What are your favorite high value treat recipes?

[hkwm]

I need to up my treat game! What is it that your dogs just can't resist? There are some great ideas in previous threads, but I'd love to hear some more!

[Sue R]

Zuke's Mini Naturals in Salmon flavor. Easy to handle, small, semi-soft, and with just the right amount of irresistible fishy smell.

 

String cheese - Cut in half and then you can pull off a 1/4" string. It's easy to portion out treats by holding the string in your hand, with the end sticking out between your thumb and side of your index finger, and use your thumbnail to piece off little bits straight into your dog's mouth. Or allow the dog or pup to lick the end of the string if you are trying for rewarding flavor with reduced consumption.

 

Some of those mini-peperoni (made for salads). A few of these in a treat pouch will tend to give extra flavor to the other treats they come in contact with. I do the same with hot dog, with a very limited amount of tiny bits mixed in with other treats to lend an irresistible odor to the other treats. I only feed anything like these in very limited amounts, both for the sake of the digestive system and to avoid excess additives/preservatives. They are both good in a pouch with string cheese strings or bits.

 

And a guilty pleasure is Milk Bone Trail Mix (I break the biscuits, sweet potato ovals, and beef squares into two or more pieces each, and rarely feed any of them whole), which I use in limited amounts.

 

My dogs are not fussy - I confess that my treat pouch is a combination of Earthborn Ocean Catch (I think that's it, the low-carb, high-fish kibble), the Zuke's Mini Treats, and some Milk-Bone Trail Mix. My dogs seem to like the kibble bits as much as anything else. For them, it is all about getting *a treat* and just about anything is as good as anything else. They are very easy keepers as far as treats go.

[Gideon's girl]

I take beef liver and boil it just long enough to get rid of the pink color. Then I cut it to the size i want it. Finally, I bake it in the oven for a couple hours, smaller pieces need less time. I store it in the freezer in baggies, just the amount I want for one training session. It works with any kind of liver.

 

Vital Essentials makes a freeze dried tripe treat. It doesn't smell quite as bad as fresh tripe, but still has some of the good benefits of tripe. It will stay on your hands though, so you need to plan for handwashing with GOOD soap.

[Olivia]

Chicken livers sprinkled with a little garlic salt and baked in the oven until done. Then cut up into very small pieces and tossed in a baggie with some finely grated cheese. I call it 'doggie crack', my dogs will walk through fire for this. I only use it at obedience shows right before we go in the ring to make sure I have extra extra attention.

 

For regular good treats I use cheese bits or pieces of the baked rotisserie chicken that you can get from walmart mixed with kibble, gives it better smell and flavor and the dogs are thrilled with getting either the chicken or cheese or kibble pieces.

[GentleLake]

My dogs seem to like the kibble bits as much as anything else. For them, it is all about getting *a treat* and just about anything is as good as anything else. They are very easy keepers as far as treats go.

 

LOL Mine, too.

 

Mine are raw fed, so for them kibble bits are like caviar.

 

I love the Zuke's salmon minis, too. Since they're soft, you can cut them in half if you're going to be dong a lot of training to get even more treats.

 

And sharp cheddar cut into little cubes is a big favorite here, too.

[GentleLake]

Oh, and I'm dehydrating some sweet potatoes as we speak. After some initial skepticism from 2 of them, it looks like they're going to be a hit. The other, a canine food disposal, approved of them even before they were dehydrated, though.

 

Nice thing about dehydrating these yourself is that you can either do them crispy or leave them more leathery, in which case you can just tear tiny bits off as needed. No mess on your hands, either.

[waffles]

Zukes minis are great when I feel like splurging or being lazy. I try to mostly make my own to save money. I buy skinless chicken breasts on sale ($1.99/lb vs $11/lb for the bag of Zukes) and bake those and chop into small pieces. I also bake liver and do the same. Since we do a lot of trick training treats go fast so I am glad to be making my own and not spending as much.

[red russel]

sheep

[alligande]

I think it is about finding what turns a particular dog on... I tried everything with Brody made him doggie pate, dried liver, chicken with garlic and Parmesan and many other things, turns out he would do anything for tasty cheese, I do mean anything for a bit of cheddar, the stronger the better.

Rievaulx on the other hand has been known to happily work for zucchini.

[Sue R]

sheep

 

Sheep (and cattle) are the best rewards of all!

[Sue R]

Zukes minis are great when I feel like splurging or being lazy. I try to mostly make my own to save money. I buy skinless chicken breasts on sale ($1.99/lb vs $11/lb for the bag of Zukes) and bake those and chop into small pieces. I also bake liver and do the same. Since we do a lot of trick training treats go fast so I am glad to be making my own and not spending as much.

 

Chicken breast at 1.99 per pound and Zuke's at 7.99 per pound (from Amazon, three one-pound packages at 7.99 each, in an order with no shipping charges) are not as much different in price as you might think, not on an equivalent dry matter basis.

 

The moisture content of Zuke's is 30%. Of chicken breast, it is about 75% *before* any water/broth is added. Much chicken sold in the US has a minimum of 11% (by weight) added moisture, raising the moisture level to about 80%.

 

On a dry matter basis, the Zuke's costs approximately 11.43 per pound (of dry matter) and the chicken costs approximately 8.00 per pound (of dry matter, with the chicken having no added or injected moisture), a difference of the Zuke's costing 43% more than the chicken on a dry matter basis. That's a lot different from saying that the Zuke's at 11.00 compared to the raw chicken at 1.99, is about 450% more expensive than the chicken.

 

If you are comparing chicken that has had about 11% added (injected) moisture (which occurs in about 1/3 of the skinless boneless chicken breast sold in the USA, particularly in the less expensively-priced brands/retail outlets), the difference is even more startling. With the Zuke's at approximately 11.43 per pound (of dry matter), compared to this chicken at about 13.33 per pound (of dry matter), the Zuke's is actually less expensive than the chicken, on a dry matter equivalent basis.

 

Plus you need to factor in costs involved in baking, boiling, and dehydrating, if you do that, for the chicken. And the Zuke's keep at room temperature, are neat in a treat bag, and have a reasonably lengthy shelf life. Of course, sad to say, you can't eat Zuke's out of your pouch like you might eat a little of your homemade treats, and you are feeding nothing but chicken (plus whatever salt, etc., may have been injected).

 

So, I may be lazy, and I expect you didn't mean to imply that anyone was, but I may also be treating more economically *on a dry matter basis*.

 

And back to your regularly-scheduled programming! Sorry to hijack but this has been a fun exercise.

[GentleLake]

^^Yes.

 

And while I also use baked chicken, I like to rotate treats to keep things interesting for the dogs and keep all sorts of things high value and not run of the mill.

[Sue R]

^^Yes.

 

And while I also use baked chicken, I like to rotate treats to keep things interesting for the dogs and keep all sorts of things high value and not run of the mill.

 

With my dogs being avid consumers of *anything* that comes out of the treat pouch, including kibble, I don't really have to be anything but lazy about my choice of treats. Everyone else's dogs are getting pretty nice stuff but I'll bet none are any more excited about it than my dogs are about my run-of-the-mill treats. Just watch the reaction when I say, "Cookies!"

[GentleLake]

If truth be told, 2 of my 3 are like that, too.

 

I think it just makes me feel like I'm on top of things.

[waffles]

So, I may be lazy, and I expect you didn't mean to imply that anyone was, but I may also be treating more economically *on a dry matter basis*.

 

And back to your regularly-scheduled programming! Sorry to hijack but this has been a fun exercise.

Wow. I can't believe anyone would think I was saying in my post that they were lazy for buying dog treats. Just stating, as others have as well in this post, that I like to make my own and I am on a tight budget and can't afford to buy $11 worth of treats every week or so. I still think it is cheaper to make my own, I don't think that baking the chicken until they are no longer pink takes out 100% of the moisture (I do not dehydrate it just bake it until it isn't raw). At my local store Zukes are $11 for a one pound bag as I don't buy them from amazon.

[Gideon's girl]

I don't feed treats on a dry matter basis either, which I do with meals. I pinch off a certain size piece, wet or dry, and that is how much of a treat they are getting, times however many time I need to treat, whether it be 5 or 50.

 

My issue is I have 2 dogs with food intolerance issues, so when I find a store bought treat that works for one, it doesn't work for the other. I have to deal with that with their food all the time, so for treats I like single ingredient meat(or cheese) treats that I know work for all the dogs. That makes training grab-and-go for me.

[hkwm]

My dogs seem to like the kibble bits as much as anything else. For them, it is all about getting *a treat* and just about anything is as good as anything else. They are very easy keepers as far as treats go.

 

Lucky! I live in the city with a hard-to-focus pup, so I'm looking for the nastiest, stankiest, fish-smellingest treat recipe to compete with the thousand distractions going on when we walk out the door. Right now I'm doing what waffles is doing, and cubing up a lot of chicken and turkey, but treats that Laika will go nuts over inside hardly merit a sniff when we're outside.

 

Thanks everyone so far for the suggestions!

[Sue R]

Wow. I can't believe anyone would think I was saying in my post that they were lazy for buying dog treats. Just stating, as others have as well in this post, that I like to make my own and I am on a tight budget and can't afford to buy $11 worth of treats every week or so. I still think it is cheaper to make my own, I don't think that baking the chicken until they are no longer pink takes out 100% of the moisture (I do not dehydrate it just bake it until it isn't raw). At my local store Zukes are $11 for a one pound bag as I don't buy them from amazon.

 

No, I didn't and I know you didn't and I was just trying to be humorous! For me, the combination of the kibble, Zuke's, and Milk Bone in my treat pouch goes a long, long way - but I don't treat that much, just on walks primarily. I'm sure I'd be using more if I had a pup, youngster, foster, or new rescue in the house.

 

No, no offense meant (I know) and none taken (I hope you understand), just a poor choice of words on my part.

[Sue R]

Lucky! I live in the city with a hard-to-focus pup, so I'm looking for the nastiest, stankiest, fish-smellingest treat recipe to compete with the thousand distractions going on when we walk out the door. Right now I'm doing what waffles is doing, and cubing up a lot of chicken and turkey, but treats that Laika will go nuts over inside hardly merit a sniff when we're outside.

 

Thanks everyone so far for the suggestions!

 

One thing I do particularly like about the Zuke's (salmon) is that they do have a very tantalizing fishy odor. When I helped with puppy and family dog classes, I don't think I ever met a youngster or adult that could turn up their nose at the Zuke's, no matter how ambivalent they could be about blander treats.

 

Just my experience!

[vanillalove]

I'm also a big fan of putting smellier treats, like dehydrated tripe/liver or cubed chicken, in with his regular kibble to rub off on them. We also like the "treat trail mix" where we mix a bunch of lowers and higher value treats. Indie doesn't seem to care then when a regular ol' kibble comes out of the treat pouch.

 

But I empathize for you, hkwm, I also live in a big city with a ton of distractions and with a young pup (Ind's only 4 months), attention can be hard to come by We definitely have to bump up the treat value when we are in busy environments, although, he is getting better as he ages. Other high value favourites are cheese, Zukes and canned tuna (you can also put this in the kibble in a ziploc baggy)

 

That said, we stick to kibble at home.

[urge to herd]

I used to buy grated cheese when it was on sale, spread it out on a cookie sheet and stick it in the freezer for a week or so, stirring every couple days. The freezing dehydrated it a little, so that the bits were easier to handle. My pack at the time loved a few sprinkles of cheese in

their trail mix.

 

Gibbs's tummy has a problem with dairy, so he doesn't get that. My version of trail mix is a couple cups of cheerios, plus small handfuls of smelly kibble or smelly treat bits. Loves it. He'll eat the cheerios by themselves with no problem.

 

Ruth and Agent Gibbs

[Maralynn]

I love Orijen kibble for a training treat. My dogs love it (quite smelly!) and the cost is really reasonable on a per # basis when used for treats. Other than that I usually use hot dogs or cooked meat since it's cheap and readily available.

[D'Elle]

Lucky! I live in the city with a hard-to-focus pup, so I'm looking for the nastiest, stankiest, fish-smellingest treat recipe to compete with the thousand distractions going on when we walk out the door. Right now I'm doing what waffles is doing, and cubing up a lot of chicken and turkey, but treats that Laika will go nuts over inside hardly merit a sniff when we're outside.

 

Thanks everyone so far for the suggestions!

I find that the dried liver treats I make myself are a big hit.

If, however, you want fishy tasting things, try tuna fudge.

 

 

(2) 6 oz. cans of tuna (do not drain)

(2) eggs

1 to 1.5 cups of flour (I do not use wheat flour...you can use sorghum or oat flour or whatever kind you want)

2-3 tablespoons of parmesan cheese

Liquefy ingredients in a blender or food processor.

Mix in the flour a little at a time until it reaches the

consistency of thick cake batter.

Spread into non-stick 9 x 13 cake pan. These will be

about 1/4" thick when done (very little rise.)

Can sprinkle with more parmesan cheese if desired.

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Edges should pull away from the pan.

Texture will be like stiff putty (easy to cut and break

if needed, but not crumbly.)

Cut into 1/4" pieces and serve! (makes lots!)

Extras (if there are any) can be frozen.

If they get sticky coat them with flour in your training bag.

 

You can also make this using liverwurst, or pureed liver, or pureed salmon, or any other thing you want to try.

[BangBang]

String cheese - it is like crack-cocaine

Chicken scraps

Beef jerky

Hard boiled egg

Carrot pieces (what kind of dog likes carrots?)

Tuna

Sardines

Bacon

(Is it a coincidence that I also love these, too?)

 

Number one is probably the string cheese. I don't know what it is about it, but the dogs will do ANYTHING for even a small piece. They know the sound of the wrapper opening, and come running while performing every trick they know without being asked.

[GentleLake]

Carrot pieces (what kind of dog likes carrots?)

 

A lot of dogs like carrots.