This is a specific conversation about Dog training treats — high value, small size — ask about yours and get one honest answer for your exact situation.
inparticular.ai
Basset Hounds are a brilliant training subject — they're obsessively food-motivated, which is a real gift, but that same drive means a boring treat just won't cut it. The best training treats are pea-sized, intensely smelly, and high in protein — gone in one bite so your dog stays locked in rather than chewing away while the moment passes. They need to feel like a genuine upgrade on anything else in life. Tell me: how much does your Basset weigh at the moment, what are you specifically training — basic obedience, recall, leash manners? — and does he have any dietary sensitivities I should know about?
He's about 12kg at 6 months, still growing. We're working on recall and sit-stay, which he's terrible at because he gets distracted by smells instantly. No known allergies. He'll eat anything but I need something that actually competes with whatever he's sniffing.
inparticular.ai
That's the Basset challenge exactly — his nose is running the show, so the treat has to win that competition. How long are your training sessions typically, and are you doing them indoors, outdoors, or both? That matters because outdoors with a Basset is a whole different level of distraction.
Mostly outdoors in the garden and occasionally the park. Sessions are short, maybe 5 to 10 minutes. He does okay inside but outside he just puts his nose down and switches off.
inparticular.ai
Perfect, that tells me everything. For outdoor recall and stay work with a scent-driven dog, you need the smelliest, meatiest treat you can find — something that physically cuts through competing smells. At 12kg and still growing, you also need to keep pieces genuinely tiny so you're not loading him with calories across a 10-minute session. My recommendation is Forthglade Natural Liver Treats. They're made from 100% pure dried liver — chicken or lamb — which has an intense, fatty smell that even Bassets notice over grass and squirrels. They're soft enough to break into tiny pieces without crumbling everywhere, and because they're single-ingredient you don't need to worry about additives affecting a growing puppy. A pea-sized piece is enough reward and they're gone instantly, which keeps his head up looking at you rather than chewing with his nose down. They're widely available on Amazon UK and not expensive for the quantity you get.
That sounds good. Will he actually be able to smell them over everything else in the park? And how many is too many per session?
inparticular.ai
Dried liver has a strong, oily smell that carries well — it's genuinely one of the most nose-grabbing treats available, which is exactly why it's the go-to for scent-breed training. As for quantity: at his size and age, keep it to around 20 to 25 pea-sized pieces per session maximum. That sounds like a lot but each piece is maybe half a gram, so across a 10-minute session it's a very small total amount. If you're training daily, factor it into his daily food allowance by reducing his meal slightly. Bassets are prone to weight gain even at this age, so it's worth being a bit disciplined about it from the start.
Really helpful, thank you. I'll grab the Forthglade liver treats and try them this weekend.
inparticular.ai
Good luck — stick with very short distances on recall at first outdoors, reward heavily every single time he comes, and the smell of those treats should give you a real edge over whatever's in the grass. Bassets do get there, it just takes consistency and a treat worth turning their nose up for.
