In working with my rescue dog who was noticeably more
or less motivated depending on the type of food I was
using, here is my list of favorite (mostly healthy)
training treats.
Natural Balance in the roll- this is 100% complete
100% natural dog food. It's packaged like sausage and
sort of has the same consistency, so you can pull pieces
off in tiny or huge chunks. Dogs LOVE it. You can get
it at most independent pet stores.
Bil-Jac- Another high quality dog food that can be
used as treats. I don't like the "bil jac treats"
as they are too hard- but I prefer to use their frozen
food.
Soaked bacon- soak bacon for 4-12 hours, refreshing
the water once or twice and many of the preservatives
will soak out- but the dogs still love it. I cook it
in the microwave after it has soaked. It’s very
tough cooked this way- almost like beef jerky- but if
works well when you want the dog to feed out of your
hand
Cheese- string cheese or just cheese cubes, most dogs
will do anything for cheese! As a very special, rare
treat- or in working with your dog on a serious fear
or phobia- spray cheese in a can seems to work miracles.
Use spray cheese sparingly because of the sodium and
preservative content.
I mention this last not because it's less good than
the others, but will stink your house up to kingdom
come: liver brownies. - 1 tub chicken livers or package
of beef livers, 1.5 cups of regular dry dog food, and
1 egg. Put in the blender, blend together, dump into
a brownie pan, and cook until your house stink really
bad. Cut into treat size and use. Cheap and healthy:
if you have the stomach for making them you've found
the perfect training treat!