Lick Mat Recipes for Dogs: 4 Easy Fillings My 3 Dogs Love (and How I Clean the Mats)
These are the lick mat recipes for dogs I actually use at home: steamed sweet potato, mashed blueberries, unsweetened applesauce and plain pumpkin puree. Nothing fancy. The only thing I cooked was the sweet potato, and everything else came straight from the grocery store. I filled three silicone lick mats, one for each of our dogs, set them down on the floor and watched what happened.
We have three small dogs. Our oldest girl is a 14-year-old Pomeranian, and the two younger boys are both 3, a mini goldendoodle and a maltipoo. All three eat fast. Like, blink-and-it’s-gone fast. That’s why every one of them eats out of a slow feeder bowl, and honestly it’s also why I like lick mats so much. The grooves work the same way. Instead of gulping, they have to lick and lick for a good long while.
Below I’ll show you how much goes on each mat, the two labels I always check before anything goes on, which filling disappeared first (and which one got left for last), how long the mats kept them busy, and how I clean them afterward. That last part is the one nobody seems to talk about, and with three drooly dogs it really matters.
Quick Look: Our Lick Mat Setup
| Fillings | Steamed sweet potato, mashed blueberries, unsweetened applesauce, 100% pumpkin puree |
| How much | About 2 teaspoons per section, so roughly 8 teaspoons per mat |
| Mats | 3 silicone lick mats from Amazon, one per dog: a set of 2 squares in orange and blue (about $8 with tax) + 1 round mat with 4 sections (about $17 with tax) |
| How long it lasted | About 30 minutes until the mats were almost licked clean |
| First to go / last to go | Applesauce went first, blueberries got left for last |
| Frozen? | Not this time. I served them right away, soft |
| Biggest fans | Our goldendoodle and our 14-year-old Pomeranian |
| Least interested | Our maltipoo, who had already eaten his meals and treats |
| How often | Every now and then as a special extra, not every day |
| Cleaning | Hot water soak, dish soap, then 1 to 2 minutes in boiling water |
| Best for / Good to know | Best for fast eaters, seniors with few teeth and dogs who need a calm activity. Good to know: lick mats aren’t for dogs who chew up silicone, and if your dog is on a vet diet, ask before adding new foods |
Why Lick Mats Work So Well in Our House
The first reason is speed. Our dogs treat every meal like a race. Our oldest girl already eats from a raised slow feeder bowl, and I wrote about the signs that told me she needed a raised bowl if you’re wondering the same thing about your own senior. A lick mat is basically that idea turned into a treat. The grooves and bumps hold a thin layer of food, so the only way to get it is to lick, slowly.
The second reason is our oldest girl’s teeth. She doesn’t have many left, so anything hard is off the table for her. Soft fillings spread into a mat are perfect, because there’s nothing to chew. She just licks.
And the third reason is how they act afterward. I can’t give you the science on this, but every time I put the mats down they get so into it, and afterward they seem really mellow. It honestly looks like it takes their stress away. That alone makes the cleanup worth it for me.
The 4 Ingredients I Used
Here’s everything that went on the mats: one sweet potato, a small handful of fresh blueberries, a single-serve cup of organic unsweetened applesauce, and a 15 oz can of organic pumpkin puree. Nothing has salt, sugar, butter or spices added. Our dogs’ sweet potato is always plain, no seasoning at all, and I keep everything else just as simple. Two of these need a quick label check at the store, and I’ll show you exactly what I look for further down.
How I Filled Three Different Mats
We have three mats, one for each dog. Two of them are the same square design in different colors, orange and blue, and each square has four different textured sections, with honeycomb, little bumps and paw prints. The third one is a light blue round mat, split into four sections too: waves, straight lines, a spiral and a leaf pattern. All three came from Amazon. The two squares came as a set for about $8 with tax, and the round one was about $17 with tax.
Since there are four sections and four fillings, I gave each section its own filling, like a tiny tasting plate. On the round mat that meant pumpkin in the waves, blueberries in the lines, applesauce in the spiral and sweet potato in the leaf. On the squares I followed the same idea and matched thick fillings with the deeper sections and runny ones with the finer textures.
My one real rule is to keep every layer thin. For us that’s about 2 teaspoons per section, so roughly 8 teaspoons on each mat. The point is to make them work for it, not to hand them a second dinner. A thin layer pressed into the grooves lasts way longer than a thick one sitting on top.
My 4 Lick Mat Recipes for Dogs
I think of these less as recipes and more as four fillings that each do something a little different on the mat. Some are thick and stay put, some are runny and fill the channels. Mixing textures is what keeps the dogs working at it.
1. Mashed Blueberries
I put a few blueberries right on the mat and smash them with a fork. Whole berries just roll around, but mashed ones spread into the little bumps and the juice soaks into every corner. They look a mess, very purple, and the dogs did not care at all.
2. Unsweetened Applesauce
Applesauce is the runniest of the four, so it goes into the spiral section of the round mat. I just spoon it into the middle and let it run along the channels on its own.
3. Steamed Sweet Potato
Sweet potato is the all-time favorite in our house. I steam it, peel off the skin and mash it with a fork. That’s it. It’s thick and a little dry, so I press it into the deeper, wider sections with a silicone spatula. I already shared exactly how I cook sweet potato for our dogs, so if you want the steaming details, they’re all there.
4. Pumpkin Puree
Pumpkin is smooth and sticky, which makes it great for the finer textures, like the small bumps and the wavy lines. I spread a thin layer with a spatula and push it down so it fills the gaps instead of sitting on top. Going by the label on our can, 2 teaspoons of pumpkin is only about 4 calories.
The 2 Labels I Check Before Anything Goes On
Two of these four ingredients come with a label check, and I do it every single time I buy them.
Applesauce: it has to say unsweetened on the front. Regular applesauce has added sugar, and some “no sugar added” or sugar-free products use sweeteners, so I also read the ingredient list to make sure there’s no xylitol, which is toxic to dogs. The cup I used is the 365 brand organic unsweetened kind, and I didn’t even use the whole cup across three mats.
Pumpkin: it has to be 100% pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. They’re usually shelved close together, especially in the fall, and the cans can look almost the same. Pie filling already has sugar and spices mixed in. The can I used lists organic pumpkin as the only ingredient, with 0 g of added sugar and 0 g of fat, and 1/2 cup is 50 calories. Funny enough, the back of the can has a pumpkin pie recipe that calls for 3/4 cup of sugar plus cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger, which is a pretty good reminder of what you do not want on a lick mat. I also keep a list of fall foods dogs should not eat, if you want to know what else to keep off the mat this time of year.
Which Filling Each Dog Went For
Here’s how all three mats looked once they were ready, one for each dog. Short version: the applesauce went first, and the blueberries got left for last.
I lined the three mats up on the floor, and the dogs waited while I took my pictures. Then I let them go.
Our 14-year-old Pomeranian took the orange square and got right to work. She’s one of the two biggest lick mat fans in our house, which made me so happy, because soft food she can lick is exactly what works for her now.
Our maltipoo started on the blue square, licked for a bit, and then just walked away and stood there looking at me. He had already had his meals and plenty of treats that day, so I’m pretty sure he was just full. (He’s also the one I wrote about in how big maltipoos actually get, if you’ve ever wondered about that.)
Our goldendoodle went to town on the round mat and then cleaned up whatever his brother left on the blue one. He and our oldest girl were clearly the winners of the day. All three liked it, though. The difference was only in how hungry they were when the mats came out.
I honestly wasn’t watching which section each dog licked first, but my photos tell the story. About four minutes in, the honeycomb section on the blue mat, where the applesauce had been, was already clean and the sweet potato was half gone, while the blueberries and pumpkin were still mostly there. A minute or two later, our Pomeranian had licked every section of the orange mat clean except one: the blueberries. So in our house, the runny applesauce disappears first and the blueberries get saved for last.
How Long a Lick Mat Kept Them Busy
About 30 minutes. That’s how long it took before all three mats were almost licked clean, and by then the dogs were pretty tired and stopped on their own. For roughly 8 teaspoons of food per mat, that’s a lot of quiet, happy licking.
Here’s how it went in between, going by the times on my photos:
- 0 minutes: the mats go down and the dogs dive in.
- About 4 minutes: our maltipoo walks away from his half-finished mat. On the blue mat, the applesauce is already gone.
- About 6 minutes: our Pomeranian has cleaned every section of the orange mat except the blueberries.
- About 10 minutes: our goldendoodle is still working away on the round mat.
- About 30 minutes: the mats are almost spotless and everyone is done.
So if you’re hoping a lick mat buys you some peace and quiet, a thin layer of soft fillings bought us a good half hour. I haven’t tried frozen fillings yet, so I can’t tell you how much longer that adds. That’s the next experiment.
How Often We Do Lick Mats
Not every day. Lick mats are a special extra in our house, something I do whenever I think of it. Our dogs already have a pretty full food day: two meals, their supplements, dried liver treats, my own homemade dehydrated chicken treats, a chew for the two younger boys, plus steamed or dried sweet potato and the occasional egg. A lick mat goes on top of all of that, which is another reason I keep the layers thin.
They love it every single time. If your dog’s day is already full of treats, it makes more sense to let the lick mat stand in for a treat than to add it on top. And if your dog has a health condition or eats a special diet, check with your vet before adding new foods, even simple ones like these.
How I Clean Lick Mats (Hot Water, Soap, Then a Quick Boil)
This is the part I take seriously. Because the dogs lick for so long, the mats come back covered in drool, and food gets stuck deep in the grooves. Silicone makes it easy, but it still needs a proper wash, not just a rinse.
- Soak in hot water first. I let the mats sit in hot water for a bit so the dried-on bits loosen up.
- Wash with dish soap. Regular dish soap and a quick scrub get everything out of the grooves.
- Boil for 1 to 2 minutes. I heat water in a big pot, drop the mats into the boiling water for a minute or two, then take them out. I do this to get rid of germs and that leftover smell.
Here’s what the boil step actually looks like. I get the water to a full rolling boil and lower in one mat at a time, so it can lie flat and every groove ends up under the water.
Partway through, I flip it with tongs so the back side, the one with all the little suction cups, gets its turn too. Once a mat is in the pot, I only touch it with the tongs.
After a minute or two, I lift it out, let the water drip back into the pot, and the next mat goes in. Going by the times on my photos, all three mats were done in about five minutes.
Our mats are all silicone and have handled the boiling step just fine. If yours is a different material, or the package doesn’t say it’s heat safe, I’d stick to hot water and soap.
What I Learned From This First Round
A full dog doesn’t care much. All three of ours love lick mats, but our maltipoo had already eaten his meals and treats, and he lost interest fast. If you want your dog to really dig in, a lick mat lands better when it isn’t right after a big snack.
Frozen is next. This round was all soft and unfrozen, which was great for our oldest girl and super quick for me. Next I’m going to freeze the same fillings and see whether it makes the mats last longer, and how our senior does with something cold and firm.
Watch the leftovers. Our goldendoodle happily finished his brother’s mat, which was fine for us. If you have a dog who’s watching their weight, pick up the unfinished mats instead of letting someone else clean up.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you only take two things from this post, make them these: read the label on your applesauce and pumpkin every time you buy them (unsweetened with no xylitol, and 100% pumpkin, never pie filling), and keep the layer thin, about 2 teaspoons per section, so it stays a calm, slow treat and not a second dinner. Then wash the mats properly. Hot water, soap and a quick boil, and your mats will stay clean and smell-free for the next round.
Next up, I’m freezing these same four fillings to see what changes, especially for our 14-year-old. If you have a lick mat combo your dog goes crazy for, tell me in the comments, I’m always looking for new ones to try. And if you’re feeding a senior dog too, here’s how I make homemade dog food for our senior.
