The best food/treats to train our working cocker??

[Rolo12]

Hi All

Now that we are getting close to bringing Rolo home, i think we have pretty much everything we need.

However, i have been looking into buying some treats for him so i can begin training asap and i have no idea where to start!

I have purchased a tester sample of Fish4Dogs superstars training treats as they are full of natural ingredients etc however i am worried these may not motivate him as he is going to be fed on Fish4puppies dry food and they may taste quite similar?

Anyone have any recommendations? i know that cheese and sausage are meant to be good but can't these be quite fattening if used too often?

Thanks!
Here's a pic of Rolo that the breeder sent me today. He is 7 weeks now! 

[Jonnydog]

If you buy the individually wrapped frankfurters from Pets at Home, you can slice them very thinly and then even halve the slices. That said, I used tiny pieces of cooked chicken to entice Penny when she was wee. If we have sausages, I try to keep one and just break off very small pieces as rewards. She likes venison sausages best 

[tallulah0710]

if his kibble would taste quite similar to the treats how about using that to train him at home without distractions? Then you can use treats that are more tasty for working out and about where the distractions are higher?

when poppy was a puppy I used a wide variety of different treats for training such as cheese, squeezy cheese, hotdogs, chicken, ham. As my training sessions were only really short (approx 3-5 mins) and only about about 2-3 times a day she wasn't given masses of treats. if i noticed her little waistline start to expand too much I just cut her kibble portions down slightly (which I still do now with all my dogs)   

[max2011]

I use frankfurter sausages cut into tiny pieces, small pieces of liver that I cook until hard, sardine bread and bits of meatball or burger for training classes. I have also used free samples of other brands of kibble, wainwrights puppy treats and pedigree cheesy bites. Max seems to work best for non kibble type treats though so I just watch how many he has and cut down his food accordingly. Luckily he is really slim so I don't have to watch what he eats too much!

Rolo looks gorgeous. Make the most of him while he is little, they grow up too fast!

[kalami]

When I used to train Bella it was always before tea do she just got pieces of her kibble, then as time passed I'd make liver or tuna bread and cut it into really small pieces.

[karen488]

Pilchard or sardine bread or chicken mine  it!

[Jan D]

What an absolute cutie pie - gorgeous little man 

[maddy74]

I used tiny bits of chicken for Willow as treats. You want something soft to treat him with as he is more than likely going to swallow is quickly.

We tried coachies treats as they are suitable from 8 weeks although imo they were too hard. I use harringtons training treats now and break them into 3 pieces....im unsure at what age you can give these though....

Rolo is just  btw xx

[maddy74]

http://www.harringtonsdogfoodshop.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=4107

Oh they can be given from 8 weeks, just googled them...i buy these from sainsburys or tesco.... 

[Rolo12]

Thanks everyone for all of the suggestions! 

I think I will just try a bit of everything at first then and see what works best.

Maddy74 - The Harringtons treats look really good so I will def pick up some of those and see how he gets on with them!

He is my gorgeous little boy - i cant wait to bring him home! 

[LurcherGirl]

I find that anything that isn't especially made for dogs works best and is often healthier too.

Indoors I tend to use kibble (unless teaching something new) as that is enough in that environment, but in classes our outside it's got to be better stuff like sausage, frankfurters, cheese, ham, cooked meats, dried fish etc.

You might also find that you can use different value treats depending where you are and what you are doing. The general rule is that high value treats are needed when:

1. Teaching a new behaviour
2. Practising in a new environment
3. Increased distractions

When people come to my classes, I give them the following exercise to do to find out what their dogs will work best for in the classes:

Take 5 different types of treats out with you (not pet shop treats), then wait until your dog is REALLY distracted. Then offer each treat in turn and see which ones your dog will eat. The ones they do, you bring to class. 

[Chocolate Hero]

ours gets pigs liver. just cook in microwave and cut into small bits, you need the tiniest amounts. was recommended by our puppy class teacher (other pups wont entertain shop bought treats now) no E numbers to hype them up. we just get a pack about 50p gives us bout 6 portions & freeze. 1 bag lasts about 3/4 days.

[Rolo12]

Where

ours gets pigs liver. just cook in microwave and cut into small bits, you need the tiniest amounts. was recommended by our puppy class teacher (other pups wont entertain shop bought treats now) no E numbers to hype them up. we just get a pack about 50p gives us bout 6 portions & freeze. 1 bag lasts about 3/4 days.

Ok i will try that - thanks! Where can I buy these from?

[Sarah/G]

Brodie will train for anything edible 

[Tiger]

Hi

I've just made a load of liver bread and chicken bread treats using the recipe from dogs trust.  The liver just came from the supermarket and the chicken bread was just scraps of chicken from the one I was preparing for our dinner.  I'll let you know how monty responds to them.

Ingredients
about 350g lamb or chicken liver
1 egg        
1 tsp baking powder
2 cloves of crushed garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
150g wholemeal flour
Method
Put the liver, egg, garlic, oil and baking powder in a food processor, and whizz it up until it is a course paste. If you don’t have a food processor, mix it thoroughly with your hands.

Add the flour gradually until you have got a thick paste that won’t take any more flour. Put the mixture on to a plate and spread so it is about 1cm thin and microwave for around 8 mins or until spongy.

Slice into tiny cubes and then wrap in bits of tin foil so you can freeze it in training sized portions until you are doing a training session.

You can replace the liver with tuna in either oil or spring water (not brine). If the tuna is in oil, no need to add extra.