When Millan made a silent vow to become the best dog trainer
in the world, he didn’t exactly have in mind starring in
a half-hour reality-cum-advice show that reaches into more than
50 million American homes. At the time, he was just a high-spirited
13-year-old living with his extended family on a ranch near Culiacan,
Mexico, with a natural ability to command packs of dogs. He knew
he was different, if only because he enjoyed being with animals
more than people. His friends had no goals as clearly defined
as Millan’s: to go to Hollywood and become a trainer
for Rin Tin Tin and Lassie. 
That was before Millan fell in love with an American girl who
had faith in marriage counseling, before Oprah Winfrey, Phil
McGraw, Deepak Chopra and Anthony Robbins became his role models,
before he figured out how psychotherapy could be applied to canine
management problems, and before he saw how gaga Americans can
get over the 62 million to 68 million dogs that share their homes.
Now, “Dog Whisperer With Cesar Millan,” which
debuted in mid-September, airs on the National Geographic Channel
three times a day, five days a week. Each episode features two
cases: pooch parents at wit’s end confessing to Millan
that their child-substitutes are nervous, obsessive, possessive,
hyper, hostile or violent.
“She thinks she’s people,” a woman says of
her terrier, providing what she thinks is a cute excuse for monstrous
behavior.
“No, she doesn’t,” Cesar replies.
The dog whisperer understands the problem, all the problems
that develop when people anthropomorphize their pets. Speaking
slightly accented English without hesitation, he explains that
dogs don’t think like humans. They’re ruled by instinct,
not intellect.
Millan is sympathetic to the beleaguered people who seek his
counsel, but he also understands the plight of pets that need
to get a dog’s life, who are never taken on a decent walk
yet bear heavy burdens as surrogates for absent families and
nonexistent friends and lovers. The subtext of “Dog Whisperer” is
that when it comes to our animals, we’re all women and
men who love too much.
“A dog that receives only affection, affection, affection
and doesn’t get exercise, rules, boundaries and limitations
is unbalanced,” Millan says. “And an unbalanced dog
is not a happy dog.”
Sitting in the dressed-up suburban living room of two well-meaning
empty-nesters, facing a portrait of the couple hugging the Dalmatian
that rules their home, he listens to their words while sniffing
for clues to character.
“I’m evaluating whether the owner’s energy
is nervous, fearful, anxious or frustrated, because this is the
energy the dog lives with,” he explains. “Dogs don’t
know if you have a position in the human world. You can be Halle
Berry or the president of the United States. It doesn’t
matter to them. They just know the energy you share and the activities
you do with them.”
At first, Millan is more interested in observing the couple
than their problem-child, because he doesn’t train dogs.
He rehabilitates animals and trains their owners, teaching the
two-legged creatures how to be top dog. Much of what he knows
about dogs he learned from observing how they behave in packs.
“We’re the only species that follows a spiritual
leader,” he says. “Dogs don’t follow lovable
leaders. They follow dominant and calm, assertive leaders. If
you put Ghandi and Fidel Castro in front of a pack of dogs, they’ll
follow Castro because of his energy. There is no knowledge behind
instinct. Dogs don’t rationalize.”
Whether he’s in front of a camera or not, Millan has the
bearing of a leader. His gaze is direct, his posture commanding.
He’s a superb mimic and can snarl, scratch, pant and yip
with the best (or worst) of them as he assumes the demeanor of
an excited or fearful dog. He is also easy to imitate. Once people
understand that dogs bully wimps and obey leaders they respect,
they adopt Millan’s relaxed manner and tension-free walk.
The transformations are usually dramatic; when he takes over,
bad habits disappear, neuroses vanish. “A lot of times
it seems like a miracle,” he says. “It isn’t
a miracle. It’s just that the dog lives in the moment,
and along comes someone with the energy and strategy required
to make things happen.”
His brand of tough love is simple. He avoids condescension or
blame while gently, unequivocally informing people that they’ve
been selfish and insensitive to their dog’s needs. If Millan
were less patient, less skilled, he might just blurt out, “Your
dog barks like a maniac every time the doorbell rings. Did you
ever think of saying, ‘No! Cut it out!’”
His methods are neither new nor revolutionary. Generations of
American dogs have been trained following the advice of the monks
of New Skete, a small religious order in upstate New York that
raises German shepherds. In their thick volume, “How to
Be Your Dog’s Best Friend: The Classic Training Manual
for Dog Owners,” the monks recommend that a human alpha
leader be a disciplinarian. Millan has streamlined his similar
message so effectively for TV that the concepts are easy to grasp. “In
every show, there is a light bulb moment,” says co-executive
producer Jim Milio of MPH Entertainment. “People will say, ‘Oh,
my God! I’m treating my dog like my kid.”’
Janika Symon, a dog rescuer and Universal Studios story analyst
who met Millan six years ago - when his reputation had already
spread among Los Angeles animal shelters and rescue groups -
says the dog whisperer used to be more abrupt with clients than
he is on his show. “Cesar’s approach to dogs and
their relationships with people is very challenging,” she
says. “It requires effort and intention. You have to do
it and do it and do it. You can’t fall into your old patterns
and be an effective pack leader.”
In many cases, seeing a happy, serene dog motivates people to
follow Millan’s prescription. That can include going for
vigorous, regular walks, strapping a backpack on an underemployed
working dog, putting a high-energy hunter on a treadmill.
If “Dog Whisperer” is as big a hit as its supporters
expect, Millan can go on to write books, endorse products, lead
seminars. He still dreams of meeting Oprah, and he longs to work
with her dogs. He thinks they’re really spoiled.
Cesar Millan training
tips
Dog Whisperer Video
www.nashuatelegraph.com
By Mimi Avins, The Los Angeles Times
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