You’ll require treats to train a puppy if you’re looking to welcome one to your home. Treats are a must-have for reward-based training and to supplement your growing puppy's nutrition, but is every treat useful for dog training? This question may attract positive and negative opinions, although it largely depends on whom you’re asking. For instance, according to specialists, the best dog training strategy is through positive reinforcement. However, what’s the significance of positive reinforcement and would it be a good idea to train your dog using puppy treats?
Positive reinforcement describes training where you give your dog or puppy something they like so they act in a way you want and are also bound to continue that way to keep getting more.
The training treats you use play a crucial role in the success of your puppy training session. However, with the numerous available options, it may be difficult to determine the right training treats. The straightforward response to this question may be to utilize whatever treat your puppy enjoys. Yet, understanding how to rank your treats and varying them will enhance your training in several ways, including;
Faster positive behavioural results
Gaining the puppy's focus even amid several distractions
Better management of puppy's calories consumption
Ensuring dynamism in puppy treats so it won't get tired of one treat
Gradually eliminating the use of treats in future training
Food is a great tool for puppy training which is why it’s most effective for obedience training. Below is a guide to help you find out what treats your puppy enjoys and when to utilize the various ones to support your puppy training.
How to determine what treats your puppy likes
This can be likened to our expectations of getting paid when we accomplish our tasks at the workplace. Expecting your puppy to complete what could be an intricate task, for instance, understand a visual or verbal cue and respond in a preferred manner, can be tricky. As simple as this may sound, dogs are not naturally born to communicate in that manner. You can make this learning curve much easier for the puppy by harnessing the influence of something so dear to them – treats.
You may have heard your dog trainer mention the use of high value against low-value training treats. This isn't referring to how much you spent to pay for the treats, but instead the value attached to every treat by your dog. This means you’ll need to find out how your puppy values one treat over another. Although there are some few fundamental assumptions, there are exceptions in some situations; for example, one puppy may very much value freeze-dried liver over bland and dry treats.
If your puppy prefers toys over treats, then click here for some useful toys to train your puppy.
What are high value treats?
High value treats generally have a pungent smell, are soggy or freeze-dried, and something your puppy doesn't get too often outside training periods. Examples include liverwurst, little bits of chicken, or even peanut butter spread on a spoon. However, for the peanut butter, ensure its xylitol-free. Give high value treats as rewards for exceptional performance by your puppy for their conduct during training.
When do you use high value treats?
These treats are ideal for situations where the dog is learning new stuff, completing difficult tasks, and challenging situations. Such tasks may include:
Learning new behaviours
Proactive exposure and socialization essentials for puppies
Counter conditioning to modify behaviour such as anxiety, aggression, anxiety, fear or response to a leash
Training in exceptionally distracting conditions, for example, dog training sessions
However, a high value treat isn't supposed to fill, so a little piece is adequate. Compared to a grown dog which may require a grape-sized treat, a pea-sized treat is great for puppies. There’s a large collection of healthy puppy treats you can get from your favourite pets store, so you can experiment with a few to determine which one is most ideal.
Medium value treats
Medium value treats are typically dry or semi-moist treats made from ingredients absent in the regular puppy diet. Puppies are rewarded regularly with medium value treats during training and daily routines compared to high value treats. There are certain conditions where you should use medium value treats, including:
During training in environments with mild distractions
For good conduct in an entire day
As part of a standard improvement exercise
When maintaining an existing learned behaviour
What is a low value treat?
This is an incredible treat to work into your puppy training since it’s generally lower in calories than high and medium value puppy treats. Low worth treats are normally dry and crunchy. Many dog owners and trainers use ordinary puppy food for training. Low-value treats are a must-have to gradually fade out treats in puppy training. Here are a few reasons why you should have low-value treats:
When training puppies in an area with low or no distraction
To inspire your puppy for good behaviour throughout the day.
It’s recommended you avoid treats high in fats like sausage and bacon to keep your puppy from pancreatitis or stomach upset.
How to “Taste Test” your puppy
Having a taste test is essential to selecting the right training treats your dog will enjoy and react to in the best way. To set up the taste test, choose a couple of treats for your little guy based on three main pointers;
Texture: Pick various treat alternatives based on their textures, such as dry, wet, semi-moist, jerky, or freeze-dried.
Type of protein: Have an assortment of fish, pork, poultry, hamburger, or sheep. You can also include non-meat-based treats, like peanut butter.
Delivery ease: When you select taste test treat alternatives, ensure you're picking those you can easily give to your dog. As indicated earlier, puppy treats have to be small or pea-sized. In case the treats are bigger, check whether you can break them into small pieces. It’s generally useful to check treat ingredients to guarantee they don’t contain anything your dog may be sensitive or allergic to.
Taste-testing steps
To begin the taste test, give your dog the option to choose between the various treats.; put one treat type in one hand and an alternate kind in the other hand, and close both hands to make a fist. You may likewise do this using two little cups to cover the treat choices on the ground.
Permit your dog to sniff your two hands to identify which one they’re most interested in. You can proceed to give them the one they sniff, lick, or mostly paw at.
Change the various treats and switch the ones you've just attempted with other options to determine your dog's high, medium, and low-value treats.
Pros and cons of training dogs with food and treats
Using treats and food to train dogs dates back to ancient times. Recent scientific research and positive reviews about reinforcement training supports the effectiveness of this training method. Despite the varying discussions over the practice, it’s fair to say that dogs enjoy food and will do what it takes to have some. Here are some pros and cons of food or treat-based training:
Reaction: You’ll probably get a positive reaction from your dog when utilizing treats to compensate for their appropriate behaviour or as an incentive to follow orders during submission training. It remains one of the most effective techniques to have a dog's attention, particularly during their puppy age.
Prize: Rewarding a pet with a treat is a great way to establish a good relationship with them, and this can make obedience training a lot simpler. Soft dog treats are comparably easier and faster for dog training than crunchy ones. You can use biscuits as treats once in a while. However, your dog can spend a great deal of time picking every crumpled piece on the floor, which might delay your training session.
Respect: If the food or treat doesn't demand respect from your dog or teach it to value things, it can ultimately discourage them from connection and training.
Repulse: Make sure to carefully check the ingredients of your dog’s food to ensure they’re safe for its consumption and consider better options, for example, homemade dog treats. This ensures you prepare the safest food for your dog since you’re responsible for all the ingredients used.
Dependence: If you use treats as a prize, it might happen that your puppy may always want to be rewarded for behaving satisfactorily or getting a task done.
Acknowledgement: If you include treats as a component of your training routine, add positive reinforcement through praise and fondness.
Differentiating between training methods
There are some essential points to note when using food as a lure, bribe or reward.
Lure: When you invite your dog to perform an act by offering a treat; let's say when you call your pet, you’re luring them instead of training them to respond when called.
Bribe: If you hang a treat before your dog, issue a command, and it’s completed, you’re only bribing your dog to produce the anticipated conduct.
Reward: When you offer food as a lure or as a bribe, you risk training your dog only to perform when there’s food.
Let's look at some fundamental training, for instance. When you hold a treat in front of your dog, expecting them to sit by pushing their backside, you’re simply bribing them to respond. When you hold a treat above the nose and begin shifting it backwards, you’re likewise luring your dog to deliver on command.
On the other hand, if you put a leash on your dog, convince them to sit and pull marginally upwards on their lead while tenderly pushing on their backside, you're showing them how to respond to the command. Having performed that severally, using your gentle encouragement, and praise, you can give them the reward when the task is completed.
Top picks for training treats
With the numerous high-quality puppy treats available, these are some of the top picks you can consider for your puppy.
1. VetIQ Nutri Boosters Healthy Puppy Treats 50g
The VetIQ Nutri Booster Healthy Puppy Treats 50g are a great addition to your puppy"s diet if you wish to keep them active & energetic. It is made from some of the finest quality ingredients and provides all the vital supplements for their active development.
This delicious treat has a crunchy cereal shell with a cream-filled centre that your puppy would love to munch the whole day. It also promotes healthy digestion in dogs as it is a great source of prebiotic and also hasantioxidants to support your puppy’s immune system. Another best thingisthatit also keeps your pal’s teeth strong, as it is a great source of calcium. This healthy puppy treat also contains real chicken, that would be loved by your dog. Now you can serve this to your puppy as a reward after a challenging training session. It also doesn’t contain any added artificial colours. Get this today and keep your puppy all bubbly & vibrant!
2. Good Boy Pawsley & Co Puppy Milk Drops 125g
These puppy treats don’t contain cocoa, making it one of the finest treats you can give to your puppy. It’s made with milk and milk derivatives, sugars, grains, oils, fats, and minerals. This is a healthy dog treat that additionally promotes the overall growth and development of your puppy.
Product Benefits
Contains vitamins that are ideal for dog's healthy teeth, eyes, skin, and bones
It’s cocoa-free, making it suitable for dog's consumption
Serves as a reward or snack to your dog
Made from the chocolate alternative, carob, that makes them healthy for dogs
A delicious and healthy choice for dogs of all sizes, ages, and breeds
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