considering changing from hobby to business… but how?

Dealing with food, or edible product (even if it's not meant for humans) can be problematic in terms of regulations concerning safety. Working out of your own kitchen could make this difficult, since the treats in question would potentially be in contact with food for your family.

The first thing I would therefore recommend is to have a dedicated area to work on your treats - perhaps a room in your basement with just an oven and a worktable.

Second, you'll need to see if your recipe is patentable - speak to a patent lawyer about that. In the US, you can file your patent in two stages, where the first allows you to say "Patent Pending" and then you have a year (I think) to complete the filing. Recipes are in general eligible for patents, but if you don't take care of that before you start, then you can risk never being able to file for that particular patent.

EDIT As Susan mentions, the above paragraph may not be relevant, so think about how you will go about keeping your recipe secret, and preventing people who have worked with you from giving it out or selling to competitors.

Third, if you have your packaging, presentation, and so on ready for distribution, then you can simply create a website where you advertise your product, and have a simple form submission to have people send you orders. Alternatively, you can use a site such as Shopify to create an online store, complete with payment processing, order tracking, marketing, etc. If you start now, they're having a competition for growing businesses in the new year - it's worth checking out regardless. (No, I have no connection to the site, but I was sent the info last week and this reminded me about the contest.)

Fourth, although, you may need to do this before you can sell your product, would be to contact the organization that regulates pet food (I don't know which one it is in Florida, but a quick search on Google should help, or just look on a can of dog food and see which government organizations are listed on it). Ask them what you need to do in order to ensure that you aren't violating any laws when you start selling the treats.

Also, think about packaging (how will package the treats, where will you store them once you've made them, etc.) and pricing (if you sell through, say, a pet store will you offer volume discounts? Are there creative ways that you can price the treats? Think of the "monthly wine club" model where "members" receive a new wine each month), and how will you market, promote and brand the treats? Check out your local small business association (SBA) or go online to find free resources. There are also fee-based alternatives, consultants (like me), classes and workshops that can get you going. Also look for adult education classes at your local university, or local associations that might be useful.

Offline: The Small Business Administration has partnerships with various entities called Small Business Development Centers. There's 35 of them in FL. (http://asbdc-us.org). These centers can help you sort out applicable health regs, business licensing etc., plus they offer free/low cost classes in all sorts of topics, plus they'll connect you with a mentor for free.

Online: A simple, easy way would be create a WordPress.com blog (free), a free PayPal account and then hook the two together. http://en.support.wordpress.com/paypal/ Then, post a short (3 paragraph post several times a week about a customer, with a photo of their dog(s) and a quote.

Hope that helps,

A local farmer's market would be an inexpensive test for your product. I think the packaging/presentation suggestions are a good idea. Appeal to the dog owner (dogs will eat anything) with healthy, quality ingredients..

Before you go any further , have you done any market tests? If people won't actually buy your treats, you may never get off the ground.

Sometimes you have to make a market before you can sell to it. To generate interest, and test the waters at the same time, I'd suggest giving away free decorative/wicker baskets (with a collection of treats) to local pet-shops/animal groomers and have them give some out to customers complimentary. Put a sticker on the bottom/inside the basket with you phone number and how much you'd charge for more.

You'll want to emphasize the home-made-ness of it, and perhaps things like 'gluten-free' or 'real-meat'.

Get a cheap label maker and some plastic wrap or even some ziplock bags...

If there is some valid interest, you might want to look into shopify, it provides an easy way to setup an online store.

After you get off the ground, you can focus on making a more serious effort. Perhaps buying a second oven (if it's cooked), and eventually your own bakery area.

Don't be afraid to put in the effort if your product is sell-able.