Training your pup is not an easy task! And since every dog is unique, you as the owner will have to find what works best for not only them but also you. King and I started training when he was two months old. Yes we both had to be trained. There was so much that I did not know and so many little body language changes that I needed to make. After private training every weekend and homework we had to do on the weekdays, King and I got to a point that we were able to go almost anywhere together. From parks and outdoor restaurants to Home Depot and nephew's baseball games. It was great to have him by my side and know that he had been trained to handle any situation that could arise. Since training is so unique and individualized, what worked for King and I may not work for you and your pup, and in the end I am not a trainer. What we do want to talk to you about though are treats!
Finding healthy, tasty and strong-smelling treats is not easy. No, no, I am not saying taste the treats. This part your pup will handle, but we will be talking about smell a little. King and I had some great trainers along the way that taught us some small tips about what treats to get, how to handle them and how to effectively reward your pup. As being healthy is becoming more and more of an aspect of our lifestyle, I am happy to see that same mentality and care move over to what our fury friends eat.
Making sure that the taste of the treat is there for your pupper is important. You want them to be excited for the reward and be able to grab their attention with it. This is also where smell comes into play. Dogs have such a powerful nose. I know that King has been lost in the smells of busy downtown streets or the new scents of a mountain trail. This is where having smelly treats help. You want to be able to snap them out of something they are doing or catch their attention when they are worked up. The more aromatic the treat, the easier it is to get your dog's attention.
Our favorite dog treats are made by True Chews, and for King it really does not matter which flavor! All of True Chews treats are made in the United States and the first ingredient is the meat of the animal they are flavored after. The first ingredient being meat means they are getting a healthy snack and you are getting what you pay for. They have a total of twenty-one different types of dog treats so you can easily find what your dog loves best, and come in various-sized bags with a ziplock top to make sure they are staying fresh.
Something I quickly learned with King is that he likes a variety of treats. He becomes bored of only getting one during a training session and will start to not pay as much attention if he thinks he is going to be getting the same treat. So when we are shopping for True Chews, I grab two to three different bags. Although they make a line of small treats called Morsels, most of their products are larger, four to five inch pieces. These work great for a big rewards, but if we are working on walking through busy crowds, King would have to stop walking to eat one of these, and after five he would be entirely full! Our last trainer let us in on a little secret that I am going to share with you. Take an older or unused knife and cut them up. I try to do quarter inch pieces, although this takes a bit of time, so choose what's best for you and the size of your pup. I then mix the treats that I have together, now King can have three different treats so he is never bored and there are three different smells to grab his attention with!
Here is a list of True Chew treats in order of King's liking:
I know that your pup will not say no to these True Chew Treats! They also have a variety of sizes so you are able to test a few out over a period of time. Overall, from everything that we have tried so far, True Chews and the occasional peanut butter filled Kong Toy are the best rewards for training.
Comments