I'm in the same boat as you Duane.

I went today to see if I could find the red barn food rolls but no such luck. Looks like I will have to get them online. I did find the zuke's, I got the salmon flavor and WHOA!! Those things stink. He likes them a lot but they may be too expensive to only use them I am going to try the mixed bag approach and see if that helps. The smell from these treats has got to contaminate everything else in the bag too.

I hold off until I have lots of LB items to combine.

But also, you are totally right that when you find a stinky one they love, that can be used to stink up a whole little bait bag's worth.

Example: a turkey breast (even a fillet of turkey breast) yields a zillion M&M size rewards (easily frozen in small stashes). Simple to cook: plop it onto a cookie sheet covered with foil and bake.

This is an VERY cheap reward and most dogs love as is. Plus it's non-greasy, non-stinky.

But to jazz up your mixed bag (which Bob Scott taught me, and man, does that assortment liven up the dog's expectations! JUST like a slot machine .... lol), put some stinky beloved things into a sandwich baggy so that some of the poultry pieces have that salmon (or cheddar or peanut butter) smell.

It sounds like a PITA for tiny rewards, but in my ob work with other people's dogs, I've had many owners remark on how thrilled their dogs are with that mixed bag. Kibble works with some dogs, I know, but IMHO, not many react to kibble rewards the way they do to real stuff.

Also, I keep a certain item separate for jackpots, which for me can be either size OR value.

Example: warm bacon is reserved for "procedures." When I have to stick my hand in an eyeball or an ear, that warm bacon is right there, smelling up the area, hypnotizing the dog (and his dog housemates who are there to support him and guard the reward from escaping).

I'm sold on the rolls, partly because they are formulated dog food, and are easily supplemented into the diet in place of kibble. My dog considers them med-high value (level 3 of 10). When I'm tracking, 30-40% of her daily intake comes from the meat rolls. Hence, the reasoning behind wanting to switch to Redbarn (3.5 stars vs. 2 for the new NB formula). FWIW I use a 4 star kibble that costs me $19 for 10#.

I'm not able to purchase from LB very often due to financial limitations, so that's not a viable option. I'm pretty much stuck with what I can get locally.

Gary;

I sent Redbarn a message via FB. If I get a response, I'll let you know, and you can message them about your area. Of course, there's always "Contact us" on their website, as well.

Stinky Tuna Treats

3 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 pound canned tuna
about 2 cups flour
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic

Stick the tuna, eggs, garlic, and oil into a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour it into a mixing bowl. Start with 1 1/2 cup flour and keep adding until you have about brownie batter consistency. Spread it out on a cookie sheet. Bake at 425 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven and score into about 1/2 inch squares. Turn off your oven and vent some of the heat. Stick the cookie sheet back in the oven until they are as solid as you want them. I do about 30 minutes.

These smell up the whole house, your hands, bait bag, dog, etc but they are such a huge motivator I'll make them every once in a while.

Based on a recipe from http://www.workingdogs.com/doc0179.htm They use liver but I find organ meats too rich to use in marker training quantities.

With the above recipe (or any recipe calling for four) if you substitute POTATO flour in place of most of the regular flour, you will get a treat with a consistency much more like a zukes than a milkbone. The treats won't crumble and will be easily cut. I like working with chewy treats, so the potato flour is a common subsitution at my house.

Gary;

Redbarn replied to my FB pm with a couple of links to local feed stores.

I will be checking with these stores over the next few days.

Gary;

I now have a local source for Redbarn.

Good luck to you.

I emailed the red barn this morning, hopefully there is someone local that carries it.