Good to the bone

Taste testing dog biscuits was required, but it was not the teacher’s decision. 

“Their theory was, ‘[If] we are not willing to eat it, why would we want to sell it?’” Homewood Middle School teacher Briana Morton said. 

Morton’s seventh-grade Family and Consumer Sciences students were inspired by fall vegetables and herbs in the Homewood City Schools Community Garden to create the recipes for their dog bone project. Thin Mint (buckwheat and mint), Elvis Presley (banana and peanut) and Pumpkin Patch (roasted pumpkin) dog treats, shaped like bones, are now available at The Whole Dog Market in downtown Homewood and Dog Days of Birmingham thanks to the students’ efforts. But their original inspiration came from a dog himself.

Morton always begins the school year with an inspirational story to motivate kids to think about what they want to focus on for the nine weeks, and from there she bases their flexible curriculum on the students’ needs and desires. This fall she told the story of Lucky Trooper, a local dog who was found starving and sick in July 2014 and was nursed back to health by his new owner, Danielle Yancey. Lucky’s story is chronicled on Twitter @luckytrooperal and his Facebook page, so Morton thought it would also be a good avenue to teach about the power of social media and how it could be used for good. 

After hearing the story, the students wanted to do something for Lucky and decided to make dog biscuits. Their idea also evolved into a social entrepreneurship project where they learned about running a business for the betterment of a community and society.

While connecting with Lucky and Yancey through Twitter, the students began to research and plan their product, pricing and sales plan. One student is preparing to volunteer at Hand in Paw, a local animal therapy program that facilitates visits to hospitals, nursing homes and other agencies, so they decided to donate the profits to its programs. Yancey also serves on the organization’s board of directors. 

“It was very natural,” Morton said. “It was all the kids, with me facilitating along the way.”

They researched and experimented with recipes to get the right flavors. Through research, they also learned that people who want to buy gourmet dog biscuits care about their animals and the ingredients in their food, so they used buckwheat, whole wheat and flaxseed, but no salt or sugar.

“They used practical common sense but also researched and dug down to the why of each ingredient,” Morton said. “Some kids are realizing they could have their own business now.”

Each bag of bones comes with a tag that explains how Lucky inspired the project and how sales benefit Hand in Paw.

Once the first set of bones had been baked, packaged and delivered to stores, the students and Yancey shared their story over social media.

“The kids are seeing people are commenting and sharing what they are doing,” Morton said. “It gives them that ownership. They might be a kid, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have an impact.”

As the semester progresses, the project will continue as long as the students are learning, Morton said. Even if there’s no longer a market for the bones, they will continue the business through when the semester-long class ends in December. 

“I am here to teach the students, but I want them to learn at their own pace and based on what they are interested in and motivated by,” Morton said. “I know 40-year-olds who aren’t doing anything like this, and they are 11-year-olds.” 

To follow the P.A.W.S. (Philanthropy Awareness Work Skills) Service project or future projects from Morton’s class, follow her on Twitter @mortonfacs.