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Best treats for sensitive stomach & picky eater!

Basenji Feeding
  • Greetings all!

    Our 9 yr old girl Zhandi does really great on her dog food, and has been consistent in this, but seems to get loose stools, gurgling tummy, but NO vomiting whenever we try to give any kind of treat that is anything other than her dog food.
    I'm assuming it may be because she's so used to what's been good for her so far that now anything new is causing an upset tummy! At this point we've gone through several nice brands all to the same effect of getting poops, but always passing fairly quickly within a day or two at most (definitely the treats, nothing else, as she isn't allowed to eat any human scraps).

    I'm wondering what would be good to give her as treats other than store-bought ones, such as fresh carrots or other fruits and veggies (although she won't eat them raw) and how to best prepare (such as steaming, raw, sliced thin, boiling)?

    I figure if her stomach is sensitive to store-bought treats, then fresh snacks should only do her good! What are some of everyone's B's favs?

    I want to find something her stomach can handle, I feel bad she hasn't been able to enjoy a consequence-free treat in a while!

  • @zhandizoo - Make your own... get yourself a dehydrator, well worth the money both for doggy treats and humas treats. I make chicken for mine...along with many fruits/veggies.

  • @tanza said in Best treats for sensitive stomach & picky eater!:

    I make chicken for mine...along with many fruits/veggies.

    Do you have specific recipes for this, or are you just dehydrating for long term storage?

  • Sometimes it's just the ceremony, so giving her kibble as "treats" works fine.

    One thing you don't want to do is keep giving different treats. Pick one, give only a pea size bite several times a day. You can use the dehydrator for meat or fruits or veggies.

  • @elbrant - No recipe.... I use chicken tenders, pound them fairly thin and into the dehydrator for about 12 hours.... fruits/veggies cut into bit size and into the dehydrator. Nothing added.
    Never last long term... LOL the Basenji love them as treats.... and/or training rewards.

  • Try RBBB (raw beef brisket bones). The dogs enjoy them, and good for their teeth. No debris to pick up as the bones get consumed - I find two to three inches per bone, more larger than smaller, gives good crunchies that they enjoy.

  • @redial - That would be nice if they were available in the US.... but they are not... at least not in California.... there are no local butchers so to speak and the super markets do not get the brisket bone with the meat

  • @tanza said in Best treats for sensitive stomach & picky eater!:

    the super markets do not get the brisket bone with the meat

    I don't get Brisket, but I am able to get beef "Neck Bones" from my local market. Call your grocer early (6 or 7am) and ask them to put the Neck bones to the side for you. They should have some whenever they cut their Chuck Roast, so most likely every day. I usually get 5-6 in a pack for ~$1# (USD). I don't think I've ever paid more than $2 for a package. The bones are different shapes with varying amounts of meat on them.

    I put them on a cookie sheet, freeze them about an hour, then store them in a zippered freezer bag, the same way I do the canned Pumpkin. doodle gets one almost every day. Our summer heat index is typically in the triple digits, so this is her "beefsickle". Don't forget to count the calories as part of their daily intake.

  • I know this topic is old, but I give my B freeze dried salmon bites as treats. I usually find them in the cat section

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