Using cat food for dog treats?

seebrown

My dog is less and less interested when I try to use kibble for training. He eats it fine for meals, but he will walk off if I try to do any training with kibble. I use special dog treats for things like walking, crating and training around the cat because they are higher value, but I'd rather not have to use these treats for things like 101 things with a box (which he won't get b/c he keeps walking off). I'm currently feeding By Nature™ Adult Dog Formula and I feed my cat By Nature™ Adult Cat Formula. The ingredients lists are pretty similar, and he does really like the cat's food, I think because it tastes a little different. I've given it to him when we were working on being calm around the cat and I ran out of his treats. The kibble is tiny so I can also give him less for each treat. Do you think it would matter if I started giving him about a half cup a day of cat food as treats?

Mikey

I'm almost sure that dogs shouldn't eat cat food-I think it's 'dirtier' then dog food (ie may have certain parasites that dogs can't deal with-for instance if salmon is uncooked it can be fatal) but that's just what I've heard-I've never had a cat.

I did google it though:

is cat food bad for dogs, or is dog food bad for cats? Free Dating, Singles and Personals

How safe is cat food for dogs.? - Yahoo! Answers

WikiAnswers - Will cat food hurt dogs

Then again-my dog has eaten quite a bit of cat poop in the yard....so I don't see how that's different I guess I'd ask the vet

seebrown

Maybe just a different type of By Nature dog food for a treat. I'm just looking for something cheaper/easier/healthier than all the training treats. We're going through Pet Botanics Training Reward Treats - Treats & Biscuits - Dog - PetSmart pretty quickly, and the ingredients list isn't the best, plus he's a small dog so we have to cut the treats in half which is a pain. He doesn't like veggies too much. He likes cooked chicken, but that's super high value for daily obedience and a pain to make.

TashaHope

I'm not sure about cat food, but here's a video on keeping dogs interested in their kibble.

I'm not sure how safe garlic is, epsecially in smaller dogs like Cannon, so you might add something different to it.

YouTube - 3 Kibble Tips: Using Kibble for Dog Training

seebrown

Thanks! I've actually tried the first and second tip. It's the only way to keep him interested on walks, so I've gotten used to tossing treats at him all the time. He'll either catch them in his mouth or chase them. If it's something he doesn't want, he'll spit it out or lose interest after a sniff. I'll have to try coating the kibble in something... Hm...

Mikey

Garlic is often added for flavor but can cause a type of anemia in dogs-same as onions-I believe the ingredient is Thiosulfate?

Have you tried cereal as treats? Mikey is nutz for cheerios. Also sliced hot dogs is a good one Very cheap and not too high in calories

seebrown

Haha, I just tried garlic, and he was trying to lick it off the treat. He ate about 3 kibbles before losing interest again. I'll try the Cheerios. We've given him Kix a few times when we were eating it, and he likes those.

Criosphynx

my impression with cat food is that the extra rich protien concentration will upset tummies.



what you CAN do is get normal kibble and a little bit up cat kibble and mix it up. The stronger scent of the cat kibble rubs off on the dog kibble and makes it more "valueable"...I have ferret kibble and a novelty dog kibble, mixed with regular kibble that I use for training. The randomness of the treats( even tho they are all kibble) keeps them interested.

TashaHope

Tasha LOVES ferret kibble. She sits by their cage when they eat hoping they'll accidently drop a piece outside of the cage, lol.

seebrown

Thanks for all the ideas! I think the mix will help, and I may try Cheerios too. We've given him Kix before, and he likes those. They're mother approved. :P