Hi I have a new puppy he  a standard dachshund, he is 8 weeks old and on 4 meals a day.  I wanted to ask whether it is ok for me to start giving him some chicken, fish, liver, egg, cucumber etc as treats or tidbits or if I should wait till he is a certain age before doing this?  Also please can anyone suggest a good training treat brand with No additives or preservatives?
Thank you.

You can start treats as rewards for training at any age -just stick to tiny pieces, they should not require time spent chewing as it kind of defeats the object, plus you don't want stomach upsets. :)

Natures Menu do excellent treats which are almost just pure meat (something like 98 %) -and they easily cut into small pieces or even break as they are soft. I almost always use things like cooked chicken, liver, ham, sausages, cheese etc but if in a hurry or needing something that does not make your hands all greasy I always use Natures Menu. They come in small bags and are sold in pet shops that stock their products.

Orijen do grain free treats but they are £6.00 a bag! Not a huge bag either I use natures menu, Lily's fish 4 dogs and thrive. Re the pups diet and when to give them I will bow to others on here to answer. At that age I only gave my pup carrot and a bit of Apple. But that was more due to me being nervous than anything else!

Congrats, so you got a wee  boy then??

Another vote for the nature menu treats! I was giving these from day we picked up our pup - just making them smaller as she was young.

Hi Brainless thank you, yup we have a little boy and he is just gorgeous.

I will check out natures menu thank you all so much

> I wanted to ask whether it is ok for me to start giving him some chicken, fish, liver, egg, cucumber etc as treats or tidbits

You've had some very good advice about this already but one thing I would suggest is you decide, with your family, just what you are feeding treats for.  They are perfect as a reward and as part of your general training routine. but do not be tempted to feed tidbits from your plate, from your food prep areas or just because your puppy looks cute!!  The latter will create bad habits in a dog that follows you and your plate around, and one that will steal when given the opportunity.

If this is your first dog have a look at The Puppy Primer by Patricia McConnell - it's an excellent book for experienced and novice owners alike that helps to keep your training, and your puppy, on the straight and narrow.