Having worked for several years with dogs, Cesar Millan has now become one of the world’s most sought-after dog trainers. Cesar currently hosts the popular dog show titled “The Dog Whisperer” on National Geographic Channel. A very entertaining and charismatic host, Cesar has made the show a huge favorite amongst dog owners. Owing to this, he has several fans who implement such techniques on house pets. Still, there are some who have a feeling that the methodology adopted by Cesar is inappropriate and extremely harsh for most pet owners (novice trainers). I therefore discuss Cesar’s approach to dog training with brief elaboration on its pros and cons.
Pros of Cesar Millan's Dog Training:
- Cesar educates people on the ways and means to become good pack leaders. He stresses on the importance of setting boundaries and rules for the dog and emphasizes on maintenance of calm and assertive energy.
- Cesar gives overt importance on understanding the needs of the dog and transforming it into a healthy and well-trained pet through proper discipline and regular exercise.
- Besides, Cesar also shows people the methodologies to improve the behavior of their dogs irrespective of their background and breed. Few dog breeds such as the Pit Bull Terrier have developed a horrible reputation. Cesar tells people that dogs could be easily rehabilitated irrespective of their background and breed.
- Cesar uses his pack of dogs to improve the behavior of other dogs and teach them. He believes in the fact that the best teacher for any dog could be another dog. Though one can try to learn the body language of a canine, it would take years before one can become adept in it.
Cons of Cesar’s Dog Training:
- Cesar limits exploring other dog training techniques. He has an extremely charismatic, confident and alpha personality which makes him successful. People can try to be like that but not everyone is like that. Some can’t even fake it.
- Though Cesar sometimes believes in the fact that altering of dog’s behavior may take time, his dog behavior program has shown exactly the opposite. The Dog Whisperer’s show format is such that Cesar needs to quickly show the results so that the program becomes engaging and interesting. On most occasions, there is a timer that displays how Cesar solves the problem within minutes (5-15 minutes), which, most owners had found it difficult to solve. These help in encouraging a fix-it-now-or-give-up mentality amongst dog owners, which leads to more dogs getting surrendered.
- Cesar has kept the discussion on the proper use of equipment which needed to be used and the correct usage of particular equipment to the minimum. Cesar advises clients to put the dog collar high up on the neck, close to ears and the head. Sometimes, Cesar also uses the Illusion collar to prevent it from sliding down the neck and on some occasions, goes with the owner’s choice. Cesar is also known to implement choke chains for a long time period. Recent studies have indicated that choke chain is harmful for the dog.
- Cesar downplays the effects and dangers of implementing aversive techniques. Some of Cesar’s aversive techniques include leash jerks, finger pokes and alpha rolls. Cesar believes that such techniques are only meant to receive dog’s attention.
If you are interested, you can check out some of his videos.
