10 Dog Myth Busters

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8-minute read

We have all heard lots of things about dogs. Dogs have been our best friends for decades and as dog owners we have developed beliefs about them, but not all are necessarily the truth.

I am sharing with you 10 common assumptions about dogs. Are they fact or fiction?

One dog year is equal to 7 human years.
You cannot teach an old dog a new trick.
Your dog is sick if his nose is dry.
It is harder to potty train a male dog vs a female dog.
Dogs cannot have human food.
A dog waggling his tail means he is happy.
All dogs are naturally good swimmers.
Dogs enjoy being hugged.
Dogs eat grass when they are sick.
Garlic is a good flea prevention for dogs.

1. One dog year is equal to 7 human years

I am sure you have heard of this very popular one. Dog years are 7 times human years. Meaning that if your dog is 4 human years old, then they are 28 in dog years. While this estimate is close, dog years are not calculated quite that simply.

Determining a dog’s age is a little more complicated than this simple equation. It appears more like this according to the American Veterinarian Medical Association and the American Kennel Club.

When your dog is 1 year of age that is equivalent to 15 years of age in human years. By the time your dog reaches 2 years of age, add another 9 human years. So, your dog is now 2 years old and 24 years old in dog years. Each subsequent year is 5 human years for your dog.

Example my dog’s ages are

Bella 4 human, 34 dog
Cooper 4 human, 34 dog
Benny 3 human, 29 dog
Roxy 3 human, 29 dog
Lola 3 human, 29 dog
Apollo 2 human 24 dog
Keira 2 human 24 dog
Lucky 1 human, 15 dog

This also depends on the size of the dog. For example, a small dog reaches their “golden years” or is ready for their senior doggy discount at 7 human years of age, whilst a larger breed of dog gets their senior doggy discounts much sooner at 5 human years of age.

2. You cannot teach an old dog a new trick

Speaking of senior dogs, I am sure you have heard you cannot teach an old dog a new trick. Dogs of all ages are happy to please their humans. Therefore, if you spend the time teaching a senior dog a new trick, they are absolutely able to learn new tricks.

Fact is, this saying is not really meant for a dog, it is more of a metaphor for how hard it is to change. Humans are attached to their habits, routines, and ideals. It is harder to teach a human a new trick than it is to teach a canine.

So go now and teach your senior doggy new tricks! Treats, treats, treats, try these treats out. They are rated number one by Canine Good Citizen and come in a variety of flavors.

3. Your dog is sick if his nose is warm and dry

This is one I believed to be true for many years. I remember our family dog, Sassy, when I was a child had a warm dry nose and I would constantly worry about her health.

I now have 8 dogs and know for fact this is not an indicator of their overall health. Roxy, my ESA, has a cold wet nose most of the time. At times it may even drip. While her sister, Keira has a warm dry nose most of the time. Overall, they are both in good health.

Again, like us humans, some of us have runny noses and others do not and this rarely determines if we are sick.

4. It is harder to potty train a male dog versus a female dog. Fact? Or Fiction?

If you asked my brother, who has this belief embedded into his brain by our dad he would say fact. Growing up my dad did not like male dogs and did not ever want one. He had female dogs. He said they made better pets and were easier to train. He said all male dogs mark their territory and will always pee in your house regardless of being potty trained.

My mother on the other side of this was sure to always bring home a male dog. We had a male Great Dane named Clyde, never peed in our house. We spent the holidays with my grandma (mom’s mom) and brought home Casey, an adorable miniature schnauzer male, to my dad's dismay. Casey again never peed in our house either.

My dad’s theory did ring true when mom brought home the cutest male Maltese Butch. Butch did mark in the house, a lot. I questioned this of course. Why does Butch mark and Clyde and Casey never did. Dad’s response “Your mom did not get Butch neutered and the other 2 were.” Oh, I said.

So, this was now my belief for a long time. I too only had female dogs. I did not want a dog peeing in my house. Then I made the decision to get a poodle to start my breeding program. Bella, our first poodle, was a bit hard to potty train, but to her defense we had a lot going on at the time we brought her home. So delayed is how I like to look at it, but she finally had her routine, and she was completely potty trained by 5 months of age.

Then the time came to add a male dog for our breeding program. I was so excited to get another poodle and a boy dog. I was equally terrified he would never fully potty train and would always pee in my house.

Cooper house trained so quickly. He came into our home at 2 months of age and by the time he was 3 months old Cooper would go to the door to be let outside to potty.

I now have 4, intact, males and none of them pee nor mark in my house. They all prefer to do their business outside. Sorry dad your myth has been busted!

5. Dogs cannot have human food

Who says dogs cannot have human food? Some people are hard core about this and would never feed their dog human food of any kind. Poor pooch, dog kibble only for you.

I do not believe this. There is lots of evidence that dogs can have human food. A dog’s nutritional needs are based on human foods. Just like humans, no you should not feed your dog a bag of potato chips and chase it with a chocolate bar. But you really aren’t doing yourself any favors by eating these things either.

But this is not what I am saying. Just to be clear do not feed your dog chocolate, ok. But you can feed them chicken, pork, beef, eggs, yogurt, nut butters, and there are many fruits and vegetables approved for your dog to eat. For more information on dog nutrition read my post about it here.

My dogs eat human foods all the time. I am just sure to make healthy human food choices for them.

6. A dog waggling his tail means he is happy.

While this is true most of the time, it is not always true. Dogs waggle their tails for a lot of varied reasons. My favorite tail waggle is when my Sheepadoodle Benny is eating. He sways his tail as he eats, it is adorable.

The truth here is that dogs waggle their tails to express many emotions. Therefore, just because his tail is waggling does not always mean he is happy to see you. Check out your surroundings and the situation the dog is in before assuming he is happy.

7. All dogs are naturally good swimmers.

Most dogs will naturally be able to swim without any problems, but not all dogs will naturally take to the water. It is best to introduce your dog to water slowly so he can adjust to it.

I do believe that not all dogs are naturally good swimmers, yet I have not met a dog that cannot swim. Some dogs prefer swimming more than others. For example, Cooper my male poodle loves the water, you cannot keep him out of it in the summer. But Bella, my female poodle, does not even want to get her feet wet. Bella can probably swim, but I do not know for sure, because she will not even attempt it.

8. Dogs enjoy being hugged

Bella may not be a swimmer, but she is a hugger. Although Bella enjoys hugs from her humans, not all dogs do. A lot of the time dogs feel trapped or confined when they are hugged, and they will resist.

Most dogs will accept a hug, but it is always best to know the dog before giving a hug. Bella will come to give you a hug, but we like to think of Bella as more a human than a dog.

9. Dogs eat grass when they are sick.

This is partially true. Dogs will eat grass to settle the acid in their stomach, like we take antiacids for heartburn. But dogs eat grass for more reasons than an upset stomach.

Grass can be eaten by a dog to induce vomiting, reduce stomach acid, to gain missing nutrients, or just simply because they like the taste of the grass.

10. Garlic is a good flea repellent for dogs.

There is no evidence to suggest that garlic repels fleas. It is best to use a vet prescribed flea medication instead of garlic. There is evidence that garlic, when consumed in substantial amounts, can be harmful to your dog.

Therefore, be safe and do not home remedy with garlic. Discuss flea prevention with your veterinarian to be safe. There are ways to naturally repel fleas on your dog, but not by ingesting garlic. Instead use a lavender scented flea powder on them, like this one. Lavender does repel fleas and is not harmful to your dog’s skin and coat.

Always, test a small area on your dog first to be sure no allergic reaction develops. Just like us, each dog is different, and their skin can respond differently to anything.

In conclusion, there are many things we hear and assume to be true, but researching or getting expert advice about the subject is best. Not everything you hear is true and this is for sure the reality about these dog myths.

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