Dog Treats by Form, Protein and Size

Choose a dog treat in this order: the job, then the form, then the protein, then the piece size that suits your dog. This page is the index for the rest of the site, with every dog shelf listed by what it is for.

Start with the dog

Begin with a picture of one dog, not the whole category. Say the dog is a 35 pound terrier mix learning to come when called. The job is training, so the form wants to be small, quick to eat and strong smelling. The protein follows from what the dog likes. The size follows from the weight.

That is four decisions, and each narrows the field. Job tells you whether to look at a training pouch, a chew or an everyday biscuit. Form tells you how the treat behaves in a pocket. Protein is the flavor. Size comes last because it is the easiest to change: you can cut any treat smaller.

Run the same method on a different dog. An 80 pound retriever that chews everything has a different job: chewing. The form is an air dried piece or a long lasting chew, the protein is whatever the dog likes best, and the size is big enough that the dog needs both paws. A fifteen year old dog that has gone slow on crunchy treats wants an everyday job, a soft form and a small piece.

VCA Hospitals says to keep treats to a small share of the daily calories, no more than 10 percent by VCA's figure, which is why piece size matters so much. Small pieces let you reward often and still stay within the day's allowance. The guide on how many treats a day does the counting.

By form: freeze dried, air dried, baked and chews

Form is how the treat was made and what it feels like in the hand. The shelves, one line each:

• Freeze dried dog treats: light, brittle pieces that break along the grain.
• Air dried dog treats: denser, chewier, slower to eat.
• Dehydrated dog treats: thin, tough strips and chips.
• Baked dog treats and biscuits: crunchy and sturdy in a pocket.
• Jerky dog treats: strips cut to tear or to chew.
• Soft dog treats: pliable pieces that pinch off small.
• Crunchy dog treats: crisp pieces that snap.

At a glance, freeze dried weighs the least and breaks the easiest. Air dried lasts longer in the mouth. Dehydrated is thin and tears. Baked is the most portable and the sturdiest in a pocket. Jerky is long and can be cut to any size. Weight matters if you carry a pouch all day, and sturdiness matters if it rides in a bag.

The comparison in freeze dried vs air dried vs dehydrated vs baked puts the four main forms side by side.

Chews are a form of their own. Dog chews is the whole shelf, and it divides into long lasting dog chews, bully sticks, antler chews, yak chews, rawhide chews and rawhide free chews.

Chew size follows the muzzle. Hold a chew beside the dog's face, and if the dog could take the whole thing into its mouth, step up a size. A thicker chew lasts longer than a thin one of the same length, and whichever you choose, stay with the dog while it works and take away the last small stub.

By protein

The protein shelves are the flavor index. Poultry and red meat first: chicken dog treats, turkey dog treats, duck dog treats, beef dog treats, lamb dog treats and pork dog treats.

Game and less common meats are on venison dog treats, rabbit dog treats, bison dog treats and kangaroo dog treats.

From the water: salmon dog treats, fish dog treats and seafood dog treats. Other single foods have their own shelves: organ dog treats, cheese dog treats, peanut butter dog treats and fruit and vegetable dog treats.

A good way to pick a protein is to start with the ones the dog already eats. A new flavor is an advantage in training and a nuisance if you change too much at once. Poultry shelves are the biggest. Organ and fish shelves are the strongest smelling, and the chew shelves hold the proteins that come as a long piece rather than a bite.

A dog that has not had a protein before is a good reason to start with one new shelf at a time, in small pieces, and to read the ingredient list as the guide on how to read a pet treat label describes.

By job: training, chewing, everyday

Job is where most shoppers should begin. Training wants small, fast, strong smelling pieces: dog training treats. Chewing wants something that lasts, which is the chew shelves above. Everyday means a plain reward handed out through the day, and the baked and crunchy shelves cover it.

Size and age have their own shelves. Puppy treats are sized for small mouths, small dog treats and large dog treats sort by the dog's weight, and senior dog treats leans toward soft and easy to crush. Dental dog treats collects chews sold under that name, with each maker's own wording on the product page.

Ingredient shelves are the last group. Single ingredient dog treats are bags with one line on the label, and grain free dog treats sorts by what a recipe leaves out. For origin there are dog treats made in the USA and treats made in Pennsylvania.

Sniff and Shift freeze dries and air dries its own line in small batches in Malvern, and the whole range sits in Sniff and Shift treats.

A treat does not have to stay in one job. A freeze dried piece can train, and a baked biscuit can be an everyday reward; the job is how you use it, not what the bag says.

The guides go deeper on the common questions. Best dog training treats compares the types for training, dog chews for aggressive chewers covers long lasting chews, soft vs crunchy dog treats sets two textures side by side, and treat price per ounce explains how to compare bags of different sizes.

Size has guides of its own. See dog treats for small dogs, dog treats for large dogs and dog treats for senior dogs, and read high value dog treats for finding the one your dog works hardest for.

Leave price for last. Settle the job, form, protein and size first, then compare what is left by price per ounce, so you are weighing like with like. A cheaper bag of the wrong size is not cheaper in use, because the dog will not finish it or you will cut it down and waste the crumbs.

How to use the filters on this site

Start on dog treats, the full shelf, and narrow it from there. Pick a form, then a protein, then a size, and watch the list shrink. If the list gets too short, drop the last filter you added, which is usually the protein.

The terrier mix from the start of this page ends up with a short list: training, freeze dried or soft, a protein it likes, a small piece. That is three or four products to look at, not four hundred.

The trade off of a hub is thinness. A page like this one points; it does not describe. When a shelf looks right, open its own page and read the intro, and go to the guide that goes with it for the detail. The collection pages are the buying shelves, and the guides are where the questions get answered.

On a product page, check the three things the maker states: what it is made of, the form and the size. Partner products carry the supplier's own description, and the paragraph near the foot names the supplier and says who ships the item.

Common questions

Where should I start when choosing a dog treat?

Start with the job: training, chewing or an everyday reward. Then pick the form, the protein and the piece size. Size is the easiest to change, since you can cut any treat smaller.

What is the difference between freeze dried and air dried treats?

Freeze dried pieces are light and brittle, while air dried pieces are denser and chewier. The way the water is removed changes the texture. A comparison guide on this site covers all four main forms.

How do I narrow down a long list of dog treats?

Add filters one at a time: form, then protein, then size. If the list becomes too short, remove the last filter you added. Usually that is the protein.

How many treats should a dog have in a day?

It depends on the dog's food and the calories in each treat. VCA Hospitals says to keep treats to a small share of the daily calories. Count pieces, not handfuls.