[Dog_Obsessed]

So I thought I’d pop in with an update. Lily is now accepting training without the clicker again, which is good. I emailed the teacher for the class last night and told her what happened, and we agreed that at class tonight we would not use the clicker too much, just “yes!” and treats.

The other big news is that I may have figured out more to why she got so scared. See, Lily has what we suspect to be a mild luxuating patella in her left back leg. Her only symptom was limping a little sometimes during walks, and the vet wasn’t even able to detect a grade I, but that’s what the vet suspected it was. On Saturday, her limp got quite a bit worse, mostly at the beginning of walks, which I thought was just because she hadn’t been walked as much lately due to the rain. And then last night, when I was grooming that same leg, she suddenly growled and snapped, not as if she was actually trying to bite but as a warning, out of pain. Several minutes later she was next to me and begging for a belly rub, so it didn’t seem like she was seriously scared or hurt.

Then, all of the sudden, something clicked in my brain. The clicker incident was Friday night. She started limping more Saturday. And now, this grooming incident..something is going on with that leg! I guess those could have been three unrelated events, but that seems highly unlikely. I’ll try to make a vet appointment for Lily later this week, though I’m not sure when we’ll have time to take her. I just hope it isn’t anything more serious than the luxuating patella. I was a bit concerned about hip dysplasia, even though that is much more common in larger breeds. Any thoughts on this?

[R-K]

Hi all, I was asked by a friend to research Welcome Home dog food, which is made by Centinela Feed on the west coast. I’m sure it’s a newer brand but after 30 minutes of looking online I am unable to find ANYTHING about it, other than mentioning it on their own website but with no link to any information. No official website, no dog food advisor, nothing. It’s not their other brand Lotus but rather Welcome Home which only used to make treats but I guess they’ve expanded into dry foods too. Can anyone provide me with any information?

[Dog_Obsessed]

The trainer is smart to say it might be medical-and you are smart to get her checked out. I have seen many people just assume a medical problem is behavioral without checking it out first. If she gets a clean bill of health, start potty training all over again as much as your schedule will allow. Take her out often (which you are already doing) and reward her with praise or treats whenever she goes outside. Never punish her if she goes inside. If you catch her in the act (generally if she looks like she is about to go), then try to re-direct her to go outside but if it is after the fact then just clean it up. Good luck!

[Kayla]

I noticed my Dog loves to chew but he is very picky on his bones and treats. Any ideas? He has one rope bone thing that he loves to tug and play with…and tries to chew on it but I always take it away from him because it has tiny strings on it and I don’t want him actually ingesting it.

I also tried to buy rubber ball and bone toys but he won’t mess with him. Needless to say, his favorite toy is the rope bone thing. His rope is like this one.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/BOODA-Pet-Products-Two-Knot-Rope-Bone-Dog-Toy-in-Red-White-and-Blue/15573238

[Karen J]

I think maybe this belongs in this forum sorry hope I didn’t breach protocol:
first diagnosed by another vet…precursor to crystals, not infections or stones. Fine but that changed. She started have more and more accidents in house.

I researched here in particular but over time it didn’t appear to be enough. Took her to new vet with all info, they didn’t twist my arm to do another urinalysis, I believe more in depth necessary, open to keeping her on d-Monasse, and Vit C not a bad idea to add glucosamin, they gave her an antibiotic. I let them do an X-ray, they didn’t insist, they offered choices, I’ve been through a really sick dog being mis-diagnosed so I pulled out the Credit. $300 now rather than $3000 later – hope I did right.

She was starting have more frequent accidents in the house.

Radiology to rule out stones 1 view, Urinalysis, Cysto, Culture Urine MIC, Clavamox 62.5mg, Medical Waste Free, waived office visit = not cheap. Too much?
She’s on Wellness grain free and Canidae grain free wet food, very little grain free kibble, filtered water and grain free treats.

I’m not not flush with money but would like to prevent problems before they become big. Last vet didn’t seem thorough.

[Dog_Obsessed]

By extras do you mean toppers? If so, so am I. I used some canned pumpkin in the dog treats I made the other day, and I’ve been giving her some pumpkin in her food for the last few days just because I can. She does sometimes have anal gland issues, so that’ll be my excuse. 🙂

Also, I did find out that I can either break or let Lily eat the ends off of the NB chews, and then put it in her Kong. She can get little tastes of it but can’t pull it out completely, so it keeps her busy for a long time. It doesn’t clean her teeth obviously, but I’m not really counting on that at this point.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[crazy4cats]

I got the large, but not really that large for my dogs. Yeah, they are a,little high in calories. I try to feed a little less than recommended to allow for treats. I’m a softie when it comes to extras.

[Dori]

When I’ve done clicker training I always give a tiny treat at the same exact time. Takes a bit of practice but then it’s easy to do. They then associate the clicker as a good yummy thing. Eventually you click and give a treat every other time, then every couple of times, then every three or four times. Eventually you can then stop the treats and they still like the clicker. They’ll always do it because they’re never sure when a treat might show up. They eventually do it for the praise you give them. Also when clicking and treating you also calming say….good boy. Then continue on your walk or your exercise or training mission. Remember to only do the traning for no more than 10 or 15 minutes at a time. Then break up the time with play time or a nap. You can do this a few times a day, just not long sessions at a time.

[Douglas E]

I have read this entire thread as well as similar ones. Look, other than broad brush strokes, animal nutrition has been much ignored for the majority of pet-human history. Heck, the same can be said for HUMAN nutrition. Only within the past 40 years has our nutrition become the topic of serious scientific inquiry. This has been a natural development in thought from deeper insights into cellular biology, biochemistry and immunology. The science of human nutrition is quite new.

How then can we expect to understand other species’ specific nutritional needs? We hardly understand the human organism yet in that regard. If human nutritional science is in its’ infancy, canine nutrition is only embryonic. That research it further complicated by gross breed differences, historically poor food quality diets, congenital and/our genetic weaknesses from severely poor breeding, medical thought that simply treats symptoms and a new problem- canine geriatrics.

A dog in the wild would typically have a life expectancy less than half of our pets’. Nutritional deficiency plays a major part in that mortality. And no, an all raw and only carnivorous diet is not what a dog would get in the wild. While dogs are highly adapted to having a majority of the diet be animal proteins, they have a much greater variety. Even from only consuming prey animals, they will eat the contents of those animals’ intestines and stomach(s) which would include “probiotics,” yeasts (naturally occurring intestinal fauna,) and various vagetation such as primitive grains. Those grains would be partially digested, yes, so raw gains would likely be less digestible. Canines would also eat the high fat organ meats, hair, skin and bone. It is important to note that the high need of calcium, as well as other bone minerals, for dogs is well noted these days. It is necessary nutritionally for Canines to occaisionally consume vegetable, or even mineral, matter. Not only must they do so to enable gut function, they must do so for biological need. Not all needs are met by prey. This is why in the absence of adequate herbivorous prey, dogs will suplement by what pet owners would consider pica.

All that being said (now that I have presented myself in matters vegetable, animal, and mineral the Very Model of a Modern Major General, ) the answers are not simple. But the guidelines are.

1. Use common sense, canine nutrition is imperfect at best
2. Do not presume to be an expert, or that human remedy necessarily applies
3. Do not rely on diet to cure medical conditions that may really be microbial or parastic infections, disease or biological defecit aside from nutrition
4. Realize that isolating an immunological response, whether from allergic reaction or not, is a difficult and time consuming process
5. Use keen observation when using any new food source or additive, including veterinarian recommended treatments. Don’t simply go with the flow thinking that treatment course is the fix-it for sure (OK, preaching to the choir I think there…)
6. Each dog is as different biologically as we are. If it does improve health in some, it may not in others or it may actually be detrimental
7. A business, or product, that is intentionally or negligently harmful will not survive. Caveat Emptor
8. etc. etc. etc…

Here’s hoping great health to all you and all your furry families

D

[Dog_Obsessed]

I went to the human-only orientation of Lily’s reward-based dog training class on Monday, and they heavily stressed how good clicker training was. Our “homework” was to have the dog have a positive association with the clicker. About half an hour ago I was practicing clicker training, which I had done a few other times this week. Before she had mostly seemed fine with the clicker, sometimes she would get a little startled if I did it too close to her, but nothing too bad. But this time, I accidentally did the clicker a half second late, and it was pretty close to her. She backed up, scared, and then ran over to the couch and jumped on it. I called her to come back, but she didn’t. Then I went over and realized she was shaking pretty hard, and she seemed really, really scared. I petted her for a minute and then went to get her blanket, and then petted her some more. She recovered after a few minutes, and started taking treats from me, and then started taking kibble. She still seems a bit shaken up now.

At the class they suggested muffling the sound of the clicker if the dog was scared, which I didn’t initially do because Lily has never really struck me as a sensitive dog before. She sometimes barks if she hears sound outside, but she only usually gets as scared as she did tonight at the vets office. I am reluctant to try the clicker again, if the only thing it’s going to do is make her scared of the clicker, training, and me. I had previously been using the word “yes”, but it was harder to be consistent with that. Does any have any suggestions on how to re-introduce her to the clicker? Thanks!

• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[Akari_32]

I’ve been happy with Zukes and Pet Botanics treats. My cat loves the Zukes G-Zees cat treats. Does shake, high five and sit up for them. The dogs all love the Zukes Mini Naturals and Hip Action treats, and the Pet Botanics Training Reward treats, and pester for more when they are put away, more so than most human foods they are given.

[Dog_Obsessed]

If he does okay with rice then you could also use brown rice flour. I’ve also heard oats used as binders in homemade dog treats, but that changes the consistency which some dogs don’t like.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Homemade is almost always cheaper, and there are lots of recipes you could try! I made a batch of treats today using canned food, the recipe is on page 2 of the homemade treats topic. Plain yogurt can make a great topper, just make sure it doesn’t make up more than 10% or 20% of the meal.

[Kayla]

I am currently looking at those links already! 🙂 I am thinking about homemade, might be cheaper in the long run!! I just have to see and hope if my Dog will like them! He tends to be picky on food and treats.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Rotation is definitely good! Look around the 4 and 5 star reviews on this site for food ideas, for treats there are some other topics in the forums that have good ideas. You can also make your own treats, here are two topics about that:

For treats in general: /forums/topic/has-anyone-made-homemade-dog-treats/

For frozen treats: /forums/topic/recipe-for-a-frozen-dog-treat-like-frosty-paws/

A topic about things to look for in commercial treats: /forums/topic/your-most-recommended-dog-treats/

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[Kayla]

He seems to love the Pure Balance treats, the dry food and also the wet food by Pure Balance also! I am just trying to find different brands besides sticking with the same one lol

[Kayla]

I was shopping at Walmart and some of there treats do have corn in them :/ I didn’t get the ones that do have corn in it, I got the ones without it because it looked better but honestly I had no idea how good they were because I know nothing about ingredients. I did try to give him one before I posted it on here…and he didn’t even eat it nor touched it so I assumed something wasn’t right or he didn’t like it lol

I tossed them in the trash and will look more better ones 🙂

Thanks 🙂

[Kayla]

Thank you 🙂

When I go food shopping again, I will look for some of those treats. In the mean time… I still have Pure Balance treats to give him.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I just made dog treats with a recipe composed of various recipes I had seen online, here it is:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

2. Combine the following ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir:

3/4 of a cup Garbanzo Bean flour
1/2 a can wet dog food (I used Nulo Turkey and Sweet Potato)
1/4 of a cup plain canned pumpkin
2 teaspoons plain peanut butter
A bit of water if needed

3. Slightly grease the baking sheet(I used Safflower oil, might not be necessary.)

4. Scoop out little balls of dough onto a baking sheet.

5. Bake for ~25 minutes, until slightly brown and a fork comes out clean when stuck in.

6. Let the treats cool for a few minutes.

7. Feed to your dog!

Makes about 20 treats.

I will store these in the fridge for a few days and the freezer for longer. Lily seems to love them!

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[tecknik]

What some don’t realize is that your dog’s allergies may not be food related. That turned out to be the case for my dog. Here I was trying all different food concoctions, then the useless Dinovite and it turns out my dog has many environmental allergies including Wool, willow, dust mites, mold mites and about 20 other things.
I’ve always had her on a raw diet (Abady) which is helpful and keeps her coat nice and shiny. (less poop as well due to minimal carbs, too) I also add unrefined coconut oil for more nutrients as well as a good dog vitamin.
As for dog treats, I buy $3.99lb london broils or stew beef then grill it medium rare, then cut into bite size pieces. I will buy in bulk and freeze the remaining. It’s a little work but not that much and if you look at the ounces of a bag of good dog treats, you will find that you are paying over $10 a pound! (usually $4 to $5 for a 6oz bag of treats) It’s the best type of treat to give your dog and you know exactly what is in it.
For my dog’s treatment, we first had the allergy testing done. Yes, it is expensive and thank God I have insurance so I get reimbursed. ($500 because dog has to have anesthesia)
Second step was to remove as many of her allergens as possible from the environment. That meant giving up my two brand new wool carpets. :/ Now I clean an extra day a week as well to ensure there is no dust.
Third step was medication to cure her symptoms. She had ear infections, yeast infections and sores from all the scratching. The doctor prescribed a slew of medicines including prednisone which really stopped her scratching. Unfortunately, this can not be used long term because it can be harmful to the liver and other organs.
Fourth step (and this is where we are now) Allergy shots. It started every other day and now we are at once a week. The scratching is down to a minimal and hopefully over time her immune system will work against her allergies and she will be a happy dog for good.

[aquariangt]

I actually prefer the consistency of sojos to the honest kitchen. Not that the dogs care much, and my cat won’t eat anything dehydrated. My problem is its a bit low in protein for my liking, so I use thk and grandma Lucy’s for toppers more often, but use sojos from time to time.

However, their freeze dried training treats and good dog biscuits are awesome! Staples in my house

[Naturella]

Dog_Obsessed, please you and Lily (and the rest of your family and friends) be safe! Treats are a fun project for days in the house when you have nothing to do, but I am sure they can wait if things get bad.

[Dog_Obsessed]

We’re supposed to get a HUGE storm tomorrow, (which we desperately need) and I don’t know if I’ll be able to actually go anywhere because of flooding. I might try making some treats tomorrow, unless we lose power.

[Naturella]

I forgot to mention – my recipe freezes solid and it will give your pup extra time to work on it, and you some extra minutes of not being pestered for your treat. I just gave Bruno a marrow bone with ice-cream, since we were talking about it. 🙂

I also usually chuck a frozen blueberry on the bottom of a Kong so that the mixture above doesn’t leak through it. I put the marrow bone on one of its cut sides on a piece of foil in the freezer.

Another recipe I have seen is with pumpkin and a Wellness 95% can (the recipe was with salmon, but you can use any, I think) – also put in ice cube trays or other “vessels” and frozen. You can also freeze just PB in something and give as an ice cream. 🙂 Let me give you a link with some more recipes in there:

/forums/topic/homemade-treats/

[pugmomsandy]

I haven’t made sorbet in my ice cream maker but you can try making the recipes without sugar. But pureed fruit/veg and yogurt frozen into ice cube trays is more convenient. The Honest Kitchen sells “liquid treats” that you can freeze.

[Z B]

Thanks for the input everyone ! Much appreciated!

USA dog treats – thanks for sharing the feedback from Steve. I had been doing the ABC day once or twice a week, that’s why I had the heart and liver on hand, and I thought Steve recommended that for the ABC day raw meals you could use all heart as the muscle meat ? But since I’m trying to feed raw more than once a week I’ll definitely reduce the Amount of heart and search out other muscle meats. If liver isn’t necessary with the premix I’ll prob forgo that, the dogs aren’t crazy about liver and it kinda grosses me out, too.

Also ordered his books and used some of his recipes for a few batches of Raw meals, but it was a little too much work keeping up with all the necessary ingredients and mixing it all up, etc, since I work full time. So I’ll see how the premix works out. So,far the dogs like it but I’ve been walking them before sunup and after sundown so I haven’t gotten a good inspection of how their poops are reacting.

The cats constipation emergency required a thousand dollar overnite stay at the pet ER, so I’m hesitant to put her back on the raw. I’ve found some good Canned foods that’s she’s doing well on, so will stick to that for now, but thanks for the suggestion to add fiber.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Wait, really?! The dream bone treats that I was looking at definitely have corn. Are we looking at the same treat?

Edit: Just saw your post in the other thread, we are looking at different treats. Those treats look better, but not great. Other users have given you suggestions on that thread. 🙂

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[zhiba]

Ever since my dog’s allergies became a big factor in his life, we’ve switched to freeze dried and limited ingredient treats (as well as food).

We get treats from Orijen Singles, Stella and Chewy’s Carnivore Crunch, Sojos Simply, Etta Says, Whole Life, PureBites, and Vital Essentials.

Recently I discovered the VE cat food on Chewy. It makes for excellent training treats! They are smaller nibblets than the dog food, with a few additions that I like. Comparison –

Turkey Nibblets (dog)
Ground turkey with bone, turkey heart, turkey liver, herring oil (natural source of vitamin D), mixed tocopherols (natural antioxidant), d-alpha tocopherol (natural vitamin E)

Turkey Nibblets (cat)
Ground turkey with bone; turkey heart; turkey liver; boneless skinless turkey breast; raw organic goat’s milk; raw organic apple cider vinegar; herring oil; mixed tocopherol; d-alpha tocopherol

[crazy4cats]

I like to buy Wet Noses dog treats when they have them at Costco. Right now they have pumpkin treats.

[InkedMarie]

I judge my dogs treats as much as I their food. Treats I like are anything from The Honest Kitchen and Sojo’s and grainfree ones from Buddy Biscuits. I don’t feed much for treats so others are probably more helpful than me. Definitely not Milk Bones!

[LabsRawesome]

Hi Kayla, I use Riley’s dog treats. They are organic and human grade. They have a store locator on their site. http://rileysorganics.com/ I buy them at Walmart. They come in small and large size biscuits. They are reasonably priced. 😀

[Bobby dog]

Kayla:
Some of the ingredients that would make me pass on this treat would be sorbitol, carrageenan, and artificial flavor.

The best thing to do is make your own treats. There are simple recipes that don’t take much time or too many ingredients. You can make biscuits, meatballs, or even jerky, and dried fruit/veggies in your oven. You can find treat recipes on the DFA forums or the Internet.

The next best thing to do is look for treats that only have a few ingredients that you easily recognize and don’t have to Google. Freeze dried treats or dried fruit/veggies would be examples of treats with minimal ingredients.

If I have to Google any or most of the ingredients of a treat chances are they are not what I want to feed my pets. I stay away from treats with added sugars, artificial flavors or colors, thickening agents, artificial preservatives, added starches, and probably some other things I can’t think of right now. Read those labels and know what you are feeding! 😉

[Esther B]

I am having trouble finding a five star grain free dry kibble for my puppy without rosemary. I would advise you make sure the food and treats do not have rosemary in them. I don’t know a lot about it but there does seem to be a problem with diarrhea and even some yellow frothy vomit. I’ve taken my pup off treats with rosemary but am having trouble finding a dry puppy kibble without it. My vet says my pup is doing good and just having growth spurts although she weighed 20lb at 10 weeks and the same at 11 weeks. I would also like advise and recommendations of kibble. Thanks

[Kayla]

I am currently using Pure Balance treats. But, I am looking at another treats but when it comes to ingredients on what is a no no and what is safe… I have no idea!
Can someone give me an insight on this?

I found Dream bone treats and here are the ingredients.

• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Kayla.
• This topic was modified 11 years ago by Kayla.

[Esther B]

Thank you all for the tips. Be assured I will not be giving my pup any of the treats that mad her sick again, and will look into your suggestions.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I just realized that I had mixed up the treats you are currently using, you are using Pure Balance and I thought of Pure Bites. Sorry about that! I think the Pure Balance treats are good, the food is good anyway and while I can’t seem to get the ingredients online it says the do not contain corn, wheat, or soy.

[Bobby dog]

Esther B:
In addition to the HK treats take a look at freeze dried treats. My dog loves Stella & Chewy’s carnivore crunch treats. There are other companies that make freeze dried treats as well. Look at some of the freeze dried foods that are well reviewed on this site and visit their websites to see if they make treats if interested. I have also used freeze dried foods such as Primal for treats also.

I feed apple cider vinegar regularly to my dog with no issues, I have not fed anything containing green tea before (at least that I know of or could remember).

It is also easy to make your own jerky treats. I make chicken jerky and also dried sweet potato slices for my dog.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Thanks for explaining the thing about the rosemary, that makes sense now. Just to be clear, I was talking about the Durango jerky nubs, not the Full Moon treats. I agree with you about the THK treats, they are great!

[BijouMama05]

Esther,

Honest Kitchen has a great assortment of excellent organic and human-grade treats that are free of rosemary. They stopped adding rosemary to any of their products because so many of their customers were reporting issues in their pets after eating any of their foods or treats that contained it.

[BijouMama05]

These treats are NOT made nor sourced in China and are NOT jerky treats. I would NEVER feed my pet Chinese treats. Rosemary is a known bile exciter, which means it activates/encourages the production of larger amounts of bile than normal. Excess bile will cause severe vomiting (yellow & foamy), excessive diarrhea (which can turn bloody quite quickly), low glucose issues (due to the loss of fluids and inability to eat or drink caused by vomiting, diarrhea, & upset stomach/loss of appetite). All of this can (if allowed to continue) cause liver and kidney function issues and abnormalities. I have been in contact with several vets, animal dieticians, the FDA, the AAFCO and been involved in more than two years of studies, including several double blind studies. When rosemary is given on its own or as one of only two ingredients (rosemary and boiled, organic turkey) my dog, as well as many others have had SEVERE reactions to it. The numerous dog foods that have made ingredient changes that have caused pets (who had been eating this same food for years with no problems) suddenly begin to get sick with excessive bile related symptoms (yellow, foamy vomiting, extreme diarrhea that turns bloody, seizures form low blood glucose, and eventually, if left on the same food long enough, abnormal liver and kidney functions). Once this food is removed from their diet and a food that does not contain rosemary is fed, the symptoms clear up immediately. This has also been proven when the vet tells the owner to remove the food from the pet and feed a rice & boiled chicken diet until the symptoms clear up. Once the symptoms are gone and the old diet is started again, all the bad symptoms begin again. And the cycle continues until the pet dies, is put down, or is changed to a non-rosemary containing food. From all of the research and studies performed on this issue it appears that those most affected are smaller dogs and cats, puppies and kittens, pets with GI/Colon/GERD issues, older animals, or those with underlying health issues that makes them weaker or susceptible to the effects of excessive bile production. In addition to all of this, rosemary is also known to be a neuroleptic and has been known for this for more than 150 years (medical data involving humans can be found in many peer reviewed journals). The FDA allows rosemary in pet foods because it is Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) in humans (with the exception of those prone to seizures) and by default this means it is considered GRAS in pets, as well. However, no studies have been performed on pets (by the FDA) to determine the safety of rosemary in pet foods for ALL pets. This is one reason that rosemary (extract, leaf, oil, etc.) has to be listed independently on food labels (human and pet) and exactly as designated by the FDA, so those that have had reactions to it can avoid it. Otherwise it might be included in a pet food (or human one) as part of a generic ingredient listing such as herbs, seasonings, flavors, etc.

[Dog_Obsessed]

I have never heard of Rosemary extract causing stomach upset in general, I think some dogs are sensitive to it, but I wouldn’t blame it for your dogs stomach problems. Personally, I try to avoid any jerky treats because there have been HUGE problems with dogs getting sick from jerky treats made in China. Even if treats say the are USA made, the company could still source ingredients from China. I wouldn’t feed the jerky treats anymore, or any treats that upset her stomach, but I don’t think Rosemary is necessarily to blame.

[Esther B]

At 9 weeks old I started giving my 15lb pup very small bits of the full moon chicken strips, no problem. At 10 weeks and 19lb I started using Durango jerky nubs to start training her, she loves them, but all hell broke loose. She vomited, and has has persistently had the runs. My back yard looks like I gave a cow not a puppy. I unfortunately didn’t put the connection together until reading this forum. Rosemary is used in the jerky nubs! So tho she seems to love them I will not be giving her anything with rosemary ever again. I’m also fearful of giving her the chicken strips too as I’m not sure about the green tea and vinegar. Has anyone had problems with the chicken strips or foods with vinegar and green tea in them? Does anyone have any good treats for training that they are comfortable giving their dogs?

[Dog_Obsessed]

I wouldn’t recommend the Purina food or the Milk Bone treats. Both are quite low-quality. Look around the site for some 4-5 star foods, pick one available close to you, and start there. You can add some “extras” such as eggs, sardines, or 4-5 star canned food to make the food more palatable. Make sure you transition to any new food slowly and that unbalanced toppers don’t make up more than 20% of the diet. I’m sure other users will have suggestions on more toppers you could add. Good luck!

Edit: I forgot, a good thing is to feed variety. Change kibble or canned food from time to time, and mix up the toppers. Again, make sure you never transition faster than your dogs can handle, usually about a week is good but some dogs require more time to avoid stomach upset.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dog_Obsessed.

[Dog_Obsessed]

If you are talking about the DreamBone chew treats, I would definitely not recommend them. Here is the ingredients list for the chicken treats:

Corn, Chicken, Sorbitol, Glycerin, Fructose, Pork Gelatin, Barley Malt Syrup, Maltodextrin, Sweet Potatoes, Peas, Carrots, Dicalcium Phosphate, Salt, Ferrous Sulfate, Titanium Dioxide, Zinc Sulfate, Artificial Flavor, Niacinamide, Xanthan Gum, Potassium Sorbate (preservative), Sodium Pyrophosphate, Sodium Propionate (preservative), Sodium Tripolyphosphate, Vitamin E, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Manganese Sulfate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, FD&C Red 40.

You don’t want to feed treats with Corn, or Fructose, or artificial sweeteners, or coloring. The Pure Balance treats (the freeze-dried ones anyway) are great though. Head over to the “most recommended dog treats” thread (stickied at the top of the page) to get some more treat ideas.

[Kayla]

Has anyone used this brand of treats before? Any opinions on it? I usually get Pure Balance treats since my Dog is doing really well on it and also really loves the Pure Balance food. However, I am looking to get him new treats for Christmas.

[Akari_32]

Hey guys! Yes, Ginger is feeling better. No more uncontrollable and inexplicable pooping, and she’s not shaking and unforgettable any more. I think she just had a really adverse reaction to the Purina One canned food. Mom is worried about her being in arthritis associated pain, however, and we will be getting her to vet for that in the near future, hopefully we can do it very soon, because her mouth is just disgusting, and I think she’s a few teeth sort of when I got her. She’s still snuggly, but not in a desperate, give-me-all-your-love sort of way. She does move away after a while, and doesn’t press up as hard as can up against me any more, so she is obviously feeling better, and that is her normal snuggling behavior. I think that food just did a number on her tummy. She’s doing great on just her dry food softened with some warm water, and limited treats. Mom did give her two small bits of apple to day, but I don’t think it hurt anything. Her butt hasn’t exploded yet, so I’d say apples are safe lol Moms been good about just a few treats a day. Must have finally got it through her head.

[Justin I]

H&P Dog Treats by Henry and Penny are fun and delicious breakfast themed treats. They are grain free, healthy treats made with the finest ingredients available right here in the USA. Check them out and compare the ingredients for yourself!

They offer free shipping when you get the Breakfast Buffet trio, and you can customize your order to your liking!

[crazy4cats]

Akari- I got that one today too!

B-dog- I’ll let you know how the Eagle Pack kibble goes. I think it ended up being about $30 for 30lbs, after the discount. A Pet Flow email “sucked” me in! I think it will make a good simple kibble to add our ABC toppers to. I picked up frozen beef heart treats last week at the feed store. Yum!

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by crazy4cats.

[Dori]

Hi Jake. I keep my dogs on HW (Sentinel Spectrum) year round because I live in Atlanta, Georgia. Weather is unpredictable in what is supposedly the cooler (winter) months. Last week we had a couple of days below freezing, bird baths frozen, all the winter stuff. Last few days has been in the upper 60’s and a couple of days in the low 70’s. To keep my girls safe I keep them on HW meds all year every 30 days. We’ve been in Georgia for the passed 13 years. Before that we lived in the Northeast (NJ, NY, Conn. and Cape Cod). Because the winters were completely predictable and freezing all winter long I did last HW October and nothing again until May. I think you would have to judge what your weather is. If you really have consistent old time winter weather then I guess you could keep him off for the winter months which I would do just to keep some of these chemicals out of his system and give his system a bit of a break. HW test is just the one time of year. Take some really really choice treats with you to the vet that he absolutely would do anything for. Before they come in to take blood work and while they are chit chatting with you you could just get his attention with the pieces of chicken, liver, whatever you want (no actual store bought treats or kibble….that’s not special enough) and just give him little tiny pieces as the entire process goes on. Eventually he should think of it as a good experience as opposed to the nightmarish type experience he had in the Spring. It’s worth the one time experience to keep him off HW for a few months. Just my opinion.

Let me also add that I take my dogs to the vet for a yearly physical and yearly blood work anyway. I’ve done that with every dog (there have been many…I’m 66 years old). If something is going on with them I want to know sooner rather than later. Trying to catch anything serious that may not be outwardly visible and keep track of all their levels and if anything has changed since the year before so they are accustomed to having the bloodwork draw anyway. Through the years I have found that things were going on that I would never have been aware of if not for the blood work. I was then able to start working with nutrition and supplements more geared to the issue.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Dori.

[Rich]

COSTCO/KIRTLAND killing pets: Well I’ll share with you what NOT TO BUY. Stay away from Costco, they CLAIM to have products from the USA but I don’t believe it, maybe the mailing address for the profiteers is in the USA but their ‘treats’ are pure JUNK !! We bought their chicken jerky’s that were ‘USA” advertised, when we opened the package we almost got chemical burns in our noses !!!! Took it back and they treated my wife like there was something wrong with HER ! Found this about Costco foods KILLING PETS. http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/kirkland_pet_food.html

BTW, I now taste everything new I feed my dog, we almost lost Bear, our Sheppard Mix due to bad food and I won’t allow it again. TASTE THOSE DOG TREATS, some have so many chemicals in them it will literally burn your tongue BUT YOUR DOG WILL STILL EAT THEM.

This is why I joined this site, there needs to be REAL consumer protection with animal foods.

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Rich.