Contact me at 954-768-9696 for your dog’s or puppy’s training because I train dogs humanely using the most delicious motivation that entices them to want to do what I ask! Dogs and puppies are encouraged and loved when they board and train with me. And they do incredible feats as a result.
Food IS the big thing that I use to train your pet. You will then have, upon his or her return, a happy dog who will offer behaviors you adore and listen to you as you follow the training plans I go over with you at the drop off lesson.
You will not need to bake training food when your dog returns, but you will need to have a non-kibble food to maintain the work. I will give you examples at our drop-off lesson. But if you want to have a wonderful meditative experience baking inexpensive but delicious and nutritious training food for your dog, mass producing it for your freezer or single batching it, I’ve thought of you. Below is an excellent and precise recipe to get to your dog’s or puppy’s training Nirvana.
Sometimes I make a really bad batch of training food. Such as this.
This training food came out so mushy, that I had to put it all into a dog food bowl and squish it together.
Then, I portioned it off and rolled it into bite sized balls that I could feed my dogs in training.
But that is all extra work. I take care to make sure my board-and-trains get delicious and nutritious training food.
I also want to mix it up, bake it, and divy it up in the most efficient way possible.
When a client emailed me over the holidays that his training food was coming out more cake-like than fudge-like, I told him I didn’t have the exact measurements yet to share with him, but when I did, I would share.
I now have that recipe for a consistent, well textured training food that will look like this if you follow the recipe.
I bake my dog training foods in large quantities and each of the following batches of the official Love Wags A Tail board-and-train dog training food are made in half-sheet pans. I also line the pans with parchment paper to make cleaning and unloading easier.
The very first step is to clear the kitchen of all dogs. We don’t care if dog hair gets in our food around here, but we do want to be able to move around the kitchen without worrying about tripping over our friends. Nor do we want any of our furry friends to poke their delicate yet powerful sniffing mechanisms, aka noses, into places they don’t belong while we’re busy baking a masterpiece. This includes hot ovens. And for our counter surfing dogs in training, this is not the time for training, proofing or testing out their non-counter surfing skills.
After the dogs have been cleared from the kitchen, tell your Alexa app to play whatever music you fancy for baking. I’ve gone anywhere from my own personal playlist of songs, to jazz, Frank Sinatra, and it’s especially fun during the holidays to sing along with old Christmas favorites. Rocking Around The Christmas Tree really gets the baking party going.
Love Wags A Tail Dog Training Food
Gather the following ingredients:
3-1/2 cups of flour
2 eggs
2 cans of Wellness 95% Natural Wet Grain Free Canned Dog Food, 13.2-Ounce Can Chicken
1 can Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin, 15 Ounce
2-1/2 cups of Diamond Naturals Small Breed Puppy Food Chicken and Rice
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Mix it all together. Bake for 40-45 minutes.
For the mixing I do, I use a Kitchen Aid 5-Quart Stand Mixer. It’s a workhorse. I also used my small hand mixer when I make tiny batches of training food.
Add the flour to your mixing bowl first and fluff it up with a fork. I’m sure there is a precise word for this in baking, but I don’t know it. So let’s carry on with what I do know.
Next, I add the eggs and canned dog food and mix it together with an electric mixer.
I then add the pumpkin, mixing it together with the other ingreients thoroughly. Are you listening to your favorite music while doing this whole bit? Unless it’s instrumental, this is the point where you should sing along. Unless you’ve been doing that all along, which actually is preferable. This is supposed to be fun.
Lastly, I add the small breed puppy kibble, aka dry food. This makes the food look as if it has chips in it.
Note that I have made this without the puppy kibble as well. It turns out fine, but the texture is best with the kibble.
As the photos illustrate, smooth the batter onto the half sheet baking pan, which are lined with parchment paper until you have a fairly even pan of batter. If you don’t use parchment paper, probably you should grease the pan. Finally, place the pan into the preheated 350 degrees oven for about 40 to 45 minutes.
When it’s done, firm to the touch, pull out the baking sheet and let cool. I put a cooling rack on top of the sheet and flip it over. Then I pull off the parchment. Of course, I use oven mitts to protect my hands and wrists.
When they’ve cooled, I cut them in 4 equal pieces.
I wrap each in waxed paper, put the squares in freezer bags, and put them in the freezer.
I take as many squares as I need out to defrost overnight.
In the morning, I cut them up into appropriate sizes for the dogs I’m training.
I generally put the pieces into sandwich bags, which then go into my training bag to keep it tidy. But I may also dump the pieces into a dog food bowl if I’m doing a stationery training such as a go to mat with a down stay.
Dogs love this food and work very hard for it. This is my own pooch, Dudley, who’s always hard at work offering behaviors for a bit of the good stuff.
Baking training food is a way to keep your dog motivated by aromatic, flavorful goodness. It’s more economical than buying over-the-counter concoctions, and baking is a way to express your inner creative spirit. You can let your mind relax while you’re in the kitchen. Most importantly, your dog will love the results.
Send your dog to the Love Wags A Tail board-and-train program and he or she will enjoy our delicious training food daily for a scrumptious way to learn how to behave.
Helen Verte Schwarzmann
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Certified in Training and Counseling
Certified Pet Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed
Certified Trick Dog Instructor
AKC STAR Puppy, CGC, and Trick Dog Trainer and Evaluator
Your Board-and-Train Dog Trainer for south and southwest Florida, Southwest Ranches, Plantation, Fort Lauderdale, Weston, Broward, Naples, Collier, Fort Myers, Lee county
