Treats for Chloe

Hey everyone,

I need to really start working with Chloe, my Corgi,on obedience. She has a bad habit of being naughty, for example....she won't come when I call her, she likes to bark and bark, she likes to run off and won't come to me if she gets a chance. I now have to use a harness on her instead of a collar when I walk her, because she slips out of them and runs away, and won't come to me!! My question is, when rewarding with treats, what are the best ones to use? Chloe has a tendency to get a bit pudgie, especially now that she has lost her "girlish figure" following pregnancy and puppy birth! She is also very picky on what she likes. Any suggestions?

Dena

I'll try that Serena, because Chloe is as well. Thanks!!

Being as cheap as I am with limited resources, I last used slim jim meat sticks sliced into very thin slices. I know this is not a very good food source but one stick lasted through several days of training. I used the mindset that the smell as strong as it is let my little puppy think she was getting a great reward when it was really very small. My goal when I sliced the stick was to get at least a hundred "pills" from the stick. If the ball reward works, it is a much healthier way to go! I used the slim jims to train rosie to fetch and return the ball but she has too much competition with my sons dog "Chase" the big pittbull. When I tried to reward Rosie with the ball, she knew it was meant to be her reward and took great offense when Chase beat her to the ball resulting in a little... well it was more than a little argument between the two. Brent

I know what you mean Brent....Chloe is very much the alpha dog of the family!! When I throw a ball or toy, she and Jack chase after it together, and bring it back together. It's pretty funny to see them both carrying the toy back with both of their mouths on it.

Dena

that is the cutest thing we have a rope with a tennis ball on it that our dogs love but picture this a 5 month old puppy only about 20 lbs and a 3 yr old full grown greyhound caring a toy back together. its the greatest sight you can ever see(also funny) although there is one more funnier thing a greyhound pouncing he looked like a new born horse.lol

breeze

You can also try clicker training...instead of using food rewards. Dogs don't always need food. My dog doesn't expect food when I'm teaching her or ordering her to do something...she just expects a "good girl" afterwards, and a pat on the head.

If you are eager to use food, you can always use liver treats. I haven't met a dog that has objected to these yet! Just buy some liver (beef/chicken/doesn't matter) and boil it for about five to ten minutes. Then when that's finished, you can slice it into tiny pieces and use that..freezing the rest, or you can put it in the oven for an additional five to ten minutes (this will preserve the liver from going bad for a longer time if you just want to keep it in the fridge).

I hope that helps a bit...

Thanks...thats good to know. I'm going to start out using a "play time" reward, I think. The mistake I've been making, is trying to work with Chloe, when Jackson is around, and she gets distracted, and worries about what he is doing or getting. They are definitly two peas in a pod!