One of the things that most people get wrong when using dog treats in their training is that the treat should be classically conditioned to a word that you say, such as the word "Good". In order to achieve the classical conditioning, all you need to do is say the word "Good" before you reward your dog with a treat. What this does for you long-term is to be able to use treats intermittently while still maintaining strong behavior with your dog. I prefer the use of a bait bag to hold my treats during my training sessions and for easy storage. When training, use treats a lot at the beginning stages of your training, you need to establish value of paying attention to you, and show your dog what you want them to learn. This is easiest with treats through the use of lures or free shaping. A lure is when you have a treat in your hand, your dog is sniffing your hand and you move your hand to show your dog how to move their body. A great example of this is when you are teaching your dog to lay down, you lure your dog's body into the down position with the treat in your hand. Free shaping is when you let your dog figure out what you are wanting them to do and as soon as they do it you let them have a treat. An example of this would be if you want your dog to "Sit", you can have your treats in your bait bag and hang out with your dog, when your dog randomly "Sits" you say "Good" then give them a treat. Over time as you do this more and more, your dog will sit more often because you have free shaped the behavior. Luring and free shaping can also be used in combination together, which works very well for most dogs! Treats are an essential part of your training journey with your dog, start off using lots of them, and as your dog's training progresses begin to slowly reduce the number of treats you use while maintaining their behavior. When you dog is fully trained, your treats should be on a "random" reinforcement schedule, which means you'll randomly give your dog a treat during your training. The best treats to use are ones that your dog is highly motivated for! This can be dog dependent, but in general I find that slightly dehydrated and cut up nitrate free hotdogs work very well, pieces of chicken or beef, freeze dried "meal mixers", liver treats, etc....there are so many options on the market today, find something that is budget friendly and that your dog really enjoys!
Treats help dogs associate good feelings with their specific actions; science has shown this over and over again. Dogs experiment to discover what behaviors will work for them, requiring open minds, a bit of optimism, and feelings of safety, all built by their humans clearly communicating that doing certain things will always result in a treat or an opportunity to do something fun. When you have a new dog or puppy, grab a wearable treat bag first thing every morning and fill it with tiny treats to give (immediately!) for ANY desirable behavior you see, all day long, because a treat given immediately, every single time a behavior occurs, is necessary in the beginning stages of training. Even with my experienced dogs, you'll rarely find me without treats somewhere nearby; opportunities for teaching new behaviors or polishing up old ones can pop up anywhere, anytime. It's a big mistake to wait for your dog to screw up! Visualize what you don't want your dog to do, prevent those behaviors, and simply give him treats immediately when he does something you like; focus on the behaviors that are the opposite of those you don't want - four feet on the floor, loose leash, chewing on his own toy! You can never be sure exactly what exciting things in the environment you may be competing with, and when your dog chooses to drop what he's doing and run to you, or to walk next to you instead of dragging you to the nearest squirrel, a treat lets him know that's a choice he should make regularly! My current favorite treats include Fromm's Crunchy-Os because dogs like them, they come in several flavors, and they're not messy. The dogs and I love Happy Howie's Meat Rolls, cut up into tiny pieces, for a higher-value reinforcer when behaviors are more difficult or environments are more challenging; shelter dogs love Happy Howie's, too!
As people who have raised and gotten to know hundreds of puppies, we've learned that each puppy and dog's need and desire for treats as a training reward is unique. We start using some level of "treat" as soon as puppies start weaning. Dogs are reward based animals in many ways. In our years of raising puppies for training programs and individuals, even from the time they're weaned, some dogs gravitate more toward treats/food as a reward for obtaining desired behavior, while others prefer more praise. We have found that dogs innately respond to both, but we recommend that you really know YOUR dog and what they respond to best. If your dog is more praise motivated, praising them more alongside a less desirable treat like a basic piece of kibble or crunchy treat is excellent for them. However, if your dog is more food motivated, encouraging them with a really high-value treat in a more difficult training situation is best. One of our favorite high-value treats are freeze dried liver treats. We've also used sliced and microwaved quarter-inch pieces of hot dogs which our pups LOVE! Bottom line - get to know your individual dog and what works best for them. Just like people, dogs all respond to different forms of encouragement.
I see treats as a way of communicating with my dogs, rather than just bribing them to do what I want. For me, it's best to use small, soft treats that my dogs can wolf down in a second. They keep them focused throughout the training session, and keep things moving. One of the main things that treats help with is timing. When the dog can see the connection between what they do and what they get, they learn faster and with less stress. Consistency is more important than how many treats you use that's not the point. I'm a fan of simple, no-nonsense treats that are low on ingredients. Over time I start cutting back on treats, and relying more on praise and encouragement. Treats can get the ball rolling, but it's trust and repetition that really keep things going in the long term.
Treats are essential in positive reinforcement training because they give dogs immediate, clear feedback. When used with good timing and in small amounts, treats help dogs understand what behavior is being rewarded, build confidence, and stay engaged. High-value, soft treats work best, especially for learning new or challenging behaviors." Skandashree Bali CEO & Co-Founder, Pawland https://mypawland.com