Treats and keeping your dog healthy
Treats are a great training tool but when used in excess can lead to weight gain and other unwanted side effects from overfeeding such as digestive issues, itchy skin and hyperactivity. Here are some tips for finding the rewarding balance:
- When possible and if your dog is foodie enough, use low calorie and low-fat treats such as Burns Turkey Bites, or you can even use food from their daily allowance of kibble as ‘treats’ so they are not getting more than they need.
- For your dog, smell is much more important than taste or quantity so if you need to use higher value treats, as long as you have something nice and smelly, you can break it down into very small pieces to use as rewards – they don’t need a whole big biscuit each time!
- Take treats into account when calculating their daily food allowance – if it’s a day where you have done or know you are going to do a lot of treat training, reduce the amount of their normal food at mealtimes to compensate.
If you are struggling with your dog’s weight then Burns Pet Food’s knowledgeable nutrition team are on hand to help, and can create a tailored diet plan for your dog to fit in with their training.
They can be contacted on phone: 0800 083 6696, email: info@burnspet.co.uk, live chat via their website: www.burnspet.co.uk or on Facebook @Burns Pet Nutrition.
Burns produce award-winning natural pet food developed by Veterinary Surgeon, John Burns, with the ethos of keeping pets happy and healthy using all natural ingredients. Their diets are made with simple recipes using single protein sources, so there is sure to be something to suit even the most sensitive dog, whether it be dry food, wet food or tasty treats. For more information check out their website www.burnspet.co.uk