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I have a Border Collie puppy, 7 weeks old. I am using some of the basics that Cesar demonstrates and do like most of the ideas. I will, however, continue to do research for specific concerns. After over 30 years as a classroom teacher, I definitely realize that the is NO one way to teach (learn). It is important to think of all the factors. In this case: What is best for the whole, immediate family, dog, friends, and anyone else who will be included in the dog's life. Just like the classroom,an individual child's (dog's) behavior definitely impacts everything and everyone! I am not a new puppy owner, but this time I have the time to really enjoy the entire experience of having a dog!
I don't dislike Cesar but I don't agree with his methods. I don't think most dogs need to be "physically dominated", especially aggressive dogs.
I have a 90lbs rottie and a 50lbs boxer. I weigh 100lbs. I'm physically incapable of forcing the rottweiler to do anything - I've trained her using only positive reinforcement training techniques. She walks perfectly on a loose leash, she greets other dogs politely (although she might not want to), and always comes when called. The same for the boxer. I might have gotten lucky with both of them, but I doubt it since they are both shelter dogs and have a slew of other issues. : )
If you are interested in dog psychology, I'd recommend Patricia McConnell - she's an animal behaviorist and her books are much better than Cesar's.
I also recommend NILIF which is a positive way of reinforcing good behavior in your dog.
millan's methods may work, but so does positive reinforcement. positive reinforcement is also harder to screw up, and has less severe consequences if you do. if two methods work, and one is more unpleasant for the dog, it seems like a no-braier which one i'm going to use! positive reinforcement doesn't mean no discipline. yes, it can work on dominant and aggressive dogs, and yes it can work on working dogs.
if you read some of the authors who endorse positive training, you'll see that they don't anthropomorphize the dogs - quite the contrary. the underlying principle is that dogs do what works - if they do something and it gets them what they want, they will do it again. simple as that. it's the trainer's job to make sure that good things happen when dogs do what we want, and don't happen when they do what we don't want.
it's funny, people are saying "well his methods work on dominant dogs, not on frightened ones", but millan's "dominance" often is actually fear.
here's an example of one of millan's techniques. watch it, make up your own mind about what's going on, then read my description and see what you think.
Dog Whisperer | Shadow, Jake & Riley and Norton | Video | Working with a Wolf | National Geographic Channel (http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/dog-whisperer/3252/Videos#tab-Videos/05198_00 - broken link)
here is what i see:
the dog he is walking has a history of aggression towards other dogs. millan spots the first sign of aggression, which is making eye contact with another dog.
what a positive trainer would probably do is slowly work on giving the dog positive associations with the approach of other dogs. of course, this takes time, not good for tv. if the situation got tense (and the one thing millan does right in that video is choose the right time to act), the dog would be removed from it, through pleasant distractions if possible. my dog can get a little testy with other dogs and has gotten into a couple of fights so i just tell her "this way" to get her to come away from the new dog every few seconds, give her a treat or praise and a scratch behind the ears, and then let her go back and sniff. this effectively defuses any tension. it would take more for a more aggressive dog to get to that point, but it can still be done without violence towards the dog. it's not like there's only one positive way to train a dog and if that doesn't work the only other choice is to go negative. there are lots of positive methods to try.
anyway, what millan does when he sees that first sign of aggression is kick the dog. this ecalates the tension that was already there, sets the dog off and millan starts pulling him up by the collar and strangling him. the dog starts biting - at the leash. he's trying to stop the strangling. when that doesn't help, he goes for millan.
millan forces him to the ground ("alpha roll") and he shuts down in fear and shock. he might look calm to an observer who doesn't understand dog body language, but if you do, you can tell that he's tense and terrified. that's "calm submission" for you. wonderful. what a healthy psyche that dog is going to have from now on. yeah, millan bullied him into submission for the time being and he looks calm, but massive harm is being done in the long term, especially if his owners continue this kind of treatment. i guarantee that if they did, they got bitten just like millan did. that method suppresses the behavior, it doesn't correct it. maybe the dog will be able to keep suppressing for the rest of his life, or maybe one day he'll explode. is it worth taking that chance (never mind if it's worth hurting & scaring the dog) when other options exist? millan has also just taught that dog that when he sees other dogs, bad things happen. how can that possibly be a good thing?
i know a lady who had a hyper puppy, took him to a trainer who used millan's methods, and ended up with an aggressive puppy. she has since fixed most of his issues through positive training.
i am glad that some positive trainers are getting on tv to counter millan. victoria stilwell is one. if anyone tells me that aggressive dogs can't be trained with positive methods, i can now point to the positive trainers on dogtown, who rehabilitated the worst cases among michael vick's pit bulls. i mean, if that doesn't prove that positive training works for aggressive dogs, i don't know what would.
i should add that millan has brought some positive points to the public eye - the idea that dogs need to get enough exercise for their mental as well as physical wellbeing is one. the simple idea that all dogs can and should be trained is another. and the idea that aggressive dogs can be rehabilitated. but i just can't get behind his methods.
From a medical perspective I was horrified by that video. That dog was not laying there out of submission, he was laying there because he had been suffocated. They have a great shot of his mouth open just after Milan pushes him down, and his tongue is purple. That is caused by oxygen not reaching the head, caused by the 'hanging' method Milan is using.
I think most people visualize dogs as little people and that is a bad mistake. Dogs are animals, desendents of wolves, they are not human no matter how much you want them to be. I think Milan is correct with his dog training.
This is one reason why we have so many pit bull attacks is not because of the dogs, but because of people trying to treat them as humans and expecting them to act that way. It is very sad to me to see so many animal shelters full of pit bulls who are simply dogs acting like dogs.
The only thing I see wrong with Milan is that he unintentionally promotes the pit bull breed and there are just too many Ceasar Milan wannabes out there.
I think Cesaer has done more good than bad. He has given hope to owners of "problem" dogs and saved the lives of many dogs who may have otherwise been put down. First, he starts with the basics, like providing plenty of exercise. As the owner of two "hyper" breed dogs, a Dalmation and a Miniature Pinscher, I realize how important exercise is. A slow walk around the neighborhood just doesn't do it. My Min Pin can basically sprint for about three miles as I inline skate. My motto is "A tired dog is a good dog." She is a perfect angel as long as she gets plenty of exercise.
Second, he shows owners how to take charge WITHOUT even using physical means, if that is sufficient. Things like making the dog wait and going though the doorway first, making the dog sit before you feed him, and leading the way during walks rather than letting the the dog lead are all simple, non-aggressive ways ways to train.
Third, he does use positive reinforcement (food motivators) and praise, when applicable. When a dog needs to be corrected, he uses verbal correction "Shhhht," when possible.
Fourth, he uses his well-adjusted dogs or entire pack of dogs to assist in rehabilitating. Integrating the rehabilitating dog with the others is a natural way to bring the dog back to his instincts and into balance.
Finally, when he is dealing with dogs that aren't responsive to the things above, he moves on to physical "touch" paired with his verbal correction "Shhhht." The dogs aren't yelping or getting hurt. He isn't using excessive force. It would be very similar to a mother dog or another dog correcting behavior. Pairing it with the verbal correction will allow the owner to soon ONLY use the verbal correction because the physical "touch" won't be needed.
In regards to the clip provided of Cesaer being bitten provided by Groar, Cesaer is using more extreme measures at that moment because he had to. If you had a dog jumping at you and trying to bite you, you'd probably do what you can to keep the dog away from you as well. This is ONE instance in which such severe methods were used. Keep in mind, Cesaer isn't dealing with your average animal. He is dealing with animals that are dominant, aggressive, and/or out of control. I agree that in training an animal, using positive reinforcements is the way to go! Using Cesaer's techniques (plenty of exercise, positive reinforcement, going through doorways first, etc.) all work, in my experience. With my dogs, positive reinforcement and the verbal correction "AhAh" is all that is needed. For MOST dogs, this is all that is needed to train them. Most dogs will never need to be forced into physical submission, regardless of the breed. He is working with the MOST difficult cases, not your average dogs. After watching almost every episode, I'm a Cesaer fan! For those who don't like the physical touch, don't use it if you don't have to. For those who don't like forcing the dog into submission, don't use it. There is so much that Cesaer does that CAN be used even if you don't like those two things.
If you saw a person doing something equivalent to a child would you call it training or would you call it abuse?
Patricia McConnell also works with the most difficult cases and has no need to use violence to coerce the dog into submission which is what he did in that video. He did not train the dog to be OK with other dogs.
If you had a dog jumping at you and trying to bite you, you'd probably do what you can to keep the dog away from you as well.
the dog did not try to bite him until he tried to strangle it.
he saw the dog focusing in on the other dog, and he correctly interpreted that as a prelude to aggression. he could have removed the dog from that situation (and gradually worked on teaching him that other dogs are a good thing), but instead he escalated the dog's aggression through his actions.
i do agree with you that he teaches many techniques that are sound. although i don't agree with most of the specific examples you chose - his whole "alpha" philosophy is based on studies of wolves that were discredited long ago. dogs might be descended from wolves, but their pack structure is very different - they barely have one, in fact. most feral dogs may hunt together for convenience but don't stick together. wolves have more structured packs, but even in those packs hierarchy is fluid. and wolves don't roll other wolves over. a wolf that acted the way millan acts in that video would be torn apart by the pack - alphas aren't bullies.
what it comes down to is many of the methods he teaches are at best bad training or misinformation and at worst dangerous to dogs and their owners. i'd rather have people looking at the wealth of dog training info out there that is completely or mostly sound, rather than following this charismatic guy who throws the occasional seriously dangerous technique into the mix, just cause he's on tv and isn't 100% wrong.
I've had a few dogs (and cats) try to bite me in my career. It goes with the territory, and yes it makes me mad when it happens. But if I tried to 'train' them by choking them until they turned purple I would not only lose my job but likely my license as well. And rightly so.
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I'm the odd one out
