It’s not “All In How They’re Raised”

“It’s all in how they were raised!”

“They must have been abused. Dogs don’t do that without a reason.”

“If they were trained properly this would never have happened.”

Every time we see a dog incident in the media, we see a flood of these comments.

And it is true that in some cases the dogs involved haven’t had the greatest lives.

But every time we spread that harmful narrative that “it’s all in how they’re raised”, what is that saying about the many neglected and abused dogs going through rescues every day? Are they all doomed to be killers because they couldn’t possibly be good with that terrible upbringing?

Or what about the dogs from loving homes, whose owners have done everything right and still ended up with a dog with challenges?

We don’t have the facts on what triggered the most recent case, nor would it be kind to speculate when a grieving family have just lost a loved one in the most awful way.

But here’s what we do know about dog behaviour in general.

🌟 The “it’s all in how they’re raised” line is harmful to dogs and the humans in their lives. This mindset is a big part of the reason we have so many issues with dogs in the modern age.

🌟 Dogs are not born blank slates. They are the product of their genetics, their environment, their training and many other factors.

🌟 We can work hard to shift behaviour and help dogs be their best selves, but love and training doesn’t fix everything.