Here Are 15 Dog Training Myths Debunked!

Training a dog is difficult enough without misinformation! Here are 15 myths about dog training, debunked.

“Dogs grow out of bad behavior.” They don’t, and it’ll only get worse with time!
“You have to be the Alpha.” Dogs don’t prescribe to the hierarchical structure of wolf packs, and studies have debunked the Alpha concept many times.
“Your dog may be too stubborn to learn.” It’s more likely that they are scared, confused, or frustrated.
“Tug-of-war makes dogs aggressive.” Just enforce the right rules and your dog will not become aggressive while playing.
“Food is bribery and not a good training tool.” Mix food rewards with affection, toys, and other rewards and it’ll be fine!
“You have to always lead the way so your dog knows you’re in charge.” This is going back to the debunked Alpha theory!
“Bulldogs can’t play tug-of-war.” Again, rules will prevent aggression.
“A dog who does bad things is mad at you.” They’re probably trying to get your attention or have some training problems.
“Puppies can’t be trained till six months old.” The younger you train a puppy, the smoother their learning process throughout life will be!
“Rubbing a dog’s nose in their mess will teach them not to do it.” Dogs don’t have the reasoning capabilities necessary to understand why you’re doing this.
“There are dumb breeds that just can’t learn.” Multiple studies have debunked this; all dogs can learn!
“You can’t use positive reinforcement for all dogs.” You can and you should!
“Old dogs can’t learn.” There’s no reason a senior dog can’t be taught, and they may be even easier to train.
“My dog is just dominant, which is why their behavior is like this.” Dominance is not a personality trait. It just means their training isn’t good enough.
“If I train with food, I can only use food forever.” As your dog becomes used to training, you can easily use other positive reinforcement methods.

Feature Image Source: Pixabay