Terry Rubin

11 de mayo de 2011

Perfect treat for training and other things

I've bought Zukes Mini Treats, chicken for such a long time. I heard about it on TV series. So when I checked at a store, they, to me, were expensive, some sites are better.BUT Amazon, so far, beats all prices. I never thought that these treats would work so fast, it's amazing. Yes I saw it on TV, since I'm not sure one is allowed to say which series it is, I won't say what it is.First time I bought Zukes, 1 pound, (got two dogs), I bought it long ago, with other products, and like I wrote, both dogs learned fast, everytime I train, or make sure they always are good, mainly outside, they actually know I have those mini Chicken treats...probably the smell, and we have 2 Labs, so I guess it's the smell.First time I used them, it was only when they gave positive reaction. I was quit surprised it didn't take long as dogs do remember, so when I give command, and they listen, I praise them, give them each the treat.I also got one of those treat packages, comes in handy outside.I have to say they remember better than I do, meaning when I say something new, a new learning thing, it seemed, at at least to me, that they knew if they did it, they'd get a treat.I want to make clear that although on occassion on some dogs, it takes longer to learn, but they do. But also, there WILL come a time that they just do what they're told, like "not try to dig under fence, or try to go after Cats", that they actually do listen, but when they come inside doggie door when I call them, they sit and wait before going in the house. So, yes, I give each of them one mini chicken treat.Then they go in the house, and they both play.But in the house, if or when things get out hand, like door bell ringing, the best word for me that I taught was a stern "NO!" that takes their attention off the door.Here's a tip, another thing I used a long time ago...because dogs do what dogs do, meaning we have so many cats in the neighborhood, not easy to get them in the house.I started with a clicker, inside house, they know that clicking sound they get the mini chicken treat. That, at last for us, WORKS ALL THE TIME.I really don't know what else to say, other than if anyone is going to try the treats, make sure you try the chicken first, they seem, at least our dogs, love that chicken. One pound of those treats are far better price than 8oz.Just make sure it comes from Amazon, anything over $25.00 you don't pay postage. (unless you don't care about postage, or you're rich..lol )The 3rd parties also, I found, but ONLY SOMETIMES, they also don't charge postage. What I'm trying to say is if economy is hurting you, then just take the time, as I do, and just check out the prices.If anyone has any questions, or even suggestions as I always like suggestions, please feel free to contact me.Now I feel better doing the review. I should have done more reviews, I plead guilty to that. In a way, this was fun to do. Thank you for reading my review, and hope, especially if you have hard time training, hope you try these treats.Just remember THIS, never YELL, or NEVER EVER hit your dog, that is so wrong, especially if it's trained, and somebody wants to pet him/her, the dog will DEFINATELY think he or she might be hit. Dogs are, indeed, smarter than people realize, and from 1967 til present, I always find out new things about our dogs, as we adopt them, they are wonderful animals to have, they WILL protect you, LOVE you, and do anything for you.I know this to be true..., so believe me when I say Dogs are great, my view is GREAT for us Senior Citizens, they do protect us, and in my case one literally saved my life in July, 2008.So reminding you if anyone has any questions, please ask, or recommendations, that's cool too, always listen to recommendations. :-)Ver más

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D. C.

7 de julio de 2013

Full review + Q&A with Zuke's!

--------------------------------------------INTRO AND GENERAL INFO--------------------------------------------My wife and I purchased these treats one day when we had run out of our normal treats. They are small, our dogs love them, and are much better quality than many commonly available store brands. Still, I had some questions about the ingredients, so I sent an email over to the Zuke's customer service address, and got a very nice response, pasted below.You may be asking already, "if your dogs love them and they're good quality, why four stars?". Because in our household, "good" quality and "best" quality are two very different things, and in the (sometimes) murky world of meat grading the difference can actually mean health or illness and even life or death. I'm not trying to be dramatic, but after seeing the DOZENS of recalls on pet food and treats over the past few years, my wife and I decided (with the help of a top Amazon reviewer, Chandler) to get informed about meat quality.This is what led me to my email to Zuke's.--------------------------------------------Q&A WITH A ZUKE'S CS REP--------------------------------------------Hello!!Thank you so much for writing us here at Zuke's, and thank you for the great questions! Here are the answers:1) Your treats are made in the USA, but are the ingredients ever sourced overseas?We are still made in the United States, with all of our meat, fruits and veggies sourced from the USA (with the exception of the Wild Rabbit and Venison, which comes from New Zealand). Our Salmon is Pacific Wild Caught when available, and USA farmed (Pacific Coast) when Wild Caught is not an option. Our ingredients are grown, processed and packaged all in the USA. I would like to assure you that we here at Zuke's would never put anything harmful in our products. Our pets are our family, and we treat them as such!2) You have done a great job at NOT being part of recent recalls - do you have a recall history?Our company has been in business since 1995 and has never had a recall, because of the methods we use to test. We test our products throughout manufacturing, and then one final test before packaging. The product is then packaged, and sits in the warehouse until the test results return from the lab confirming their safety. Only after the final thumbs up does our product get shipped. I would like to assure you that we here at Zuke's take our treats very seriously.3) Could you tell me a little bit more about your meat content? I know it's not human-grade, but what specific inspections are made by the FDA for the meat content?All meats come from USDA regulated and inspected facilities... The meat is handled the same way meats for human consumption are handled. It is shipped in frozen blocks to our manufacturer and is kept frozen until our product is produced......NZ Rabbit and venison are inspected at the port of entry.Thank you again for writing us here at Zuke's, and please feel free to contact me with any other questions you may have!--------------------------------------------SO WHY NOT FIVE STARS?--------------------------------------------Listen, I was very satisfied with Zuke's customer service, and their responses lead me to believe that they are absolutely above-standard when it comes to dog treats. That said, knowing what I know about the "standards" of non human-grade meats (and the animals they come from) that are used in dog treats (regardless of the manner in which they are handled) I simply cannot rate this at the full five stars. I feel much more comfortable feeding these to my pups than other common brands, but with recent news of super-premium brands with no recall history having to recall products (which they only do after significant numbers of illness and death are reported), I really think that human-grade dog treats are just so much safer.--------------------------------------------OVERALL--------------------------------------------If you have been feeding your dog "regular" treats with all sort of animal by-products, Zuke's is certainly a step up. I don't want to discourage ANYONE from buying better-quality treats than they are currently purchasing. That said, if you want the absolute best treats for your pup don't have the time or resources to make your own, I highly suggest researching companies that use human-grade meat. Keep in mind "handled in the same way as meat for human consumption" and "human-grade" are two entirely different things.Recommended, but with some reservation.NOTE: I edited this review to remove the portion inviting people to email me for more information - I'm sorry I couldn't get to everyone, however the sheer volume of emails every week is a little much for one person. In short, these are still very decent treats as long as nothing has changed behind the scenes, but you can never go wrong with well-researched DIY treats.