What treats should you give your dog? Treats for four-legged pets as a method of encouragement during training What to choose: homemade or purchased

Treats for dogs are important not only during training, but in the everyday life of a four-legged pet, because in this way the owner demonstrates love and good nature to his pet. In fact, this is the simplest and surest way to say “thank you” to your dog. Moreover, this method works equally effectively not only when raising dogs, but also other animals.

Treats for dogs serve not only as motivation for training, but also as a way to give your four-legged friend a medicinal drug by mixing it into food or special-purpose treats, for example, additional fortified food.

If treats are used as a reward during training, and this is an integral and obligatory manipulation, then it is important to take into account the animal’s daily diet so as not to overfeed it.

Treats for dogs play an important role as a way of reward when training an adult dog or raising puppies. After all, having received the first piece, she carries out commands more diligently and diligently, trying to please the owner and get the next portion. Proper presentation of a treat is not only a motivation to follow commands, but also a great way to improve the bond between the animal and the trainer.

Remember! Treats should not be large; each piece should be no larger than the size of a fingernail. In order for the animal to understand that the owner will not deceive him, you need to show him about a handful of goodies, but, as a reward for obedience, give no more than one piece, or at least two.

You need to be able to choose the right food for reward. Training is, in fact, the same sport, and in sports, a balanced diet and adherence to a diet are mandatory requirements. This also applies to four-legged pets; treats should not be too high in calories or excessively fatty.

Advice! Better and healthier for the dog will be those goodies that the owners prepare themselves. This is one hundred percent confidence that your pet will receive a high-quality, healthy and beneficial product.

You can use the trial method and choose your favorite treat from the list below:

Cheeses. One of the main positive qualities of the product is that it is convenient to present to the dog; it does not crumble. Among the disadvantages, it is worth noting that afterward the pet will be thirsty, and sometimes allergies and gastrointestinal disorders may occur.
Chicken. Chicken fillet, as well as stomachs, are considered very healthy for dogs and this is the main advantage of the product. The downside is the fact that this food is still heavy on their stomach. It is inconvenient to give it because the product crumbles.
Sausage. The treat is easy to store and easy and convenient to present to your dog. As for the disadvantages, it is worth noting that this product contains spices, so sausages should not be consumed by animals in large quantities.

Dried ox sinews are used to form figures in the form of bones, slippers, knots, rings or balls. In appearance, the product is not very attractive, the natural shade resembles the color of laundry soap, and the lighter the veins, the more useful and better their properties.
It is not recommended for your puppy to eat treats made from ground bones.
Rolls, biscuits, cookies, biscuits should only be purchased in specialized stores for animals.
Chips for puppies can be consumed, but not more than 2-7 pieces. per week (the smaller the puppy, the less amount he should be given).
Rye crackers, dried apples and carrots are given in reasonable quantities.
Dried ears (beef and pork), vertebrae and tails...

Very important! To prevent allergic reactions from eating these products, puppies are allowed no more than one ear, two tails and three vertebrae per week. Adults are allowed to consume larger amounts as a reward.

There are several basic rules for serving treats during training:

From an open palm. Just like, for example, horse sugar is served. This way you can protect your fingers from being caught by your teeth. If the dog is very playful and can still grab his palm, then you need to put gloves on your hands before training.
Raised hand. The offered treat for dogs, in this case, is associated with prey, and she tries to get it. The hand should not be raised too high. It must be held so that the animal, rising on its hind legs, jumps a little.
Static pose. You can reward your pet not only after completing a particular command, but also in the midst of training. And if it is important for the trainer that his charge maintains a static position at the moment, then you can put a treat directly into his mouth.

Today, the range of treats for dogs is replete with variety, and making a choice in favor of one or several varieties is not so easy. Dog treats are offered by different manufacturers, assuring the consumer that their products deserve special attention and are made using new modern technologies. And the high cost of the product is due to the presence of a special composition. How to check whether everything is really as the manufacturer claims?

Not everyone has the opportunity to do this. It's no secret that most of this gastronomic variety is not of such high quality and safe for pets.

This is why most dog breeders believe that homemade dog treats are much healthier for their pets:

The simplest and most useful treat for both puppies and adults are dried cubes made from pieces of meat, liver, kidneys, chicken gizzards, and so on. Literally every owner of a four-legged pet can prepare it. And if there is not enough time for drying, then you can simply brown it in the oven.
You can bake cookies for your pet from rye flour with your own hands, and use regular parsley as an additive.
You can dry cheese as a treat and give it to your dog during training.

Advice! In this case, you should use exclusively low-fat varieties of cheese so as not to harm the dog’s health.

You can also use dry food as a treat; it is sold in every zoological store, but this step is used as the very last option.
It’s very easy to make meat crackers with your own hands at home. This will require beef meat and offal. All components must be boiled until tender, then cut into cubes or strips and dried in the oven. After drying, they resemble industrially produced bread crumbs, only in our case they are more natural and guaranteed to be healthy.
Bread delicacy. Rye or white bread is suitable for its preparation. The product is cut into cubes and dried in the oven. The finished treat can be soaked in olive oil to aroma and improve the taste.
Cookies for four-legged pets. To make this treat, take minced meat, mix it with flour and a chicken egg, form the dough, make cookies from it and bake. You cannot add spices to the dough. As for salt, very little is allowed.

In short, the scope for imagination and gastronomic diversity for dogs is enormous. But there should be a limit in everything; getting too carried away with delicious treats is not recommended, as the dog may not like it. A too complex recipe and many ingredients in a treat can cause either disgust or gastrointestinal upset.

It is prohibited to present treats from the owner's table (sausages, baked goods, confectionery, etc.) to dogs as treats - this food is considered harmful and extremely undesirable for dogs.

Many owners think about what treats to give your dog. After all, the process of training and education goes much faster if you reward your four-legged friend with a treat!

Ekaterina Kuzmenko, nutritionist

A dog treat should be:

Helpful
Delicious
Convenient.

When you buy a treat for your pet, give preference to treats that do not contain sugar, salt, artificial colors or flavors.

It is important to choose the right flavor of treat so that the dog reacts well and follows commands with great zeal.

For convenience when exercising with a dog, the treat should be accessible in size so that eating it does not distract from the activity. It will also be more convenient for you to use a treat that does not crumble or get dirty.

Natural treats made from meat (chicken, lamb, beef, etc.) are best suited. They come in the form of dried and semi-moist fillets and sausages.

They are convenient to crush and put in your purse or pocket. You can also choose dog biscuits.

Important! Any treat is additional nutrition. Its quality and quantity affect the health of your pet.

Remember that the dog should not be given exercise after feeding.

For dogs with allergies, choose hypoallergenic treats made from rabbit, turkey, duck, and lamb.

Olga Krasovskaya, dog handler, trainer, head coach of the Belarusian agility team

It is better to choose the treat that your dog likes most.

It is very convenient to use boiled chicken gizzards - they do not crumble, they can be cut as finely as possible.

You can use ready-made treats. Dogs love Royal Canine Energy, but it's high in calories.

It is convenient to use ready-made dried offal, for example, light - the most profitable and convenient option. It's light, so it's cheap. At the same time, it breaks down well and smells pleasant of dried mushrooms.

Dogs are very fond of bull eggs (cut thinly before drying), tripe and intestines. The worst smell is from the intestines. All this can be bought ready-made.

If you want to tinker, you can prepare a treat for your dog yourself:

The liver is passed through a meat grinder, onions, carrots, garlic, a little salt, an egg, and flour are added.
Place it in a thin layer on a baking sheet and dry it, then cut it.

If you give your dog raw food, he will happily eat unpeeled tripe. Of course, it is very smelly and gets your hands dirty, but it is quite capable of turning on your brain.

My dogs love pancakes and cheesecakes.

If the dog is not a compulsive food eater, then it is good to change the treat, because a new one always tastes better.

For the Smooth Fox Terrier I use regular food, because... The treat is used not for stimulation and motivation, but for calming.

Anna Lisnenko, veterinarian, dog handler

First, the training treat should be convenient. Secondly, it must suit the dog.

The treat should not be too fatty and harmful. Sausages, cheeses and sweets are not suitable.

Boiled offal is a good treat for dogs. It is also a good idea to use ready-made store-bought treats, which are available in huge quantities in our pet stores.

Remember that the amount of treats eaten during training should be subtracted from the daily diet.

If your dog is allergic, you need to take this into account when choosing treats and make sure that the composition does not contain products to which your pet is allergic.

It is necessary to take into account the dog's taste preferences.

Many treats sold in pet stores are fortified. This should be taken into account in order to maintain the vitamin and mineral balance of the body.

Tatyana Romanova, obedience and canine freestyle trainer, behavior correction instructor

Treats are different from treats. In order to make our choice, we must decide for what purpose we are giving the treat: for training? To keep a particularly active or anxious dog occupied? To keep your dog busy and at the same time brush his teeth? Or just to please the dog?

For me, the golden rule when choosing treats is the minimum amount of artificial additives in the composition, and ideally, their complete absence. I can also tell you from my own experience that dogs don’t really like dried, hard cowhide bones. Well, bleached dried treats can do more harm than good.

For long-lasting treats, I prefer natural dried ox roots (penises) or trachea. By the way, the trachea, thanks to its ribbed surface, cleans your pet’s teeth very well. In addition, it is not particularly high in calories. Treats like these will keep your dog occupied for a long time. Prolonged chewing has a calming effect, so long-lasting treats, in addition to the pleasure of taste, can be useful for dogs with problem behavior.

If we just want to pamper the dog, we can offer dried lung, dried tripe (by the way, adding black tripe to the pet’s diet can help him cope with coprophagia), bovine testicles, etc., in addition to the above-mentioned treats. I also really love the treats from the manufacturer Green Qzin - as a rule, they are all natural, without additives, quite soft, that is, they can be given both as a pleasant bonus and used for training. The selection of delicacies from this brand is huge and so appetizing that sometimes I can barely restrain myself from crumbling some types of delicacies into my salad. :-)

But for training, it is necessary to use small-sized treats (for medium and large dogs these are 5x5mm pieces), not dry, such that the dog can swallow them without chewing or choking. And, of course, the golden rule of choosing a treat for training: the dog must adore it.

At the beginning of training, it is recommended to use mixes, for example, combine 2 - 3 types of different treats, and set aside the most favorite treat as a jackpot - for reward if your dog was great at performing the exercise.

I prefer to use natural products as training treats: boiled beef heart or tripe, beef, turkey or chicken gizzards, chicken breast (if the dog is not allergic).

I do not recommend using cheese or sausage as an everyday treat for working with a dog - they contain too much salt, additives, and the cheese is also too fatty. But these products are quite suitable as a jackpot, because dogs usually adore them.

The same treats from GreenQzin are, for the most part, very convenient to use for training. By the way, this company has a line of treats specifically for training - they are very small in size, they do not need to be cut - I opened the package, took a bite and started working.

Now many global manufacturers have begun to produce treats specifically for training - as a rule, these are small, easy-to-chew and easily swallowed pieces.

And if you love to cook and are ready to pamper your pet, then I will share the so-called life hack.

Stores sell silicone pyramid pan baking mats - mats with small hollow pyramids, on top of which meat is placed for baking so that the fat from it flows to the base of the pyramids.

So, if we turn this rug over, we will see many small hollow holes that give us a whole field for activity.

For example, simplest dog treat recipe

baby food with meat or fish,
1 egg,
a little flour
you can add melted cheese.

Mix all this mass, spread it on the mat, filling the hollow holes. We put it in the oven at 180 degrees for 15 minutes - and we get a huge amount of hand-made treats for training our pet.

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When training a dog, you need to understand that the animal follows the commands of the owner or trainer for a specific purpose - to receive encouragement. Treats for training are one of the types of reward for a dog. A variety of foods are used as treats, the main thing is that the dog has a great desire to receive it. These can be small pieces of meat, cheese, hard biscuits, bread crumbs or dry food. Each dog has its own preference; some dogs enjoy eating even just bread.

The main requirement is that the treat for training should not crumble, be sticky or greasy. The trainer needs to easily and most importantly quickly get it and offer it to the dog. The correctness and speed of development of conditioned reflexes (commands) depends on this.

Training treat - preparation

Meat or offal- Boil, but do not overcook. Cool, cut into pieces (squares) 1 - 1.5 centimeters. Then place it on a tray or board and dry it.

Cheese- an excellent delicacy. All dogs love him. Hard cheeses are good, sliced and that’s it, ready to use. But this delicacy for dog training at current prices is too expensive.

Therefore, we use processed cheese curds (small rectangular braces in foil packaging) such as “Friendship”, “Orbita”, “Yantarny”. Processed cheese is soft, gets dirty, crumbles, and its pieces stick together. Therefore, the cheese requires preliminary preparation before being used as a treat.

The procedure is not complicated, we do the following: cut it into squares of 1 - 1.5 centimeters, lay it out on a large cutting board or just on a piece of plywood (the pieces of cheese should not touch). Leave to dry for several hours. Unpackaged cheese dries out, forming a hard crust on the outside, but remains soft on the inside. Next, turn it over, since the side that lies on the board does not dry. We also soak the other side of the cheese pieces until dry. All the perfect dog training treats are ready. It is crumbly, does not crumble, does not stick, and most importantly, dogs adore it.

Dry food and cookies naturally do not require preliminary preparation. By the way, if you feed your dog dry food, it will no longer be a treat. Except again if. You, using dry food as a treat for training a dog (for example, a treat is used as feeding when training a dog to follow a scent in the search service). During the lesson, you feed your pet the full amount of dry food. And don't feed them separately.

How to properly use treats for training

A dog training treat will only be effective if the animal wants to eat it (the dog should have a slight feeling of hunger).

Check to what extent the treat you choose is suitable for rewarding your dog.

Take a piece in your hand, let the dog sniff it, then hold it in your fist and move your hand to the side. The dog should actively follow your hand, and by reaching with its nose or paw, try to open your fist. The less the dog is distracted by extraneous stimuli and the more engaged in trying to get the treat, the more effective the training will be.

To avoid getting your fingers under the dog's teeth, offer the treat to the animal from an open palm.

During the lesson, the dog should not see you take out the treat. (Always hold a couple of pieces in your hand, in the palm of your hand, pressing them with your little finger and ring finger. Unbeknownst to the dog in advance, take it out from behind your waist pouch.)

Store unused dog training treats made from meat products and cheese in the refrigerator.

Strong motivation is the key to effective training.

If you want to pamper your pet or reward him for following a command, then you will definitely need dog treats. But what should they be so as not to harm the pet’s health? Are there things that are healthy and at the same time tasty? How to make dog treats with your own hands?

Treats for dogs are a kind of encouragement, a sign of approval and gratitude, for some mustaches even a symbol of the owner’s love for them. They are ideal for training an animal in order to reinforce a particular command, or for masking a medicine that cannot be easily given to a dog.

When feeding your pet treats, be careful not to spoil him or kill his appetite by giving treats between main meals. They are perfect for those who want to please their pet, but are aware of the health hazards of regular sweets and “our” sweets. But where can you find truly healthy yet delicious dog treats?

You can now see the current price of dog treats and buy them right here:

How to give dog treats correctly

It is important not only what you give your pet, but also how you do it.

First of all, remember that the size of the treat is important. It should not be larger than your fingernail (which finger depends on the size of your dog). Too large pieces will quickly satiate the mustache, and, having eaten, he will not want to exercise anymore, and his appetite will be hopelessly ruined.
Place the treats in a bag somewhere that your dog's curious nose won't pry into while you're distracted. But before training, be sure to show him that you have plenty of treats. Give him one piece to try so that your dog tastes it and wants more. Only after this the animal will follow commands in order to earn another tasty treat.
Give encouragement for every action performed correctly. The execution of the team cannot be left without praise.
Treats for dogs should be healthy: excessively high-calorie, fatty or with the addition of foods prohibited for dogs (chocolate, sugar, pork, onions, garlic and others) are not allowed.
If you decide to give your puppy treats for training, start with small portions to make sure your little one doesn't develop an allergy.

Now about the technique of giving tasty treats. After all, an animal may bite you unintentionally when it is happily grabbing a treat (especially puppies, whose emotions run high).

From an open palm. Place a treat on your palm. Not on the fingers, not between them, but on the palm itself. But still, some dogs manage to inadvertently bite their owner using this method.
In a raised hand. This method is best used for adult and well-mannered animals who can carefully take the treat from their owner’s hand. Don't raise your hand too high. It is enough to such a height that the dog rises on its hind legs, slightly pushing off the ground with its front legs.
For “professional” dogs with iron endurance, there is such a way of encouragement as putting a treat for training on the nose or straight into the mouth. At this moment, the animal should sit or stand still (not be in motion).

How to make your own dog treats

There is nothing labor-intensive about making your own dog treats. The hardest part is finding the perfect product to promote.

Cheese

Some mustaches are delighted with cheese, but you should not overfeed it, since it is fatty, can cause allergies or digestive disorders, and thirst increases after giving it.

Chicken

Other animals love boiled chicken fillet or its by-products (for example, ventricles or hearts). A huge plus is that these products are healthy and low in calories. Among the inconveniences, it is perhaps worth noting that this delicacy crumbles and is too filling. Then it will be extremely difficult to feed the dog.

Sausage

Some people happily reward their dog with pieces of sausage or sausage. Yes, a rare dog will refuse such a treat, but this is not food for pets. These products contain spices, starch, flavorings and various preservatives that will do nothing but harm. You can make your own chicken sausages. To do this, grind the chicken breasts into minced meat in a meat grinder; you can finely chop raw carrots or other healthy (but allowed for dogs) vegetables into it. Using cling film, form something like sausages, making sure to roll everything tightly so that the meat does not fall out during cooking). Then boil homemade healthy sausages in boiling water.

Crackers

You can also make your own rye crackers. Dry in the oven without oil or in the open air, cutting the bread into small cubes.

Dry fruits and vegetables

Dried apples, carrots, for example. Only remove seeds from apples. Also, do not forget about the size of one piece. Just don’t overfeed your pet, otherwise you’ll curb your appetite with such sweets.

Dried meat and offal

Dried tails, ears and vertebrae (beef is better, but sometimes you can also give pork). You can also dry pieces of meat and liver in the oven (boil them first, cut them into strips or cubes).

Cookie

You can make your own dog treats like cookies. Use minced meat, chicken egg and rye flour as ingredients. No need to add any spices. Animals also eat natural foods with appetite. Form the cookies and place them in the oven.

What to choose: homemade or purchased

Here the owner must decide for himself: buy ready-made in the store or make it himself, knowing the full composition of the treat for the dog. If you decide to buy something ready-made, be sure to buy it at specialized pet stores. Pay attention to storage conditions, as well as composition. It is good to give puppies “toys” made from tendons, which are made in the form of shoes, knots, bones and even balls. Just be sure to pay attention to the color of the puppy treat. The lighter it is, the healthier it will be (usually such treats look like laundry soap, that “dirty gray-brown” color).

On sale you can also find special cookies, biscuits and even biscuits to encourage the mustache.

There are also special “tablets” in cardboard boxes. But they need to be approached with caution (read the ingredients). I wouldn't want to feed my dog chemicals.

If dry dog treats contain ground bones, discard them. They can damage the mucous membrane of the mouth and digestive organs (esophagus, stomach and intestines). If the gums are injured by splinters, the dog may develop stomatitis.