Ever wondered why we eat eggs at Easter? When chocolate eggs were first sold? Find out why the right reward will motivate your dog to respond well to your training
Why we’re feeling egg-ceptionally proud
I’m egg-ceptionally proud of myself. I haven’t yet eaten all my Easter Egg. (In fact I haven’t even finished all my Christmas chocolate, yet. But that could be because I got so much…)
Anyway, I’m still feeling egg-otistically smug that I have some Easter Egg left, when Himself has eaten all his. And he won’t get any of mine.
But all this egg-stra eating led me to think – why do we have Easter Eggs?
I found out that the egg is associated with Easter because eggs contain new life and can therefore be representative of rebirth. So eggs were given and received as gifts to mark the arrival of spring. And with Christians not allowed to eat eggs and other fats during the fasting period of Lent, eating one on Easter Sunday was viewed as a special treat.
I also found some crazy superstitions.
– Eggs that chickens and other birds laid on Good Friday were said to turn into diamonds if you kept hold of them for 100 years.
– if your egg had a double yolk, it was believed you would soon become rich.
– Some people even thought there were fertility and other health benefits if you cooked your eggs on Good Friday and then ate them on Easter Sunday. However, this disgusting idea has never been scientifically proven.
The first British chocolate egg was sold by Fry’s in 1873, with Cadbury’s launching its own version just two years later in 1875. After the launch of Dairy Milk, in 1897, milk chocolate became popular and has become the predominant flavour in modern Easter eggs. Good. I love chocolate and it has to be milk chocolate, with no nuts. I’ll do quite a lot to earn some of that gorgeous gooey confection.
For me it’s a great treat. The possibility of chocolate motivates me, whereas I won’t do much at all if the only thing on offer is a cream cracker.
Your dog has preferences too
Perhaps they eat their kibble quite happily from a bowl or food toy, but plain kibble may not be quite enough of a reward when you ask them to do something to earn it. You might need something better to motivate them.
Little pieces of chicken, cheese, hot dog or sausage, mixed in can jazz up the kibble, or use anything else they love. One of my previous dogs adored slices of tangerine, another loved pieces of cooked green beans. One of our Devotee dogs loves carrot.
To get the most from your dog when training, you need to find treats that are good enough – the things that will motivate your dog to keep trying for you.
The right reward will motivate all of us
And that’s common mistake number 3 – not using good enough treats when training.
When you join our Perfect Pet course, you get a pre-course audit to complete. This helps you work out what rewards will motivate your dog best. Then we tell you how to use them to train your dog during the course.
We teach you how to build a great relationship, how to teach your dog to walk nicely on lead and come back when called, how to be comfortable being handled, and how to demonstrate good manners with people and other dogs. All taught through fun games, with video support and homework you can fit into short five minute slots throughout your day.
We’ll help you get the best Easter treat ever – a well-trained dog!
Keep training and stay safe,
Carol
