# Training treats giving puppy diarrhea



## Remaru (Mar 16, 2014)

Not sure if this is the correct place to ask this, maybe feeding or health would have been better. I have had a lot of trouble with Freyja and her tummy since bringing her home. First she had a bad case of worms. Got those treated and under control but she still had loose bowels, talked to the vet at one of her appointments and he suggested trying a different food. I feed all of the dogs Kirkland Nature's Domain Salmon and Sweet Potato. I went ahead and switched them all over to the other version, red bag, Turkey I believe and she seemed to be doing much better (the other dogs are questionable, we may have to feed everyone something different which I'm not thrilled about). So I've been working on some training with her. She is finally settled in and showing signs of food motivation and I want to take advantage of that. The last two days we have been working really hard on loose leash walking. Now all of the sudden she has diarrhea. This isn't just loose stools but really messy (sorry, I know it is gross but I'm concerned). Could it be from the training rewards or is it the food? For training treats we use Pet Botanics Bacon Flavored because they don't make Duke sick (everything in the house has to be something he doesn't react to) and today we tried Crazy Dog "Train ME". We used to have some Zukes but she didn't take to them so I used them with Remus. I have a few other types but they are huge and not as soft so I use them with Remus. 

It is worth noting that spring has hit full force here and everyone but Blue seems affected. Duke vomited yesterday after eating weeds in the yard :doh: and Remus has vomited twice, not sure if it is from eating grass/weeds (which he does a good deal) or from the food switch. We have tried this turkey version before and didn't stick with it because it didn't sit as well with Duke and seemed to make Remus scratch more (which is all relative it is always hard to tell if Remus is scratching more or less depending on the time of year). So she may be eating weeds and getting sick from that like everyone else.


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## Chichan (Apr 1, 2014)

Oh gosh. I hope you have good cleaning supplies. Sounds like a nightmare. 
Oh the joys of puppyhood.
I would suggest using Freyja's meals as 'treats' for training instead of actual dog treats. If her kibble isn't affecting her digestion it's a safe bet at this point.
Instead of feeding her breakfast (or which ever meal is the closest to the time you train her), feed her a kibble one by one for rewards as you train and then when you're done just put the rest in her food bowl.

Good luck!


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## taquitos (Oct 18, 2012)

Could you maybe just use their daily ration of food as their training treats?

I tend to avoid most training treats that use many ingredients. Maybe try some dehydrated/freeze dried liver next time? Or maybe cut back on how much food you give him so that you can give him more treats?


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## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

I'd try very small pieces and I'd use real meat. If they can tolerate turkey, get real turkey breast, cook it, cut it up into tiny pieces and use that. You can easily do that with any meat, you could make up a big batch and freeze it into portions to be used later. I don't know about liver, because it's really rich and may be too much for a dog with a tender tummy.


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## Kathyy (Jun 15, 2008)

Agree with the others, try using regular meals as training. I noticed that Max would have increasingly loose stools during an agility trial that was because he was getting a lot of extra treats. Was thinking it was stress at being out and about all day around hundreds of dogs but no, poop firmed up once I cut back to the amount of food he got during the week. Good and healthy or not, too much food can cause too much poop.

I'd use the turkey idea if your dogs don't do well with chicken and you see that they don't work well for kibble. Just take away a little kibble and substitute the turkey/chicken calorie for calorie. Rule of thumb is you can take away 25% of 'balanced diet' calories and feed fresh food calories without changing the overall nutrient profile of the diet so don't worry about that.


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## Remaru (Mar 16, 2014)

Well she is doing fine limiting her food intake so I don't think it is that she is eating too much, I'm afraid it is whatever is in the treats. I do limit eating time so if she isn't interested in food when we come in from our walk/training session she just doesn't eat that meal. She won't work for the kibble, it is dry and doesn't really interest her. It is also large and takes her too long to eat to make a good quick reward for training. I will look at freeze dried meats or buy some turkey or chicken and bake it up to try with her. I have no reason to think chicken will bother her, the Salmon food didn't sit well with her but up until this week she was doing ok on the turkey.


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## petpeeve (Jun 10, 2010)

Remaru said:


> Could it be from the training rewards or is it the food?


 Could be. Or it might be a sign that something else is affecting your dog. Especially since all of your dogs seem to be stricken with digestive upset at the same time. Just to be sure I'd run it past the vet as a 'group symptom' not an individual one, see what they think of the situation overall.


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## doggiepop (Feb 27, 2014)

you may have to switch food several times before you find something that works
for all of the dogs. where are the treats sourced and made? i wouldn't feed anything 
that's made in China or sourced from China.


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## doggiepop (Feb 27, 2014)

i take a sweet potato and sliced into small peices. place on a sheet pan with parchment paper. i place it in the oven at 180 degrees. let it cook for several hours. it could take up to 5 hours to cook. when it's done it's dried out. place in bowl or in a plate. do not cover the sweet potatos.



Remaru said:


> Well she is doing fine limiting her food intake so I don't think it is that she is eating too much, I'm afraid it is whatever is in the treats. I do limit eating time so if she isn't interested in food when we come in from our walk/training session she just doesn't eat that meal. She won't work for the kibble, it is dry and doesn't really interest her. It is also large and takes her too long to eat to make a good quick reward for training. I will look at freeze dried meats or buy some turkey or chicken and bake it up to try with her. I have no reason to think chicken will bother her, the Salmon food didn't sit well with her but up until this week she was doing ok on the turkey.


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## Remaru (Mar 16, 2014)

The dog treats are made in the USA I won't buy them anything that isn't. Everyone else seems to be feeling better other than Duke who has a runny nose (he has seasonal allergies unfortunately). Freyja seems better today as well, we only used the Crazy Dog yesterday and her poo was soft but not diarrhea so I'm wondering if it is either eating too much grass or something in the other treats. 

Thank you for the Sweet Potato suggestion I will definitely try that. I knew a dog that worked for carrots, but I don't think she will. She really likes frozen veggies, she got some when my oldest son spilled them in the kitchen and she still goes back looking for them daily, but I haven't figured out how to use them without them getting gross.


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