Walking with dog treats - what are your views?

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Fools Motto

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I had a major problem earlier today, where my elderly whippet X got into 'the wrong crowd'! Her own fault (?)
She homed in on a man walking 2 dogs, one on lead (dog aggressive, so understandably in control on leash) and a terrier off lead. Trouble is, whippet x now has a ''thing'' for most other walkers, because they have treats... and she is so gentle they give her treats..(despite my saying she doesn't need it) She has become addicted to treats! .She USED to be so loyal but now will run away to go after a 'treat person'. Is this an age thing? Her eyesight is clearly sharp, as must her nose be! so for the first time in her 12 + years she 'whippets' off to other people! Unless I can get her before she goes, I struggle to stop her going. Normally no one minds... but today the on lead dog did. Sadly we met at cross paths - i had no idea they were there. She couldn't care less what the on lead dog was doing to her, he was having a go - poor owner was trying to stop him, while trying not to trip over my embarrassment as she was trying her hardest to get into that mans pocket! One cut ear later...
She doesn't need treats... I don't like the idea of walking with treats.... it would mean she stuck to my pocket instead of being a dog, just lumbering along sniffing, doing dog things.

Can older dogs get more ravenous and obsessive over food?
Just wanted opinions and ideas.
Meanwhile the young spaniel has been brilliant..
 
i always have treats in my pocket for my own dogs.
i use them if my dog is on a lead and we are passing other dogs on a narrow path as this is the kind of situation where he may lunge.
he is perfectly well behaved off lead but we do dog etiquette to be polite.
i would never give treat to other dogs.
 
I don't use treats but I occasionally carry the dog's normal kibble if I fancy doing a bit of training during a walk.
I nearly always carry a ball or tug of some kind in case of having to pass on a narrow path or to redirect if need be, like this evening, when two large dogs appeared out of the dark and one stuck it's nose up one end and one got in his face.

And while it must be lovely when the dog respects 'the master', when you're on your own in the middle unknown large dogs, with the other owner miles away, then wanging a ball or shoving some food in one dog's gob is preferable to some of the alternatives.

I would also never feed someone else's dog and I'd be annoyed if someone tried to feed mine.

If she is bimbling up to people unbidden and you can't recall her, I'd keep her on a lead for her own safety. She's 12, just do what you have to do.
 
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I do carry treats for my dog but wouldn't dream of ever giving them to another dog, and I wouldn't let anyone else treat my dog for this reason. I would make sure to ask anyone you see treating her to stop and perhaps keep her on the lead/long line for a while until she stops pestering others for food.
 
If my oldest dog changed behaviour like that, I would probably take her to the veterinarian for a check up, just to be on the safe side. If they can't find anything, then, in your shoes, I would get used to carrying treats with me, and perhaps try putting her in a harness, with a long line.
 
I always walk with rewards in my pocket, only for my own dog though. I would tentatively suggest that she is letting you know that she likes bimbling along as a dog but when there is a possibility of food then that is more interesting than you, so you need to up the anti and become more interesting again - and if that means you carry food then so be it. Either that or keep her on a lead. It is not fair on her getting injured and most certainly not fair on stressed dogs and owners who have her come tearing up to them and don't respond to their concerns for personal space.
Carrying food doesn't mean they are glued to your pocket, mine does his own thing (apart from checking in as a deaf dog should do) but it means I have a little extra "draw" to him when there are strong distractions like other dogs, which he needs given his previous history. For him it also acts as a reassurance. It's not really a big deal, I can walk without but we are both happier when it is there.
But I would also agree with a vet check if she is suddenly very food orientated, there may be another issue that needs sorting as well.
 
I carry treats. My dogs are free to do do their own thing on a walk but every now and thenI call them back to heel or to sit, sometimes they get a treat and sometimes a stroke and a 'good girl' so they never anticipate a treat. They never hang round me asking for treats and never ask other people.
Occasionally if I stop to speak with someone and they fuss the dogs, I may get asked if they can give them a treat. I always thank them but say I would prefer not.
You should be the most important person in your dog's life, not running to others. I think you should go back to lead work until you can sort this. Try to find out why she is so obsessed with food or maybe it is one of the funny little obsesssions they get as they get older and a touch of senility. You will be very unhappy if she gets badly bitten.
 
Chiffy said:
I carry treats. My dogs are free to do do their own thing on a walk but every now and thenI call them back to heel or to sit, sometimes they get a treat and sometimes a stroke and a 'good girl' so they never anticipate a treat. They never hang round me asking for treats and never ask other people.
Occasionally if I stop to speak with someone and they fuss the dogs, I may get asked if they can give them a treat. I always thank them but say I would prefer not.
You should be the most important person in your dog's life, not running to others. I think you should go back to lead work until you can sort this. Try to find out why she is so obsessed with food or maybe it is one of the funny little obsesssions they get as they get older and a touch of senility. You will be very unhappy if she gets badly bitten.
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I do similar.

Last week I took the 6 month lab for a run after his puppy class, we were in an open meadow, I gained an older Golden retriever, I asked pup to sit and watch me, I had treat but didn't use them as didn't want to 'bait' the other dog. GR also promptly sat. Owner huffed and puffed her way to me then berated me for having treats and tormenting her dog. I suggested she use her lead if she couldn't recall her dog, I then got another earful about how unfair this was. My 6 month old sat nicely throughout. Lady walked off with her dog on lead, I changed direction, pup still off lead tried to follow, immediately recalled back to heel, treated and carried on.
 
I used to carry cooked beef treats in my side pocket of my combats, the smell of which must drift miles it seems as I have had numerous strange dogs appear and try to "mug" me. 2 friend's whippets regularly sought me out when the owner was no where to be seen in 200 acres of parkland. One woman's Highland Terrier appeared and presented himself to me and refused to move for the owner when she caught up with him, he promptly planted his feet and sat down when she put his lead on and tried to drag him away.
She said he's never done that before and had to pick him up and carry him off.

Last straw was a few years ago, on route up through London, I got out of the train at Victoria and was going down to the tube, a black Lab attached itself to my pocket. Next thing was a large hand on my shoulder and a voice saying "excuse me Sir, can I have a word" it was the Police and a drugs dog and I was stopped and bodily searched infront of the crowds of Victoria station in rush hour!
I explained it was the dog treats, after finding no drugs but tons of dog poo bags in my pockets that were thankfully empty, he said I can see you are a dog owner!
I was let on my way.
I didn't even have any treats in my pockets that day just wearing the same trousers as I had the day before when I did have the treats in them, that's how damn good their noses are.
I don't often have the treats on me now!
Oz
 
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I always carry treats with me - unless I forget to pick them up! - and use them to reward my whippet when we meet traffic, normally farm machinery. Her recall is great and she comes and sits next to me, never taking her eyes off me, until the tractor has gone past and then she knows she'll get her reward, a small dog treat. My Chi hasn't got such good recall i.e. she normally runs back but, on occasion, she doesn't, so I normally scoop her up when traffic is passing as she is so tiny that no-one could be expected to see her and wait until she does come back to me. When the vehicle has passed, she gets put back on the floor and she is told "Sit" or "Down" and then she gets her treat. Not sure if this is a good way of 'training' her but I think she needs a reward for doing what I say when there is no danger from traffic.

I don't feed other people's dogs but they sometimes ask if they can feed mine and I will agree because I've never had any problems with my dogs coming back to me afterwards. There again if the person concerned had Oz's super duper mega cooked beef dog treats, who knows?!!! Fortunately, I don't often walk my dogs in Wales so we're unlikely to meet up :D
 
Snowy Celandine said:
I always carry treats with me - unless I forget to pick them up! - and use them to reward my whippet when we meet traffic, normally farm machinery. Her recall is great and she comes and sits next to me, never taking her eyes off me, until the tractor has gone past and then she knows she'll get her reward, a small dog treat. My Chi hasn't got such good recall i.e. she normally runs back but, on occasion, she doesn't, so I normally scoop her up when traffic is passing as she is so tiny that no-one could be expected to see her and wait until she does come back to me. When the vehicle has passed, she gets put back on the floor and she is told "Sit" or "Down" and then she gets her treat. Not sure if this is a good way of 'training' her but I think she needs a reward for doing what I say when there is no danger from traffic.

I don't feed other people's dogs but they sometimes ask if they can feed mine and I will agree because I've never had any problems with my dogs coming back to me afterwards. There again if the person concerned had Oz's super duper mega cooked beef dog treats, who knows?!!! Fortunately, I don't often walk my dogs in Wales so we're unlikely to meet up :D
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:) I don't meet many people or dogs now either! And it's wonderful!
 
Yes, I always carry treats (well kibble). Not so much for my own dog but for the dogs that I walk (are staying with me). I find it helps reinforce good behaviour and encourages them to come back to me immediately upon a whistle or call.

One dog in particular I walk is a spaniel cross and is easily distracted by his nose. But 3 months in of walking with me and he is 100% better.
 
I never use or carry treats, and in fact when I did try using them to improve young labs dummy return I found that she won't actually eat when she is working. She doesn't like to be touched then, either, total focus is the order of the day.
I did used to carry kibble when walking hound puppies, just to get them started.
 
I carry treats every walk I do. I do not give them out to other dogs, and I certainly would not want my dogs treated by others. However I am extremely antisocial when out walking and therefore rarely get close enough to people to get in this trouble, and if I spot someone miles away with a dog, I divert course and leash up when necessary.

I have been guilty at the end of an agility training session of giving one my pals a bit of hotdog....but I know it's ok with owner and it doesn't distract him during training.
 
You have to make it nicer for her to be with you rather than running off to see if someone else has treats so I think the only way round the problem is to have extra special treats that she only gets on walks - like a tub of pate (dogs go crazy for that) or tube of cream cheese. Just take the lid off the pate for her to lick. She will then realise that mum is the real deal and will stick with you rather than run off. Good luck
 
cremedemonthe said:
I used to carry cooked beef treats in my side pocket of my combats, the smell of which must drift miles it seems as I have had numerous strange dogs appear and try to "mug" me. 2 friend's whippets regularly sought me out when the owner was no where to be seen in 200 acres of parkland. One woman's Highland Terrier appeared and presented himself to me and refused to move for the owner when she caught up with him, he promptly planted his feet and sat down when she put his lead on and tried to drag him away.
She said he's never done that before and had to pick him up and carry him off.

Last straw was a few years ago, on route up through London, I got out of the train at Victoria and was going down to the tube, a black Lab attached itself to my pocket. Next thing was a large hand on my shoulder and a voice saying "excuse me Sir, can I have a word" it was the Police and a drugs dog and I was stopped and bodily searched infront of the crowds of Victoria station in rush hour!
I explained it was the dog treats, after finding no drugs but tons of dog poo bags in my pockets that were thankfully empty, he said I can see you are a dog owner!
I was let on my way.
I didn't even have any treats in my pockets that day just wearing the same trousers as I had the day before when I did have the treats in them, that's how damn good their noses are.
I don't often have the treats on me now!
Oz
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Wow your dogs are lucky, cooked beef as a treat! Such a shame you have to use it less often because of other dogs. I would have felt so embarrassed if a police dog sniffed me out, would have probably blushed and sweated like a boiled tomato.
I once read that we smell a flower, but a dog can smell the insect that was sitting on the flower previously. Their sense of smell are amazing.
 
I bet we'd be completely overwhelmed if we suddenly developed the ability to smell in the same way as a dog for the day!! I swear that my dogs can smell cheese from a hundred paces, even if it's wrapped up :D
 
Yes I carry treats. No they don't hang around anticipating them.

I have five to control at once and need to keep up the training to ensure they don't become a menace to other walkers. Calling them back for a treat is a pretty much daily occurance.
 
Snowy Celandine said:
I bet we'd be completely overwhelmed if we suddenly developed the ability to smell in the same way as a dog for the day!! I swear that my dogs can smell cheese from a hundred paces, even if it's wrapped up :D
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Have you read The Talisman? When Wolf comes to this world he is overwhelmed by how bad it smells. I think ignorance is bliss!

When we did walk with treats the dogs with the hound puppies the dogs wouldn't leave our sides, greedy labradors and border terriers.
 
I carry treats (well carrots as i seem to have an endless supply of them in my pockets and they're healthy) and my boy is obsessed with them. Lots of recall during the first few minutes so i know that he is aware i have got food on me. You have to be more appealing that the other walker im afraid; if thats through their stomache or via a toy. With owning a dog who is aggressive i need to know im not taking the chance and can get his attention in seconds, because of this NO ONE else feeds him. I wont let people brush my polite "no thank you" a side when they insist - it may sound harsh but id rather come across as a b*tch than risk other peoples/my own animals. He is VERY food driven and knows it comes from me only. (id like to add he only goes off lead across the fields where its rare we ever do meet anyone - i doubt he'd actually do anything if he did reach them but not taking the risk). It sounds harsh but from the other side of the argument it can be very dangerous if a loose dog would reach me too despite doing all i can - if you have no recall you have no control. Work with the treats until she's back with you if thats what drives her :) eventually you can wean off to less. Yes there are times he watches me but he's never stuck to me obsessively
 
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"Have you read The Talisman? When Wolf comes to this world he is overwhelmed by how bad it smells. I think ignorance is bliss!"

Not read it but I think that sounds about right :D
 
Always carry treats. I don't work for nothing, why should my dogs ?

I would keep him on a harness and longline unil his recall is reliable again and have something really yummy to reward when he comes back, he will soon prefer you to anyone else again.
 
Teaselmeg said:
Always carry treats. I don't work for nothing, why should my dogs ?

I would keep him on a harness and longline unil his recall is reliable again and have something really yummy to reward when he comes back, he will soon prefer you to anyone else again.
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Great analogy
 
I see that I am in the total minority here but I expect my dogs (and my children) to do what I tell them through love and respect, not greed. I only know two dogs trained to KC Gold standard, both are as obedient as anything when the owner wears a bum bag of treats but completely ignorant without.
What happens if you are on a walk and you run out of food? Do they all vanish over the nearest horizon?
 
Clodagh said:
I see that I am in the total minority here but I expect my dogs (and my children) to do what I tell them through love and respect, not greed. I only know two dogs trained to KC Gold standard, both are as obedient as anything when the owner wears a bum bag of treats but completely ignorant without.
What happens if you are on a walk and you run out of food? Do they all vanish over the nearest horizon?
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Generally the plan is to use treats for the learning phase, and then phase them out over time. I think it helps to have added motivation when they are still learning and the big wide world is full of exciting distractions which can make them forget themselves sometimes! When my older dog was a puppy I used to carry treats on walks as an added incentive, but now she is older she still comes back to me even though until the last month I haven't carried treats for years. Now I have another puppy I am starting to carry treats again on walks, as the method seemed to work before! Any treats go in a normal coat pocket, not a bum bag, so there is no visual clue to whether I am carrying treats or not!
 
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I would never feed anyone else's dogs unless I knew them/the owner and knew they were ok with it. For instance I once in a while get Tamriel's brother to do a trick and give him a treat if we're out and about.
I don't mind people giving Tam treats, so long as I see it before she gets it! She is so afraid of people that she needs all the help she can get to trust humans.
 
Clodagh said:
I see that I am in the total minority here but I expect my dogs (and my children) to do what I tell them through love and respect, not greed. I only know two dogs trained to KC Gold standard, both are as obedient as anything when the owner wears a bum bag of treats but completely ignorant without.
What happens if you are on a walk and you run out of food? Do they all vanish over the nearest horizon?
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I tend to agree and I don't like to work with dogs who are overly food orientated, our youngest spaniel is a complete moron for food and she is the worst for working properly.

However, I will always carry kibble with me and alternate rewarding with praise and a small treat, but only my own, I think it is a complete no no to feed other peoples' dogs.
 
Clodagh said:
I see that I am in the total minority here but I expect my dogs (and my children) to do what I tell them through love and respect, not greed. I only know two dogs trained to KC Gold standard, both are as obedient as anything when the owner wears a bum bag of treats but completely ignorant without.
What happens if you are on a walk and you run out of food? Do they all vanish over the nearest horizon?
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Couldn't agree more. My breed of choice isn't particularly food orientated either so a biscuit would NEVER trump a squirrel!

To the op. You mention a spaniel (new dog?) in your post. Never underestimate the place your dog believes he holds in your affections especially if he's never had to compete for it. It's not unheard of for dogs to develop strange behaviours when they feel usurped. Some even try to rehome themselves by wandering off with other people on walks.
 
Again, to me, it isn't treats, it's the dog working for his dinner.
Does it matter whether the dog's daily allowance of food comes in a bowl, from my pocket or off a 1000 pace, seven-leg track that's been left to mature for 90 minutes?
 
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