Treats for Every Animal in the House

Dogs, cats, rabbits, parrots, hens, lizards, horses and pigs all take treats, and what counts as one differs more by animal than by anything else. This page is the index: one short section per group, with the page to read next.

Each section names the usual shape of a treat for that animal, then sends you on. Depth lives on the linked pages, because breadth is the point of this one: a house with a dog, a cat and a flock needs a map more than an essay, and the map is only useful if it is accurate about what each animal is offered.

Dogs

Dog treats come as freeze dried cubes, air dried chews, baked biscuits and soft bits, and a good page for them sorts by protein, form and size. Start with dog treats by form, protein and size, then pick a shelf in the dog treats collection.

The same bag can serve two jobs depending on the piece. Crumbled, a freeze dried cube is a reward for a training session. Whole, a chew keeps a dog busy for an afternoon. Size every piece to the dog's muzzle, and a chew that disappears in one bite is too small to count as one.

Puppies, older dogs and small dogs each have a shelf of their own: puppy treats, senior dog treats and small dog treats, which differ mainly in piece size.

Sniff and Shift makes treats for dogs and cats, and each label names dogs, or dogs and cats. For every other animal on this page the range comes from other makers, and some of those collections are still small.

Cats

Cat treats are small and usually fish or poultry, freeze dried or dried in thin pieces, sized for a mouth that takes a quarter inch at a time. Merck notes that cats need some nutrients only animal foods supply, which fits a shelf made up mostly of animal protein.

The page to read first is cat treats by form, protein and use, and the cat treats collection holds what is in stock. A cat's piece is smaller than a dog's from the same bag.

Cats take a treat on their own terms. The usual method is to set a piece down at floor level and step back, and a cat that sniffs and walks away has told you something about the flavor, not about your technique. Buy the smallest bag of a new treat first, and look at fish cat treats and chicken cat treats to see how the shelf splits.

Rabbits, guinea pigs and other small pets

Treats for small pets are mostly dried vegetables, herbs, seed sticks and hay based chews, given in pieces about the size of a thumbnail. The Merck Veterinary Manual describes rabbits as plant eaters whose diet is mostly grass hay, so a treat here is a small extra and never the meal.

The overview page is treats for small pets, with species pages for rabbits, guinea pigs and hamsters. The small pet treats collection covers the group.

Small animals eat little at a time, so the piece is small and the offering is brief. A thumbnail sized piece handed over on an open palm, with the hay bowl full beside it, is the usual shape of the exchange, and a rabbit that takes it from your hand is a rabbit that trusts the hand.

Birds and backyard chickens

Bird treats are seed sticks, millet sprays, nut pieces and dried fruit, offered in pieces small enough to take in a single bite or hold in one foot. Chicken treats are dried mealworms, scratch grains and larvae scattered by the handful for a flock that forages together.

Read what treats parrots can eat for the first, and treats for backyard chickens for the second. The matching shelves are bird treats and chicken treats.

The two groups behave differently around a treat. A parrot works for a single piece it can hold, and it often prefers to take the piece from a hand it knows. A flock of hens works as a crowd: scatter the treat on the ground and the whole flock comes running, which is why the quantity is measured in handfuls and the handful is kept small. Two smaller pages sit under these: spray millet for birds and mealworms versus black soldier fly larvae for the flock.

Reptiles, horses and pigs

Reptile treats are usually dried insects or pieces of produce, and The Merck Veterinary Manual sorts pet lizards into plant eaters, insect eaters, meat eaters and omnivores by species. That is why the reptile page is organized by animal and not by treat. A treat that suits a bearded dragon and a treat that suits a gecko are different treats, and the page keeps them apart. For the insect side of the shelf, see dried insects for reptiles.

Horse treats are small pieces handed over from a flat palm, and pig treats are cut vegetables with a little fruit, which the Merck Veterinary Manual suggests saving for training. Merck calls forage the basis of a horse's diet, so a horse treat is an extra. The pages are bearded dragon treats, what treats horses can eat and mini pig treats, with reptile treats, horse treats and pig treats behind them.

Horses and pigs share one thing with dogs: they take a treat from a hand. A horse wants a flat palm with the fingers together, and how to hand feed a horse a treat goes through the method. A pig does better with a steady palm at snout height, since a treat dropped on the ground is gone before the pig has finished looking at it.

In a house with more than one kind of animal, the rule is the same for each: label first, species page second. Use the collection for each animal as the quick way back to what is in stock.

Three habits carry across every species here. Size the piece to the mouth, so that a treat is eaten in one or two bites. Keep the treat a small extra beside the animal's regular food. Keep the bag closed between uses, and keep each animal's bag apart from the next one's.

The range for these animals is growing. A collection that looks short is short, and each page says what is in stock now.

Common questions

Where do I start if I keep more than one kind of animal?

Start with the section above for each animal and read its page. Treats are sized and made for the animal named on the label, so a page for one species does not carry over to the next.

Does Sniff and Shift make treats for rabbits or horses?

No. Its treats are labeled for dogs, and many for cats as well. The pages for other animals carry products from independent makers.

Can I give one animal another animal's treats?

Read the label first. A treat is made and sized for the animal named on it, and some labels name two animals while others name one. The page for your animal says what is usually offered.

Why are some animal collections small?

The range is growing, and some animals have fewer makers than dogs and cats do. Each collection page shows what is in stock now.