Paws Up To You, Cesar Millan?

There's an awful lot of controversy going around about Cesar Millan, The Dog Whisperer. No doubt, I have my suspicions about a few things. But I'm not going to use this blog to slander anyone.

Disagreeing with someone is one thing, but no one has any business going around saying Cesar Millan doesn't know anything just because he isn't certified. He has been able to make some completely unmanageable dogs, by our standards, safe.

What I do like about Cesar is his constantly stressing to people that a dog needs to be treated like a DOG. It's not a child.

Cesar is also correct that a dog should not be fed before his walks, or before he is showing submissive obedient behavior. Nor should the dog be in front of you on the walk.

And, stop using your yard as an excuse not to walk your dog!

As for pinning a dog down on the ground... That's not mean. That's the method of discipline I use with my dogs. That would be absolutely stupid for someone to try when they don't know how, but it's a completely natural form of discipline that dogs understand. What's not natural is all this bribing nonsense that so many dog trainers try to use. You won't find that in the wild!

A dog working for you because he respects you is not wrong. A dog who comes to you with his head down is surrendering, not afraid. A dog who is afraid of you will not even come near you.

Again, no one is perfect. But it really disturbs me when people actually chat back and forth with nothing but pure slander about someone, as I have been reading about Cesar Millan.

There was an article written about his treatment of Kane, the Great Dane, saying that he was cruel because of it. Grow up, people! Sometimes when a dog is frightened, you have to make them move!

There's nothing wrong with people disagreeing with someone. But if you are going to post a disagreeing comment, be polite. Just imagine if that was you who people were slandering. You certainly wouldn't like it!

So on those points above I say, "Paws up to you, Cesar!"

Rena Murray
Dog Whisper Woman

Does the "Dog Whisper Method" Really Work on a Red Zone Case?

Some people really question if the Dog Whisper Method will work on a "red zone" dog aggression case.

I speak from personal experience, because I use the Dog Whisper Method. It DOES work! The crazy ones are the "dog whisper wanna-be's" that don't know what they are doing.

A red zone case is nothing to fool with. Any dog is capable of inflicting serious damage; however, these are the dogs that WILL inflict it. Being struck with a level 3 or more dog bite is like having several electric shocks sent through your body at the same time. The use of the injured body part is limited for a few hours up to a few days, and may require a trip to the emergency room.

The Dog Whisper Method has saved the lives of many dogs who would otherwise be euthanised. Dogs on whom Dog Trainers gave up in despair. After all, no amount of customary "dog training" can begin to solve these psychological problems!

I found a couple of things the "Dog Whisperer," Cesar Millan, has done to be crazy by my definition. But I am not going around slandering him, because I don't want people to do that to me. He does a lot of good things, and has saved a lot of dogs.

There are several of us out there who know how to do these methods. The message is not to knock the Dog Whisper Method, but to knock trying to do what you do not know how to do ... And not knowing when the dog has really had it ... And when and how to stop, to touch back ...

The results can be lethal!

Rena Murray
DogWhisperWoman

Obsessive Dog Behavior - Water Crazy!

You don't have to live with the annoyance or nightmare of obsessive dog behavior problems. Consider water crazed dogs...

There are several people who have seen the episode of "Dog Whisperer" with Cesar Millan where the Yellow Lab, Brady, was completely obsessive toward water. Brady would swim constantly for up to 8 hours at a time until he was literally screaming in pain! Not to mention yodelling until he could get to the pool.

I dealt with a dog with the same kind of problem on a lower level. This dog was over 100 pounds and simply loved diving in, squeezing through the doggie door, running through the house, jumping on the couch, and doing it all over again. Not to mention giving her master a good slobber and shake before she dove in again.

"We don't walk her very much," the owner said. "She gets her exercise this way."

"And, uh... You're enjoying this?" I asked, pointing toward the soaked floor, and recoiling from the soaked couch.

"I guess that's part of it," the owner said.

"Guess what? It doesn't have to be."

I was amazed at the owner's tolerance, and still am. An obsession at that level is very annoying and not exactly easy to break.

"First off, this dog should be running twice a day, not walking. She has too much energy and a very high instinct drive," I replied. "You have two choices: Get a treadmill or a golf cart."

Not surprisingly, I discovered the dog had more obsessive dog behaviors, too. Smelling the ground and pulling on a leash like a lunatic were two of them.

Needless to say, that session ended up being a lot longer than I planned. But I stayed right there until we conquered every single problem.

So yes, even the worst obsessive dog behaviors and the most obnoxious can have an end put to them. But YOU have to be more persistent than your dog.

Enjoy the day, and stay dry.

Rena Murray