Your dog crate is an eyesore. You know it, I know it, and your golden retriever probably knows it too, but she’s just too sweet to say anything.
Mine used to sit in the middle of my living room like a metal cage that really should have been nowhere near my throw pillows. Every time I’d spend a weekend getting my place to look just right, this big hunk of metal would totally throw me off.
And girl, you’ve worked too hard on your home for that.
Your dog’s crate doesn’t have to clash with your decor anymore. With these 14 diy dog crate furniture ideas, that awkward metal box can actually belong in your space.
The best part: most of these are Pinterest worthy, and they survive the chaos of owning a golden retriever.
#1: Fluffy Dog Face Cupcakes That Look Almost Too Cute to Eat
You know that moment when your golden retriever puppy gives you those big puppy eyes and you just melt for her? Every dog mom needs to make these at least once.
I made these for a friend’s birthday party last spring, and people literally stood around the box staring at them before anyone touched one. I think they liked the shaggy cream cheese frosting, the cute little chocolate nose and the little pink tongue poking out.
Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cooking Time: 18 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
Ingredients:
1. 1 box chocolate fudge cake mix (plus eggs, oil, water as directed)
2. 2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
3. 4 cups powdered sugar
4. 2 tablespoons heavy cream
5. 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6. 12 brown M&Ms or chocolate chips (noses)
7. 24 black pearl sugar beads or mini chocolate chips (eyes)
8. 12 small pink fondant ovals (tongues — about ½ inch each)
9. Ivory and white gel food coloring
Instructions
Bake your chocolate cupcakes according to the directions on the box and allow to cool completely. Warm cupcakes will destroy your frosting! Nobody wants that heartbreak!
Beat butter on medium for about 3 minutes, until it’s pale and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time. Add the heavy cream and vanilla. Split frosting into two bowls. Tint one bowl ivory and the other bright white (I did this because I wanted the fur to look realistic and layered, as it does in the picture).
Fill each color into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton #233 grass tip. This tip is awesome as it is a multi-hole opening that makes the fur strands look like individual strands of dog fur. Pipe along the outer edge of the cupcake then pipe inward in short overlapping strokes. Be sure to alternate between the ivory and white as you go to create dimension. Take your time with this, the layering is what makes this cupcake!
To make the nose, press one brown M&M into the center of the lower third of the doggie’s face. Add two black pearl beads just above and on either side to create the eyes. Place a piece of pink fondant oval just below the nose, slanting down slightly to create a happy, open mouth that is reminiscent of your golden after a good walk.
The #233 tip is given texture that mimics real fur, which causes guests to pause before eating them. There’s nothing like seeing that reaction at a party.
I baked the cupcakes and placed them in the fridge to chill for about 15 minutes before serving so that the frosting would set. If you are traveling to a party, it’s best to put the cupcakes in a flat bottomed cupcake box so that they don’t come apart on their way there.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @laughloudsmilebig
#2: Peanut Butter Frosted Banana Cupcakes (The Ones Your Golden Will Lose Their Mind Over)
Don’t you just love it when your furry friend is just tall enough to peek over the counter to try and spy whatever you’re baking? Every Tuesday it’s a party in my house!
These cupcakes from @peamuttbutteruk are the cutest thing I’ve seen all week! They are golden brown mini cupcakes topped with swirled peanut butter frosting on a glass cake stand, they look like something that would appear on your Pinterest board!
Prep Time: 15 min | Cooking Time: 20 min | Serving Size: 12 mini cupcakes
Ingredients:
1. 2 ripe bananas, mashed
2. 2 eggs
3. 2 cups whole wheat flour
4. ½ cup unsweetened peanut butter
5. ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
6. 1 tsp baking powder (dog-safe, aluminum-free)
7. Frosting:½ cup plain Greek yogurt + ¼ cup unsweetened peanut butter, whipped together
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. In one bowl, mix the mashed bananas, eggs, and melted coconut oil until combined. Add the flour and baking powder, mixing only until combined (do not mix the batter too much. The cake should be thick but not fluffy like a human cake batter).
Spoon the batter into a greased mini muffin tin filling each cup about ¾ full. Bake for 18-20 minutes until the tops are firm and golden. Let them cool completely before frosting; the warm cupcakes will cause the yogurt to melt out of the swirls.
For the frosting, you can whip the Greek yogurt and peanut butter together until smooth, then pipe it on using a star tip piping bag for the swirl in the photo.
Some dogs simply adore these cupcakes. We choose whole wheat flour so it doesn’t upset your dog’s stomach, but we’ll definitely have a case of the zoomies after a bite or two.
Keep this in mind: Dogs with nut allergies might like to try a swap with the sunflower seed butter, and if your girl has a sensitive tummy, check out 5 Best Dog Foods for Allergies before you bake.
Store extras in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. The cookies are actually best frosted if chilled.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @peamuttbutteruk
#3: Blue Paw Birthday Cake Cupcake (The One That’ll Make Your Dog’s Birthday Actually Feel Special)
So, you may have noticed that my golden turns a year older today. My initial thought was, “maybe I’ll just give her an extra treat and be done with it.” Don’t laugh. I once did this and felt so guilty the entire afternoon that I won’t let it happen again.
I don’t know about you, but I want the photo blue paw birthday cake to come to life and give me full birthday celebration energy. And the good news is the doggy birthday cake is made with all natural, healthy ingredients your dog can eat.
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes | Serving Size: 4 mini cakes
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup whole wheat flour
2. 1 teaspoon baking powder
3. 2 eggs
4. ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
5. ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
6. 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter (xylitol-free — this matters)
7. 1 tablespoon honey
8. ½ cup fresh blueberries (topping)
9. Coconut cream frosting:½ cup chilled coconut cream whipped firm
10. 2 tablespoons peanut butter drizzle (warm slightly for that gorgeous ribbon effect you see in the photo)
11. Shredded unsweetened coconut for the exterior coating
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 4 cavity mini cake pan with a very light coating of coconut oil. Mix your dry ingredients in one bowl: flour and baking powder. In a second bowl, whisk together eggs, applesauce, yogurt, peanut butter, and honey until smooth. Add wet to dry, and gently fold until just combined. Don’t overmix or it will become too dense.
Divide the batter between the cavities, filling each about ¾ full. Bake for 22-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool them completely before frosting — I cannot stress this enough, if the cake is warm, the cream will melt and your coconut cream will be ruined.
Once cool, frost the top with whipped coconut cream and press shredded coconut around the sides by hand, just like you see in the photo. Drizzle warm peanut butter in a crosshatch ribbon on top, push 5-6 fresh blueberries around the edge and place a “3” paw print candle in the center.
Plus, we were able to use coconut cream frosting to add the pop of color that made the photo pop, and it gave the sugar hit that your dog’s tummy will thank you for.
If your dog has a sensitive stomach, I would suggest swapping Greek yogurt for a dog-safe probiotic food topper in the batter.
The peanut butter drizzle sets up faster than you think in a cool kitchen, so make sure the blueberries are ready to go before you drizzle and place them on the peanut butter while it’s still a little tacky so they sit on top.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @archieoats
#4: Pumpkin & Peanut Butter Dog Cupcakes With Creamy PB Frosting
My niece recently threw her dog a birthday party and I was more impressed with the cupcakes than anything I had at my own birthday party that year. These little orange muffins topped with swirled peanut butter frosting and a milk-bone topper are the cutest. Can you imagine how excited your golden retriever will be if you let her lick the bowl?
Picture this: fur everywhere, a tail wagging so hard that it knocks over your coffee, and you standing there with pride that you baked something for your dog. the feeling you get when you walk into my house.
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
2. ½ cup natural peanut butter (xylitol-free — this is non-negotiable)
3. 2 eggs
4. ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
5. 1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour
6. 1 tsp baking powder
7. ½ tsp cinnamon
For the frosting:
1. ½ cup natural peanut butter
2. 4 oz plain cream cheese (softened)
3. 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
4. Milk-bone or dog biscuit toppers in bone and bear shapes (as shown — the brown bear-shaped biscuit with the little heart stamp is everything)
Instructions
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with silicone or paper liners. I used silicone because the batter is a bit thick and can be sticky.
In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, peanut butter, eggs, and applesauce until combined and smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk together the whole wheat flour, baking powder, and cinnamon. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined. The batter will be thick and rough – if it’s smooth, your cupcakes will be tough.
Scoop the batter into each cup about ¾ full. The orange color will deepen as it bakes. The picture shows the warm amber-brown you’ll get. Bake for 22-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting. If the cupcakes are not completely cooled, the peanut butter frosting will melt right off of them.
For the frosting, beat the cream cheese, peanut butter and Greek yogurt together until thick, pipeable and slightly fluffy. Put the frosting in a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and swirl the frosting in a large, high-peaked spiral on top of each biscuit as in the photograph. Press one bear-shaped biscuit and one bone-shaped biscuit onto each frosted biscuit.
It is the whole wheat flour that gives the cookies a little structure and fiber, that will help your dog’s digestion. This is a healthy treat and not just a treat for your dog that will give her a sugar rush. This is a treat that will give her a little something that will help her digestion and not just mess with her blood sugar.
You can keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze unfrosted cupcakes for up to one month.
If your frosting is too thick to pipe, then you can thin it out by adding a small amount of water, but not so much that it will make it watery.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @ifyougiveablondeakitchen
#5: Peanut Butter Rose Dog Cupcakes With a Bone Topper
My dog gives me that look when I walk into the kitchen. Nose up, ears perked. She knows something good is happening.
These cupcakes are Pinterest goals, but they’re actually made for her. The ones in the image are adorned with warm caramel-toned peanut butter frosting piped in a rose swirl pattern, dried rose petals scattered on top, and a gray dog bone-shaped chocolate carob decoration dusted with cocoa powder sitting in the center. They look like something from a fancy bakery, but every ingredient is dog safe.
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup whole wheat flour
2. 1 teaspoon baking soda
3. 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
4. 1/4 cup natural peanut butter (xylitol-free)
5. 2 eggs
6. 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
7. 1 tablespoon honey
8. For the frosting:1/2 cup peanut butter + 4 oz plain cream cheese, softened
9. Dried food-grade rose petals for garnish
10. Carob melting wafers for the bone topper (use a bone-shaped silicone mold)
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F, and line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Whisk the flour and baking soda together in a large bowl. This will help the cupcakes to rise without cracking.
To the dry ingredients, in a separate bowl, add peanut butter, applesauce, eggs, yogurt, and honey. Stir together just until no streaks of dry ingredients are visible.
Fill the liners about 2/3 full and bake for 18-20 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Let them cool completely before frosting. If you put frosting on them when they’re warm, they will melt and you won’t get the pretty rose swirls.
For the frosting, beat peanut butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Load into a piping bag fitted with a 1M star tip and pipe onto cupcake in tight circular motions starting from the outside in to form the rose effect in the picture.
Melt your carob wafers and pour into the bone mold. Refrigerate for 15 minutes until firm. Dust with a little unsweetened cocoa powder. Gently press onto the center of the frosting and scatter a few dried rose petals around the bone.
The cream cheese in the frosting helps stabilize it so the swirls don’t collapse on each other and look all ugly for hours until the cupcakes are eaten at the party.
These are perfect for a dog birthday party – right up there with my 12 Best Dog Gift Ideas: Top Picks for Every Pooch.
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cooking Time: 20 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
To keep any leftover cupcakes refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To keep the rose petals on the cupcakes for a longer period of time, only add the rose petals right before serving.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @chopper.the.aussie
#6: Pumpkin Spice Birthday Cupcakes with Milk-Bone Toppers
Well, it’s your dog’s birthday and you know that you can’t just give him a plain biscuit. You want the moment. The candles, the photo, everything.
These cupcakes from Calandra’s Bakery stopped me in my scrolling. They are such beautiful and decadent looking cakes, with a side of crumbs. Golden frosted cupcakes, with orange graham cracker crumbs, topped with peanut butter mousse frosting, and Milk-Bone biscuits! The best part is written right across the top in white icing: happy birthday! That is something that Pinterest can’t do.
Prep Time: 20 min | Cooking Time: 22 min | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup whole wheat flour
2. ½ cup pumpkin purée (plain, not pie filling)
3. ¼ cup natural peanut butter
4. 2 eggs
5. ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
6. 1 tsp baking soda
7. 1 tsp cinnamon
8. ½ cup crushed graham crackers (for rolling the edges)
9. 1 cup plain Greek yogurt mixed with 2 tbsp peanut butter (for frosting)
10. 12 small Milk-Bone biscuits (toppers)
11. White decorating icing pen for writing
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Whisk together the pumpkin, peanut butter, eggs, and applesauce in a bowl until smooth. You could whip it with an electric mixer but your arm will do.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients slowly, until everything is just combined (over mixing makes them dense).
Fill each liner up to 3/4 full. That will give you that perfect top. Bake for 20-22 minutes and test with a toothpick in the center of the cupcake. Allow them to cool completely, at least 45 minutes or so. I once decided to frosted some while they were still warm. Bad idea. The whole frosting layer slid right off.
I dumped a huge spoonful of peanut butter yogurt frosting on top of each cupcake and immediately rolled the edges in a shallow dish of crushed graham crackers. The peanut butter frosting coated and locked in the crumb coating and the graham crackers added a little crunch to each dog cake for variety.
Put one of the Milk-Bone biscuits on top of the iced base and use your white icing pen to write “happy birthday” across the top.
Refrigerate for about 30 minutes before serving. Store leftovers in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
The yogurt-based frosting keeps these lower in fat than a buttercream so you can enjoy your son’s golden moment without the guilt of eating a buttercream cupcake.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @calandrasbakery
#7: Honey Lemon Dog Birthday Cupcakes with Paw Print Fondant Toppers
It’s your golden’s birthday in three days and you’re standing in the kitchen wondering if a plain milk bone is really going to cut it this year.
It’s not. Trust me on this.
I am in love with these fun little cupcakes from @thepuppybakery.la. Yellow lemon frosting piled high with pink fondant paw prints, little bone toppers, and a matching smash cake that looks like it straight off my Pinterest board.
Prep Time: 25 minutes | Cooking Time: 22 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
Ingredients:
1. 2 cups whole wheat flour
2. 1 teaspoon baking soda
3. 1/3 cup honey
4. 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
5. 1 teaspoon lemon zest
6. 2 eggs
7. 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
8. 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
9. 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (frosting base)
10. Yellow gel food coloring (dog-safe)
11. Pink fondant for paw print and bone toppers
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350° F and line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners. In one bowl, whisk flour and baking soda together. In a separate bowl, mix honey, lemon juice, lemon zest, eggs, applesauce and melted coconut oil. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Don’t overmix it as you don’t want the cupcakes to come out too dense. Your dog would deserve much better than that.
Fill each liner two thirds full and bake for 20-22 minutes. Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting because if the cupcakes are warm the yogurt frosting will melt and create a sad yellow puddle.
For the frosting, I mixed the Greek yogurt with a tiny drop of yellow food coloring and then piped it on with a 1M star tip to get the swirls you see in the photo. I rolled out the pink fondant to about 1/4 inch thick and used a paw print cutter and small bone cutter to cut out my toppers. I pressed them very gently onto the frosting before it set.
I like to put the fondant toppers I made in the fridge for about 15 minutes to chill a bit before placing them on the cake. I have found that it helps them to hold their shape more and the details to stay crisp for pictures.
The yogurt-based frosting keeps these lower in fat than a buttercream, so your pup will feel the joy of the holiday party without the tummy aches later!
These homemade dog treats are so much more personal than anything store bought, and honestly, there’s nothing better than watching your dog sniff the frosting for the first time!
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @thepuppybakery.la
#8: Fluffy Dog Face Cupcakes (The Ones That Look Exactly Like Your Golden)
You know that moment when you’re cutting the cake and your golden gives you those big puppy eyes? These will make everyone stop in their tracks before they even think about eating one.
These are my buttercream grass-tip dog face cupcakes. I just packed them in a bakery box, six in one box. I piped them all in cream/yellow, chocolate brown and sage gray to look like their fluffy dog coats and the ears, noses and little pink tongues are black and pink fondant cut outs. They’re so cute it almost hurts.
Ingredients:
1. 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2. 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
3. ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
4. 2 large eggs
5. 1 cup whole milk
6. 1 tbsp vanilla extract
7. 2 tsp baking powder
8. ½ tsp salt
9. 4 cups powdered sugar (for buttercream)
10. 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (for buttercream)
11. 3 tbsp heavy cream
12. Gel food coloring: golden yellow, chocolate brown, sage gray
13. Black, pink, and white fondant
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. In a large bowl, cream together the ½ cup butter and sugar until pale and fluffy — it will take about 4 minutes with a hand mixer and it’s well worth it because it produces a nice, light, domed top on the cupcakes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then pour in the vanilla.
Alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk and starting and ending with the flour. Fill each liner two thirds full (no more, or your domes will overflow and you won’t get that nice round face). Bake for 18-20 minutes and let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting. Warm cupcakes can melt the buttercream.
To make the buttercream, beat 1 cup butter until white and fluffy. Slowly add powdered sugar and heavy cream. Divide the mixture into 3 bowls and tint each batch a different color with gel coloring. Load each color into a piping bag fitted with a Wilton #233 grass tip. Pipe a fur coat starting on the outside edge of the cookies. Work slowly, layering the fur coat on as you go.
Real talk: the whole secret to this is the #233 grass tip. it makes a basic cupcake look like it took a pastry chef hours to make, but you can pipe one in under 3 minutes once you get the hang of it.
Roll out some black fondant for the nose and eyes, and some pink fondant for the tongue and inside the ears. Take some tiny white fondant for highlights for the eyes. You just press them on gently, before the buttercream dries up and starts to crust.
Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cooking Time: 20 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
Chill the cupcakes for about 15 minutes before boxing them. This allows the fur strands to firm up a bit so they don’t get smashed or bent in the box. The cupcakes will look just as good at the party as they did on your counter.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @sweet.mems
#9: The Bark Bakery Dog Cupcake with Peanut Butter Frosting and Fish Treat Platter
That moment when your golden retriever lays right next to you while you’re eating and they’re giving you that “I deserve that more than you do” look… Just like me.
This one is exactly what a dog birthday spread should look like. And I can’t stop thinking about it.
a golden brown cupcake is sitting in a paper liner that is a red and white checkered pattern. The top has a swirl of white yogurt based frosting and 2 bone shaped peanut butter treats have been pressed into the top. There is a little pink logo pick from The Bark Bakery right in the center of the cupcake!
The cupcake sits in a green clover-shaped slow-feeder tray, and each section contains a different item – small round grain-free kibble biscuits, cubed soft chicken or sweet potato chews, and dried fish strips that look like they’re crispy and chewy all at once.
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup whole wheat flour
2. 1/4 cup peanut butter (unsalted, xylitol-free)
3. 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
4. 1/4 cupcoconut oil for dogs, melted
5. 2 eggs
6. 1 tsp baking soda
7. 1/4 cup plain yogurt (for frosting)
8. Bone-shaped dog biscuits for topping
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 F. Line a muffin tin with the standard size cupcake liners. Whisk together the flour and baking soda in a large bowl. I always do the dry ingredients first to make sure the leavening is evenly distributed in the batter.
In a separate bowl, mix together the peanut butter, applesauce, melted coconut oil and eggs until the mixture is smooth and slightly glossy. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and fold the batter together with a spatula until the dry flour mixture is just combined. Do not overmix, as this will result in a dense and rubbery texture.
Spoon the batter into the 12 lined cups, filling each about two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops are firm and golden.
Let the cakes cool completely before frosting, which is the step that people tend to rush, then wonder why the frosting slides right off. After frosting, spoon a dollop of plain yogurt on top and press two bone biscuits into it while the yogurt is still soft. (If you want to go the Bark Bakery route, add a decorative pick to the top of your dogs frosting at this time).
Assemble the finished cupcakes on a clover-shaped slow-feeder tray, add dried fish strips and soft chew treats in the surrounding compartments. The slow-feeder feature will keep your dog busy longer, helping to eliminate eating her treats quickly and lessening stomach upset later on.
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cooking Time: 22 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
The yogurt frosting will melt very quickly in a warm room, so if you are serving these in a warm room, keep them in the fridge until 10 minutes before serving. If your little one gobbles up his food quickly the sectioned tray does a lot of the work for you and is also a puzzle/snack in one!
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @stormthestafford
#10: Paw Print Dog Cupcakes With Milk-Bone Toppers
While you’re frosting your own birthday cupcakes, your golden is staring at you. You know the look. She wants you to make her something that matches the moment.
These cute little paw print cupcakes are the cutest thing I’ve ever made in my kitchen! The cream cheese frosting is piped into the four small “toe beans” plus the larger center pad, and that mini Milk-Bone biscuit sitting smack dab in the middle… I couldn’t ask for more. The whole thing is sitting in a brown cupcake liner, making it straight off Pinterest!
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup whole wheat flour
2. 1 teaspoon baking soda
3. 1/4 cup natural peanut butter (xylitol-free, always)
4. 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
5. 2 eggs
6. 1/4 cup water
7. 4 oz plain cream cheese, softened
8. 2 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt
9. Mini Milk-Bone biscuits for topping
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin tin with 12 brown paper liners. In one bowl, mix the flour and baking soda. In a second bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, applesauce, eggs and water until smooth. Add the two bowls together and stir until just combined. Do not over mix, or the muffins will be dense and gummy.
Fill each cupcake liner about 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cupcakes cool completely, as the icing will melt if you try to frost warm cupcakes.
Beat together the cream cheese and Greek yogurt until fluffy. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe four small circles on top of the cake for the toes and one large circle at the base for the pad. Press a mini Milk-Bone into the center of the frosting. That’s your paw. That’s it!
The cream cheese keeps the cakes a little tangy, and helps them stay light. I can keep feeding them to my dogs without the sugar crash, and the cakes have a cute topper to hold their shape.
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
You can store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge. If your doggie has a sensitive stomach, use mashed banana instead of peanut butter.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @ngcrowe
#11: Winston’s Cookie Monster Birthday Cake for Dogs
Your golden’s birthday is coming up, and you know you’ve already planned out the whole thing, just like a Pinterest board come to life.
But this one is for the dog who deserves a whole celebration.
Winston’s 9th birthday cake is a square fondant-covered cake decorated in a speckled gray cookies-and-cream finish and with teal blue lettering piped directly onto the sides. The topper is a fondant chocolate chip cookie sitting on a swirl of white vanilla frosting.
Here’s what you need:
1. 2 cups whole wheat flour
2. 1 tsp baking soda
3. 2 eggs
4. ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
5. ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
6. 2 tbsp peanut butter (xylitol-free)
7. ¼ cup carob chips (never real chocolate)
8. White yogurt coating for the frosting layer
9. Food-safe fondant in gray, teal, and brown
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix the flour and baking soda together and fold in the eggs, applesauce, yogurt, and peanut butter until the batter is just combined. Stir in the carob chips until just incorporated. (I added the carob chips just for that nice chocolate chip look, on top of the fondant topper.)
Pour into a 6-inch square pan and bake for 28-32 minutes. Let it cool completely before you touch the fondant, warm cake tears it and will give you an uneven grey surface.
Roll the gray fondant out to about ⅛ inch thickness. Gently press it over the cooled cake. The speckled effect is achieved by kneading in a few small pinches of black fondant before rolling out the fondant. Do not mix the colors, just marbled them together.
Pipe the teal lettering using a #2 round tip with the blue-tinted yogurt frosting. Roll out your fondant cookie topper using brown fondant and small black fondant chips for the eyes.
One thing to remember: Frosting made with yogurt softens quickly at room temperature, so refrigerate the finished cake until five minutes before it’s time to serve.
With a whole wheat base plus yogurt frosting, your dog gets real protein and fiber, so the treat actually fuels the birthday zoomies instead of crashing them after.
Prep Time: 25 minutes | Cooking Time: 30 minutes | Serving Size: 8-10 dog-sized slices
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @winstogrampug
#12: “Happy 1st Birthday, Isla!” Dog Portrait Cupcakes
Your golden’s birthday is coming up and you know a plain store-bought treat just won’t cut it. You want something that matches the aesthetic, feels personal, and looks good enough to post.
These Isla-inspired portrait cupcakes are exactly that.
These six cupcakes are sitting pretty inside a blush pink box, and each one has its own hand-decorated cookie sitting on top. There’s a portrait cookie of a golden doodle wearing a pink party hat, two heart-shaped cookies that say “Happy” and “Birthday”, a number 1 cookie, a tiered cake cookie and a gift box cookie covered in tiny hand-drawn hearts. The frosting underneath is piped in soft ivory, and the red cupcake liners pop against the white.
Ingredients
For the cupcake base:
1. 1 cup whole wheat flour
2. ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
3. ¼ cup peanut butter (xylitol-free)
4. 1 egg
5. 1 tsp baking soda
6. 2 tbsp honey
For the frosting:
1. 8 oz plain cream cheese, softened
2. 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
For the decorated cookies:
1. 1½ cups oat flour
2. ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
3. 1 egg
4. 2 tbsp honey
5. Royal icing (made with meringue powder, water, and powdered sugar) for decoration
6. Edible food-safe black and pink gel coloring
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Whisk the flour, baking soda, honey, egg, applesauce and peanut butter together in a large bowl until a thick batter forms. Do not overmix or the cupcakes will be dense rather than soft. Fill a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners. Bake for 18-22 minutes. Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting. The cream cheese frosting will melt if placed on a still-warm cupcake.
While the cookies are cooling, make your cookies. Add the oat flour, melted coconut oil, egg, and honey in a bowl and stir to form a stiff dough. Roll out dough to ¼ inch thick on parchment paper. Cut out the heart, number “1,” cake, gift box, and dog shapes using cutters or a sharp knife. Bake at 325 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. The cookies will firm up as they cool which actually makes them easier to decorate.
For the portrait cookie, I used a fine-tip piping bag filled with ivory royal icing to sketch the dog face. As I was piping, I added in tan and brown shades so the colors would blend (as they do on your skin) while the base layer was still wet. This avoids cracking. After I let the base layer dry, I piped on a pink party hat with white polka dots.
Beat the cream cheese and Greek yogurt together until fluffy. Use a 1M star tip to pipe the mixture on each cooled cupcake. Then press one of the decorated cookies into each cupcake so it stands upright.
Cream cheese frosting is soft and sweet, but not over the top sweet, which my dogs love. So in turn, they wont have any tummy troubles from eating too much sugar. PUPPY BIRTHDAY anyone?
If you have ever baked anything with one of your dogs, it is a guarantee that at least one of the ingredients is something you are concerned might not be safe for dogs. What Can Dogs Eat? A Comprehensive Guide to Canine Nutrition is a great reference guide to have on hand before you bake.
Prep Time: 30 minutes | Cooking Time: 22 minutes | Serving Size: 6 cupcakes
Pipe your frosting right before serving, as cream cheese can soften very quickly at room temperature and freshly piped swirls of frosting will hold their shape much better for the photos.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @sophies_doggy_cookie
#13: Peanut Butter Dog Bone Cupcakes With Colorful Liners
Your dog is already sniffing the air before these are even out of the oven. That warm, nutty smell just hits you in the heart when you know it is made for her.
CUPCAKES FOR DOGS that are the cutest thing at any dog birthday party! I put them in mini cupcake liners (you can see I used purple, red, yellow and green ones in the picture above) and I used a swirled peanut butter cream cheese frosting which I piped into a soft mound. On top of each one I put a small dog bone biscuit!
The bone-shaped topper isn’t just adorable, it adds a crunchy texture that your pup will love! See her face when she takes a bite of her bowl – so adorable!
Ingredients
1. 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
2. 1 tsp baking soda
3. ½ cup natural peanut butter (xylitol-free, always check the label)
4. ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
5. 2 eggs
6. ¼ cup honey
7. ½ cup shredded carrots
8. 4 oz plain cream cheese, softened
9. 3 tbsp natural peanut butter (for frosting)
10. 1–2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk (to thin frosting)
11. Mini dog bone biscuits for topping — store-bought or homemade dog biscuits work great here
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cooking Time: 20 minutes | Serving Size: 12 mini cupcakes
Instructions
Make sure your oven is preheated to 350°F and line a 12-cup mini muffin pan with those colorful paper liners. The mini muffins are small enough to make a good portion for a medium to large dog like a golden.
Mix your whole wheat flour with your baking soda in a small bowl. The whole wheat flour lends that dense, biscuit-like consistency dogs love and it won’t get soggy under the frosting.
In a separate bowl, mix the peanut butter, applesauce, eggs and honey together. Fold in the shredded carrots last. They will melt into the batter during baking and you will only see a little bit of them, but they will add a sweetness to the muffins and a little fiber that your dog will thank you for.
Mix together the wet and dry ingredients. Stir until just combined. Fill each liner about ¾ full. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Pull them out and let them cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before frosting. If you put warm cupcakes in the frosting, it’s just going to turn into a sad peanut butter puddle.
For the frosting, beat the cream cheese and peanut butter together until fluffy. Add almond milk one tablespoon at a time, until it reaches a thick, but pipeable consistency. Load into a piping bag with a star or round tip and swirl it onto each cooled cupcake, in that circular mound shown in the photo.
This recipe makes enough dough for 12 mini dog bone biscuits, which you will press flat on top of the frosted cupcakes. Not only will the biscuits serve as toppers, but they will be eaten by the dogs as well! That’s the whole point, right?
Make sure the leftovers are stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. The cream cheese frosting needs to stay cold, so don’t leave them out on the counter! If you want to make them ahead of time, you can bake the cupcakes and freeze them without frosting, then frost them the day of the party.
You can also make a fall version of these puppy dog treats using pumpkin. It’s almost the same batter and your girl will be just as obsessed.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @mentosacoffee
#14: Birthday Cupcakes for Dogs (With Tiny Dog Toppers!)
Does your golden have a birthday and you want to do something “special”? Does a plain dog biscuit just seem sad?
Girl, same.
Last year I made my cousin’s cavapoo a full birthday spread and honestly the tiny animal toppers had everyone losing their mind. These cupcakes in the photo are giving me all the feels.
This is a peanut butter and banana cupcake, out of the box, and baked in standard muffin tins. Topped with a swirl of cream cheese and plain Greek yogurt frosting, piped with a 1M star tip. And a sprinkle of dog-safe rainbow sprinkles. The colors are doing so much work here!
The mini plastic doggie figurines (pictured with a gray poodle, orange doodle, black scottie, and black and tan pinscher) sit at the bottom of the tray, followed by colorful tinsel picks, pastel heart candles, and a pink acrylic number “4” topper on a round white ceramic plate.
Ingredients
– 1 cup whole wheat flour
– 1 ripe banana, mashed
– ½ cup peanut butter (xylitol-free)
– 2 eggs
– ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
– 1 tsp baking powder
– 4 oz cream cheese, softened
– ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt (for frosting)
– Dog-safe rainbow sprinkles
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350F. Make sure your standard 12-cup muffin tin is lined with paper baking cups. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour and baking powder. In another large bowl, mix the mashed banana, peanut butter, eggs, and Greek yogurt until smooth. The batter will be thick, but it should still pour. Fill each cup of the muffin tin about two-thirds full, then bake in the oven for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Make sure the cupcakes are completely cooled before frosting, and why is this so important? A warm cupcake will melt your frosting and you will not have a swirl shaped cupcake.
Beat the cream cheese and Greek yogurt together until fluffy. Put in piping bag fitted with a 1M tip and pipe in a circular motion starting from the outside edge. The cream cheese base allows the frosting to stay firm at room temperature for a couple hours. Perfect for a little birthday celebration and picture taking.
Push your mini dog figurines into the base of each cupcake and then add the tinsel picks and the heart candles last. Add the number topper in the center of the tray.
This cream cheese frosting contains a lot less sugar than most other frostings, but the rich, indulgent taste will give your pup a treat without any guilt. If you’re looking to make your dog’s diet even healthier, Homemade Probiotics for Dogs – The Ultimate Guide is worth reading before you bake.
If there are leftovers, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @pupcakes.dallas
#15: Vanilla Chai Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting and Snickerdoodle Coin
Your golden retriever is staring at your plate. That slow, patient stare that makes you feel guilty eating anything without sharing.
These cupcakes? You can actually share them.
Looking at this little box, I am obsessed with how polished these are. Each cupcake has a: silver foil liner a swirled white cream cheese frosting a round snickerdoodle style cookie disc on top. The disk is golden and slightly speckled, about 1.5 inches in diameter. The base of the cake is a warm amber brown, which leads me to believe that there’s cinnamon and chai spice baked right into the cake. No artificial dyes, no chocolate. Just warm, dog-safe ingredients that smells like your favorite fall candle.
I made these for my dog’s birthday last year and believe me, it was the hardest thing not eating them myself.
Ingredients (makes 12)
1. 2 cups whole wheat flour
2. 1 tsp cinnamon
3. ½ tsp ground ginger
4. ¼ tsp cardamom
5. 1 tsp baking powder
6. 2 eggs
7. ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
8. ¼ cup honey
9. ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
10. ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
For the cream cheese frosting:
1. 8 oz plain cream cheese, softened
2. 2 tbsp honey
For the snickerdoodle cookie topper:
1. 1 cup oat flour
2. 2 tbsp coconut oil
3. 2 tbsp honey
4. ½ tsp cinnamon
5. 1 tbsp water
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cooking Time: 22 minutes | Serving Size: 12 cupcakes
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a 12-cup muffin tin with foil muffin liners (these hold their shape better than paper liners and will give your muffins the bakery-box look in the photo).
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and baking powder. In another large bowl, beat the eggs until slightly frothy. Stir in the applesauce, honey, yogurt and coconut oil. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry mixture until just combined. Overmixing will result in a tough crumb.
Fill each liner about two-thirds full. Bake for 20-22 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. And let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting — warm cake will melt the cream cheese and you won’t get that nice swirl.
For the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and honey together until fluffy. Fill a piping bag with the frosting and pipe in a clockwise spiral, from the outside in, using a 1M star tip. This is how the frosting on top of the cupcakes will get the cloud-like look in the photo.
To make the cookie toppers, I mixed all the snickerdoodle ingredients into a dough, rolled it out to a 1/4-inch thickness, and cut it into 1.5-inch rounds. I baked them at 325F for 10-12 minutes until they were golden and the edges were firm, but the centers were still a little soft (they crisp up as they cool).
Next, press one cookie into the center of each frosted cupcake while the frosting is still cold. It will stick to the frosting and stay upright for photos.
The whole wheat flour gives these dogs their structure, the Greek yogurt keeps them moist, and the snickerdoodle topping adds a satisfying crunch your dog will hear from across the room. If you’ve got leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days; the cream cheese frosting needs to be kept cold.
📸 Photo credit: Instagram @yumsouthernmarket
The One Baking Mistake That Ruins Dog Cupcakes (And How to Skip It)
Well, the biggest mistake I see is people using regular flour and calling them dog cupcakes.
I will not feed my dogs this or any wheat. I have spoken with many people who have dogs with stomach issues that wheat flour is hard on most dogs stomachs. Your golden may be fine but mine are not and after making a batch for my neighbors dog who had the worst tummy issues ever I started to research alot.
Replace flour with oat flour or coconut flour. The oat flour keeps the texture moist, so that it doesn’t make anyone feel sick.
Another pro tip: xylitol has even begun showing up in some strange places, such as peanut butter and yogurt, so read the labels of everything that goes into your batter. Xylitol is toxic to dogs.
And if that weren’t enough, you can make the most delicious cream cheese frosting with either whipped cream cheese or plain Greek yogurt piped through a ziplock bag to create the most beautiful swirls that you’ve ever seen – without all the sketchy ingredients.
If you want to do something super cool, you could make frozen dog treats with many of the same safe ingredients. Also great to batch at the same time as the cupcakes.
Your Floors Deserve Better Than Muddy Paw Prints
PICK ONE MAT TO TRY FOR A WEEK. You will notice the difference after the first rainy walk and be glad to welcome your golden home without cringing.
Seriously, though. I’ve discovered how to have a Pinterest-worthy home AND own a dog.
I know that you love this dog as much as I do (because, obviously, he is the cutest dog on the planet). Give your floors a break (and you, too) and help your dog if his tummy isn’t as happy as he is. Read about what to do when your dog vomits, too.
So which mat style is perfect for your home style?
Amr Mohsen is a software engineer who traded his keyboard for a leash — at least on weekends. His love for dogs inspired him to share what he learns as a dog owner and enthusiast, bringing a detail-oriented, research-driven perspective to every article he writes. If it’s about dogs, he’s probably already looked it up twice.
