Training Puppies vs. Dogs: Why Pups Need a Special Reward Treat

By the Pet Botanics Staff

Puppies are so much fun to watch as they begin to explore the world around them. Everything is totally new and exciting to these little bundles of energy. They get so charged up they don’t know where to look next. Scampering around with breathtaking speed, they seem to be everywhere at once.

The same boundless energy and enthusiasm that makes puppies such adorable creatures also makes them a completely different breed than adult dogs when it comes to training. Unlike older, calmer canines, puppies know only two modes of being – full-throttle or sleep. They have much shorter attention spans than mature dogs, so it can be difficult to get them to focus on a training activity for any length of time. Plus, with bodies and cognitive skills that are still developing, it’s often more of a challenge for young pups to perform – or even to understand – some of the cues and behaviors taught during a training session.

Making Puppy Training Sessions Effective

Another difference is that puppies begin training as a “clean slate” with no prior experience, which makes them both easier and harder to train than adult dogs. Unlike their older counterparts, these little furry students don’t have ingrained habits that need to be modified, which often puts them at an advantage in learning new behaviors. But at the same time, their complete lack of experience leaves them clueless about many things we take for granted a dog should know. This could be something as basic as their name, which some young pups still might not have a full grasp of, to more complex things, like where to eliminate, what things are acceptable to chew, and what the strange two legged creatures mean when they speak with them. So, in addition to teaching actual cues and behaviors, trainers will often have to start at the very beginning and instill the concept of learning into their youngest students, showing them that it can be fun!

What all this means is that puppy training sessions need to be different than those for older dogs, both in structure and content. First, the lessons should be shorter from start to finish so that easily distracted pups don’t get bored and lose interest. Trainers should be aware, too, that they should start with basic activities, like getting a pup to respond to their name, learn potty training, what and what not to chew on, or helping them develop social skills with other puppies and humans, before introducing more complex concepts.

A Training Treat Just for Puppies

Positive reinforcement with food treats is, of course, the key to successful training of dogs at any age, and it plays an even more crucial role with puppies. Just as it’s advisable to have customized training sessions, puppies will perform best if they are given reward treats that are tailored to their specialized needs.

That’s why Pet Botanics, a leading maker of reward treats used by professional trainers nationwide, has introduced a training treat just for puppies. New Pet Botanics® Puppy Bites Training Rewards is a mini-sized reward treat that offers big motivation in every bite. It was developed to address the special challenges of training the very youngest canines.

An irresistible food reward treat is often the fastest, most effective way to engage and hold the attention of an easily distracted puppy, and that’s what Pet Botanics Puppy Bites delivers. The treats have a yummy peanut butter aroma and flavor that will strongly appeal to pups and immediately get them to focus on the task at hand. With the opportunity to “win” such a delicious reward, young canine students will quickly realize that learning can be fun!

Pet Botanics Puppy Bites also takes into account puppies’ small size and still-developing bodies. Soft and chewy, the treats are easy on tiny teeth and sensitive gums. At just 1.5 calories each, the mini-sized bites can be given with quick repetition to reinforce learning, without overloading growing digestive systems or making pups feel full and lose interest.

Puppy Bites’ formulation also supports puppies’ healthy growth with DHA for cognitive development and high-fiber ingredients like pumpkin to facilitate easy digestion. Like original Pet Botanics training rewards, Puppy Bites is made in the USA and offers natural flavor from the company’s proprietary BotaniFits™ blend of rosemary, cranberries, blueberries, tomatoes, chamomile, dandelions, green tea extract and peppermint.

Cute as they are, puppies can be a handful to train, with their rambunctious behavior and non-stop energy level. But by building training sessions that cater to their needs — and using Pet Botanics Puppy Bites, the reward treat specially targeted to these baby furballs – trainers will find it much easier to turn out well-mannered adult dogs.