Choosing Dog Treats

Dogs are charming and social animals that are very intelligent with high ability to memorize and related the past to the present. This is the reason why dogs are the most trainable animals in the entire animal kingdom.

Dogs are appreciative of incentives and this motivates them to perform a certain task to perfection. This has been the basis of dog training for ages. 

One of the best ways to train a dog for obedience or teaching the dog a new trick is by using dog treats. With dog treats being an essential part of the dog’s life and routine, how do you decide on the best treat that suits your dog?

The choice of a dog treat depends on a number of things that are equally important and should be considered before you settle for a dog treat. The tips outline here should be a good guide for choosing a dog treat:

Choose a treat that your dog loves – Treats are meant for motivation of your dog and it works well if you use a treat that your dog likes. It could be biscuits or any other food that motivates your dog.

Choose a treat that is healthy for your dog - many pet owners are unaware of the serious health dangers that some treats can pose for their best friend. A good example is the use of chocolate by many pet owners who do not know the adverse health effect that chocolate poses to their pets. Make sure your treat does not have a harmful effect to your dog’s health. Read this earlier published article for a full list of foods that are unsafe for your dog.

Choose a treat that will not cause addiction - Dogs are likely to suffer from over indulgence when they are constantly given treats. Some treats may be very addictive to your dog and this may pose a serious health problem like weight gain when the dog overeats. You may also consider giving your dog the treat in moderated amounts.

Choose treats that are healthy with protein nutritive content – Majority of the commercial treats may be made of sugars and starch which is not good for your dog. You may however get some treats that are made from fish due to their health benefits to your best friend. Otherwise, you could even make your own frozen dog treats at home.

Choose treats that are unique - Treats should not be related to other meals since they may end up confusing the dog. You should also not give your dog treats when the dog has taken the main meal since they may not understand the concept of treats.

Non Food Treats – Food is just one of the motivators for your dog to perform a desired action. There are other forms of treats that are equally effective for training your dogs. For example, you could use verbal praise or substitute the dog food treat with a toy that it likes.

In conclusion, the choice of treats should be limited to ensuring your best friend leads a healthy lifestyle while the treat is effective for the general purpose of training your dog.

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