I have a 6 month 3 pound yorkie, we are starting training classes & I was told to bring hot dogs & cheese for treats. I don't feed him human food. Do you have any recommendations for soft treats we could use?

Dear Sara,

There are many wonderful treats that can be used for training. I will break them down into two categories. Soft treat and hard treats. Since I don't know if your dog has any allergies, I am going to suggest treats that don't contain many of the ingredients that may cause problems. Any decision you make on what treats to use should, obviously, be based on the health of your dog.

Soft treats:

Zukes, which is made in Colorado, has two different flavors of smaller soft treats. One is made out of peanut butter and the other chicken. Dogs love them!

Wellness, which is made in the USA, makes several different flavors of jerky treats called Pure Rewards. The flavors are venison, beef and a lamb/chicken combo. They are smaller squares that can easily be torn into any size piece.

Hard treats:

Wet Noses, which are 100% organic and made in the USA, have two flavors of treats called Little Stars. One flavor is peanut butter and the other is sweet potato. These treats are incredible tiny and work well for repetitive training because they won't fill up on them. An interesting fact about the sweet potato flavor is it also contains ginger, which helps with upset stomachs. Give a few treats before a car ride and no more car sickness!

Sojos, which are made here in Minneapolis, have multiple flavors of treats called Good Dog treats. Blueberry cobbler, peanut butter and jelly and chicken pot pie are three of their yummy flavors. They are all of smaller
size and can also be easily snapped in half.

Cloud Star, which are made in the USA, have two flavors of treats called Itty Bitty Buddy Biscuits. The two different flavors are sweet potato madness and bacon and cheese madness. They are small ginger bread man shaped treats that can also be broken down.

There are many more treats that could be used but the above treats are smaller in size, made in the USA and all have limited ingredients.

Enjoy your training!

"The Chuck"
Chuck & Don's Pet Food Outlet