Treats question

[Gertie's Mom]

I am trying to get to the bottom of why Gertie and Ida so much even tho they're on a very good food. I'm wondering now about their treats? My husband is soooo bad about treats! Everytime I turn around he's handing them a treat. He buys them at Wal-Mart and they're not good treats. I scold him everytime I catch him and he always tells me they're so small, they're not going to hurt them.

When we go to Pet Club for dog food, they have LOADS of treats, I'm assuming they must be the good ones, because of the prices. What treats do you all recommend? And, how often should they be getting a treat? I try to give a frozen green bean or a raw baby carrot. But with him handing out the Beggin' Strips, they aren't all that interested in my treats anymore. I'm thinking if I buy some of the better treats and tell my husband what I paid for them, he won't be so free with handing them out. (Maybe...)

 

[KMARINO]

Lol, oh the thing we do behind our husbands backs!!!!! As far as treats... Nature's Variety (which I know you just switched to) makes dog snacks, I give Vegas the lamb flavored ones, he loves them, while my son's dog spits them out, so Vegas occasionally gets two.. . He also gets a couple tablespoons of non-fat yogurt in the morning and a couple before bed. Sometimes a half of a banana and baby carrots, ALL grain/gluten free as his Nature's Variety Salmon food is. I was overfeeding him on snacks which resulted in large not quite so firm , but I think I have it figured out, he has two tootsie roll poos a day now. But then again....Just when you THINK you get things figured out......things change ????

 

[izstigspunks]

Sorry, no help here. We figured out Stig's allegic to those 'cookie' type treats even if they're holistic, grain AND gluten free. He gets the meaty ones such as dehydrated venison, liver, etc. Although sometimes I give veggies whenever I have some in my meals.

[MENTION=900]KMARINO[/MENTION]'s right though, something always comes up whenever we think everything's all good. But the sloppy kisses make up for it.

 

[sheshistory]

I am trying to get to the bottom of why Gertie and Ida so much even tho they're on a very good food. I'm wondering now about their treats? My husband is soooo bad about treats! Everytime I turn around he's handing them a treat. He buys them at Wal-Mart and they're not good treats. I scold him everytime I catch him and he always tells me they're so small, they're not going to hurt them.

When we go to Pet Club for dog food, they have LOADS of treats, I'm assuming they must be the good ones, because of the prices. What treats do you all recommend? And, how often should they be getting a treat? I try to give a frozen green bean or a raw baby carrot. But with him handing out the Beggin' Strips, they aren't all that interested in my treats anymore. I'm thinking if I buy some of the better treats and tell my husband what I paid for them, he won't be so free with handing them out. (Maybe...)

I shop at Pet Club too and I agree, the prices on treats can be outrageous! However, I've found some that are grain free and are a pretty decent value. I recommend EVO Wild Cravings Grain Free Treats. It is $6.99 for a 20 ounce bag that has at least 100 treats in it. They are great because they're grain free, small (so you can give a couple over the course of the day), and a pretty good value. We also buy Nature's Variety Instinct Grain Free Biscuits. These are not as good a value - 11 ounces for $5.99 but they come in good flavors like chicken, garlic, cranberry or lamb, carrots, and mint and the dogs really seem to enjoy them. I've also tried Natural Balance Grain Free treats in the Potato and Duck formula and they were good but I found the treats a bit big for my liking. I've also fed the Dogswell's Happy Hips or Vitality jerky treats - which are basically dried duck or chicken - I like those but they are expensive and Truman almost choked on one once, so I didn't buy them again.

I hope this helps!

 

[TessaAndSamson]

When we have dog treats I only give a couple a day. If its from the grocery store or walmart its probably terrible quality. Even the chicken fillet treats at walmart that look like they would be fine are made in China, etc and I am personally weary about that so I would never buy those. I'd say stick with the treats that Natures Variety makes. I would think they would be the best for their tummy because they are simliar to the food they eat.

 

[VeronicaA]

I feed my dog buddy biscuits. They make them in about every yummy flavor and they contain no salt, sugar, corn, and all that other yucky stuff. They are basically an all natural treats. And they are not so expensive at about $6 a box. Worth a shot!

 

[Lacey28]

Silva gets pumpkin, yogurt and organic cookies from the Pet store very rarely. She also eats popcorn when my kids eat it and veggies but that is it for snacks!

 

[cali~jenn]

We do have some of the not so healthy treats here but my boys only get them maybe a couple times a week. mostly they just get the carrots and green beans and then snack on whatever fruits we are eating also throughout the day. (Oh and any bananas that have over browned are always theirs) I am actually trying to get rid of my bad supply of snacks so that we can just buy good ones and give those instead but still only a few a week I am sure. Course I dont know what hubby is feeding but as long as I have been trying to rid these boys of the crappy cookies I think he is pretty good about not giving so many.

 

[lexterwayne]

we give yogurt,carrots, let lex lick the cottage cheese bowl, and about twice a week we give him some bacon stripes... he loves them and he hasnt had any bad reactions to it

 

[kazzy220]

We no longer buy any treats at all.

Treats are baby carrots ... or a big whole peeled carrot for Maggie so that it slows her down ...., frozen green beans, cucumber, banana and I was considering getting a bag of frozen blueberries because I think I saw somebody mention them on here once (????)

I will also buy a bag of pre-prepared julienne or shredded carrot and they get that on their food in the morning - although I suppose that's not really a "treat".

 

[gatorfan85]

I use to make treats for Georgia so i knew they didnt have"crap" in them. If I can find my recipe book i'll pass it on. They're easy to make

 

[KMARINO]

I use to make treats for Georgia so i knew they didnt have"crap" in them. If I can find my recipe book i'll pass it on. They're easy to make

[MENTION=355]gatorfan85[/MENTION], Please pass the recipe on if you find it, I am not the best baker in the world but I have a feeling Vegas will love anything I give him!!

 

[gatorfan85]

[MENTION=900]KMARINO[/MENTION] I am going through that box today....hopefully it wont take me to long to find it

 

[Gertie's Mom]

Well, I think I finally got my husband's attention with this treat issue! Last evening I told him I had posted about the the huge puppy s we have and that since we feed good food, I think it must be the treats he's been giving them. So he marches over to the pantry with this "I'll show you" attitude, takes out a bag of treats and proceeds to read the ingredients. I'm sure he figured they'd all be good because he said, "Well the first ingredient in these is wheat flour, then corn then so on" and I'm just looking at him thinking, are you even listening to what you're reading? At that he said,"Yup, this stuff is crap". And he never just gives them one. He figures if one is good, then three is better. So I now have him reading the labels and agreeing that these treats aren't any good. He does get chicken jerkie which is just chicken, so I guess that's not too bad.

jillh10: I've made a list of the things you mentioned and I'll be checking those out the next time I'm at Pet Club. Thanks!

I'd love a good recipe or two to make treats, so if anyone has a recipe, please share.