Best Treats For Golden Retriever Puppy

F Artificial Preservatives & Colorings

Many commercial dog treats use artificial coloring to make them more attractive, but something artificial is bad for your dog and should be avoided. Artificial preservatives such as BHT and BHA are used to provide food with longer shelf life, both prohibited in some countries but licensed for food in limited amounts in Canada, the United States, and Europe. BHT and BHA are considered carcinogenic in animals and may also be related to cancer in humans.

Best Snack Treats For Golden Retrievers

Dogs love snacks, just like us humans.

It just feels good to provide yummy food for our loved ones, dogs included.

Treats as snacks are great for when you simply want to say I love you, to your Golden or when youd like to give them a little something to munch on while youre busy.

Just like with training treats, health is always a priority when it comes to snacks for your Golden, so these recommendations keep that in mind.

Here are some of the best treats for snacking for your Golden Retriever:

Similarities Between Yellow Labrador And Golden Retriever

These two breeds have a lot in common and some of those traits of Yellow Labrador and Golden Retriever are discussed below.

Purebred These breeds are considered pure because they dont have any crossbreeding combination.

Shedding Both these retriever breeds shed quite heavily and are not hypoallergenic because they lose a lot of hair.

Living Environment Yellow Labrador and Golden retriever are pretty much adaptable to all types of living environments. They can happily live backyard, apartments, and even indoor in houses. However, pups living in apartments or indoors will expect their owners to fulfill their exercise needs.

Size Both of these dog breeds have a similar height and weight .

Intelligence Thanks to their hunting background, both these dogs are quite intelligent. Likewise, these sharp-minded dogs are also very active.

Energy Both of them are very energetic because of their retrieving history. They will always be willing for a game of fetch or a run in the yard. You must schedule a proper exercise routine to keep these canines happy and healthy.

Suitable for Kids Both breeds are amazing family companions, especially for those who have kids. This is because these pups love to play with kids and are very patient with them.

Socialization Both these dogs are considered very social because they do quite well with other pets and strangers. They love to meet new people and make new friends due to their loving nature.

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Best Overall: Wellness Soft Puppy Bites Grain

Flavor: Lamb and salmon | Calories: 6 per treat | Breed Size: Small, medium, and large

These soft treats from Wellness are a top choice for many pet parents thanks to their reasonable price, quality ingredients, and puppy-approved flavor. The treats are specially formulated for dogs under 1 year old with a mixture of pure meat protein and added fruits and veggies for a boost of nutrients. They have a lamb and salmon flavor, making them a natural source of DHA and Omega-3s, and the treats are free from meat by-products, corn, wheat, and dairy.

Whats great about these treats is that theyre soft enough for puppies to chew, and theyre the perfect size for trainingyou can even break them into smaller pieces if you want a bite-sized snack for your pup. The treats contain 6 calories each, and they come in both 3- and 8-ounce packages.

How Much To Feed A Golden Retriever Puppy

Knowing how much to feed your Golden Retriever and how often will help your Golden Retriever start off with a healthy lifestyle. As owners, we want to make sure that our new puppy gets just the right amount food to grow at their pace. We do not want to overfeed or underfeed. Our wish is to make life for them as comfortable as possible.

For more detail on this topic check out our article Golden Retriever Feeding Chart. If you use our recommended Purina Pro Plan, see below for the feeding chart.

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Golden Retriever Puppy Diet Requirements

The Golden Retriever is a large-breed dog that stands up to 24 inches tall and weighs 55 to 75 pounds. They are not a hyperactive breed, but they do have high exercise requirements. These dogs are also incredibly smart, so they need plenty of training in addition to regular exercise to keep them happy. You should also make sure to feed your Golden Retriever puppy a healthy and balanced diet.

So, what should you look for in a Golden Retriever puppy food?

The first thing to look for is a high-quality source of animal protein. Golden Retriever puppies grow fast, so they need plenty of protein in their diet to provide the building blocks for healthy growth and development. Puppies need a minimum of 22% crude protein in their diet, though more is better, and it should come from quality animal sources like meat, poultry, and fish.

In addition to protein, your Golden Retriever puppy needs plenty of healthy fats. Fats provide a concentrated source of energy for dogs as well as DHA for brain development and essential fatty acids for healthy skin and coat. Animal-based sources like chicken fat and salmon oil are best, though plant sources like canola oil and flaxseed can provide supplemental omega fatty acids.

Now that you know the basics about your puppys nutritional needs, youre ready to start shopping for puppy food! Here are our picks for the 9 best Golden Retriever puppy foods:

Taste Of The Wild Southwest Canyon

Rating:

Southwest Canyon is one of 9 dry recipes included in our review of the Taste of the Wild product line.

• First 5 ingredients: Beef, peas, garbanzo beans, lamb meal, canola oil
• Type: Grain-free
• Profile: All life stages
• Best for:Golden retriever adults and puppies

Taste of the Wild Southwest Canyon acquires the bulk of its animal protein from fresh beef and lamb meal. Dry matter label analysis reveals the recipe contains 32% protein, 17% fat and 43% estimated carbs which results in a fat-to-protein ratio of about 52%.

Southwest Canyon also contains salmon oil. Salmon oil is naturally rich in the prized EPA and DHA type of omega-3 fatty acids. These two high quality fats boast the highest bio-availability to dogs. They help deliver better joint health and a lustrous skin and coat. A super popular brand. Highly recommended.

Sample buyer reviewTaste of the Wild makes both me and my dogs very happy. I have a pack of three that all love it and have beautiful coats that I can only attribute to their diet. As for me, its cost-efficient and doesnt stink like other dog foods. Id recommend it to any of my friends.

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The Best Puppy Treats For Golden Retrievers

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Golden retriever puppies love to please, and are eager to learn, so a steady supply of treats can make training fun for both you and your puppy.

When using treats to train and encourage good behavior on your dogs part, you will want to make sure you are using healthy options that wont encourage overeating, while tasting good enough that your puppy will be eager for more.

But what are the best puppy treats for Golden Retrievers?

In this article, well explore several considerations for choosing the right treat for your Golden Retriever pup and highlight several options that could potentially make a good fit for your pup.

What Are The Best High

High-value treats are the ones your dog will do anything for, and every dog will have their own preferences.

Human food meat, chicken, fish, cheese, sweet potato, and peanut butter, make excellent high-value treats in moderation, but dont always work in a treat pouch.

Here are some great choices for distracting situations or rewarding your dog for going the extra mile when you are training a dog.

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Purebites Mini Trainers Beef Liver

These treats are made with only a single ingredient beef liver.

Not only do dogs love this stuff, but its also healthy and packed with nutrition for your pup.

While there are many beef liver treats available for purchase, these specific treats come cut into perfect, small cubes an ideal size for training.

These freeze-dried treats arent sticky or greasy at all, so they work well for times when you want to carry some treats in your pocket.

Best For Large Dogs: Blue Buffalo Blue Bits Natural Soft

Treat Type: Soft | Lifestage: All | Breed Size: Varies | Calories Per Treat: 4 | Treats Per Package: Not listed

• Free from artificial preservatives and flavors

• Easily broken in half

• None that we could find

If you have a large breed dog, you might be looking for a treat thats a bit more substantialbut still healthy. One of the best options for larger dogs is the Blue Buffalo BLUE Bits Treats, which come in several flavors and are free from artificial preservatives and flavors.

These treats are shaped like bite-sized hearts, and their soft texture allows them to be broken into smaller pieces, if needed. Real chicken is the first ingredient, and the treats also contain oatmeal and flaxseed to support healthy digestion. The BLUE Bits treats dont contain any corn, wheat, soy, or meat by-products, but they do have added DHA and omega fatty acids to boost your dogs skin and coat.

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Best Dog Foods For Senior Golden Retrievers

As your Golden Retriever ages, its important to reconsider what youre feeding him. He may need a senior formula or something with higher protein to maintain muscle tone. Chat with your vet about whats best for your pet, but two of the top-selling formulas for senior Goldens are outlined below.

Wellness Complete Health Natural Dry Senior Dog Food

Wellness Complete health provides healthy, fresh ingredients for your senior Golden Retriever. With glucosamine and chondroitin, this recipe will keep your older dogs joints healthy. Additional benefits include taurine for heart health, as well as easy-to-digest ingredients that are free of wheat, soy, meat by-products, corn, artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives.

Main Ingredients: Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Oatmeal, Ground Barley, Ground Brown Rice

Protein: 22%

Calories: 448 kcal/cup

Using Treats For Training Purposes

Treats are one of the simplest forms of positive reinforcement. By nature, golden retrievers want to please their human family, and they are very intelligent dogs who can quickly catch on to your new game.

When teaching a trick for the first time, you can use the treat as a lure to guide them into the position you want sit, for example, can be spoken while the puppy is distracted by the treat, and when they sit down for it, praise them lavishly and give them the treat.

Timing is very important. The treat should be given as soon as they follow the command.

Gradually, your puppy is going to learn the meaning of the words and will start to follow them without the treat as a lure. Once that happens, stop using the treat to lure them into position and instead use voice commands only.

Eventually, you can give them treats every few times they listen, and wean them off treats little by little. But at the beginning, it is essential to use them as positive reinforcement each time.

Trainers will usually recommend having two types of treats for your puppy while training him or her. Low-value treats are plain yet tasty, loved by them, but not as much as the high-value treats.

High value treats should be something your puppy really loves. Low value treats are for regular training, should be low-calorie, and can become the staple reward for the golden retriever puppy doing a good job.

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What To Consider When Buying Treats For Dogs

When it comes to purchasing doggie delicacies, it is imperative that you have a very clear understanding of what you are looking for. Many times, pet owners buy products for their pooches only to feel sorry afterwards simply because the product they bought is not really right for their doggies. To help you avoid making the same mistake, here are some things that you really have to consider whenever youre out choosing and buying treats for your pooch.

• Objective or purpose for giving the treat

The reason for giving a delicacy or a snack to your pooch is also a very important consideration. Understand that there are several types of treats and these can vary depending on their purpose alone.

If you need a canine delicacy specifically for positive reinforcement such as during obedience training or behavioral training, then you may have to get smaller sized bits that are truly flavorful. What you want your mutt to learn is to associate the desirable behavior or the performance of a desired action with something that is pleasurable. If the snack is not palatable or delicious, how can you expect mutts to perform the desired action over and over when what they learn is to associate the doing of the action with something not really delicious? As such, you have to make sure that it really is a treat.

• Size of the treat

• Texture of the doggie delicacy

• Nutritional content

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Tips For Using Treats To Train A Golden Retriever

Training with treats might seem as simple as handing your dog a treat after they do the thing you want.

However, here are some things to keep in mind that can really super-charge your training when it comes to using treats:

Size

Pea-sized treats typically work best for training your Golden.

You want them to be able to chew and swallow the treat quickly so they can get back to the training session.

While your pup might be overjoyed to be handed a large treat, it can really slow down the training process.

Texture

Soft treats are usually ideal for training time.

Again, you want your pup to be able to chew and swallow quickly.

A crunchy treat can take longer for your dog to eat, and sometimes eager Goldens can briefly choke on it as they scarf it down.

Some treats can be pretty crumbly, which can cause crumbs to fall on the ground that distract your dog from the task at hand.

Color

Depending on what youre training, you may be placing or tossing a treat on the ground.

If the treat is the same color as the ground, your dog may struggle to actually see the treat.

In these cases, choose a treat that contrasts in color to the surface from which your pup will be eating.

Value

The key with using positive reinforcement is finding out what your dog really likes.

Your dog always determines what is reinforcing and what isnt.

Every Golden Retriever is unique and will have their own preferences when it comes to treats, so take note of what they seem to like best.

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Best Dog Training Treats

The best dog training treats are often those that are smaller in size and contain less calories, such as liver thins. Use these treats during training sessions to reinforce desired behaviour such as correctly responding to a verbal or physical cue. Make sure to only give a treat to your dog when theyre calm and attentive, not when theyre jumping up and over-excited as you dont want to encourage this. Hold your training session in between meals not right before or right after so your dog will respond agreeably to the treat.

Artificial Dyes And Preservatives

Preservatives are added to the treats to make them have a longer shelf life but, they have bad effects on your Golden Retrievers health.

• BHA and BHT are two artificial preservatives known to be carcinogenic to animals
• Glycerin is another preservative derived from petrolatum and may be contaminated with menthol

There are a lot of other ingredients that are linked to cancer and have no business being near your Golden Retriever.

As it is Golden retrievers are prone to getting cancer so, you need to keep them as far away from carcinogens as possible. Organic treats are one of the best solutions to the problem and we recommend them to you.

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Treats To Avoid Giving Your Golden Retriever

As mentioned previously, your Golden Retrievers health is of utmost priority.

Its always a good idea to look at the ingredients in the treats you give them.

Treats and snacks that are full of fillers like flours and sugar are okay in very small amounts, but its best to look for proteins as the main ingredients.

Additionally, food coloring should be avoided.

Treats with a long ingredient list and that have been heavily processed are better passed by for treats with short ingredient lists and minimal processing.

Look for ingredients you can recognize.

If you notice that your dog has loose stool or becomes itchy after eating a certain treat or snack, its probably best to avoid giving it to your dog again in the future.

You can always consult your vet if youre unsure about a particular treat for your specific dog.

Best Treats For Golden Retriever Filled Dog Bone

Filled Dog Bones

Why choose these bones for your Golden Retriever?

The ideal chew bone to diversify rewards

Indeed, you must associate a type of treat according to the reason for the reward. If the expectation you have of your Golden Retriever is important and difficult for him, his reward should be of great value. Save the mini-treats for basic repetitive learning and reward with a larger treat when your Golden Retriever has accomplished or obeys in a more exceptional way. As it will take him a long time to trim it, this award has a strong added value for your Golden Retriever.

The ideal chew bone for its composition

It is a chewable bone filled with a mixture of meat with diverse and delicious flavours. Rich in protein, the Golden Retriever take a long time to eat and taste. Without artificial colours or flavours, and without too many calories, this product is good for the health of your Golden Retriever.

Users opinions

Very good ratings noted on the Internet. The quality of this delicacy is highlighted. One person says its a very good product, that he hasnt tasted it personally, but when he looks at his dog, he knows hes enjoying it. Another person says that his Golden Retriever is gnawing at him gently and that he feels like he wants to keep it as long as possible

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