Dju Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 After long last, I've started to really get into hardcore clicker training with Hugo to correct a few issues that have come up with his behavior, and after only an hour of training and constant click-and-treat-ing, I find I've gone through a large chunk of the Schmackos that I just bought for him! If I continue to keep training him like this, I'm going to be going through $30 of treats a week and it's not sustainable. I've tried to cook up some liver (on special at Woolies, yay!) and cut it into little cubes but it's so frigging messy, the meat gets into my nails and I need to scrub under my nails for 10 minutes before I can get rid of the smell (as much as he loves it). Does anyone have some cheap suggestions for what I can use as budget-friendly treats (that also won't make a horrible mess like chopped liver)? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tilly Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 ... my youngest gets whiting fillets and prawns for his training treats ... definately not a cheaper alternative Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RallyValley Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Get dog roll, cut it up into little bits and freeze. Or lots of people use things like 4legs and Chunkers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alouk Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 I bought a whole lot of chicken breasts and steamed them in the oven in foil, then cut it all up and froze it, my girl eats it frozen and when it is soft- she goes a bit nuts over it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason_Gibbs Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 One tip - dont train for more than 15 mins at a time - its all they can concentrate for. Cheese works great for treats too!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakeyjangels Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Diced carrot - my boys love it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 why dont you just use his food instead of feeding him out of a bowl? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 After long last, I've started to really get into hardcore clicker training with Hugo to correct a few issues that have come up with his behavior, and after only an hour of training and constant click-and-treat-ing, I find I've gone through a large chunk of the Schmackos that I just bought for him! If I continue to keep training him like this, I'm going to be going through $30 of treats a week and it's not sustainable. I've tried to cook up some liver (on special at Woolies, yay!) and cut it into little cubes but it's so frigging messy, the meat gets into my nails and I need to scrub under my nails for 10 minutes before I can get rid of the smell (as much as he loves it). Does anyone have some cheap suggestions for what I can use as budget-friendly treats (that also won't make a horrible mess like chopped liver)? :D Look in your fridge.. Devon, cheese, cabanossi are all good options. If you're feeding $30 a week in treats, you'll probably need to cut back regular meals considerably. Or totally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest english.ivy Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 why dont you just use his food instead of feeding him out of a bowl? Aren't you meant to keep their treats different to their food? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dju Posted July 1, 2011 Author Share Posted July 1, 2011 I was told not to feed cheese because he'd get fat We're not feeding $30 a week in treats but from how many times a day we train him, we can easily see how it would get there! We were also told not to feed him kibble for training treats because by the time he's finished chewing a piece, he'd forget what he's being treated for? Or something like that? Thanks for the suggestions guys, I'll put a few to use--my boy loves carrots too haha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 (edited) Aren't you meant to keep their treats different to their food? if clicker is going to be your predominant method and you're going to be providing a substantial amount of calories that way (especially in smaller dogs) then I dont see why not use the food. It's true NILIF. Normal food will increase in value to the dog if it cannot access it any other way. I dont think things like cheese, sausage, schmackos day in day out as treats are a good thing for a dog either. My dogs will work very hard for their kibble if it is not accessable any other way. We were also told not to feed him kibble for training treats because by the time he's finished chewing a piece, he'd forget what he's being treated for? Or something like that? get him a small bite kibble. I train enough dogs that sit there and munch the treats their owners bring none of them seem have gotten the memo that chewing equates to lack of learning some people bring some hulking great dry treats lol poor dogs are sick to the stomach Edited July 1, 2011 by Nekhbet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Online Pets Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Aren't you meant to keep their treats different to their food? if clicker is going to be your predominant method and you're going to be providing a substantial amount of calories that way (especially in smaller dogs) then I dont see why not use the food. It's true NILIF. Normal food will increase in value to the dog if it cannot access it any other way. I dont think things like cheese, sausage, schmackos day in day out as treats are a good thing for a dog either. My dogs will work very hard for their kibble if it is not accessable any other way. We were also told not to feed him kibble for training treats because by the time he's finished chewing a piece, he'd forget what he's being treated for? Or something like that? get him a small bite kibble. I train enough dogs that sit there and munch the treats their owners bring none of them seem have gotten the memo that chewing equates to lack of learning some people bring some hulking great dry treats lol poor dogs are sick to the stomach Great post! A trainer that i know recommended these treats to me, he breaks them into small pieces for his training classes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodle friend Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 (edited) Hi, my boy is on Royal Canin can and kibble, i take a can of food cut into small pieces (as small as you want) and bake at 180 degrees, turning the pieces once. Makes a large bag of treats, which are firm to handle, non messy, but not to hard. Can be broken into even smaller pieces when baked. He loves them, tastes different as they are baked. :D Never buy store treats or give any other form of treat. Started doing this as he has a sensitive stomach and this way never gets anything which could upset that, also is cheap. Edited July 1, 2011 by poodle friend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheena Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 I have three types of treats...home cooked ones for serious agility training, dried treats for sticking in my pocket, so that I always have a reward on hand, & for clicker training which I mainly do inside on the loungeroom carpet, I use the Black Hawk Kibble...they will stand on their heads (almost) to get it & I just reduce the amount that they get in their meal. I do most of the training of my BC pup, three times a day, just using his Black Hawk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
claireybell Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 I've always used sausages for my girls and they will do anything for them! I was known as the sausage lady at dog club and every dog there knew what treats I had! I'd buy a massive tray of beef sausages each month, fry them up and cut them into really small pieces and freeze them. I would only need 1 sausage per dog pre training session and usually there was a little left over. Super cheap and as I said earlier the dogs went mental for them!!! Just be prepared for sausage hands after training! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dju Posted July 1, 2011 Author Share Posted July 1, 2011 Hi, my boy is on Royal Canin can and kibble, i take a can of food cut into small pieces (as small as you want) and bake at 180 degrees, turning the pieces once. Makes a large bag of treats, which are firm to handle, non messy, but not to hard. Can be broken into even smaller pieces when baked. He loves them, tastes different as they are baked. :D Never buy store treats or give any other form of treat. Started doing this as he has a sensitive stomach and this way never gets anything which could upset that, also is cheap. I like this idea I might try doing the same with a dog roll to see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
**Super_Dogs** Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Hi, my boy is on Royal Canin can and kibble, i take a can of food cut into small pieces (as small as you want) and bake at 180 degrees, turning the pieces once. Makes a large bag of treats, which are firm to handle, non messy, but not to hard. Can be broken into even smaller pieces when baked. He loves them, tastes different as they are baked. :D Never buy store treats or give any other form of treat. Started doing this as he has a sensitive stomach and this way never gets anything which could upset that, also is cheap. Great idea I also used saugases. I cut them up, put them in a small zip bag with the right amount for a training lesson and freeze. Easy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kajtek Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Food dehydrator may be what you are looking for hint: Search forum with "dehydrator" keyword Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alouk Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 I was advised similarly at my dog club about soft treats being more effective in training and I tell you what, with my girl it has been shown to be true! She couldn't have cared less about dry treats, it made me wonder how I would train her if she didn't care about food, but now she has changed her tune! She likes her kibble but it just didn't cut it to train her with, no matter how hungry she was! Thats why I just use steamed chicken, then I know it is just chicken and not tons of salt, flavours and preservatives. Especially as she will eat a lot in a training session! Then it complements her meal really. Cheese she also goes nuts for but I limit it as I am sure it leads to many an odd smell in our house! And it is fatty (but I get low fat). I have so many forms of chicken in my house- no one would believe I am a vegetarian! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeckoTree Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 If you can get a dehydrator you can make all sorts of treats, just dont ad any salt. I have made up a mish mash of liver, kidney, and heart jerky for my dogs treat nibbles for weekends away and things and it went down like a treat, stinks while making it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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