What would be the best treat to feed my dog?

Question

Thomas, my Welsh Corgi is now being trained by my family.

We have thought him to sit and stay. So now I'm wondering, what would be great as a treat...? If you have any recommendations that you would like to share, I will really appreciate it.

Thanks : )

Answer 1

What kind of dessert do you like best?  What?  You say it depends upon your mood and changes over time?  Hmm....maybe that's true for your dog as well.

1.  Dogs are individuals.  What one dog goes ga-ga over another will hold up it's nose at.

2.  Dogs change over time.  A treat that was high value may move down the ladder in time.

3.  Not all treats are created equally.  You should be able to identify a continuum of "high value" treats (that your dog will kill for) and others that your dog won't turn away from but also won't have him running through a wall to get at.

4.  Not all treats are, um...treats.  For instance, for some dogs, the "treat" is playing tug.  I know another dog where its a thrown tennis ball.  For my dog, it's his soccer ball (he goes bonkers with that thing--juggles it in the air as he runs).

Generally speaking, the highest value treats that ALWAYS motivate my dog are:

--his soccer ball

--a small piece of string cheese

--any time I tell him "arms" (which means he's supposed to come running and jump up into my arms as I stand--whatever I give him he always knows he'll like it and it won't be small).

The lesser value treats are:  pieces of his kibble, small pieces of buffalo meat, commercial treats (like Zuke's mini-treats, etc.).

Some hints on treats:

--try to avoid stuff with wheat or grains in it.

--keep it small.  Especially for training, the idea is something about the size of a pea.

--don't lure with it.  Treats or rewards are great for dogs.  But you don't hold the treat out to entice the dog.  For instance, when we do agility practice, the soccer ball stays hidden until my dog finishes his run and then I pull it out of the bag and he goes bonkers.

Answer 2

greenies dogs luv that and plus its good for them!or you can buy a whole chicken and cut it up and give it to him h**l love that!

Answer 3

If your using treats as a form of obediance I would really not encourage it. A dog thrives off of human acceptance. The dog simply wants to please you. A treat should be given when the dog is doing absolutely nothing. It can cause food aggression in dogs. Here is an example.

Have you ever noticed that when you have a treat in your hand your dog will pay full attention to you? When we are training our pets to sit , stay ect that animal sees nothing but you. Now when you sit and bargin with the dog to sit all its doing is remembering you have food and he wants it. Now picutre a small child copying you. That child may get bit by the dog.

Try using a happy voice and a good rub down when your dog does something correct. It makes the dog want to please you without having to bribe them.

Answer 4

i have a beagle mix. she loves to do tricks for treats. i sometimes use pieces of meat, tiny bits of cheese, or a slice of pepperoni. they love that kind of thing. but only so much of each or he'll get a tummy ache! sometimes you can even find treat recipes on line. i would try out a couple different ones and see what he likes best! good luck!

Answer 5

any brand of dog treats lol, many dogs love cheese and ham

Answer 6

Homemade treats are the best our dogs LOVE them, you can find some good recipes online at:

http://www.bullwrinkle.com/Assets/Recipe...

http://www.thepoop.com/pooppantry/

http://www.i-love-dogs.com/dog-food-reci...

Also Castor & Pollux ORGANIX Organic Dog Cookies are the best store bought treats I've found:

http://www.castorpolluxpet.com/store/thi...

Answer 7

I give my dogs Innova EVO treats. They are high protein and grain free.

Freeze dried liver or freeze dried lamb lung are also big favorites. They are also great because they don't have added ingredients like salt, sugar, etc.

Another possibility is chicken jerky. The only thing you have to look out for is that there was a recall not too long ago on some jerky brands (including Smokehouse).

Answer 8

Most dogs like cheese, peanut butter, any kind of meat and my dog loved boiled carrots as a baby. Any treat with a strong smell can be used for training, trial and error will help determine what your dog likes and how valuable each treat it to him. Highest value for most difficult tasks.