Yellowknife (May 17/04) - Mouth-watering meatballs. Savory cheese nuggets. Yummy liver brownies. Mmmmm, liver brownies.

The NWT Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has put out a cookbook of treats.

Though the recipes are intended for your dog or cat, that hasn't stopped humans from sampling them.

SPCA president Janet Pacey highly recommends the peanut butter biscuits.

It all started when Pacey and vice-president Robin Weber asked volunteers to make pet treats they could take to trade shows and sell alongside the SPCA calendars.

Then Weber and Pacey got the bright idea to make a book of recipes as another fundraiser.

They collected recipes off the Internet and combined them with photographs culled from their pet calendars going back to 1999.

Artisan Press gave them a discount on the printing and had the cookbooks done in 10 days.

Volunteers made five of the recipes and NWT SPCA mascot Winnie taste-tested one from every batch before the SPCA took them to the Yellowknife trade show last week.

"She's pretty finicky, but she ate every single cookie," said Pacey.

"Then she sat there watching me bag them all."

Few choices for cats

The vast majority of recipes are aimed at dogs. Only six are for cats.

"Cat recipes are tough to find," said Pacey.

She said there were a "gazillion" recipes for dog treats, but most cat recipes they found were for food, not treats.

Pacey hopes the books not only raise money for the SPCA, but encourage pet owners to shower their pets with affection.

"A lot of people are into spoiling their pets," said Pacey.

At least with the homemade treats, pet owners know what's in them. Pacey said there's a big movement to more organic foods, especially after the mad cow disease scare.

The NWT SPCA cookbook is already available in Yellowknife.

The Fort Smith humane society has ordered copies to sell later this summer at the South Slave Friendship Festival.

You can also order the cookbook by e-mail at

nwtspca@theedge.ca.