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Six spots to treat your pup during National Dog Month

Aug 08, 2024 11:37AM ● By Rebecca Olds

Around town in Salt Lake County, there are plenty of places that offer free or low-cost items to celebrate your pet for National Dog Month in August. (Jason Barker/Unsplash)

More and more restaurants seem to be offering treats, both sweet and savory, for customers’ furry family members. Around town in Salt Lake County, there are plenty of places that offer free or low-cost items to celebrate your pet for National Dog Month in August. 

Whipped cream “Pup Cups”

Starbucks isn’t just a well-known place for toddlers to tag along with parents to get a cake pop, but for furry friends to snag a free treat. Most locations offer a cappuccino-size cup with whipped cream called a “puppuccino” by the franchise and deemed “pup cup” by customers. Just ask the barista for it when you get yourself a treat, free of charge.

Matt Young from the West Jordan location of the chain Culver’s, said the franchise also offers pup cups with whipped cream and an outdoor patio where dogs can enjoy them.

The burger restaurant Freddy’s has also been known to give away free pup cups.

Custard and ice cream

All Shake Shack locations offer a treat for their customers’ furry friends. For purchase, pet-parents can buy a bag of gourmet dog bones or a “Pooch-ini” made with the franchise’s dog-safe custard, topped with a Milk Bone, said Riverton’s Shake Shack manager Gregory Jensen. 

The staff at this particular Utah location are especially dog-friendly, said Jensen. If you go through the drive-thru and let them know you have a dog in the car, workers will give a free Milk Bone treat and your dog might be added to the dog wall of photos inside the restaurant. Most locations lack a drive-thru like the Riverton store, but usually have a patio of some sort. 

Some Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream locations offer what they call “Frosty Paws” or “Dogsters” for four-legged friends which is ice cream specifically made for dogs and comes in a variety of flavors to choose from, including peanut butter. A single-serving Frosty Paws is available for $3 at the Sandy and Cottonwood Heights locations of the franchise and can even be ordered for delivery.

Ground hamburger “Puppy Patty”

The burger joint In-N-Out offers a more savory off-menu item for the furry family members of its customers. Marielena from customer service said most stores offer a “Puppy Patty'' which is an unsalted version of their normal hamburger patty. In Utah, she said these cost owners just more than a dollar.