Best training treats

[pistachioicecream]

We're collecting our Lagotto Romagnolo puppy on Saturday when she will be 10 weeks old. So am busy getting everything ready in the house for her arrival!

Think we have most things covered but the one thing I'm really struggling to make decisions about is what treats to use for training. It's so confusing! There are just so many makes and types I don't know where to start.

Any advice about good, healthy, but delicious treats would be really welcome.

Or should I not be bothering with shop bought treats and just use fresh cut up chicken and cheese?

Help?! Thank you!

[vanillandhoney]

I wouldn't use most commercially made treats - just because they have a lot of unnecessary additives in them.

You can buy things like dried duck or chicken strips which are good and not as messy as the fresh alternatives. I'm a dog walker and find the dried chicken goes down really well with all my walking dogs - plus I don't get messy/smelly hands so it's a bit more hygienic when you're out in the middle of nowhere with no access to soap and water!

Otherwise things like cubes of fresh ham/chicken or even cocktail sausages are great. Or you can make your own treats too - there are some great recipes out there for things like tuna or liver cake. It stinks when you cook it but it's all natural and dogs love it!

[midnightstar66]

I use her kibble for dat to day training and save high reward treats for the extra important stuff. Dpup particularly likes sausages. I use the posh high meat content ones as I'm worried about feeding her too much crap. Liver treats and the strips pp has mentioned are also very popular but quite expensive. I break/chop them up small though as ours is a small dog (JRT) so they go al lot further

[CMOTDibbler]

I use: dried sprats (broken into tiny pieces), Arden Grange liver paste (squeeze tiny amount out and let them lick from the tube), and Treats2Sit4 (they are out of stock at the moment, but their treats are just dried meat).
IMO, you need treats that are easy to carry round all the time, that won't go yuck in your pocket when forgotten, that are healthy for your dog (so not like giving them hob nobs all day), can be broken up to give very frequent rewards, and that aren't going to upset their tummy (so not rich). Dried sprats are perfect as the fish oil is so good for them, you get a bucket for £10, and dogs love them

[midnightstar66]

@CMOTDibbler I've got sprats that I feed as a treat occasionally in the house, do they not just crumble when broken up and kept in your pocket?

[CMOTDibbler]

I keep the sprats in a little snack size plastic bag so I can dip into it in my pocket/bag as they are a bit crumbly. The Treats2sit4 are more robust and even survive a trip through the washing machine without making everything smell of liver

[pistachioicecream]

That's great. Thanks everyone.

[Whoknowswhocares]

I wouldn’t use cheese/sausage regularly with such a young pup, it’s very rich and salty. Bits of plain meat may be better for high grade treats.
I mostly just use a portion of their dried food though, soaked slightly to make it a bit softer for young pups. There will be a time later on when you need to ‘up the ante’ and get out the big rewards (in adolescence!) so its best not to start with the fancy stuff. It doesn’t leave you so much room for manoeuvre

[pistachioicecream]

That's a good point @Whoknowswhocares - will definitely bear that in mind! Thanks

[DangerCake]

I use cheese, sausage, ham and chicken for high value treats or ant left over scrap meat.

Also barker and barker little liver treats for snuffle mats or hiding in egg boxes. Keeps them v occupieD. Or a tiny bit of cheese in a folded over toilet roll.

Wainwright’s puppy training little bones are quite good for something that lasts a little longer...We use them when grooming her.

Frozen carrots, fresh carrots and broccoli stalks all good for a bit of chewing.

Also frozen RAW chicken wings and dried chicken feet...