Snacks to tempt my coworker's dog
August 5, 2019 8:07 AM Subscribe
One of my coworkers brings Frank, her 11-year old Shih Tzu, to work about once a week. Frank's favorite time of the day is when he gets to roam around the desks and beg for treats from his favorite humans in exchange for pets. What snacks should I bring to tempt Frank to my desk?
Of course, Plan A is to just buy a bag of standard dog treats, but I'm wondering if there's anything more interesting I can bring. Frank eats just about anything (I'm told that one common treat at home is stale communion wafers). I prefer anything that keeps well at room temperature.
Of course, Plan A is to just buy a bag of standard dog treats, but I'm wondering if there's anything more interesting I can bring. Frank eats just about anything (I'm told that one common treat at home is stale communion wafers). I prefer anything that keeps well at room temperature.
Check with the owner on these as some people report adverse effects from them, but the majority of my foster dogs have loved the Kirkland (Costco) green dental chews above all other treats, including some actual meat ones.
posted by Candleman at 8:17 AM on August 5, 2019 [4 favorites]
posted by Candleman at 8:17 AM on August 5, 2019 [4 favorites]
You want tiny snacks or you'll end up with a pukey Frank, but many dogs love those little freeze-dried liver training treats (which appear to have the texture of freeze-dried strawberries or "astronaut ice cream") and they store well, if you use a container with an airtight lid or a zip-top bag.
My dogs, who have to do a complicated crating-up process several times a day, especially love Milk Bone Minis and short pinches of Pupperoni, both available at pretty much any store near you.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:17 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
My dogs, who have to do a complicated crating-up process several times a day, especially love Milk Bone Minis and short pinches of Pupperoni, both available at pretty much any store near you.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:17 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
Best answer: My dogs love Cheerios. They're tiny and easy to dispense, and snackable for the human too :)
posted by Sparky Buttons at 8:21 AM on August 5, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by Sparky Buttons at 8:21 AM on August 5, 2019 [2 favorites]
Freeze dried liver. Bit's of a hotdog sliced up & dried in your oven. Dip a boring normal dog treat into peanut butter or spray cheese.
posted by wwax at 8:21 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by wwax at 8:21 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
My dog absolutely loves dried lamb lung (I know, gross). The pieces are usually really big, so you can break them up. But also, it sounds like Frank is like my dog and will be ecstatic about absolutely any food you happen to have.
posted by Ragged Richard at 8:25 AM on August 5, 2019
posted by Ragged Richard at 8:25 AM on August 5, 2019
If you don’t want to have a bag of freeze dried liver freeze dried sweet potato has also been popular with my dogs, they’ve been getting it as a reward ever since they climbed up on the counter and ate all the freeze dried liver.
posted by lepus at 8:27 AM on August 5, 2019
posted by lepus at 8:27 AM on August 5, 2019
If he likes stale communion wafers, he may like these Icelandic lamb bone marrow chips.
posted by praemunire at 8:29 AM on August 5, 2019
posted by praemunire at 8:29 AM on August 5, 2019
Cheez-its! Also delicious for human consumption.
posted by little king trashmouth at 8:34 AM on August 5, 2019
posted by little king trashmouth at 8:34 AM on August 5, 2019
Truly have to wonder how his owner comes by significant quantities of stale communion wafers. I also feel like there's potential for a story there.
posted by dlugoczaj at 8:37 AM on August 5, 2019 [20 favorites]
posted by dlugoczaj at 8:37 AM on August 5, 2019 [20 favorites]
Ask Frank's owner!
Frank might have food sensitivities or allergies, or a marked preference for one flavor/brand /shape. My dog is a rescue and his GI tract is screwed up, so most treats would have him leaving disgusting messes -- yes, messes so gross that even a dog would avoid them -- all over the place. :7(
posted by wenestvedt at 8:43 AM on August 5, 2019 [7 favorites]
Frank might have food sensitivities or allergies, or a marked preference for one flavor/brand /shape. My dog is a rescue and his GI tract is screwed up, so most treats would have him leaving disgusting messes -- yes, messes so gross that even a dog would avoid them -- all over the place. :7(
posted by wenestvedt at 8:43 AM on August 5, 2019 [7 favorites]
Any kind of weird dried fish-related thing is always a huge hit with dogs, in my experience.
posted by sallybrown at 9:06 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by sallybrown at 9:06 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
If Frank can truly have anything, little balls of cheese puffs have been the most popular office dog treat that I’ve encountered.
posted by inevitability at 9:28 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by inevitability at 9:28 AM on August 5, 2019 [1 favorite]
Best answer: My pug loves these treats by Orijen, in this or any of the many flavours they have. (Not cheap, though.)
Also anything made of dried fish or salmon skin, and oddly enough, bits of carrot, sweet potato, and butternut squash.
I agree with the advice above to double-check with Frank's owners, though. It sounds like he must have a pretty strong gut if he's allowed to go around and ask for treats, but it's always worth asking if you plan to bring anything special or unusual.
posted by rpfields at 10:15 AM on August 5, 2019
Also anything made of dried fish or salmon skin, and oddly enough, bits of carrot, sweet potato, and butternut squash.
I agree with the advice above to double-check with Frank's owners, though. It sounds like he must have a pretty strong gut if he's allowed to go around and ask for treats, but it's always worth asking if you plan to bring anything special or unusual.
posted by rpfields at 10:15 AM on August 5, 2019
Frank’s owner will let you know if these are okay, but my friend’s dog LOVE small dried fish, available at the Asian grocery store - I’m not sure what type they are, but they’re about the size of a minnow. Keep in an airtight container.
posted by Juniper Toast at 10:45 AM on August 5, 2019
posted by Juniper Toast at 10:45 AM on August 5, 2019
Best answer: Baby carrots go over extremely well with all the dogs I know, and have the added benefit that they tend to be very good for the dog's health and digestion and do not cause any concerns to the dog's owner. I've seen a dog go through two pounds of the things with no ill effects whatsoever, not even loss of appetite for its dinner that night. A side bonus is that if the dog doesn't come to work this week or turns out not to like them you will not end up having to munch your way through a bag of freeze-dried lamb liver.
posted by Jane the Brown at 11:07 AM on August 5, 2019 [7 favorites]
posted by Jane the Brown at 11:07 AM on August 5, 2019 [7 favorites]
Best answer: Charlee Bears - small, dry, easy to mete out, limited calories per treat. I get them from Trader Joe's.
posted by namewithoutwords at 12:32 PM on August 5, 2019
posted by namewithoutwords at 12:32 PM on August 5, 2019
Best answer: Probably not the most healthy, but our dog likes a small piece of fortune cookie.
that would be easy to keep in your desk.
posted by domino at 12:37 PM on August 5, 2019
that would be easy to keep in your desk.
posted by domino at 12:37 PM on August 5, 2019
Best answer: my senior Shih Tzu says you should get Frank cheese puffs or cheese crackers, and if you could please bring some to our house that would be great!
posted by nancynickerson at 7:36 PM on August 5, 2019
posted by nancynickerson at 7:36 PM on August 5, 2019
Best answer: My dog goes crazy for the beef jerky or salmon/sweet potato treats from Trader Joe's, usually broken into smaller pieces.
posted by Red Desk at 10:20 PM on August 5, 2019
posted by Red Desk at 10:20 PM on August 5, 2019
Response by poster: Thanks for all the suggestions! I ended up getting these salmon treats from Petsmart (Frank is partial to fish), but I'll keep all of these ideas in mind for the future.
posted by J.K. Seazer at 12:37 AM on August 6, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by J.K. Seazer at 12:37 AM on August 6, 2019 [1 favorite]
If you want to keep him happy for an extended period, an appropriately-sized Kong with some peanut butter is surprisingly un-messy. Otherwise, Goldfish are better than Cheerios ... because I like them! Also, store-brand oyster crackers can be very cost effective, but not super durable in a pocket—I’ve ended up with a pocket full of dust a couple times on a walk.
posted by Gilgamesh's Chauffeur at 8:08 PM on August 6, 2019
posted by Gilgamesh's Chauffeur at 8:08 PM on August 6, 2019
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by cakelite at 8:11 AM on August 5, 2019