Treats for my 8 week old puppy?

[mooching]

Have a look at the ingredients on the pack - it should say there!! Look for any named meat content.

[Jeanette]

Purina Pro Plan puppy do Chicken and Rice - main ingredient 20% chicken and also a Lamb one main ingredient 21%.   

A lot of breeders wean their puppies on Purina Pro Plan - it is expensive compared to a lot of other brands but puppies generally do very well on this food.   

[mooching]

The reason I was asking was that if Ruben's kibble is, say, chicken flavour, you could get another variety/flavour of kibble (samples are good for this) to use as his treats (I mean a different brand too). That way, it's special and different, but still gentle on his tum.

[Jeanette]

The reason I was asking was that if Ruben's kibble is, say, chicken flavour, you could get another variety/flavour of kibble (samples are good for this) to use as his treats (I mean a different brand too). That way, it's special and different, but still gentle on his tum.

Would have been so much easier to say that in the first place rather than the OP having to go look at the ingredients for you.   

[mooching]

Jeanette, I was getting ready for puppy class at the time (midday start), and didn't think to say it all at once, especially as Ruben and I were (I thought) just chatting about it.

Sorry, Rubenkhan, if I've put you to any inconvenience.

(It is however IMO a good thing to know exactly what your pup is eating)

[Petepreston]

Re; treats. I got fed up with picking up packets that clearly stated "for puppies" or even had it as part of the product name only to find in small print on the back, "not uitable for dogs less than 12 weeks old". Eventually I asked the staff at the PetsAtHome store and they showed me a couple of brands that were specifically for under 12 weeks old. Sorry but I can't remember the names.

[mooching]

Re; treats. I got fed up with picking up packets that clearly stated "for puppies" or even had it as part of the product name only to find in small print on the back, "not uitable for dogs less than 12 weeks old". Eventually I asked the staff at the PetsAtHome store and they showed me a couple of brands that were specifically for under 12 weeks old. Sorry but I can't remember the names.

Before we got Alfie, I bought some rice-based treats which said suitable for puppies over 4 weeks old, but they were so HARD Alfie couldn't manage them and would just spit them out. It wasn't until he was 12 or 13 weeks that he started to be able to cope with them.

I bought some Puppy Coachies, which were better, but still quite hard (he would sometimes eat them, sometimes not).

It was just far simpler to use kibble as treats. Burns Mini Bites was especially good as the kibble is small.

[Jeanette]

Jeanette, I was getting ready for puppy class at the time (midday start), and didn't think to say it all at once, especially as Ruben and I were (I thought) just chatting about it.

Sorry, Rubenkhan, if I've put you to any inconvenience.

(It is however IMO a good thing to know exactly what your pup is eating)

Apologies didn't mean to butt in on a private chat, its the one sentence questions which threw me.

[mooching]

Apologies didn't mean to butt in on a private chat, its the one sentence questions which threw me.

Not a private chat - this is a public forum after all! And, as I said, I was to-ing and fro-ing, as I often am, and getting ready for puppy class at the time, so not thinking very comprehensively.

[Rubenkhan]

So I get the 'give kibble as treats ' bit, but the rest of the chat I kinda lost my way,lol { what were you all talking about?  lol
Anyway,I have been mainly training using kibble,but today I used some chicken breast meat and cooked carrots from our tuesday roast![we have sunday dinner on a tues!  }  He loved it! I even added bits of chicken and carrot and swede to his kibble and he licked his bowl clean! Its the first time sonce we've had him he's eaten his whole meal!  Must be so boring for the poor wee things eating the same brown shades again and again!
Oh,maybe I should ask you all another question?? I gave Ruben some fish4dogs mini treats in the morning around 10am whilst teaching me 'watch' and he's been totally nuts today,like a wee devil wanting to bit chew and basically destroy anything in reach! He was also running up and down the kitchen with an insane look in his eyes! Scared me to honest, lol,I know he may only be playing,but do you think certain food can make a dog 'HYPER' ?

[mooching]

So I get the 'give kibble as treats ' bit, but the rest of the chat I kinda lost my way,lol { what were you all talking about?  lol

I was just suggesting that if you wanted to vary his treats at all, a safe way would be to get some puppy kibble samples that were a different flavour to the one you're using for his meals.

Anyway,I have been mainly training using kibble,but today I used some chicken breast meat and cooked carrots from our tuesday roast![we have sunday dinner on a tues!  }  He loved it! I even added bits of chicken and carrot and swede to his kibble and he licked his bowl clean! Its the first time sonce we've had him he's eaten his whole meal!  Must be so boring for the poor wee things eating the same brown shades again and again!

It's great to give them a little variety now and again, but giving them variety too often when they're pups can lead to them becoming fussy and to *expect* to have extras all the time.

When you give him his Pro Plan (plain), are you giving it to him dry or softened with a little hot water? A little hot water poured on just as it's served releases the aroma and makes it more palatable to them.

Oh,maybe I should ask you all another question?? I gave Ruben some fish4dogs mini treats in the morning around 10am whilst teaching me 'watch' and he's been totally nuts today,like a wee devil wanting to bit chew and basically destroy anything in reach! He was also running up and down the kitchen with an insane look in his eyes! Scared me to honest, lol,I know he may only be playing,but do you think certain food can make a dog 'HYPER' ?

I'm not sure about that, he might just have been a bit excited! Sounds a bit like the (in)famous "Wall of Death" run that cockers and other dogs like to do sometimes!

Rubenkhan, I'd suggest you only try him on one new thing each day - otherwise, if his tummy gets upset, it will be hard to work out what has caused it. The chicken is unlikely to upset his tum, but the swede and carrot could, and even the fish treats could.  Also, watch out for the quantity of treats you give in a day, for two reasons: firstly, that if we give a lot of different treats, it could make them fussy and want only treats and not his food; secondly, too many new treats in one day could upset their tums.  It's also advisable to compensate for treats given by slightly cutting down on their daily food total, otherwise they could end up putting on too much weight too soon.