When can I give treats to my baby?

[NeSaxena]

Boone, our BM, is two months old today. He knows sit, lie down, come, off, give paw and a little bit of stay right now. I'd like to start giving him treats like jerky as rewards (currently I'm using broken up kibble). When can I give him these? Please keep in mind that for 1 week (1/13 - 1/20) since we brought him home, he was extremely unwell (extreme diarrhea, vomiting, blood in stools - no parvo though, just stress diarrhea). He was on Royal Canin gastrointestinal health kibble before (very recently) moving to the normal puppy food.
Also, I've read in a few places but I'd like opinions - peanut butter or any other nuts - harmful for BM's? I refuse to give him anything other than his food right now. He's also learning not to beg when we eat as well (Smarty pants!!) Any human food allowed for these guys as treats?

 

[Mooshi's Mummy]

As long as his belly is ok now there is nothing stopping you giving him small bits of cheese or chicken as training rewards. Peanut butter is perfectly safe but macadamia nuts are poisonous.

 

[NeSaxena]

Oh awesome! Thank you Mooshi's mummy

 

[Mooshi's Mummy]

You're welcome.

 

[Robtouw]

Absolutely no nuts! Creamy peanut butter is ok, you can even roll it into little balls and freeze it into little teething treats! I use a lot of sliced turkey, bits of bananna, carrots, whole green beans, small cubes of cheese, dehydrated meats, even dehydrated sweet potatos as treats, also a couple tablespoons of plain yogurt. Pay attention to what you give him and when in case he has an issue with something so that you can stop using it. Our guy has no issues with anything except eggs, in the beginning we would give him scrambled eggs in his breakfast on Sundays, when we ate a nice sit-down breakfast, they ended up being the one food item that triggered diarrhea!

 

[Mooshi's Mummy]

why no crunchy peanut butter? my two have it all the time.

 

[Robtouw]

The nuts do not breakdown in the stomach and can settle in the lower intestines and cause an impaction. A friend of mine had an experience with her neo that stuck with me! Her dog was at first constipated, then gassy, belly extended with no abdominal pain. The vet treated with a laxitive solution, which caused cramping but no results. They then suspected bloat, but xrays showed the intestines were not tied, but a mass in the lower intestines. Surgery removed the mass, it was a big mess of hardened poop with peanuts, bits of bone and wood chips. That left quite an impression on me! I've stayed away from any type of nuts and do not allow Cruise to have bones. It was an expensive, painful experience for Kato, but he recovered nicely.

 

[Mooshi's Mummy]

Ah I see. I dont doubt that has scared the pants off you but I wonder if it didnt really have more to do with the wood and bone than the peanut butter bits. I would think it would take A LOT of crunchy peanut butter on its own to cause injury to that extent. I'll still give it to my two, they only get a tsp every other day or so. But trust me if they stop pooping I will bear your comments in mind!

 

[DennasMom]

Crazy story Robtouw. That definitely does leave an impression! I'll be doing some research on that, since Costco only had the crunchy version (Adams all natural version) last time... I prefer the creamy, but got what they had. I avoid all the fancy sweetened nut butters. The added salt is bad enough, but I like to eat it too, and I'm a salt-a-holic. Our EM loves everything fruit and also most veggies. I regularly dehydrate apple and sweet potato slices for her - those go in the kong with the peanut butter 'glue'. Other treats we use include freeze-dried meats (chicken, salmon, any version of liver, available in most pet stores), and the little zukes treats. Some of the purchased treats can be too rich, and if you go overboard (as I did once) that can lead to squirts. That's why we go through all the apples and sweet potatoes... they're squirt-free.

 

[NeSaxena]

So normal peanut butter, available in the supermarket for human consumption is okay? How much is okay? Or is there a special one available for dogs? Please keep in mind, I'm in India, so most freeze dried/dehydrated stuff is not available here. If you can tell me how I can dehydrate stuff, I could do it at home

 

[Robtouw]

Normal creamy pb is just fine, look for one that is not too oily. You can give a tablespoon or two at a time, once or a few times a day with no probs. Test it in a small amount first to make sure your pup doesn't have any issues. I dehydrate my own snacks, an electric dehydrater here isn't very expensive and is so easy and better since I don't add any salts or preservatives! My fav thing with Cruiser is to smear a good bit in a plastic cup, he takes it to his blanket and lays quietly for quite a while and enjoys it every morning! It keeps him away from me while I eat breakfast or sneak out!

 

[NeSaxena]

It keeps him away from me while I eat breakfast or sneak out!

I like the sound of that! Boone catches on to my pajamas in the morning and doesn't let me go anywhere. He doesn't bite, but has this uncanny ability to wrap his front paws around my leg and sit on my foot! I didn't know dogs could do that
Thank you for your suggestion! I'm going to try it out today. AND hunt for a dehydrator here!