Dog and cat treats are only handed out in the kitchen here. And only one at a time. The 10 treats you wake up to give her are her breakfast (to her). You are a great short order cook in her mind.

Start now. No treats in the bedroom. Only 2 a day given in another room. Good luck, it may not be easy.

Those Temptations treats are kitty crack, I swear. Mine - all five of them - wake up early EARLY in the morning, and beg for them. They all gather 'round at the designation kitchen "treat area" and it's a symphony of little begging cat voices until they're each given a few - and then it's a feeding frenzy. Tonto, being the baby who hasn't yet learned manners, quickly gobbles his and then tries to eat the stash given the others. Sometimes there's hissing and swatting. It's a ridiculous morning ritual. I don't know what is in those things, but I have never had cats clamor for any other treat the way they do Temptations.

Are you leaving Pepper's out on the nightstand where she can see them? I'd definitely put them out of her sight. Not that it'll stop her from asking for them, but it's worth a try.

(Mine also beg and beg for deli turkey. We started that to try to lure Posy out of hiding, and it's become a thing now. Ugh. Cats.)

Our cats, treats only in the kitchen and I give Misty 2 brewer's yeast...the b vit help with her eye herpes. Mila won't eat them. I also give them a few greenies which helps clean their teeth, and that's it.

Our cat has Greenies for her teeth and a bit of wet food twice a day and expects them on schedule even though there is dry food available at all times. But she also expects certain activities at certain times too-- and expects us to do some of our activities on her schedule too.

But my parents dog would demand that they go to bed by a certain time and not leave them alone until they did...so I guess pets can be rigid.

I volunteer at a shelter and Temptations is the treat that all cats agree on. There are healthier treats out there for cats, though, and I tend to go healthier with my cats.

My cats only get treats once per day, at the same time every day. And never in the bedroom-- always in the kitchen. At treat time they gather in the kitchen with expectant-- some would say desperate-- looks on their faces, but the rest of the day they know no further treats are forthcoming.

We were slaves to the whims of a 4-pound dog for 16 years. I miss it so much!!

My cats only get treats once a day. It's at 3:00 when I crank up the Nespresso for a latte. That's their trigger. Sometimes they remind me if it's gone past 3:00. Mom! Mom! Don't forget your latte!!

The crazy thing is, they are fussy and fickle about snacks. They hate Greenies, but like Wellness Kittles if they're in the mood for whatever flavor I'm offering. Zephyr had a bunch of extractions so he does better with Friskies soft ones. But only once per day. They don't like what I'm offering? Sorry Charlie, no soup for you!

I used the ones that control tartar and they really seemed to work!

But I do wonder how bad they are for kitty health.

I bought a tiny bag of "specialty treats" at the pet store around the time that Posy came to live with us. They were advertised as delicious and calming to kitties, and as we were then experiencing some new-cat friction, I thought it couldn't hurt. I hate to admit that I paid close to $8 for that stupid bag, and when I excitedly offered them to the cats, they sniffed and looked at me as though I'd tried to serve them reconstituted turds. I meant to return the bag, but it's been so long now and I no longer have a receipt. Heck. Maybe DH and I should just eat them. ;-)

I must be a bad cat mom because my cats don't get treats. But, one of our cats does try to get me up at 5:30 to feed them. I'm up at 5:45 most days so I don't know why they can't wait, but oh noooo.

I've always had indoor/outdoor cats and keep them in overnight. For years and years, I trained my various cats to come running at the sound of a Pounce treats can being shaken. That would be the only time they would get a treat. It was a reward for coming in at night. My current cat just couldn't get with the program on this. (He is extremely lovable but definitely not very smart). So no treats for him. :-)

My dog's teeth are terrible and she doesn't do well under anesthesia so the vet decided we shouldn't clean her teeth unless it was absolutely necessary. Last year I found a tooth bone at Costco and it worked great to keep the tartar and doggy breath at bay. And she loved it.

Fast forward a year later and my poor dog was getting fatter and fatter and we couldn't figure out the issue. Her weight went from 40lbs to 51lbs.

We finally realized that the bone was highly caloric and added an extra 25% over her suggested calories each day. We were using the suggested portion size but it was still way too many calories.

We stopped the bone and the weight is coming off. But now her breath stinks again. So, treats are fattening for animals too. Who knew :)

Maddie, long story about Pepper, she basically lives in my bedroom. Going to the kitchen if another cat there is out of the question.

Ida, I may do that with the other cats just for fun, in the evenings when they eat their dinner.

Last week Ayla was on an antibiotic and I gave her Temptations for the first time so she'd have food in her belly before the meds. She loved them! But she is one fat cat.

I pay $10 for a medium size plastic jar. Ouch! I'll definitely keep them out of site and try to go down to once a day.

Pal, my late dog was the same way. In the evenings she'd sit and stare telling me it was time to go to bed. Or I'd say "let's go to bed!" and she'd take off and get in her spot. If she was hogging the bed I'd tell her to scoot over and she literally scooted over! lol

Our dogs get milk bones twice a day. That's six milkbones a day. My pets eat better than I do!

But my parents dog would demand that they go to bed by a certain time and not leave them alone until they did.

I know a dog just like that. He considers that everyone should go to bed at 9:30 pm and appears to notify them. If they fail to heed him, he keeps coming back every ten minutes until they do. It's a house where 2 am is more usual for bedtime, so nobody knows where this came from.

These bossy animals all sound so dang cute!

D—gw

try giving your dog a Kong with a small treat in it. It takes our dog about 15 minutes to get it out and she is chewing and stimulating her teeth and gums the whole time. She is 12 and has great teeth and pretty good breath. She is a heavy chewer so we get the black Kong.

Oh boy - glad I never got started on cat treats. Two are supposed to eat their special uro and renal diets and the other one is supposed to stick to only his food because he's had what seemed to be food allergies. So as a result we've just never done treats. They're obnoxious enough about regular food - can't imagine what I'd be in for with such delicious treats!!

FWIW, one of my neighbors buys a kind of dry food she never uses, I think maybe Purina Party Mix, and for her cats, a treat is a single piece of that. They seem happy.

My cats also love the Temptations but only get them once a day, right before we eat dinner. If we are running late, grumpy Sidewinder will give you the stinkeye until the treats come out. We change up the flavors a lot - current favorite is Shrimpy Shrimp.

My cat eats nothing BUT Temptations, terrible, I know. She is 19 years old, very small, was never much interested in food. For the past few years we tried everything, even homecooked meats, but have given up. She eats about 15 a day, sprinkled with miralax.

All these stories are cute.

My boys get treats when they come and go down around to the cellar for the night. They get four to six treats and then their bowl of wet food. Thomas sometimes balks at going to the cellar. I shake the bag of treats and he just can't resist that sound! Sometimes tho I have to shake and shake, to coax him if he's preoccupied by something down at the barn.

Pretty the inside cat gets three treats when I come back into the house afterwards, I place them under the kitchen table in the same spot each time. She's usually waiting.

My cats will eat treats exclusively if offered. So I give them ONE each and then I take their kibbles and put them in my hand like they're the treats and I fake them out. A couple of the cats have caught on and leave after they get their one treat, but the rest haven't quite caught on. One cat will sit and scream for treats, so I just go to the bowl, scoop some kibbles out into my hand and he immediately starts purring and eating the 'treats' out of my hand.

I give the dogs their meds in pill pockets and the cats think they get treats-so I do the kibble routine with them when the dogs get their pill pockets. I'm a very mean mom.

Oh-also, about the dog seeing people to bed. One of my cats, McNucket, sees me to bed every night. If it's later than he thinks I should be up, he comes to me, nuzzles me, then jumps down and heads toward the bedroom. He repeats as necessary till I got to bed. Then he leaves the room.

Isn't it nice to be able to give them such great pleasure, so easily.

Agree, based on my volunteer feline rescue/shelter experience, Temptations treats are the most popular.

Sergeant, don't feel guilty at all. At 19 you know she's giving it her all and if Temptations is what keeps her alive a bit longer, so be it. :)

I mentioned giving Lizzie liquid antibiotics last week. After her first dose she violently threw up all day long. I read she could have been allergic to the meds or they need to be given on a full stomach. That's when Temptations helped. I'd give her about 7 then give a dose of medicine. She never threw up again.

Last night I gave Pepper half of what I normally do and she was completely satisfied. And, she didn't wake me up at 4 am!

I’m enjoying all the stories! We use Temptations, too, and also call it kitty crack. Every night at 8pm I give two of our five cats medication. Immediately afterward, they all get 3 treats each - except the one who doesn’t care for treats at all. About 7:50pm, a couple of the kitties start letting me know it’s time. I swear they must have little wrist watches so that they know when to commence the nightly routine. Fortunately they don’t beg for them at other times of day.

czarinalex, my cats can go out during the daytime if we're home, and to get them in, we rattle the food dishes together...works every time.

My mother gave me some Temptations treats to try.... 3 out of 4 cats love them, and my oldest is the worst beggar. lol! Temptations aren't exactly healthy treats though and caused crystals to form with the youngest/smallest, so they don't always get them and I give less than their recommended daily serving. I recently bought some of the Greenies for skin/fur, thinking they'd be better for them, and all 4 cats love them even better than Temptations! lol! Way too expensive though, especially at their recommended serving size, so I only give them a fraction. Seriously, a good steak would be so much cheaper! I'd buy steak, but only one would eat it. :p

IIRC, the Temptations label states each treat is 2 calories?

Leo (canine) does the bedroom thingy. Sits at the top of the stairs, staring me down when I am sitting on the couch (watching TV). If I don't lock eyes with him he MIGHT give up and go sulk in the bedroom by himself. And don't get me started on the food/treat business. Particular does not even come close. Stubborn is a good descriptor however.