Kibble as Reward

It's Training and Behavior Tuesday!

Q: If I reward my dog with a treat each time he does something correctly during training, won't he get fat?

A: Well, you don't have to use a treat every time. You could use a toy, verbal praise, or petting. However, if your pup is food motivated, weight gain could be a concern.

Here's a tip: Figure out how much kibble your dog eats in a day, then place that amount into a plastic bag and carry it with you.

When your dog does something praise-worthy, reward him with a few kibbles from the bag. At the end of the day, give him whatever is left in the bag in his dish as a meal.

This way he has been rewarded with a treat each time he exhibited positive behavior, but ate no more than his allotted amount of food for the day- it was just in small doses and spread out.