Food is a love language! And a powerful reinforcer.
These opinions are my own and I do not receive any compensation for these recommendations.
A few notes about using food while training:
Content warning:
discussion of food & calories
Treats can be tiny! To effectively teach our dogs, we are going to use a lot of food. The smaller the morsels are, the more we can use! Most of the time my treats are pea-sized.
According to board-certified veterinary nutritionists, treats should only make up 10% of a dog’s overall daily caloric value.
To calculate your dog’s daily caloric needs, try the Dog Calorie Calculator. This calculator follows these parameters from the OSU Veterinary Medical Center.
To avoid too many calories coming from treats, I like to use complete & balanced dog foods as the bulk of my food reinforcement. If you are using a nutritionally balanced (AAFCO approved) food as a “treat,” you can relatively safely decrease the size of your dog’s meals to compensate for the calories used during training, without compromising their nutrition.
Anything that is not nutritionally complete & balanced (AAFCO approved) can be considered a “treat” and should try to be kept to less than 10% of your dog’s daily calories.
For example, if my dog needs 1000 kcal per day, 90% of that should come from balanced food (900 kcals) and 10% (100 kcals) could come from treats.
If you have more questions about canine nutrition or your dog has a medical condition, talk with your vet! I also recommend checking out The Canine Health Nut. Nikki has a myriad of topics covered on her blog and offers Pet Nutrition Consultations.
As someone who uses hundreds of treats daily, here are some of my favorites:
Low value treats.
These should be used for easy tasks in low distraction environments.
Usually for this tier, we are looking at dry & crunchy treats. Every dog’s exact preferences are unique, but here are some treats that are low value for most dogs.
Try setting aside a portion of your dog's daily meals to use for training. Wet foods can even be used in squeeze tubes or otherwise creatively. Calories vary - check the bag!
The Honest Kitchen's Food Clusters: Small Breed Blend - This food comes in fairly small pieces, is complete & balanced, and doesn't have a greasy feel like most kibble does. 116 kcal/ quarter cup.
Jiminy's Dog Food - This food is complete & balanced, isn't greasy, and is made from sustainable insect protein. Good Grub: about 102 kcal/ quarter cup. Cravin' Cricket: about 95 kcal/ quarter cup.
Pupford Freeze Dried Sweet Potato - less than 1 kcal/treat.
Pupford Freeze Dried Mango - less than 1 kcal/treat.
Medium value treats.
These can be used for slightly more difficult tasks in mildly distracting environments.
The tier is usually made of softer treats & meatier ingredients.
Squeasy Snacker - Fill these with wet dog food, peanut butter, whipped cream cheese, or even baby food. Depending on what you fill them with, these can be higher value for dogs, hold their attention for longer & are great for winter walks while wearing mittens! Calories vary.
Freeze Dried Chicken Liver - This single ingredient treat is easy to break into smaller pieces. Because this is high in Vitamin A, keep this treat to 5% or less of your dog's daily calories. About 4 kcal/ gram.
Happy Howie's Meat Rolls - Cut these rolls into tiny pieces for low calorie treats! Calories per 1/4 inch cube: Beef-0.8 kcal. Lamb-0.9 kcal. Turkey-1 kcal.
Beef lung - This single ingredient treat has a puffy texture & can sometimes be broken into smaller pieces. 5 kcal/treat.
Fig & Tyler Meatball Medley - I like using these larger meatballs as recall treats! Use code LF7570 to save 10% on your order. Calories vary!
Fig & Tyler Beef Heart - Small and relatively odorless. Use code LF7570 to save 10% on your order. 99 kcal / oz
Fig & Tyler Bison Liver - Small & relatively odorless. Use code LF7570 to save 10% on your order. 133 kcal / oz
Fig & Tyler Chicken Parmesan Chips - Very easy to break into tiny pieces. Use code LF7570 to save 10% on your order. Calories vary!
Pupford Freeze Dried Beef Liver - less than 1 kcal/treat.
Pupford Freeze Dried Salmon - less than 1 kcal/treat.
High value treats.
These are your top tier treats to use when you really need something good!
For high value treats, the smellier & grosser to you, the better to your dog!
Blocks of cheese are an easy & affordable high-value treat that can be cut into tiny pieces. Calories vary.
String cheese - a great option for when you want to just grab something & go! Calories vary,.
Hot dogs are easy & affordable high value treat for many dogs. Cut them up into tiny pieces. Calories vary.
Deli turkey is easy to tear into tiny pieces & very desirable to many dogs. Calories vary.
Beef liver is usually a big hit with dogs. I love these specific ones because they are pre cut to be tiny! 0.17 kcal/ treat. Beef liver is high in Vitamin A and copper, so use these in moderation to keep your dog's diet balanced.
Ava's Pet Palace Salmon Treats - these single ingredient treats have a strong salmon smell that most dogs love. A bit bigger. 18 kcal/ treat.
Redbarn Rolled Dog Food - These meat rolls are a complete & balanced food. These are more smelly & crumbly than Happy Howie's. kcal/ one inch of roll: Beef-329 kcal. Chicken-312 kcal. Lamb-351 kcal.
Instinct Freeze-Dried Raw Meals - Unique puffy texture, easy to break apart, and complete & balanced. Chicken recipe: 68 kcal/ quarter cup.
Beef tripe - these single ingredient treats are a nice small size, can be broken apart even smaller & smell so strong your dog is sure to love them. I have found these to be a hit with nearly every dog I've met. 155 cal/ ounce.
Ziwi Peak Steamed & Dried Food - This food is complete & balanced. Calories vary between recipes- this recipe is 305 kcal/ cup.
Ziwi Peak Air Dried Food - This food is complete & balanced, has a jerky like texture and comes in small pieces that are easy to break up. I find most dog LOVE the tripe & lamb, but be warned: it stinks! Calories vary between recipes- this recipe is 465 kcal/ cup.
Bark Pouch Lickable Dog Treats - With recipes like sardines & cream cheese, salmon & ricotta, and beef & liverwurst, your dog is sure to love these! Calories vary. Salmon & ricotta is the lowest calorie option, at 60 kcal per 50 gram pouch.