Treat/reward Ideas Needed For Upcoming Class

[Guest Tokolos]

Sprinkles is starting his greyhound-only basics class next week, and I'm looking for some ideas on what treats to bring as rewards. He's on a grain-free diet, and the instructor suggesting bringing some really tasty treats, i.e., not his Taste of the Wild kibble. Any suggestions for things that are quick and easy to gobble down?

[Guest Hoolyghans]

You can buy freeze dried liver cubes, they are 100% liver, nothing added. They feel like chunks of Styrofoam, not gross at all. I'm pretty sure Petsmart/co carries them. Sometimes the cubes are a little big but easy enough to cut smaller and they hold up well in your pocket.

 

Spike goes nuts for them. The only way I can trim his nails is if someone else is popping these in his mouth the whole time.

[Guest Gweneth06]

I have done such a class not too long ago with a former foster of mine. I got some chicken, beef stew, filet mignon....made sure to cut them up into small pieces. Also something that was recommended to me was peanut butter. I have seen people with peanut butter in a tube so you can give a small amount at a time. Hope you enjoy the class!!! Are you taking it with Lilian Akin?

[Guest mirthlesstroll]

Natural Balance makes a grain-free little dog treat that's a great size for training. My 2 grain-free guys love them. I buy them at Petco.

[Guest Tokolos]

Great ideas---thanks!

 

@Gweneth06 - Yes, it's her Greyhound only class. We actually started today (without the dogs) at the Humane Society on the North Shore. Next week, the dogs start. Very excited to see how Sprinks does.

[TheFullHouse]

dehydrated sweet potatoes, apples, banana's, anything along those lines if that doesn't work try marshmallows! Yes, I know but a lot of kennels give marshmallows to the pups after racing. You could use the tiny ones.

[Guest Gweneth06]

The class I took was also with Lilian Akin. She's really nice and the class is relaxed. It's really nice that the class is small too so if you have any questions and such she has the time to give you. My former foster started the class with me and then got adopted and finished the class with his new family. He did really well in the class. Are you hoping to learn new things with him or just expand on what he knows?

[Guest Tokolos]

We just adopted Sprinkles at the end of February, so I'm hoping to learn new things. Just the basics for now, but if he does really well, I would like to see what other classes are available. He's such a great dog that it would be cool if became a reading education assistance dog, but we'll see how it goes.

[Guest boondog]

Sprinkles! I love the name. I always use string cheese. It's convenient to stick in your pocket since each piece is in a wrapper.

[Guest Lovemyhound]

Really good healthy treat with lots of grain free options -- check out "Simply pAwesome" at My link

 

I am not affiliated with that site in any way. I have some of their treats and my girl loves them - they're a great size for a little crunchy training treat! Good Luck!!

[Guest EmilyandSioux]

I use the canned cheese since I have the original cheese hound here.

[GreyPoopon]

Wellness makes grain-free jerky squares (venison, salmon and venison, and a couple of other flavours) that are easy to work with.

 

You can also use no-grain weiners and dry them out in the microwave. Or boil meat (beef heart is a favourite here), slice it, then bake it for a bit.

 

I also use beef liver and other treats from N/A Nothing Added (GTer quietstorm). They're crunchy, so they work best with a dog that chews fast.

[Guest Jubilee251]

I used string cheese, sticks of cheddar cut into cubes, and diced hot dogs. Your fingers get a little stinky and sticky after a while, but oh well!

[RobinM]

zuke. They make the mini ones for training.

 

http://www.zukes.com

 

Greyt stuff.

[Guest mcsheltie]

I like mini Zukes too.

 

Training treats need to be small and moist. Especially if you are doing something repeatative. The more you are asking of the dog or the more distractions, the higher the value of the treat.

 

I like to put a couple different kinds of treats in my bait bag. Then the dog never knows what he is going to get and wants to work harder for it. If I am asking something difficult I will pull out the highest value treat in the bag.

 

I also like nuked hot dogs. Quarter them long way, then holding the hot dog together cut into thin slices. Put the hot dog pieces on a couple layers of paper towel and nuke until they are crispy. Even if you burn them, dogs LOVE them.

 

Tyson (many other companies make them too) chicken strips are a big hit. They like all the flavors. They are already cooked and frozen. People use them a lot for salads. I halfway thaw and cut into tiny pieces. They also make steak strips.

 

Dogs also LOVE these - link You can cut these up as small as you want. ETA: Opps I didn't see these had wheat flour in them... so never mind this suggestion!

Edited June 13, 2010 by mcsheltie

[Guest FastDogsOwnMe]

I can't get my hounds to work consistently for anything less than cheesey hot dogs or ground beef cooked with butter and garlic.

[Batmom]

I also like nuked hot dogs. Quarter them long way, then holding the hot dog together cut into thin slices. Put the hot dog pieces on a couple layers of paper towel and nuke until they are crispy. Even if you burn them, dogs LOVE them.

 

I just nuke them until they are nonfrozen, and slice in extra-thin rounds. Moist, small, smelly -- perfect! I put them in a sandwich bag in my pocket, arranging the top of the bag so I can just reach into my pocket for one. After the first one, your fingers of course smell delicious, and that's enough to keep dog's attention on you between treats.

 

I find that with dry/crispy OR chewy treats, I get some gacking, stopping to chew, etc. Moist and swallowable in an instant works best. 2nd best is freeze-dried fish, which just kinda dissolves on the dog's tongue, but it tends to fall apart in your pocket.

[Guest KennelMom]

You can buy freeze dried liver cubes, they are 100% liver, nothing added. They feel like chunks of Styrofoam, not gross at all. I'm pretty sure Petsmart/co carries them. Sometimes the cubes are a little big but easy enough to cut smaller and they hold up well in your pocket.

 

Spike goes nuts for them. The only way I can trim his nails is if someone else is popping these in his mouth the whole time.

 

I use these often when I need a high value treat. Our dogs love it! I cut the cubes into smaller pieces

[Guest kydie]

I use deyhdrated liver, you can buy them in pet stores, I make my own, and save them for special events, or when he is doing therepy visits

[Guest eaglflyt]

Tiny pieces of fat free hot dogs that have been baked or nuked, small pieces of baked or boiled chicken, tiny pieces of *cheese*. These are all very high value treats for Ady Bea. However, she thinks anything edible is a treat ... these are just among her very favorite.

[Guest missecho]

Hot dogs are easy to cut up into small bites and easy to store in a plastic bag. But greasey---I like roast chicken breasts cut up into small bites--they work wonders and are not too messy. High value treats=good attention and obedience.

[Guest Stripeyfan]

How about pieces of cut up, boiled chicken breast? Not too messy and I've yet to meet a dog that can resist them (ours certainly can't!).

[Guest sheila]

I'm another one that found that a pkg of plain old cheapo hot dogs make great treats not only for training but also for hiding pills in. One hot dog can be cut up into 6-8 portions. I know it's not exactly a 'healthy' treat, but after all it is just a treat.

[onrushpam]

Put leftover bites of your dinner into a little plastic freezer container and just add to it...

Bits of chicken/steak/shrimp/etc... whatever you have that can be cut into tiny bites and frozen.

Back in the days when I was doing lots of obedience training, I would order a bigger steak or prime rib or chicken portion than I knew I could eat when we went out to dinner. I'd take a go-box home and chop the leftovers up for training treats.

 

That said, you should also set aside part of your dog's daily meal of kibble to use. You need a combo of "acceptable" and 'WOW!" training treats.

If you will be training daily, you must account for the treats in the dog's daily calorie count!

 

In a pinch, Gwaltney's chicken hot dogs are pretty good for an in-between treat. Slice into "nickles" and nuke.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[kudzu]

Put leftover bites of your dinner into a little plastic freezer container and just add to it...

Bits of chicken/steak/shrimp/etc... whatever you have that can be cut into tiny bites and frozen.

Back in the days when I was doing lots of obedience training, I would order a bigger steak or prime rib or chicken portion than I knew I could eat when we went out to dinner. I'd take a go-box home and chop the leftovers up for training treats.

 

Oh, ditto what Pam said. I do this all the time. And if I am short on good treats when headed to class I am "forced" to stop for a burrito on the way. Order it with the meat on the side, even double meat all on the side. I get yummy veggie burrito plus treats. Use napkins to soak up excess moistures from meat then mix with kibble. By class time you've got fab treats & way better than kibble for pretty good treats.

 

Will second what others have said like the chicken breast, Zuke's minis & cheese. Frozen, grilled chicken strips are great. Just pull them out & they defrost on the way to & during class. If needed, nuke a few for a minute before heading out. And gross but grain free & adored by most dogs are Vienna sausages.

 

Have you tried the Tuna Fudge recipe using potato flour? That's next on my list to try.