Best Store Bought Dog Treats

As a professional dog trainer, super yummy treats are a must-have during dog training sessions. Dog treats are your dog’s paycheck for choosing a polite behavior, and we all work for paychecks. The better the paycheck, the faster good behavior will happen. Fresh soft dog treats are easily the best option for training dogs. Check out why and which dog treat brands are best.

Soft or Hard Store Bought Dog Training Treats?

Oh, there’s a huge difference between soft dog treats and hard dog treats! When teaching new behaviors, you want fun and exciting sessions with lots of yummy treat rewards, but some treats will hold back the process.

I don’t recommend adding low value (dry pieces of kibble or biscuits) with high value treats. When teaching a new dog behavior or changing a dog’s perspective on something, always use high value dog treats every time. When weaning a dog from treats, using a variable schedule of reinforcement (i.e. rewarding the best “sits, downs or whatever” instead of every attempt) works much better once a dog understands a cue in all situations.

Soft Fresh Training Treats

From my experience training thousands of dogs, fresh training treats work best! When selecting dog treats, “fresh” means treats that contain higher moisture content that enhances aroma (smells strongly) and heightens taste. Additionally, fresh dog treats can be easily broken into pea-sized portions, quickly chewed and safely swallowed whole. Most fresh dog treats contain high percentages of meat, which means meat is usually the number one ingredient with a small percentage of vegetables or grains sprinkled in.

RELATED: Pros, Cons & Myths of Canned Dog Food

Dry Training Treats

Dry training treats can become a nuisance during training. They have little smell. If you don’t believe me, take a whiff of freeze-dried cow liver; it smells like nothing. No one enjoys eating scentless food because there’s a pretty good chance it will be tasteless too (hence rice cakes, yuck). Plus, store bought dry dog treats crumble easily, especially when breaking them into small portions for dog training sessions. There’s nothing worse than asking your dog to “down” and he’s busy hunting each and every dropped crumb instead of focusing on you.

If you’ve ever used dry training treats with an easily excited dog, you’ve probably witnessed your dog coughing or hacking after he swallows a dry treat whole. For smaller dogs, they will take their sweet time chewing a dry treat, which quickly deflates a high-energy training session.

Lastly, some pet owners swear their dogs love dry treats, but when I offer a fresh treat instead of a dry treat to their dog, the fresh treat is always gobbled up quickly. Plus, dogs tend to focus on other pet owners carrying fresh treats instead of their owners holding dry treats in their bait bag. Still don’t believe me? Place dry kibble or biscuit next to a chunk of tuna fish–case closed. 🙂

Recommended Dog Training Treats

As promised, check out a couple of brand names I highly recommend. All recommendations can be purchased at your local pet retailer and even large chain versions.

Freshpet

By far, Freshpet is my favorite! Due to an upsurge interest in cooked and raw food, Freshpet hit the pet and grocery store markets several years ago with a bang. Basically, this is a refrigerated cooked dog food with chicken as it’s first ingredient and a bit of vegetables and brown rice mixed in. Also, there’s a grain-free option for dogs watching their carbs. 🙂 Fresh Pet is a balanced dog food, which means it meets a dog’s daily needs if fed as a meal. It’s also made in the U.S.

Personally, I like the resealable bag option of Fresh Pet because it’s super convenient. No chopping needed. Just dump in your bait bag and go! If chopping is your thing, then choose from grain-free or regular rolls options. Now, Fresh Pet needs refrigeration, so I recommend freezing it a bit (1-2 hours max) during warmer months before heading out to group dog training class. As you arrive at the dog training facility, you’ll notice these treats will thaw a bit, but still remain cool during training sessions. Discard any remaining treats. I dump my bait bag contents on the floor for my dog to enjoy as class wraps up. Always wash your hands thoroughly afterwards, and don’t forget to wash your bait bag too.

Natural Balance Rolls

These rolls have been around for a long time, and I still use them during training. Meat is the number one ingredient in each role variety. Natural Balance rolls are nutritionally balanced, meaning these rolls can be fed as your dog’s regular meal (it would get expensive really quick though!).

Unfortunately, Natural Balance tweaked their roll recipe recently, which causes treats to crumble a bit when chopping. A tip: when chopping pea-sized treats, make sure the roll is nice and cold before cutting. This will keep crumbling to a minimum. I must say, dogs love this stuff–crumbs and all! Plus, there’s many protein options if your dog is unable to tolerate chicken or beef.

Natural Balance rolls must be refrigerated too. Freeze chopped treats (about 1-2 hours max) before heading out for training during warmer months. After training, discard any leftover treats. I usually dump my bait bag contents on the floor for my dog to enjoy at the end of class. Always wash your hands thoroughly and your bait bag too.

Regardless of which brand you choose, make sure your dog absolutely adores his or her treats. Fabulous dog treats make training dogs much easier!