow it in one go.
“Dogs are given ice or iced water to drink when they are hot and thirsty, for example after heavy exercise,” writes veterinarian Dr. Audrey Harvey. “Under these circumstances, they are very likely to drink a lot of water very quickly, and this is a known risk factor for bloat.”
So by all means, give your dog some ice. Just don’t let him go overboard and eat large amounts too quickly.
