What are the best dog treats? Will this work for leash-training my dog?
Howdy!
So my dog has a SUPER high prey-drive, and it is our downfall when it comes to walking on leash. Any time nothing is around, she’s not too bad at all. She occasionally pulls, but only to give something a quick sniff before she comes along. She is protective of me, so she likes to stay near, too. BUT if there is a small critter she goes BERSERK!!! It’s like she can’t even hear me anymore she’s so focused on the damn thing. I’m trying to teach her not to be so focused (is that even possible??) on the small critter, but I can’t find any treats that she likes better! She does like treats under normal circumstances, but when that happens she would much rather chase than eat any treat.
Do you have any idea of what I can use as a treat for her, or what is a SUPER tasty smelly flavorful treat I can try using? I try something new almost every time, but it’d be nice to just have a hint of what to try. 
Thanks!
Tagged with: best • leashtraining • this • Treats • work
Filed under: Dog Leash Training
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my dogs like those small powdered doughnuts they sell at the supermarket.
my dog liked lil chunks of chicken
Some of my dogs’ favorites are cooked pieces of chicken, bits of a mild cheese, pieces of raw lamb, freeze-dried liver or cooked liver cut into pieces, and boiled hamburger or cut up steak. The raw lamb (or cooked if you’re squeamish about raw meat), or the liver are both strong-smelling and what I usually use when I’m working with distractions. The key is to be aware of surroundings and get her into the treat before she’s really focused on the distraction- then you’re not trying to get her attention when she’s in “hunt and kill” mode.
My dogs LOVE “Tidbits”. They’re natural liver treats and they’re soft. They have vitamins and minerals also.
I have fostered dogs and even the pickiest eaters have loved these!
http://www.waggerspetproducts.com/tidbits.php
Hot dogs! cheap, real meat and easy to chop up and carry.
Work on training your dog to watch you with no distractions. Then slowly work up to watching you while critters far away. Some dogs can’t be broken of prey drive but most can be better channeled.
Don’t expect your dog to ignore the squirrle on your head, but it can make walking easier if you can turn the dog’s attention to you.
Good luck.
Fry
I have to agree, HOT DOGS!
I’ve got a newly adopted Beagle-Jack Russell mix and when he sees I’ve got the container of treats he is so focused on me I swear that a pack of rabbits could hop by and he’d ignore them in favor of the hot dogs.
I cut them up pretty small so he doesn’t get too much at one time, but its enough to keep him interest.
the treats i use with my dog are milk bones. she LOVES them! they are somewhat good for your dog and can freshen there breath. yo should get milkbones, your dog will love them.
Hi Britches,
Using treat as a positive reinforcement is one of the most popular ways for dog training. However, if you want to stop her from doing something, is this positive reinforcement really the right way to do so? I understand that you might buy her lots of different treats as this is what I will do to my dog as well, but sometimes you know the treats do have lots of harmful results as well.
I will usually go for some natural treats because I want to make sure my dog can become healthy forever and I don’t dare to give him any other non-natural treats anymore!
Anyways, for your training here, I will highly you to do something else to train your puppy rather than using treat at this time! If you want to learn more effective ways to train your dog, check out my source link == all techniques are fun and natural — FREE!
Hope this helps!! =)
I like Charlee Bears for training, they come in different flavors. Pet co sells the bonus bag for the same price as the regular bag, but it isn’t always stocked with the treats. I would suggest clicker training. The clicker can snap her out of her agenda when she is going berserk. When my puppies are first little, I practice with the leash. In the house, I drape the leash on them and try to call them to me. Outside, I practice in my fenced back yard for about a month before the puppy graduates to the street. I might drape the leash on the puppy and get him to follow me, or drag the leash on the ground and see if he will follow me and try to catch the leash. There are many things in my back yard that scare a puppy, so it is so much easier to address, or correct issues when I am in my back yard and not in the street. We just walk laps in the yard and deal with drama as it comes up. Maybe around 3-months-old I might try to clip the leash to the collar, but if there is too much protesting, I drop the leash. They just get better with the leash around 4 to 5-months-old. So anyway, I use the commands “go” when I want to “go” and if the puppy tugs on the leash, I stop and say “wait”. It is my walk and we go as fast as I can walk and no faster. If I want to “wait” and look at a flower, change the batteries in my walkman, count to ten, then I do it, it is my walk. When I am ready I say “go” and we “go” again. When the puppy pulls on the leash, I stop and say “wait” and we stop again, even if we just went two steps. I praise the puppy when he is doing good and talk soothing to him and encourage him when he is doing good, so he keeps doing it. It takes several laps of “go” and “wait” until he settles down, and when the walk is over, I make a big fuss and clap and then they get some play time. They don’t like the walk at first, but they like the fuss at the end. I have to address “go” and “wait” again the next day, but it won’t take me as long to get him to understand what I want from him. I also house sat a dog, and the owner thought he had leash issues, and that dog just didn’t like being in front. He walked just fine with my dogs as long as he could be part of the group, but he didn’t want to be in the front. If you have a family member, or a neighbor that has a dog that walks well, see if you can practice with them. I also had one dog that didn’t like the maroon leash, or the pink one, but did just fine with the blue leash. Sometimes puppies are just puppies.
When you go on your walks, have your dog walk beside you or behind you as a follower position. Try to recognize the signs that she is alert that there is an animal. My dog’s telling sign is that she stops and her ears pick up. When you see the first signs, immediately give the leash a firm tug to the side. Do not pull the leash back because your dog’s reaction would be to pull forward, which then becomes counterproductive. By pulling to the side, it unbalances your dog (mentally), and your dog will stop focusing on the animal for a second and you can correct your dog’s behavior by saying “no” or another corrective word (I personally like to you “hey”). The corrective firm tug works best when you catch your dog before she escalates. If you are not able to catch it in time and she goes “berserk” and begins to pull on the leash, then you can use a physical touch to perform the corrective action. You can use a quick poke/jab with all five fingers at the area between the hip and the ribs, and say your corrective word at the same time. You intensity needs to match or surpass your dog’s prey intensity. The fingers imitate a dog bite/nip and the area between the hip and the ribs is one of the two sensitive spots on a dog. If done correctly, your dog might give a quick surprise yelp (it is not a pain yelp). Once you get your dog’s attention away from the animal, continue walking forward. If you see your dog looking back, give a quick tug of the leash to the side with the corrective word and continue walking. After a few times of this exercise, your dog will begin to get that you do not want her focusing on animals. Also, when you do those corrections, do not feel anything but CALM and ASSERTIVE (expect your dog to obey your command and not hope your dog will obey you). Be sure you do not feel frustrated, angry, embarrassed, guilty, nervous, etc because these are all weak emotions and dogs do not listen to weakness.
When I adopted my 7 year old dog, her prey drive was alive but not as extreme case as your dog’s. After working with my dog for a couple of weeks, she basically ignores the bunnies and squirrels, even though she will give a quick glance their way and continue looking and walking forward.
I believe when trying to remove certain behaviors from dogs, food is not the best way to do it because treats is a treatment for the behavioral problem and not the cure for it. On your walks, your dog should not be sniffing everything and stopping whenever she wants. She should be focused on the walk, as well as, walking beside or behind you. From what you have said, it sounds like your dog is your pack leader, instead of the reverse. It would be best that you take that position from her because it allows you to influence her behavior more during any type of training. You can try reading “Be the Pack Leader” by Cesar Millan to learn about pack leader mentality and the dog world.
Good luck.