Let's clear up some of those old incorrect pet myths!

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Welcome to Diana Guerrero's Ark Animals Training & Therapy. This section is dedicated to pets, companion animals, and topics related to their care and training. This Ark Animals article discusses pet myths. You should get professional help for pet problems.

Pet Myths

Myths related to pet care and training are one of the most frustrating things for a pet professional to encounter. They are hard to get rid of! Here are a few with some comments. Have a favorite? Drop me a line so we can include it later.

"You can't train an old dog a new trick." Of course you can! Most dogs have trained their owners to do exactly what they want! You have to untrain bad habits before you can retrain the new ones!

"Purebred dogs are better pets." or "Dogs with papers (AKC, UKC, etc.,) are worth more." This is nonsense. It is often better (and easier) to get a mixed breed dog. The best breeders will screen you out if you do not meet the grade! Papers only refer to a membership in a club, not to quality. In fact, there is no quality control or regulation from those clubs.

"You can't start training a dog until it is six months old." This statement is responsible for most of the problems facing the dog owner today. Start school early, when your pet comes home, to avoid all the problems & household damage!

"Train a dog to use papers first" and "Show them their mistakes by shoving their noise in it." This is like taking a child you are trying to potty train and shoving a diaper in it's face every time they have an accident! Wrong! Train what you want, be clear, & take proper steps. Teach the desired behavior first otherwise you have to untrain and retrain.

"You need a choke chain or a pinch collar to train." Untrue! Untrue! Both collars are cruel and archaic devices that inflict pain. The worst part is, that besides doing harm to the dog, they create a negative association to training and the owner. Most owners do not have the skill to use most training tools correctly. Regular collars or the humane head halters are the best.

"Training sessions need to be 15 minutes or more & you repeat, repeat, repeat!" Long training sessions that repeat things are boring, unrealistic, & monotonous for the dog and owner! There are faster, easier, & better ways to train.

"Aggressive dogs need to be handled with a firm hand." Usually aggression creates more aggression. The number one rule about any type of aggression is to get professional help for it.

"He is just a pup, it's okay." NO. IT ISN'T! This is one of the worst rumors around. Train what you want and start young (8 weeks)!

"The leash is used to control the dog." No. Sorry to tell you this, but the leash is a safety restraint device. When the dog is fifty feet away from you, and off leash, you realize this!

"Only one person can train the dog." This isn't true. It is only critical to be consistent. The whole family should know how to train.

"Once trained, the dog is done with school." This is definitely not true! They need to have their minds kept active to keep out of trouble! If you participate in dog training at home and never go outside, to the park, or busy areas with dogs or people, the dog will never learn to pay attention or follow your bidding in high distraction!

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