5 Common Dog Training Myths

As a dog trainer with over a decade of experience and thousands of dogs trained over that time of various breeds, temperaments and behavior modifications, I wanted to take a moment and share some very common dog training myths with the group.

1

Your hyper puppy will calm down around 3 years old

Many dogs mature between 3-5 years old physically, and you will also usually see certain temperament changes around this time. That said, dogs do not miraculously learn to be calm, or stop pulling or jumping etc, on their own. Dogs need guidance and to learn what is expected to them. 

The most common age we receive dogs for training is between 2-6 years old because their dog "never grew out of it".

2

All dogs want dog friends

Some dogs love having dog friends and are social butterflies, but this is only a small percentage of dogs. The majority of dogs are social during their puppyhood and start becoming less social with dogs as they move into adolescents and maturity. The majority of dogs do not want to interact with unfamiliar dogs and do best with one or two dog friends, if any, for private play dates. There are also many dogs who only do well with their own housemates, or no dogs at all; this is normal and doesn't mean these dogs are "bad," they just have different social needs.

Most dogs, however, thrive with structured outings with other dogs where they can be around them without the pressure of interacting. Setting up coffee dates, structured walks, and outings with your friends and their dogs while your dogs remain calm, on leash, and learn to just exist around other dogs without interacting is more beneficial to dogs than free-for-all play dates.

With that said: please be respectful of other dogs' and dog owners' spaces. Do not allow your dog off leash without a reliable recall, and ideally something to use as a back up if needed (for example: an e-collar), and keep your dog on leash in on-leash areas. Do not allow your dog to run up to other dogs, especially if they are on leash. Even the friendliest dog can unintentionally start a dog fight by approaching another dog the wrong way, even another very friendly dog.

3

Tug of War makes dogs aggressive

This is a very common misconception. It is also tied to "if you play tug with your dog, never let them win because it will cause them to view themselves as dominant over you", which is also untrue.

Tug of War is a great way to strengthen your bond with your dog, gives a great opportunity to work on impulse control and build an "off" switch, as well as helping to increase your dogs confidence by letting them win on occasion. Tug is also a great game to build handler engagement.

The issue comes in when your dog is being encouraged to rev up, but never taught how to calm back down after. Overarousal can present itself in "aggressive" play or behavior, and can cause redirection to other dogs wanting to engage, or cause a hyper focus on the toy. This is a simple issue to both prevent and correct.

4

It's all how you raise them

Unfortunately this common belief completely negates pre-dispositions from genetics, both from the individual lineage as well as breed specific traits. This goes for both purebred dogs as well as mixed breed dogs. Different breeds have been selectively bred for certain dispositions, drives and energy levels, as well as specific needs for hundreds of thousands of years. These traits cannot be loved or trained out, but can be managed with training from loving owners. 

There are so many families who "do everything right" and still end up with dogs with genetic behaviors or drives that are undesirable, regardless of if it's a breed trait and is undesirable due to lack of research or preparedness, or a genetic temperament from poor breeding practices/lineage temperaments. 

5

You can't teach an old dog new tricks

Dogs of all ages can learn new behaviors, skills and cues. The oldest dog I have worked with/trained was a 13 year old rescue and was successful.

Now, it is important to note that old habits are harder to break. A dog who has been practicing the same undesirable behavior for 10 years will have that behavior much more engrained than a dog who has been practicing the same undesirable behavior for 2 years. That doesn't mean it's impossible, just may be more difficult or need different strategies.

My current 9 year old dog is still extremely active and eager to learn anything and everything we want to work on. He loves and thrives with training, and we have found that older dogs who are actively being trained (whether a fresh start or continuing training) are more active, more alert, act younger than they are, and can also have more energy as they gain more success and confidence in training.