Did you know the average body temperature of a dog is between 38.3 and 39.2 degrees celsius? That’s approximately 2 degrees hotter than a human.

Heat stroke and heat exhaustion are dangerous situations for any dog. One way to help them beat the heat and cool down is to make them their very own dog friendly ice pops. They are super handy to keep in the freezer in case you need them.

We gathered up some of our favourite recipes that you can easily make at home.

If you don’t have any popsicle molds you can use an empty single-serve yogurt container. Just run them under water to release the contents. For smaller dogs try using ice cube trays.

BASIC RECIPE

1 ripe banana
4 cups orange juice
1/2 cup plain yogurt

Puree all ingredients in a blender—or simply mash the banana by hand and combine with the juice and yogourt—then pour into a popsicle mold, freeze, and serve to your favourite hot dogs.

VARIATIONS

Switch up your fruit. Try subbing in:
Blueberries
Strawberries
Peach
Watermelon
Or mix in some peanut butter.

You can also vary the juice you use. Try pineapple juice or apple juice; just check to be sure the juice you use is all-natural and has no added sugar.

A few other pup-approved combinations include:

* watermelon, strawberry, pinapple juice, and yogurt

* peanut butter, banana, apple juice, and yogurt

Get creative with the ‘stick’ and use dental chews, or carrots as a fun addition to keep your dog a little more busy 😉

Sweets not really your pup’s thing? Try these home made (no salt!) chicken broth pops the next time you have BBQ’d chicken for dinner:

First step: don’t chuck the carcass! Throw it in a large pot, cover with water, and let it simmer for an hour and a half. Cool, then pick the meat off, discarding the bone but keeping the cartilage, meat, and broth. Leftover roasted veggies? Mash them up and mix them in! Pour the chicken broth into your popsicle mold (save whatever’s leftover as a tasty addition to your dog’s next few meals) and freeze. Voila! A tasty and savoury snack to keep your dog nice and cool!

Tip: these pupsicles, while delicious, can get very messy – they’re always best served outdoors!