Do You Need a Trainer or a Rehabilitator?

In the first page of the introduction to Cesar's Rules, Millan notes:

People don’t usually seek me out when their dog won’t sit on command. They beg me for help when their dog is destroying their life. In the opening of my show, "Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan" on the National Geographic Channel, I always say, “I rehabilitate dogs; I train people.”

Yet, still, the press refers to me as “dog trainer” Cesar Millan. And owners constantly ask me for my favorite training tips.

Of course, Millan can obedience- and trick-train a dog. Let's face it; basic obedience is not rocket science.   Millan's own dogs can go anywhere with him off-leash, and he has trained dogs to do fairly elaborate tricks as well.

But tricks and simple obedience drills are not what interests Millan about dogs. He is interested in something else.

Millan's interest is in what goes on inside of dogs; how they see the world and how they think, and how they get along in our world, and theirs.

Training?

Yes, by all means, but as Millan notes, for so many dogs obedience training is not necessarily where to start.

Millan notes that after he first arrived in Los Angeles, he took a job at a dog training facility where the sales gimmick was to show folks a dog that was trained in Germany and tell prospective clients that in a few short weeks (and for many thousands of dollars) their dog could be just like the dog they saw before them.   Folks never knew the dog was trained overseas by someone they were not hiring!

What bothered Millan more than the deception was that many of the pet dogs he saw entering the training facility did not need basic obedience so much as they needed rehabilitation to deal with the confusions and anxieties already embedded within. And here we come to the crux of it; so many people seek out a "dog trainer," when in fact their dog needs something else.

Do you want your dog to learn basic obedience commands, or to stop attacking the neighbor's dog or the postman? These are different things.

I began asking the question, "Is obedience training really what this dog needs right now?" Many of the dogs were fearful and insecure, and the process of training made them worse.

Millan goes on to note that the question of whether a dog needs obedience work or canine rehabilitation is still front and center with every in-take. You need to "Choose the right tool for the job you need done."

Now, here's the funny part; most people are not that interested in getting their dog to retrieve a canvas dummy from 120 yards. In their real lives, few people need a sit-stay that lasts for 20 minutes, or a go-out-to-mark. In all my years with dogs, I have never needed a dog to run an agility course, or climb a ladder. Yes, I have trained dogs to go out to marks, retrieve over fences, do fetch and returns, and play "bang, you're dead," but there was no need for it. I was just goofing with the dogs.

So what do people want from their dogs? Why do people seek out Cesar Millan, but show less interest in other trainers?

The answer, is that Millan actually gives them what they want. He is the patch that fits their hole.

If you have an adult dog that is eating the sofa, or biting and scratching a hole in the door when the postman delivers the mail, you intuitively know that a "puppy socialization" class is not what you need. Neither is a class that teaches your dog to do a front-finish after sit. Nothing wrong with either of those, but they simply do not address the problem at hand.

So what does Millan offer?

Simple advice.

Exercise for one. The dog that is eating the sofa will change dramatically if it is given 30 or 45 minutes of exercise twice a day in which the owner is walking the dog, and the dog is not walking the owner.

Discipline for another. Your dog is attaching the mailbox when the postman arrives in the morning? Have you ever done more than yell at the dog from behind, and in an excited high-pitched voice, when that was going on? I bet not! And guess what? Your yelling probably sounded more like encouragement from behind (followship) rather than a clear NO signal from the front (leadership). Here's a hint -- dogs don't speak human, so you have to speak dog. Stand between the dog and the door when the "postman" (a friend playing the role) comes, and square your shoulders to the dog while giving it a low-pitched guttural "naaahh" that means "we could use less of that."   Do not move around or flap your arms or talk beyond the deep guttural "naah" signal. Stand and present and keep your body square to the dog. If you want to add a little more emphasis, a light wooden yardstick or batten snapped on the ground once does wonders -- it is a sharp sound that startles the dog out of its obsession, and it is neutral, loud, clear and emphatic. When the dog stops dead, walk the dog back back to a doorway and do this every time.

And, of course, Millan rounds up with affection. Not affection for nothing. Not indiscriminate rewards. Not soothing and gentle strokes for the dog while it is attacking the postal slot ("Calm down Muffy").

Instead, once the dog starts to do the right thing, Millan may shift his body from square-on to take a little pressure off the dog, his voice may change tone, or he may pat the dog on the head or (gasp!) give it a piece of kibble.  And things change, sometimes very rapidly, but always needing reinforcement over a period of time.

Is this what you need more of in your life?

Or is your training goal to get your dog to master weave poles, teeter-totters, scent tracking, and a 20-minute sit-stay outside the donut shop?

This is Question One, and yet too often it is never asked because the real subtext of so much of what is written about dog training is not dogs at all. It's humans. It's humans saying, "I am right and you are wrong... Respect My Authority!

To which I can only say, right.

And did you see what happened when Cartman met Cesar Millan?  Priceless!

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