Source
r/dogs•
Lysel

[Discussion] What treat do you use for your dog's training/snack?

Misc

Hi guys, just wanted to know what kind of treats do you guys use when you want to reward your dog or when your trying to train them to do something . Previously I've always been using Blue Buffalo Chicken Bits Dog Treats or the Blue Buffalo Beef Bits Dog Treats but I've heard some disturbing news about the Blue Buffalo brand and I want to veer away these 2 momentarily.

But so far they're the only ones that seems to have a good balance of price vs amount of treats each bag has. So I wanted to know if you guys have any suggestion on other treats that I can feed my puppy? something that has a lot of "pieces" per pack but at the same time affordable?

Posted Jan 14, 2020, 11:01 PM UTC

225
paperdokebi•

You could boil chicken breast and then cut it into small pieces. Our puppy caught a bug and had a sensitive stomach for a while, and the vet told us to put her on a diet or just chicken and rice until she was better. The puppy was very excited and motivated by the chicken pieces!

4
whimsythedalWhimsy the Dalmatian•

I use string cheese, poached and shredded chicken, fajita beef from Trader Joe’s (high reward), tuna treats that I make (egg, flour, tuna, bake for awhile), turkey hot dogs (in limited amounts because of sodium).

I also use her regular kibble as a low reward treat.

I rarely buy dog treats, but when I do I like the zuks minis.

Edit: other ones I thought of: goldfish crackers, hard boiled eggs chopped up. I’d use liver treats too (dried liver, braunschweiger, etc) if it weren’t for my dogs dietary restrictions (dals cannot have organ meats because of the purines)

3
MuddieMaeSuggins•

For your homemade treats, is that canned tuna? That is intriguing for our more easily distracted dog.

2
whimsythedalWhimsy the Dalmatian•

Yes, canned tuna. There’s lots of recipes online if you google dog tuna fudge. I normally press it out pretty thin and bake it longer than some of them say, since I like them a little more firm. Then cut them really small, and freeze. I just pull out a handful for training whenever I need them.

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MuddieMaeSuggins•

tuna fudge

I really can’t abide these two words together.

Regardless, thanks! We need something stinky for Captain Distracted.

2
whimsythedalWhimsy the Dalmatian•

I know, it sounds so gross! But my dog will do anything for it, it’s a really good training treat for her. Hope it works well for your guy! Liver is pretty stinky too if you can find dried/freeze dried stuff

1
AlokFluff1.5 yr working line standard poodle•

Plain chicken, his daily kibble, salmon skin chews broken down in tiny pieces, or semi moist treats I can easily break down into smaller bits.

2
solasalooSnooty Couch Warmer and Orange Furry Cannonball•

First and foremost their daily kibble.

Then we use other kibble (sample bags), dehydrated single meat treats (crumps, purebites and sojos), zukes, merrick treats, random treats we get at homesense...

Then the big guns (high distraction settings/fear/really hard stuff) boiled chicken, whatever freezerburnt meat I find at the bottom of my freezer and pets4life tripe treats.

Recall jackpots we have used: a yoghurt cup, a boiled egg, a pizza crust, a slice of roast beef, things like that

2
[deleted]•

[deleted]

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MuddieMaeSuggins•

Our dogs respond well to cheese, cut up hot dogs, cat food (had to rig up a whole system to keep them from stealing it), zukes minis (breaks up easily with a fingernail), and freeze dried liver. One of them is also super toy motivated so a tennis ball works as a training reward.

2
3TipsyCoachman3Freya: ChiDacshterrier•

Kibble, dehydrated chicken, Zuke’s Minis, and the Pet Botanical training treats.

Got a pyramid pan for Christmas so I am looking forward to making some myself.

2
laxyliz•

We use his dog food He’s a lab and doesn’t know when to stop so to avoid over feeding him I set out his food for the day in a bowl and take from there. What ever is left at dinner is given to him

2
Carlodr92•

We use healthy snacks for our pup really fairly priced and has good amount to it :Great Jack’s Freeze Dried Raw salmon flavour. My guy loves it and it’s super good for his fur the salmon flavour. Easy to break apart too, so it’s lasting super long. I forget that exact price but I think it was under 12 dollars Canadian

1
LyselOP•

Great Jack’s Freeze Dried Raw salmon flavour

thank's i'll try that

1
LyselOP•

But isn't it listed that cheese should be given in moderation? how much cheese do you guys give your dog daily?

1
MuddieMaeSuggins•

You don’t need a lot. When we were in classes, so doing an hour of sustained work, I would cut up maybe 1-2 pieces of string cheese into dozens of small pieces, and usually have some left over at the end of class.

2
whimsythedalWhimsy the Dalmatian•

I use very very small pieces. But she probably eats a string cheese stick worth of cheese a day.

1
SolanGoosecow•

I use Zukes Minis. They're wee, very low cal, and pretty solid semi moist. I can fill a pocket without them getting stuck or going gooey, they just dry into little versions of themselves.

1
take_off_your_shoes•

Cheese, chopped pieces of chicken or steak, and deli meat.

1
creambunnymouthy monster mutt•

I use Cheerios - the no sugar ones. Very very low calorie per cheerio and cheap. he goes nuts for them and he doesn’t care about kibble as a treat

for bigger rewards I give him those mini mother hubbard bones. sometimes cheese lol

1
IAmPandaRock4+? y.o. Central Asian Shepherd; 12 y.o. BC/GSD/Pit/Chow•

Pets and verbal praise for my boy. Anything edible for my girl.

1
OnExtendedWingsdisc dogs: Aussie | Aussie/Kelpie mix (CGC)•

The best high-value training treats for our dogs are the Real Meat Company's 95% lamb/liver jerky.

We love it because it's easy to break into tiny pieces, it's almost pure meat, and 12oz is about $12. I think they love it because it's chewy and stinky -- they will practically do handstands and backflips for this stuff!

1
akgt94•

Deli turkey. Cut into tiny cubes ahead of time. Can give them a lot without over feeding

1
TXrutabegaRambo (ACD) & Chubbs (Bulldog)•

Depends.

Usually dried liver or peanut butter

Could be pieces of bacon if I need something extremely high value

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[deleted]•

I got a meal topper from Petco that’s a shredded chicken/apple blend and I’ve been using that recently. I like it cause it’s in tiny pieces so it works well with a really high rate of reinforcement.

Other go-tos are Zuke’s Minis, freeze-dried liver, string cheese, Kraft singles, and kibble.

1
tinycatfaceFloppy-eared terrier•

Freeze dried chicken or liver (I get the cat treat ones as they are lower cal), Zuke’s minis, kibble. Really high value is frozen banana pieces or freeze dried salmon. I tried making my own but they were terrible (dog liked but way too squishy!).

1