20 Inaccurate Pieces of Pupper Advice You Hear Often But Should Never Pay Attention to

Author image for Laurent Shinar
Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Aug 6, 2026 8:15 AM EDT

It seems that no matter where you go or where you look people are all too willing to dish out doggo advice to you like samples at a tasting event. But how are you supposed to be able to tell what is genuine and what is comeplye nonsense? Well, we hope this list will help you figure that out.

Pupper pawrents are always looking for advice on how best to raise our darling doggos. They are the light of our lives after all and all we want is for them to have the best life pawssible. So we turn our attention to the world and hope to hear some helpful tips and tricks to make our dogs' lives better. But when we do so we are inundated with facts, figures and fear. People telling you to do this with your doggo, others telling you the complete opposite. Sometimes it feels as though people just want to duke it out for the sheer sport of it. But at the end of the day all that matters to you is your pupper's well being.

So we gto our hands on some of the more common misconceptions that go around doggo circles to give you an idea of what might be best to ignore when you hear it for the tenth time. It can be so confusing to care for your canine when your family, yourself and the rest of the world seem to be involved. But we know you are doing your best and we hope that this list offers some help in finding out that you are more pupper savvy than you thought yourself to be.
 

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  • 01
    "You can't teach an old dog new tricks...you can!"
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    Brown and black dog panting amongst tall shrubs 

    Dog depicted by model

  • 02
    Easytrucks A tired dog is a good dog. Rather, a fulfilled dog is a more reasonable dog.
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  • 03
    thehorrorcontinues 13 Top 1% Commenter That eating grass is a sign of lacking some kind of nutrient. Dogs enjoy grass. Sometimes they p <e it up.
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  • 04
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  • 05
    Avbitten as a dog groomer, for the love of god stop plastic wrapping your forehead with peanut butter on it! Best case scenario: it works! but your dog is now facing straight torwards you so your view of the nails are blocked making you more likely to injure your dog. Worst case scenario: you are trying this stupid "hack" because your dog is stressed. you are putting your FACE near the BITEY part of a stressed dog so if they decide to bite, your face is what will get bit.
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  • Well, seeing as this is coming from a pawfessional I think this might be some very good advice to heed. And not only for the application of nail cutting. Showering or any other activity where you are trying to distract your stressed out doggo is likely to lead to some pretty shocking results as this groomer has described. So maybe stick to putting the peanut butter somewhere that is far away from your money maker. No one will want to hire someone who has bite scars on their face from a peanut butter incident..
     

  • 06
    Upset-Emu424 You can't teach an old dog new tricks Of course you can! Bit of learning theory and positive reinforcement enables a lot of useful changes for old dogs. You just need to work out what they will work for - high value treats, squeaky toys etc
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  • 07
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  • 08
    mikeyhou911 1 dog year equals 7 human years just isn't true. It depends on breed, size of dog etc. There are a lot more 15yo dogs than there are 105yo people.
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  • 09
    good_god_lemon1 5 mins of exercise per number of months the dog is old. If I followed this rule, my vizsla would've eaten through my drywall. She is 9 months old and the idea of only 45 mins of exercise a day is hilarious.
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  • 11
    MaximumRun2457 That hyper puppies need more exercise - my dog actually needed more naps (and I love the trainer who shared this revelation after we told her our puppy was MORE hyper after a 3 mile walk).
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  • 12
    mettarific Anxious reactive dogs get that way from trauma. They don't. Some dogs are just anxious and jumpy, just as some people are. They have personalities. You can train reactivity out of a dog. You can't, not 100%.
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  • 13
    PickleFlavordPopcorn I have a hound dog. No general dog advice applies!
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  • Mm, yes, this. For all the knowledge we share with you here from a wide range of sources and opinions, at the end of the day the only thing that matters is what is right for your dog and your dog alone. No one can make that decision for you. At best whatever you hear even from the pawfessionals themselves is a suggestion, not written law. So take whatever you hear with a healthy pinch of salt and think for yourself what your pup will want most. After all, you are his pawrent, if anyone is to know, it would be you.
     

  • 14
    Cheezburger Image 10651491328
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  • 15
    Double-Tangelo1331 "Dog parks are good for socialization" like h. they are
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  • 16
    burritoheaux That certain breeds don't have behavioral dispositions, only bad owners. As someone that has dedicated their free time to rescuing, rehabbing & rehoming dogs such as GSD, Rotties, Pits, Mastiffs from doh row... Breeds absolutely do have genetic behavior dispositions. Some dogs, no matter the training/love/resources/men tal stimulation cannot be trained out of bad or dangerous behavior due to their genetic lineage.
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  • 17
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    AdagioGlittering2806 Everything related to dominance theory, being a pack leader, being the alpha etc etc. Insane that a discredited idea sticks around so long and has so many ardent followers.
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  • 19
    No-Stress-7034 Top 1% Commenter Saying "ow" will stop a puppy from biting. Sure, it may work for the rare puppy, but every puppy I've ever interacted with, it just hyped them up more. I find reverse timeouts much more helpful. To stop a dog from demand barking, wait for them to pause their barking, then mark and reward. Tried this with my dog, and he learned to bark once, pause and wait for a reward, then bark one more time, etc. Training alternate behaviors and rewarding him for those behaviors
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    Ok-Recognition1752 Fixing your dog will make it more docile. Not always the case, especially with females.
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  • 22
    HelmSpicy That raising your voice to stop a dog from barking with only encourage them to bark more. After owning dachshunds I can tell you: If you don't constantly remind them who is in charge, they will walk all over you. My mother would let these little dogs bark nonstop at everything because "I don't want to reinforce bad behavior", and they'd never learn anything otherwise. With me, 1 solid hand clap and a single loud, stern "HEY. NO." Would get their attention and redirect them back to me a
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  • 24
    cari-strat Dogs don't like being kissed and hugged. Two of my dogs will literally do battle to force their way into my lap, wrap their paws round me and press their faces up against mine, and won't settle until they are embraced and thoroughly smooched.
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  • 25
    RossA95 Turkey and rice when they're sick. My dog is allergic to brown rice
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  • 26
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  • 27
    Tiny Cartographer960 = The "wagging tail always happy, friendly dog" myth continues to persist.
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  • 29
    Impressive Ad_5224 "Barking dogs don't bite." Uh yeah they will. have a tiny dachshund that barks a lot. And people ALWAYS reach out to pet him. As if they would ever do that when a German Shepherd would stand there barking their head off. Ignore a dogs warning signals and many will actually bite.
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  • 31
    FYAhole Positive reinforcement doesn't work for every single dog. Not saying you have to hit them or something, but when my dog is scared of something stupid like a flag blowing, or a twig on the ground, I have to drag her over there and show her it is ok. Food does nothing, if I compliment her, she freaks out. We have to sit there in silence until she calms down and then she's fine. Every dog is different
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