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Writer's pictureSanne Vermeulen

Worst advice on dog facebook groups

Facebook groups can be a blessing or a curse.

Probably a bit of both. I'm in so many of them I actually have to unfollow quite a few because they make my skin crawl.


There is some advice in groups that is recurring that I just wanted to speak out on because they:

1. Don't make sense

2. Are simply not true

3. Are BAD advice

4. Don't believe everything on the internet


(P.s: here is my FB group where stuff like this is not posted: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thedogtrainingtribe)




  1. He will grow out of it

Your dog will most likely NOT grow out of it. Whatever you allow when your dog is a pup, is going to stay with them as an adult. They don’t magically turn 2 years old and think ‘Oh I better stop doing xyz and do ABC instead.  


2. Oh that is just a insert breed thing. It's normal. This one actually gets me SO annoyed. I’m in so many breed-specific facebook groups. Here are some examples (this is gonna be 2 slides lol). Boxers are just boisterous and hyper. Border collies/Kelpies need 3 hours of exercise every day. Shepherds are supposed to guard your property. Honestly, it teaches you to put up with shit behaviour. Yes, your dog has certain breed specific tendencies that you have to put up with. But the problem with going to breed specific groups is that it can be a bit of an echo chamber where everyone is in the same boat. A kelpie/border collie is totally able to relax and NOT need 3-4 hour exercise every day to be satisfied if you put the RIGHT training in. Same for a boxer. Yes they are boisterous, but you can teach them impulse control. Don’t just put up with shitty behaviour because its a ‘breed characteristic’.


3. Oh your dog is too skinny!

Whenever someone posts ‘is my dog skinny’ on FB most of the time the answer they get is YES from the majority of the public. People are so accustomed to seeing FAT dogs they don’t even realise what a dog looks like that's toned or at the right weight. Don’t just start feeding your dog more because some random person on the internet says yours is skinny. This is also when all the people come out with ‘My dog is xy KG so yours is definitely under. That’s like saying every human should be 80 kg and if not you’re underweight. Not taking in account someones height, build or sex. If concerned, go see your vet.


4. You shouldn't walk more than 5 min per month your dog is old

This is an urban myth that once came into the world but has no actual science backing anything. Honestly, some dogs would go stir crazy if you were only allowed to walk them 10 min a day at 5 months old. Key message here is: walk appropriate distances, don’t walk until your pup can’t go anymore. No excessive running and jumping. Imagine we told kids ‘you can’t walk more than 5 min per year you are old to ensure your bones grow properly’. Or how about wolves born in the wild? You think they don’t walk heaps? Or cats?






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