Treats & Training Items
Store Bought Favourites
Smidgie Snacks
Jay’s Bacon Jerky
Vital Essentials freeze dried nuggets
Benny Bully’s
Chicken Rollover
Note: each piece should be about the size of a pencil eraser. You can toss a single hot dog to a dog and it will not make as much of an impression as cutting it into 50-100 pieces and having them develop a relationship with you by earning rewards and building their skillsets!
Tuna Fudge
You can substitute the canned tuna for any canned meat, or even substitute one can of meat for a can of fruit
Switching flour types can change the outcome, so you would have to experiment
This is NOT shelf stable - freeze until used, and refrigerate in between training sessions
The cooking time may vary slightly depending on your oven/size of cookie sheet, but 10-12 minutes is average
You can substitite one can of tuna for pumpkin if your dog has an upset stomach.
Ingredients:
Three cans of tuna (do not drain)
Three large eggs
Three cups white all purpose flour
Steps:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease a small baking sheet
Beat eggs and tuna for one minute or until broken up into smaller pieces
Add one cup flour and beat until combined
Repeat step four for the other two cups (if you add it at once flour may go everywhere)
Beat for 3 minutes or until the batter is smooth and very tacky (sticky). You don’t want to see any chunks of tuna
Pour batter onto a baking sheet
Wet your hands (it prevents the batter from sticking to your hands)
Press batter into pan evenly - keep wetting your hands to prevent sticking between pushes
Smooth out batter by running your wet hand over the surface
Place in oven on middle rack
Bake at 350 for ten minutes (the middle should be as firm as the edges, if not, but in for another minute or two
Remove from oven and let cool for ten minutes with a clean tea towel draped over the pan
Remove from pan and flip upside down on a cooling rack - let sit for ten minutes with a clean tea towel draped across it
Cut into small pieces - you don’t have to be exact, as the tacky texture of “fudge” will allow you to pull it into smaller pieces during training. I cut it into quarters, then slice a quarter into 1/2 cm rows, then cut the rows into 1/2 cm chunks
Store in small freezer safe containers to “grab and go” for your training sessions
If you while find cutting it that it is sticking together, it may not be fully cooled, or may need to be cooked a bit more next time.
Kong & Topple Fillers
Note: any mixture can work, from canned pumpkin to wet food to cottage cheese to yogurt to peanut butter. This is a fantastic way to keep your dog engaged - and give them a different part of their brain to work while at class!
NOTE! Xylitol is a fake sugar that is toxic to dogs and must be avoided!
Version 1 example
Drop pieces of liver treats at bottom of Kong / Toppl
Mix Greek Yoghurt (no sugar, plain flavour) with moistened, softened kibble in a bowl. Ratio can be 2/3 yoghurt and 1/3 kibble.
Stuff Kong/Toppl with mixture
Place in freezer overnight
Take out before class and place in ziplock bag.
Give to dog in class while your instructor is talking, or when a mental break for the dog is needed!
Version 2 example
Drop pieces of liver treats at bottom of Kong. Mix wet food with moistened, softened kibble in bowl.
Ratio can be 2/3 wet and 1/3 kibble
Stuff Kong/Toppl with mixture
Place in freezer overnight.
Take out before class and place in ziplock bag.
Give to dog in class while your instructor is talking, or when a mental break for the dog is needed!
Where to buy a Toppl?
TailWinds carries Toppl’s in all three colours, both small and large!