R.I.P. Cliford

Tonight the third season of The Dog Whisperer premieres on the National Geographic Channel. I’ve been waiting for the new season to begin all summer long. I only wish it had a different time slot as it’s up against Monday Night Football and WWE’s RAW.

The show is focused on dog expert Cesar Milan and his work with his clients. Every episode we are introduced to new dogs that are causing trouble and their owners who turn to Cesar as a last resort to fix their dogs. The funny thing is that usually he ends up fixing the humans and how they relate to their pets instead of fixing the dogs.

I started watching The Dog Whisperer after seeing a hilarious South Park episode that aired last May. In the episode, Cartman’s mom becomes frustrated with her son and decides to turn to television nanny shows like Nanny 911 and Supernanny for help. Of course, they are no match for Cartman, so his mom has to bring in Cesar. What surprised me about the episode is that the show’s writers, Trey Parker and Matt Stone didn’t try to skewer Milan as they do many of their subjects. They didn’t even make fun of his Mexican heritage or accent. Instead they actually seem to have some respect for his methods of establishing dominance in dog/owner relationships, and I guess in child/parent relationships.

Cesar’s methods primarily revolve around the idea that the dog owner must act and be seen as a pack leader by his dog. Dogs, like wolves, have a natural instinct to form packs and follow a single dominant dog. Milan feels that when a dog misbehaves or will not obey its owner, the dog is asserting its dominance. This is often a result of the owner failing to instill discipline in the relationship with his dog or treating the dog like a human child instead of the animal it is.

To establish the role of pack leader, Cesar recommends daily walks with your dog that last between 30-45 minutes. However, the walk must be done correctly. Rather than having the dog in front you, dragging you along, the owner must be in front leading the dog. However, if you’ve ever walked an untrained dog you know that can be easier said than done. To accomplish the correct walk, Cesar emphasizes placing the leash high on the neck. He also tends to use choke chains and will apply a touch to the dog’s neck with a “tsst” sound. The touch is supposed to resemble a dominant dog putting its jaw on another dog to discipline it. By associating it with the sound, eventually only the "tsst" is necessary to correct any unwanted behavior.

Not everyone agrees with these methods. Recently I’ve noticed that NGC is running a disclaimer emphasizing that not all methods are proper for all dogs in addition to the original disclaimer at the beginning of the show in which they recommend not using the methods shown without the assistance of a dog trainer. Of course my question is “Than why am I watching the show if I’m still going to have to resort to hiring someone.” Obviously the answer is that the network is simply trying to protect itself from any possible lawsuits.

Other trainers prefer to use positive reinforcement and rewards rather than these somewhat punitive measures. This debate, as the South Park made clear, is similar to the argument over child rearing and spanking. Growing up, my dad would occasionally spank me and looking back on it, I think it probably did me some good. So I don’t have any problems with Cesar’s disciplinarian approach. Plus the proof is in the pudding. It really is impressive to see how Cesar can turn an out of control dog, in some cases on the verge of being put down by its owners, into an obedient, balanced animal.

Unfortunately, my loyal viewing of the show, it reruns on NGC all the time, hasn’t led to me having obedient dogs. I have two dogs right now, Zelda and Leia. I got Zelda, a German Shepherd/Siberian Husky mix, about 2 1/2 years ago, a few months after my first dog Patch was put down. Zelda was rescued from the local animal shelter. She was supposed to be only a year old, but I later found out when she was taken to the vet that she was actually seven. She’s been a great dog but she does have some issues.

First of all, she pulls me when I walk her. She’s improved since I started watching the show, but I still haven’t mastered the walk. She is also scared to death of loud noises like fireworks, which are legal where I live. I have come to dread the Fourth of July because I know she’s going to go crazy. I usually give her a sedative and that helps a bit. Finally, she has a bit of a predator drive in her and will go after cats and birds in the backyard and unfortunately she has killed a couple of them.

I was worried about getting my second dog Leia, a Schnauzer/Maltese mix, because of Zelda’s predator instinct. I first saw Leia on a trip to Mexico to visit some family. My cousin’s dogs had just had puppies. I really became enamored of Leia’s father, Cliford, and when my cousin saw this, she offered to let me take one of the puppies home. I didn’t at the time because Leia was only a few weeks old and her mother was still nursing her. But when my mother visited Mexico a couple of months later, she was able to bring Leia back with her. Fortunately Zelda accepted her and there hasn't been any problems between them. Leia is a bit of a handful and will occasionally growl and nip at me. But using some of the methods I’ve seen on The Dog Whisperer, I have been able to make her a little more obedient.

Unfortunately my family in Mexico doesn’t watch The Dog Whisperer. I found out yesterday that Cliford got loose and was hit by a car and has passed on. When I heard the news, I couldn’t help but wonder whether Cliford would still be alive if my cousin had walked him daily and trained him not to run out when the door was open. I guess I’ll never know. But to try to make sure that doesn’t happen to Leia, I’ll be tuning in tonight to become a better dog owner, even if it means missing out on a little MNF and RAW.

You will be missed Cliford.