The Do's & Don'ts For Giving Dog Treats

Dog training is a fun and rewarding way to spend time with your pet. Teaching them new tricks includes:

• Increased mental stimulation.
• Improved obedience skills.
• Better communication between you and your pet.
• And even reduced anxiety for some dogs.

There are plenty of dog training methods for puppies and adult dogs, but one thing that can make or break your training sessions is giving dog treats. Here are some tips about what makes make good treats for dog training:

Make Sure The Treat Is Small Enough That Your Dog Can Eat It In One Bite

Here's a tip: Bigger treats are more difficult for your dog to chew and swallow, increasing the risk of choking or vomiting. They also take longer to digest, which means they may not be as effective at getting your pet to behave as quickly as you'd like.

• A good rule of thumb is that if you can fit three fingers between the treat and your dog's mouth, it's probably too big!
• If you want your pooch to be able to hold onto the food without dropping it, try using smaller dog treatsinstead of larger ones. This will help eliminate any chance of losing precious kibble while trying to get some good behavior out of Fido!

Give The Treat To Your Dog Immediately After They Perform The Command You Want

Giving your dog a treat immediately after they perform the command you want them to learn is important because it reinforces that their behavior was the right one. Dogs learn through repetition and reward, so you can teach them faster and more effectively by providing them with a treat after they do something you want. In addition, when your dog sees that doing what you ask results in good things for him or her, this will help them feel positive about learning new things from you!

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to training dogs. But there is a general consensus that reward-based training is more effective than punishment-based training, which focuses on the negative. Punishment can cause fear and anxiety in your dog, as well as aggressive behavior. Punishment may be used because you're frustrated with your dog's behavior, but it's best not to take out your anger on them by hitting them or scaring them with loud noises—that only makes things worse.

Instead of punishing bad behaviors, focus on rewarding good ones! For example: if they've done something like potty trained themselves (and not a mess!), give them some praise and maybe even a small treat!

Don't 

 There are a few more things you shouldn't do with treats. Don't give them as rewards for good behavior unless that good behavior is something you want them to keep doing. For example, don't use treats as an incentive to get your dog to stop barking at the doorbell or tearing up furniture. In those cases, telling them "It's okay" or "I forgive you" can be just as effective and will probably save some money on treats.

On top of that, don't reward bad behaviors either! If your dog chews up the couch and then gets rewarded with food as if nothing happened (or even worse—punished), it'll only reinforce that chewing on couches is okay and make this problem even worse in future situations where no one else is around (like when you're sleeping). Similarly, never punish an animal for not doing what it was told—that'll just make it afraid of making decisions on its own in future situations (which isn't ideal).

Conclusion

Don't get frustrated or impatient with your dog if they aren't catching on as quickly as you would like. Dog training takes time! Dogs learn in different ways and are motivated by different things. You can't expect them to catch on overnight, especially if you're teaching them something new. They're also individuals, so their pace will vary from dog to dog. Take a step back and remember that dogs are learning at their own pace—and always be patient!