As an Amazon Associate, GadgetsForYourDog.com may earn small commissions (at no additional cost to you) if you purchase products from Amazon after clicking on a link from our site.
Some dog tech products fascinate dog owners enormously, but not so much their furry four-legged friends. With dog treat dispenser, however, this is not the case; after all which dog owner has a dog that doesn’t like treats?
Table of Contents
Does my dog need it?
You’ve probably heard of dog feeders which automatically dispense a preset amount of food at a preset time. On the other hand, there are a variety of options with dog treat dispensers. They can dispense treats after the dog has completed a problem-solving task (puzzle toys) or a certain command, or has been pushed a button (train and treat type of dispensers). In this way dogs become engaged in some form of play or good behavior. And get rewarded with a treat.
Also, many automatic treat dispensers dispense a different number of treats to keep your dog interested and engaged. That being said, you could always use dog kibbles as treats. And this may partially or sometimes wholly replace your dog’s meal.
All types of treat dispensers are particularly good for fast eaters, helping to slow them down ensuring that they digest their food properly.
What options are there?
So now let’s review some of the options we have available if we want to spoil our canine companions. Dispensers will also help them feel better when we’re not around and avoid or reduce issues with separation anxiety. My own miniature poodle (as an example), despite not having any serious anxiety issues, would look miserable when left alone at home. Unless he was sustained with treats coming out of his Kong toy – a game changer.
When choosing the best treat dispenser for your pet you will come across:
Treat dispensing dog toys
Treat dispensing dog toys – a budget choice, which usually cost much less than automatic treat dispensers.
You can have a few of them in different rooms of your house. Or you can take them on a car ride (unless of course your pooch suffers from motion sickness in which case a tummy full of dog treats might not be the best thing). You can also take them with you on holidays. My previously mentioned mini poodle, for example, is fine to be left in a hotel room, a potentially stressful new environment, as long as his dog treat stuffed toy is left with him.
The options here are endless: balls and other dog treat toys, which require your dog to roll it, hit it or rattle it to get the treats out, such as Kong, the best seller treat dispensing toy, or Starmark Bob-A-Lot.
There are dog puzzle toys which challenge your pooch to solve the problem to get a reward. Of them, Nina Ottosson puzzle game dog toys are the best in our opinion.
There’s a special place in the hearts of many dogs for digging dog toys with treats hidden inside, such as iDig by iFetch and other nosework snuffle mats and blankets.
Just remember that some of them may not be able to withstand strong chewing; problems sometimes arise with larger dogs who can destroy virtually any toy within minutes or hours whilst small dogs might enjoy the same toy for months or years. So, for those strong pups choose toys tagged “indestructible” (at least, they will survive for longer).
Automatic dog treat dispensers
Automatic treat dispensers, as the name suggests, dispense treats automatically, either by the dog doing something or some have the additional option of dispensing treats at a preset time. The choice for these is a little limited with few models available at present:
PetSafe Treat & Train Manners Minder Remote Reward Dog Trainer – is a more sophisticated dispenser. It was designed by a vet and animal behaviorist with the idea of positive reinforcement training in mind. Probably the most popular automatic dog treat dispenser, great overall. It has good customer support to dealt with any problems quickly and efficiently. Which is good, especially when you’ve paid top price for a top of the range product.
Together with the Treat & Train unit you receive a training guide and a video which helps to familiarize you with how to use the product. Your dog, of course, will grasp the idea naturally!
The dispenser works by remote control and is a big help with training. It additionally enables you to have clean hands whilst teaching your dog. For dog parents that are less engaged in training it is still a useful tool. You can divert your pet’s attention from whatever it is you don’t want them to do (barking at your neighbours as an example) to the treats dispensed from the dispenser.
The other option – PetSafe Train N Praise Dog Treat Dispenser, which is available in the US, is basically very similar to the Treat & Train Manners Minder, but it’s a less costly, simpler model. It also works using a remote control, but only for short distances.
Dog cameras with treat dispenser
Some pet cameras happen to be treat-tossing. So you can combine multiple dog tech features (live stream video, two-way communication, barking and emergency alarms) with rewarding your pooch. Furbo dog camera is the best seller here and is sold in many countries.
Cheaper cameras with treat dispensers are available too.
What’s the best choice?
So, if you are puzzled about what to buy here is a short summary. If you want your pup to work hard to get treats, get a treat dispensing chewy or puzzle toy. Better still get a few of them. A digging mat or automatic dog treat dispenser will also work great.
If you just want to please her with your voice and something tasty, get a treat tossing camera. Additionally, you will be able to take some nice photos. And you will get the possibility of a live stream video of your pooch and house.
Don’t forget to consider the sturdiness of a toy or a gadget before buying if you have a strong chewer. And if you’ve got a small pooch be sure to check how many treats are dispensed at once so your pup’s little tummy will not overfill too quickly.