[NAGDU] Treats

[David]

'Been following the treat talk. Folks seem to have some pretty strong 
opinions about treats.

Claire Rose was trained at GDF almost 4 years ago, where they use treats 
for targeting and behavior. I carry a pouch on my belt and treat about 
three or four times per week for particularly good or complex responses. 
When I trained her to find traffic buttons, I figured it would take 
several tries at different corners using a clicker and treats Three 
tries at one corner and she generalized to all other corners, no need to 
follow-up. She seems to get a kick out of finding them.  'Same thing 
with trash cans for poop. She likes complex morel than simple. In fact, 
she gets bored and distracts for smells on repetitive walks. Very 
occasionally, if she is acting really ditzy, I'll use up three or four 
to keep her attention and get her focused, along with push ups and 
time-outs.

I make our own treats. Pumpkin puree, eggs, peanut butter, a little bit 
of cinnamon, flour, and a tiny bit of salt. They aren't sticky, or 
greasy, and they don't smell. I roll out the dough, cut them so they are 
about three quarters of an inch long and about half an inch in diameter, 
and then bake them. They have a nice crunch and are not messy.

-- 
*David in Clearwater, FL*
*david at bakerinet.com*