Shops selling dog-friendly ice cream and other desserts on Long Island

The next time you see an ice cream cart,  it just might be carrying treats for dogs. On Long Island, you can buy everything from dog-friendly salmon-flavored ice cream to puppy pumpkin-cinnamon frozen yogurt. Treat your dog to a maple bacon birthday cake, dog-style Hawaiian shave ice or a “collie cannoli.” Gender reveal cakes baked with nutritionally perfect pet ingredients are the latest trend.

Jeffrey Krasnoff, who has practiced veterinary medicine for 41 years and owns The Brookville Animal Hospital, gives a few tips for how your pup can indulge safely. “Treats are fine as long as the ingredients are safe for dogs,” he says. Unsafe ingredients include chocolate, raisins, sorbitol and macadamia nuts. Krasnoff adds, “A little sugar here and there isn’t going to really hurt dogs if it’s once in a blue moon. Also, some dogs are on special diets and need special treats. Their owners should be mindful of that.”

Here are locations where canine ice cream, cakes and cookies are created with ingredients just for dogs.

STRONG ISLAND ICE CREAM

Shop owner Paul Cairo has been making human homemade ice cream for 35 years. He developed an original dog ice cream recipe using store-made vanilla ice cream (sugar-free/low fat), topped with a drizzle of peanut butter and Purina Meaty Moist Burger Cheddar flavor treats. A surprise dog bone is at the bottom of every bowl. Large bowl: $10.

More info 127 Smithtown Blvd., Nesconset; 631-656-5930; strongisland.wixsite.com

THE K9 SHOP & BARKFIELD ROAD

Pupper Cup ice cream and ice cream cakes can be found in freezer cases. Kelly Crook CEO and founder of Pupper Cup explains, “I always loved to make ice cream at home. When I noticed dogs stopping at ice cream trucks along with their owners, I thought it was the cutest thing. But I also thought there should be a healthy way for dogs to enjoy the treat.” So, Crook experimented with dairy-free milks, savory flavors that dogs like, and excluded sugar. In 2019, Crook launched Pupper Cup ice cream in five flavors: peanut butter, blueberry, bacon, pumpkin and salmon. They’re made with coconut milk and the “meat” on the side of a coconut — which gives it an ice cream-like texture. All flavors are natural, including a green topping made with spinach.

Crook brings her ice cream cart filled with Pupper Cups to various locations. On June 17, she’ll be at The K9 Shop in Lynbrook 11 to 1 p.m., and at K9 in Massapequa 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. She’ll be at Barkfield Road in East Northport on July 1 from noon to 2 p.m. Dogs hover around the cart and each one gets a scoop for $4. Crook offers ice cream cakes for dog birthday parties, too ($24,99). She says, “I’ve seen dogs congregate around a table as the owner puts the cake in the middle. Everyone gets their slice on a plate.”

Boss Dog Frozen Yogurt is also sold in The K9 shop and Barkfield Road. Shea Russo, marketing manager for Boss Dog Brand, says, “Our frozen yogurt is infused with probiotics so it isn’t just a dog treat. It’s also a supplement because it provides a digestive solution and the ingredients are all clean products for pets.” Flavors include applesauce, real cheddar cheese and bacon. Cups are $3.50.

For pups who love a cookie with their ice cream, Barkfield Road dog bakery shelves are lined with hand-decorated canine cookies. They’re shaped like everything from butterflies to beach balls for spring. The owners also bake dog cakes for birthdays, gender reveal parties and “gotcha” celebrations (the day a dog owner “gets” a dog).

More info K9 Shops: 939 Broadway, Massapequa; 516-400-3729; 225 Sunrise Hwy, Lynbrook; 516-612-4534; 1519 Lakeland Ave., Bohemia; 631-619-1888; 370 Larkfield Rd., East Northport, 631-486-1009; thek9shop.com. Barkfield Road: 3 Hewitt Square, East Northport; 631-651-9292; barkfieldroad.com 

THE BARKERY LONG ISLAND

Barkery owner Gary Kron worked in finance for 20 years until he and his wife decided to start an online dog dessert company based in Plainview. “We make homemade custom cakes, cupcakes and cookies that include pumpkin, peanut butter and vanilla flavors," he says. "They’re all made with dog-friendly ingredients such as rice flour, oat flour, egg whites, yogurt icing, and there’s no sugar.” Five ice cream flavors are also available. Kron adds, “The ice cream contains lactose-free milk, gelatin, salt and natural flavoring. It contains sugar too, so it’s not for every day — just special occasions.”

Barkery cookies are shaped like everything from footballs to flamingos. “People get creative with cakes,” Kron says. “Someone recently ordered a bone-shaped cake with a dinosaur on it. We’ve even made 'bark mitzvah' cakes for dogs turning 13.” Prices begin at $5.99 for cookie sets, $29.99 for cakes and $7.49 for ice cream.

More info 516-448-9708; thebarkeryli.com; order through website, products delivered or can be picked up.

SEA CLIFF SHAVE ICE

In this organic Hawaiian shave ice shop for humans, owner Taylor Alletto includes cups for dogs  on her menu. Dog-friendly shave ice is made with filtered water and topped with a peanut butter dusting. “Dogs like to chew on the ice," Alletto says. "Georgie is a neighborhood bulldog who comes with his owner every week. After he eats his Pup Cup in the shop, I always have to mop the floor, but it’s worth it.” Proceeds are donated to Cove Animal Rescue. Last season's prices started at $1 per cup. 

More info 247 Sea Cliff Ave., Sea Cliff; seacliffshaveice.com; open seasonally

THREE DOG BAKERY

If you’re looking for a dog gourmet shop, this is it. The owners were trained by a pastry chef specializing in baking and dog nutrition before opening their store. Imagine your pet enjoying dog versions of carrot cake "woofie pies" (frosting sandwiched between two wheat flour pancakes), “collie cannolis” or “puppermint patties." Your pet can join you for brunch munching on “chicken and woofles” or around a campfire gobbling down “barkin’ s’mores.” Each product is displayed in the bakery case with a list of ingredients. An extensive list of all nutritionally sound ingredients is on the website as well. Co-owner Gloria Ma says, “A customer with two dogs walks past our store every day, and the dogs drag her in. Every pet that comes in gets a little treat.” Prices begin at $2 per cookie.

More info 2119 Bedford Ave., Bellmore; 516-612-9555, threedog.com

SMALL CAKES

This shop is filled with mini cakes for humans, but dogs can get in on the act. Dog-friendly mini carrot cupcakes with peanut butter icing topped with tiny bones are sold at the counter. It’s a sugar free carrot cake base, mixed with water and oil, baked right in the store. Seaford/Syosset shop owner Adam Schillen says, “My Rottweiler gobbles them down so fast I don’t think he even tastes them.” Patchogue: five minis for $6.50; Seaford/Syosset: package of four is $6; store-made cakes can be ordered in advance.

More info 339 Jackson Ave., Syosset; 516-226-1922, smallcakessyosset.com; 1284A Hicksville Rd., Seaford; 516-882-4728, smallcakessyosset.com; 17 W. Main St., Patchogue; 631-500-9300, smallcakespatchogue.com 

ICE CREAM COTTAGE

Pick up vanilla soft ice cream created for dogs, prepared with or without sugar. The cups have peanut butter, grain-free dog bones sprinkled across the top. Most cups are made in advance to grab and go and are $3.20.

More info 1590 Montauk Hwy, Mastic; 631-395-3580, icecreamcottage.net

BEN & JERRY’S

Your dog can devour two flavored Dixie cups: peanut butter swirl with pretzels or  pumpkin mixed with canine treats. Nora Garcia, franchisee at Ben and Jerry’s Huntington Village says, “It’s made with sunflower butter, which is easier on dogs’ tummies. It’s also important to put the ice cream in an animal-friendly bowl rather than giving it to them in the Dixie cup.” She adds, “I love to see a dog and its owner come in for ice cream together. They eat their treats outside on the bench. It’s such a nice moment for people to share with their pets.”

More info 298 Main St., Huntington; 631-470-0635, benjerry.com/huntingtonvillage