Community Corner

Blog: Newport Dog Wizard Explains Training Myths

Newport Beach dog trainer Vladislav Roytapel explains the myths and realities of properly training your dogs.

Many dog owners are afraid to discipline and train their dogs, but when it can be extremely effective.

Myth #1: Dog training will break my dog’s spirit.

Reality Check: Proper dog training will definitely break your dog’s bad habits, but never his spirit. Remember, the happiest dog is the one who knows who is boss and whose in charge. His life will become sweet and secure like it was in his momma’s pack.

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Myth #2: It is cruel to discipline the dog.

Reality Check: It would be the ultimate cruelty to raise the dog without rules and structures and as a result, he eventually will be banned out of the house as the unwanted pet or he will forever be a prisoner in your backyard or under house arrest.

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Myth #3: I never disciplined my dog, he should be free, I never discipline my kids either.

Reality Check: Behavior problems in dogs and kids both reflect the same thing. Lets look at the parents; in a lot of households, I saw dogs who were ruling the family by growling and biting, and in the same household, there were kids who ruled the parents by screaming and yelling. I believe some people should never have dogs, some people should never have kids either. But, unfortunately, those same people have both.

Myth #4: Dogs don’t see people as dogs, so all ranking theory with dominance and submission is not applicable to them.

Reality Check: Even though dogs see us differently, they don’t treat us differently, they treat us as dogs. Dogs don’t have any other language to speak to people. They don’t use English, they use doglish, such as nudging, growling, snapping, and barking. Humans have a hard time pulling the rank on their dog and teach them acceptable rules as the dog’s own mother would do in a heart beat. If you treat a dog as a human, a dog would treat you as a dog.

 Myth #5: Only positive training methods work best.

Reality Check: We all want to be positive, but lets look at the doggy momma. Is she always positive? No! She is motivational. Doggy moms have two motivations: she has the tongue to lick and the teeth to bite. The puppies obey the momma for the same two reasons: get the lick and avoid the bite. It doesn't take the whole village to raise the child, and it doesn't take a PhD to raise the puppy, but it takes a parent or pet owner who is not only not afraid to say no but also who isn’t afraid to reinforce it. My grandfather, famous Soviet Biologist, always kept telling me, don’t cheat mother nature, you will lose.

from SoCal Dog Training in Newport Beach. He has been featured on the David Letterman Show, CNN, Fox and more major news outlets. He can be reached at 949-274-3445 or via email at socaldogtraining@gmail.com. To learn more tips and secrets from the Russian Dog Wizard, visit www.socaldogtraining.com


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