Is it OK to use dog food as treats for training?

If your dog will work for his regular diet, that's a great benefit because then you don't have to worry about unbalancing your dog's diet or adding too many calories using other treats. For example, if your dog eats 1 cup of kibble per day, you can take 1/2 cup and reserve that for your training lessons and know that you are not feeding your dog too many calories in treats. Many dog's will be excited for training sessions with their kibble if you can amp it up a bit as I describe below. What I recommend when using your dog's food for training is to make it more exciting than the usual food, (unless you have a dog that is gaga for it's food just the way it is - in that case consider yourself lucky!). To make the food more exciting you can mix it up with a few pieces of stinky cheese or hot dog and let it sit and marinate for awhile. You could also dust it with some fine Parmesan cheese or liver powder or maybe a little fish oil. Your dog also might find a new brand of kibble (or even CAT food) to be special enough to do his tricks for. I find Ziwi Peak food can be a good training treat as most dogs find it very unique. What if your dog is on a special wet diet? You can spread the food on a cookie sheet and bake it at 200 until it gets dried out enough to chop up for use as treats.

Wilsons Premium Cold Pressed is a great option for training treats, or for taking out on walks, not only if your dog is already fed this daily as a complete diet and you know they absolutely love it but also if you're new to cold pressed. The pellets are a fantastic size for both training and taking on walks, and can also be easily broken into more manageable treats depending on your dog's size to give small rewards. In comparison to traditional kibble or some highly processed treats, cold pressed is much softer while maintaining its crunch which helps aid digestion and reduces the risk of bloating because it breaks down quickly. As cold pressed is minimally processed, and we have designed it for the best nutrition and digestion, it is quick for dogs to digest when out and about. This is perfect if your dog is highly active on walks or you are using cold pressed when doing activities such as agility.

But food is a motivator that most dogs love. Using treats during training is one of the best ways to guarantee that your dog will repeat the behavior you want. When first starting out, it’s important to make sure the rewards you’re giving your dog are more exciting than the environment around them. If you’re working on a skill your dog already knows at home with few distractions, you can probably get away with giving them a low-value treat. Examples of these include kibble, carrots, ice cubes, green beans, or hard biscuits. Treats should be pea-sized or smaller so your dog doesn’t get too full. The more often you reward your dog when he does what you ask, the more likely they’ll do what you ask in the future.