Best Dog Training Treats

[tryamartimmy]

I'm getting my very own Chi at the end of the month and am already studying up on training tactics. I don't want my pup to contribute to the bad wrap the breed so frequently cops.

My question is this:

What treats should I give her during training, along with praise? I've heard that cheese works, but I thought that most animals are lactose intolerant. I don't want her getting sick (or fat!).

Does anyone have a tried and true favourite?

[Guest Steph & Bam]

I'm getting my very own Chi at the end of the month and am already studying up on training tactics. I don't want my pup to contribute to the bad wrap the breed so frequently cops.

My question is this:

What treats should I give her during training, along with praise? I've heard that cheese works, but I thought that most animals are lactose intolerant. I don't want her getting sick (or fat!).

Does anyone have a tried and true favourite?

Yep! dried beef liver treats, be careful with pork liver though as some dogs get the runs from it.

[Tilly]

I find liver gives my boys the runs ... but they love cheerios/hot dogs.

I usually boil them first (gets rid of some of the fat) then cool them off and chop them up. My boys usually go nuts for them.

[Kavik]

My guys love cheese! Mine are considerably bigger than a chi, and I don't use much, but I haven't had a problem with the runs. Whatever treats you use you should take that into account when giving their meal. Harder with a small dog I imagine, a few training treats doesn't make as much difference to a 20 or 30 kg dog

[J...]

For everyday training I buy the "doggy cool" treats out of the chilled pet section at the supermarket - nice and soft and easy to eat quickly! I find if I use hard or firm treats I lose my fingers too often... I worry about her choking on the harder ones, and they take that bit longer to eat.

For a really high level reward I use cooked chicken or steak!

[Guest Piximatosis]

I use tiny squares of chicken roll, devon roll and good-os!

[dogdude]

Your better off using a soft, easy to eat type treat, otherwise the time that it takes to eat will interfere with his concentration. The food should be of high value to the dog, so you will need to experiment. They often dont respond to whatever is easy for you to carry around like dried treats.

There is very little lactose in cheese. Use low fat type.

I use cabana, or small offcuts of fresh meat.

[ReXy]

small offcuts of any meat leftover from dinner during the week i bag up and freeze, this could be sausage, steak ,chicken, roast meat , hot dogs. cold meats such as ham chicken loaf etc cheese is always good, they loveee roast chicken

i use tiny pieces smaller than you pinky finger nail, and i have a stafford so a little goes a long way

for random treats at home i use liver, small pieces of biscuit, apple, carrot cheerios dogs lovee them, or whatever im eating always seems to be the fav..lol

good luck with your pup and look forward to pics.

[SwaY]

expensive sunglasses in this house

[Henrietta]

Your better off using a soft, easy to eat type treat, otherwise the time that it takes to eat will interfere with his concentration. The food should be of high value to the dog, so you will need to experiment. They often dont respond to whatever is easy for you to carry around like dried treats.

There is very little lactose in cheese. Use low fat type.

I use cabana, or small offcuts of fresh meat.

That is so true Dogdude. I used to feed my Chi liver treats, but it could take up to minutes for her to eat them (in very small pieces) Kind of an awkward way to do training let me tell you. Now it's sausage type things like kabana or chicken roll or if she is lucky, fresh meat.

She still gets the liver treats ocassionally though for things like after her bath or being extra good (she still love the liver treats).

I will confess that if I don't have any special treats handy, I will use her dryfood. She seems to love that just the same, but I do like to offer something a bit more...tasty for her.

[wheres my rock]

if your trinaing a small dog then try to find soething that has soem nutrional value as you will find that they wont need as much dinner if you are training a bit

I actually just use my dogs dinner at home eagle pack and then wehn im out i use a mix of that and cool treats or four legs that way i know hes still getting something a bit healthy rather than fatty food like devon

my bigger dog gets whatever is around because he will still eat his meals and not put on weight

[tryamartimmy]

Thanks guys. There are some excellent suggestions in here. I can't wait to get my baby home now to start trying stuff out.

[Sne]

My treats range from day to day, depending on a) what I have available at the time and b) what i'm attempting to teach the dog. My golden retriever will take just about anything as a reward - it doesn't seem to matter what it is (a toy, food, play...) as long as she gets something in the end.

I've used cheese, liver treats, cold meats (ie tiny pieces of ham or chicken offcuts etc..), various store bought treats.

[piper]

What about the Ziwi Peak treats? I haven't tried them so not sure how hard/big/easy to break they are but am thinking with a little dog and limited calorie intake you want something with nutritional value and I keep hearing good things about these treats. Just haven't been able to find any to try them out myself

[JulesP]

Brock is liking those Cool Treats at the moment. He can certainly eat them nice and quickly. I tend to change treats alot. I get the ham rolls a fair bit too. When he was a pup he wasn't interested in food as a reward at all and it was cat kibble that got him interested! Loved the cat kibble. Kitten kibble would probably work well of a little dog.

[Rain]

I also use what i have available, cheese, cut up peices of meat or chicken.

Kibble doesnt work for my pup for training.

[Guest Steph & Bam]

I can't give bam soft meats when I'm doing training with him, unless they're large chunks (which takes a while for him to chew cause he has to savour it ) If I give him small soft treats he inhales them then vomits them back up. Using the dried liver works really well for me, plus Bam adores them lol

[meurlyn]

I have Staffords so they will eat anything!! But I do find if they are lacking in motivation or a bit lazy cabanossi works well. I just cut it into tiny bits. The strong smell gets their attention every time.

I always have dried liver with me, but found with young puppies the key is to keep changing the treat. If they don't know what to expect they will always be keen find out what you have for them. I still change the treats regularly, some days I use left over BBQ chook, left over baked meat, sausages or whatever I have cooked too much of.

The secret is not sticking to one thing or you will find yourself panicking if you forget to take it, & have a dog who turns it's nose up at whatever else you offer.

Having said all that - my dogs stick their heads in the fridge the minute I open it (actually so does the cat & the rabbit)

[Tibbiemax71]

I boil up some lambs fry (lambs liver) cut into tiny pieces and freeze it, my dogs love it and it doesnt take ages to eat like the dried, my young girl was always coughing and gagging when I used the dry liver treats, its stinky though but the dogs love it so I don't care

[RedStafford]

I agree with a young dog mixing it up is important or they get sick of it and it looses the motivation edge...

I use sausage, just beef ones from coles, get low fat and low salt, i quarter cook em on the open grill on the bbq, cut em in half and finnish cooking them - cut them in half early so that any fat as a chance to drip away, then cut them into small pieces...

Other favs are Cheese and any type of raw meet - but the little dog can't have lamb...

Edited May 8, 2007 by RedStafford