In these hot, hot summers, we try our best to keep our cats cool. Our tigers get pools, our lions sleep in the shade, and our bears get baths. Our servals and leopards have fans in their buildings and our bobcats have their cool dens. But every animal’s favorite treat is an ice pop!
The ice pops we give our cats are made of blood and chicken chunks. Our bears get ice pops of fruit. And Rambo gets a little of everything, but his favorite are the ice pops with dog food in them.
Our animal residents want to share these treats with you! We made some minor adjustments to their recipes, but they still taste delicious and keep you cool.
Snowball’s Recommendation: Blood pop
Snowball’s favorite ice pop is the blood pop! He likes them bright red, with chunks of boneless chicken and AAA meat in them. He recommends having one at least once a week during the summer. Don’t get distracted, or they’ll melt!
We tried to explain to Snowball that humans can’t have raw meat, but he didn’t understand. We modified his recipe so it was human friendly, but you and Snowball can still have matching pops!
Strawberry Popsicle
Ingredients:
- 2 cups frozen strawberries, thawed
- ¼ cup of apple juice
- 2 tbsp honey
- ½ lemon, juiced
- 1 pinch salt
Method:
- Combine ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth, unless you like chunks like Snowball!
- Pour into popsicle molds or 3 oz plastic cups. If using cups, cover with foil and stick a popsicle stick through foil.
- Freeze for at least 5 hours or as long as overnight.
- Enjoy!
Bambam’s Recommendation: Fruit pop
Bambam’s favorite pop is a fruit pop! He likes lots of variety, so the number of different fruits, the better. Bambam recommends having a fruit pop as often as your keepers will allow you and maybe destroying your habitat to get more of them.
Bambam shares a similar diet with people, but he always likes to be special, so we added some yogurt to his recipe.
Fresh Fruit and Yogurt Popsicle
Ingredients:
- 2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, sliced bananas, or whatever other fruit you’d like
- 2 cups of plain or vanilla yogurt
- ¼ cup white sugar or honey
- 1 popsicle mold or 8 small paper cups and 8 popsicle sticks
Method:
- Place fruit, yogurt, and sugar or honey in a blender and blend until smooth or chunky, depending on your tastes.
- Fill paper cups or popsicle mold ¾ full. If using cups, cover with foil and stick a popsicle stick through the foil.
- Freeze for at least 5 hours or as long as overnight. To serve, remove the foil and peel off the paper cup.
- Enjoy!
Rambo’s Recommendation: Chicken and dog food pop
Rambo’s favorite pop is one made with chicken and dog food! Although he is not a dog, dog food is one of Rambo’s favorite treats, and he thinks that dogs will love his popsicle. Gotta have something for every animal, in Rambo’s opinion.
Rambo gets ice pops and dog food as enrichment quite often, so he knows that this one is perfect for all the dogs out there.
NOTE: Not for human consumption
Ingredients:
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup finely chopped chicken
- A sprinkling of dry dog food
Method:
- Mix ingredients together in a bowl.
- Pour into molds or containers. Sprinkle dog food on top.
- Freeze for at least 5 hours or as long as overnight.
- Let your doggy friends enjoy!
We here at TCWR hope that these ice pop recipes from our animal residents will keep you cool this summer, just like it does for them!
Recipes pulled from:
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/fruit-ice-pops-recipe-2124327
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/143168/fresh-fruit-and-yogurt-ice-pops/
https://www.thedogbakery.com/blogs/news/9-yummy-pupsicle-recipes-to-cool-your-dog-off