Dog whisperer speaks volumes to pet owners, trainers

[bigdoglover]

Bradenton Herald

Jackie Louhauis

He's the man to call when your dog flips you a dew claw. Or growls. Or bites.

Human translation for such deeds: Fido is thumbing his snout at you.

So, as thousands of TV viewers know, it may be time for an all-pointer bulletin to Cesar Millan, a.k.a. "The Dog Whisperer."

That's the tag he wears on his hugely popular show, "The Dog Whisperer," the National Geographic Channel's highest-rated series. Never mind that other trainers and behaviorists before him have claimed the same label. Millan is the ultimate breed brand.

His show has been expanded and renewed for its next season and will soon go into international syndication. His new book, "Cesar's Way," has romped at the top of bestseller lists since its release this spring. And he's issued a DVD titled "People Training for Dogs" showing highlights from his live seminar series to pair with the sale of the show's first-season DVD.

And he has created a tremendous popular buzz about dog training.

"My clients mention him over and over and over," says Amy Ammen, owner of Amiable Dog Training in Milwaukee. "Now people are motivated to pick up the phone and ask about him. They ask, 'How "Cesar" is the class?' This is a good thing. They have a basis of comparison, and they also have hope."

Does the success surprise him?

"Yes, but people love dogs, and they were lacking information and common sense," said Millan by phone last week, while taping his new season of shows. "Everyone wants a dog who follows them, but nobody plays a leadership role. Everyone is playing Mommy."

Millan has given the American dog world a leader - himself - and his techniques demonstrate "not how to become a spiritual pack leader, but a real pack leader," he said.

Still, Millan's credentials for this fame might make a pit bull cringe. He has no formal training in dog behavior, and his expertise developed from working on his grandfather's farm in Mexico.

"On the farm, the farmer controls not just dogs but cows and horses and all the other animals. The farmer is viewed as the dominant force," he said.

National Geographic Channel producers say Millan doesn't meet the damned Spots he confronts on his show before taping. So what happens next on air can seem miraculous:

Match: Millan vs. NuNu the Demon Chihuahua. In The Kingdom of NuNu, this little bugger rules, keeping humans off "his" furniture and biting everyone who comes near his owner.

Match: Millan vs. Bubba, the Maltese who wears $300 smoking jackets while bushwhacking visitors leaving his owner's office.

Match: Millan vs. Leo, the basset who has to be dragged along the sidewalk for his "walk."

Takedown winner: Always Millan. Using a combination of body blocks, neck pins, roll-overs and the sound "Shhhttzz!" delivered with a pointed finger, Millan makes canines change their evil ways.

He has other weapons as well. Millan calls up "positive energy" to help calm and guide the dogs on the show, and he describes animals in rehabilitation as "releasing toxic energy." These are concepts many dog lovers can connect with.

"I rehabilitate dogs. I train people. The worst kind of owner is the one that blames the dog for everything. It's not the dog's fault. The dog doesn't premeditate. For the owners, that's the highest form of denial. But I pop their bubbles," he said.

This is the kind of viewing dog buffs lap up. Add tight editing with "Twilight Zone"-ish music lending the show a supernatural air, and you have packaging that makes Millan the pop star of poochitude.

But not everyone joins in singing his praise. He has been the target of lawsuits, including one claiming that a Labrador was choked at his Dog Psychology Center.

Other dog behavior experts are incensed at Millan's methods. The American College of Veterinary Behaviorists has written to the National Geographic Channel expressing concerns about techniques used on the show.

"They are basically abuse," says Nicholas Dodman, program director for the Animal Behavior Clinic at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, author of "Dogs Behaving Badly" (Bantam) and a member of the veterinary group.

He says that Millan's first offense is not having the problem dogs checked for possible underlying medical conditions. But the main issue, says Dodman, is that "Millan is using the same methods used by military trainers to train the dogs of war during World War II."

"If you have a bratty child and you whack him in the ear and you send him to his room, you can see immediate results. But it doesn't fix the underlying problem. Millan uses these physical methods, and they're brutal.

"We've moved so far beyond that in dog training," Dodman says. "At least two veterinary schools are showing tapes of his shows to demonstrate how not to train dogs. The dogs are a vehicle for Millan's self-aggrandizement. He's a money-making machine."

But Millan shakes off such criticism like water off a spaniel's fur.

"That is the beauty of America. People can say what they want. I don't see things that way. I'm bringing back common sense, as far as I'm concerned. There are 68 million dogs in America, and they need help. I'm helping them. I'm saving lives.

"I use many different techniques - whatever suits the dog and makes the owner feel empowered. Sometimes I use the energy, sometimes the body language, sometimes the food. But my goal is always a calm-assertive human and a calm-submissive dog.

"Where I'm coming from is a whole different perspective of connection with the pack. I work with 50 dogs at the same time, and the rest of these professionals don't do that. They don't use the pack."

When to watch

"Dog Whisperer" airs at 8 p.m. Fridays, with reruns at various times, on the National Geographic Channel.