Grilling is going to the dogs. According to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, 81 per cent of Americans own a grill and average grill usage is up to 26 times per year.<\/p>\n
And, with three-quarters of dog owners saying they consider their dog like a member of the family, more and more owners are including their four-legged friends in the barbecue fun.<\/p>\n
According to grilling guru Kent Whitaker, author of Smoke in the Mountains Cookbook: The Art of Appalachian Barbecue, \u201cGrilling is a family affair and today our dogs are like part of the family.<\/p>\n
My dog Moses is my grilling assistant who keeps it fun, while we all enjoy the real meat aromas on the grill.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whitaker, a past winner of the Emeril Live Food Network Barbecue Contest, and Moses have teamed up with ALPO brand dog food to teach dog lovers how to include their four-legged friends in the backyard barbecue fun.<\/p>\n
They are offering grilling demonstrations and the following tips at ALPO \u201cBeefstro\u201d events throughout the country.<\/p>\n
Great Smells Mean<\/p>\n
Great Flavor<\/p>\n
Use marinades, rubs, sauces and different woods to add extra flavour to your barbecue favourites. While you\u2019re manning the grill, have another family member keep your dog entertained with the savory smells from his favourite dog treat.<\/p>\n
Hold the treat in front of his nose and ask him to perform a simple trick, such as sitting or staying for a food reward.<\/p>\n
Relax With Fun and Games<\/p>\n
While the food is cooking, play fun games the whole family can enjoy, including tag, hide \u2018n go seek and fetch. Make sure you have balls, flying discs and chew toys to help your dog work up a healthy appetite.<\/p>\n
Include A Place Setting<\/p>\n
Create a theme for your barbecue and make sure all of the decorations and table settings match. And, when it\u2019s time to sit down and enjoy the feast, don\u2019t forget to set a place setting for your four-legged family member.<\/p>\n
Put a placemat and bowl on the ground by your table and serve your dog a hearty, healthy meal of ALPO Chop House Originals brand dog food with the real meat taste he craves.<\/p>\n
Live A Little<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t be afraid to experiment and try new things at your next family barbecue. Try new sauces, appetizing dips, bread and side dishes such as Tex-Mex Tater Salad and Fire Baked Beans. And, to give your dog even more excitement at mealtime, feed him different forms and flavours of his favourite food.<\/p>\n
Leave the Clean Up for Later<\/p>\n
Family affairs such as backyard barbecues are special times to be savoured. So take advantage of having the whole family together and leave the dishes for later. Serve a grand finale dessert while sharing your favourite family stories and end the festivities by taking an evening stroll with your canine companion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Grilling is going to the dogs. According to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, 81 per cent of Americans own a grill and average grill usage is up to 26 times per year. And, with three-quarters of dog owners saying they consider their dog like a member of the family, more and more owners are\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[148],"tags":[1070,149,603,199,861,201,202],"class_list":["post-344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cooking","tag-barbecue","tag-dog","tag-family","tag-food","tag-fun","tag-grill","tag-grilling"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=344"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/w1.affwebsites.com\/articledir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}