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Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

January 13, 2014 by Joy the Baker 83 Comments

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

So I have this cat.  His name is Jules, but I call him Tron.

Sometimes you just name the creature in your house the wrong name.  It’s hard to know until you know them.  Never let me name a child. I won’t get it right.  That’s the lesson we’re supposed to learn here.

So I have this cat.  Sometimes I make him cat toys and cat treats.  It’s a thing I do with only a residual amount of shame and embarrassment.

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I first made these cat treats for my kitten about a year ago, and Design Sponge was pretty keen on them.  I made them again this weekend and my kitten-cat was pretty excited.  To be fair, he also gets excited when I buy a rotisserie chicken or slice into an avocado.  He’ll also steal a warm blueberry muffin, eat through the center of a pie, or lick the frosting off a cake.  He’s not particular about food, he’ll eat it all, and he’s a terrible person (and I love him).

Animal Jar Tops were invented by the Internet, not me.  Find out how to make them here.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

Cat treats!  Let’s talk about these little bites.

These cat treats are made of very simple ingredients that aren’t cat food, but that our cats are going to eat and enjoy.  If now is the time that you’d like to freak out about oats and tuna and making your own cat food and cat health… ok.  But these are just cat treats, so maybe we could just all calm down by like, at least 12%.  Just sayin’.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

One of the binder of these cat treats is oats.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

More specifically, oats that are pulverized into oat flour.  Like so.  Easy.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

In the food processor we combine oat flour, canned (unsalted) tuna, and catnip.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

Olive oil for moisture, good fat, and good fur.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

An egg yolk for good fat, good binding, and good fur.

Good fur is important.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

Pulverized and combined.  The mixture is doughy and people-edible but mostly kitty-edible.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

I roll the tuna dough into teaspoon sized balls.  Kitty-sized.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

A little criss-cross action.  Just for even baking.  Even with cat treats we want to get things right!

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

I usually shush him away, but these crunchy treats are fresh from the oven for him, so….

Cat Party with Catnip Yarn Balls | joy the baker

So why not make some Catnip Yarn Balls along with the cat treats and just go all the way.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

I’m the only one that knows I’m a crazy cat lady… until I share it with all of you.

Sorry/NOT SORRY!

Ps.  Since these baked kitty treats have tuna and egg in them, I store them in a jar in the refrigerator.

Tuna Catnip Kitty Treats

makes

Print this Recipe!

1 (5 ounce) can tuna, no salt added and packed in water, drained

1 cup oat flour*

1 large egg

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 heaping tablespoon dried catnip

*It’s easy to make your own oat flour. Simply grind old-fashioned oats in a spice grinder (or a super clean coffee grinder) until it is transformed into a light powder. There you have it — oat flour!

Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade attachment, combine drained tuna, oat flour, egg, olive oil and catnip. Blend until mixture is smooth. It will be thick but pliable and not terribly sticky.

Roll dough into 1/2 teaspoon balls and place on prepared cookie sheet. Use a skewer to press an X-shape into each cookie ball.

Bake cookies for 10 to 12 minutes until they are dried on top and slightly browned. Allow to cool completely before offering to your kitty.

Place treats in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to seven days.

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Reader Interactions

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Questions
  1. Emily

    April 19, 2015 at 7:27 am

    Making these for Tron’s long lost brother’s birthday today!

    Reply
  2. Denise

    October 13, 2014 at 9:03 am

    I was wondering about the catnip. Did you use regular old catnip one would put in a toy? Is it safe for them to eat it? It probably has chemicals in it, everything does. Is there such a thing as food grade catnip? I don’t want feed them anything harmful. I really am a crazy cat lady!!

    Reply
    • Tristan

      March 23, 2021 at 3:10 pm

      You can look for organic catnip(dried)

      Reply
  3. kyrgyzgal10

    August 16, 2014 at 9:31 am

    my kitties love them. thanks!!

    Reply
  4. Deb

    June 15, 2014 at 12:27 pm

    I made these yesterday and they are terrific. I subbed spirulina for catnip bcs my cat loves it – so this made them green. He ate them and I tried them on two other cats who also loved them! Thank you!

    Reply
  5. Charlette

    February 9, 2014 at 2:20 pm

    Thank you for sharing these. It’s not easy to find good treats for kitty. I love that you’ve made them GF. (Kitty here says thank you as well.)

    Reply
  6. Cats and Tattoos

    January 29, 2014 at 2:32 pm

    My cat has a grain allergy so I have to be careful about what I give her, does anyone know if oats would trigger that allergy? I admit I’m woefully uninformed about the specifics.

    Reply
  7. gris-noir chic

    January 21, 2014 at 7:34 am

    oh my world, what a great idea… have to made them for my little sweety… thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  8. Kathy K

    January 20, 2014 at 4:26 pm

    Tron/Jules (how about Tron J.?) is adorable and SO lucky to have someone who bakes for him! Thanks for sharing this healthy treat recipe with your ‘feline-inclined’ followers! (The 5 rescued kitties who live here send their ‘thanks’; these are their new favorites!)

    Reply
  9. bakerkat

    January 16, 2014 at 4:05 pm

    your a great cat mom.
    tron is one lucky cat

    Reply
  10. Heather

    January 16, 2014 at 1:36 pm

    What fun! We to changed our kitties names after we got to know them. Names are tricky.

    Reply
  11. Jessica Bell

    January 16, 2014 at 1:31 pm

    So cute!! Thank you for sharing!!

    Reply
  12. MaryEllen

    January 15, 2014 at 2:32 pm

    Joy, cat’s can’t absorb nutrients from anything other than animal sources, they lack the required enzymes. To make these healthier you could use dairy from grass-fed cattle or rendered chicken fat or fish oil. Olive oil will only make your cat poop more, it won’t help kittie’s coat.

    Reply
  13. Martha

    January 15, 2014 at 2:01 pm

    You know, my cat gets sick from all store bought treats. The only “treat” I can give him is tuna and he loves catnip. Might just have to give these a try . . .

    Reply
  14. Deborah Singer

    January 15, 2014 at 2:57 am

    This is so great! You are the first person to do something like this ever. How awesome. I am making these for my two boys. I love my kitties so love spoiling them and store bought treats are not always a hit with them so maybe these will be. Thanks, what a great idea!

    Reply
  15. cheyenne

    January 14, 2014 at 3:09 pm

    aww, what a cutie! i bet my kitty would love these, saving the recipe!
    xo, cheyenne

    Reply
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