i dont agree with hitting a dog either but i have given mine a light tap a couple of times with fingers
the last owner gave me a whipple stick and told me to hit him with that if he misbehaved , i snapped it up i dont think theres no need for that either
i didnt know much about dogs and didnt know about the alpha male thing at first and didnt lay down any rules for him at all, so he thought he was boss, i was making up some fishing bait and had him with me, i went to carry on making bait and walked away and the little bugger had a nip at the back of my leg, i didnt realise thats what happene