mumsy Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 We have just brought home a gorgeous 10 week old puppy. I don't have foxtel, but I was told we should get the Dog Whisperer DVD. Any thoughts on this and is there a difference between the american or an australian version? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormie Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I really like Cesar Milan and agree with pretty much everything he says. I think it's a good idea for any new puppy owner to watch, just to understand the whole pack leader thing and to try and learn an appropriate attitude to have with your dog. I don't think everyone should go around 'rolling' their dogs, but I think if more people took on his methods of rules, boundaries, limitations as more walking exercise instead of free play at dog parks, there'd be a lot more well behaved dogs out there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sticks1977 Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 The Dog Whisperer DVD series are useful as you can see Cesar work wonders with many of the dogs that he has on the show. Firstly, he is treating dogs with extensive behaviour problems or concerns that owners have - being that your puppy is only 10 weeks old at the moment the DVD may not be useful as of yet. In the near future if any patterns in your dogs behaviour is concerning to you, you may be able to refer to the DVD. It does mention throughout Cesar's show that "these methods are performed by a professional, please seek advice if attempting" or something along those lines. I would imagine that each episode would be heavily edited and at times a result can take anywhere from minutes... to days. There have been occasions watching Cesar's show that he takes the dog in question back to his Animal Rehab Clinic in Los Angeles. What I would deffinately recommend is some of Cesar's books - I recently purchase the Cesar Millan: How to Raise the Perfect Dog book, I have found some of what he has mentioned throughout the book more helpful than any of his episodes on "Dog Whisperer". Good luck and please feel free to purchase the DVDs as they are rather interesting to watch - personally it makes me want to get involved into dog training Regards, Shaun (Sticks1977) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 mumsy- there are basic tips/explanations IF YOU CLICK HERE also - have a read HERE and HERE, and HERE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormie Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 Pfft you can't perve on him in a book Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poodlefan Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 (edited) I think some face to face training for you and your pup would be more beneficial. Join an obedience club or attend some classes. DVDs and books are great as an addition to personal instruction but I don't think they're as good as one on one training. Cesar Milan is very talented at what he does but some of his methods are not for your average pet owner. You might find the training advice here more relevant for your situation. Edited January 21, 2010 by poodlefan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raineth Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 Pfft you can't perve on him in a book Oh Stormie! That is disgusting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Ark Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I love Cesar! Would definitely recommend his DVDs - they are very watchable, and you will pick up so many tips about why dogs do the things they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavik Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 Cesar Milan's DVDs are interesting to watch to see how he deals with dogs with extreme problems. They are NOT instructional DVDs and I think are of limited use (if any at all) for training purposes, especially as you are starting with a puppy. I agree with poodlefan that face to face training would be more useful. There are other DVDs that would be MUCH more useful for specific sports (agility, obedience, etc). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I agree with PF and Kavik. I could take or leave Cesar, there are some things I like about him and some things he does that I would never do nor recommend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macka Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I don't mind Cesar but there are probably better things out there. I am going to recommend you get yourself a copy of Really Reliable Recall (DVD) simply because I wish someone had told me to get that when my girl was a puppy! I also agree with Persephone about Dog Star Daily - great resource for new puppy owners. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skruffy n Flea Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 Pfft you can't perve on him in a book Oh Stormie! That is disgusting! i reckon cesar's the cutest lil mexican in the world so i'm with you stormie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerraNik Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 Cesar Milan's DVDs are interesting to watch to see how he deals with dogs with extreme problems. They are NOT instructional DVDs and I think are of limited use (if any at all) for training purposes, especially as you are starting with a puppy. I agree with poodlefan that face to face training would be more useful. There are other DVDs that would be MUCH more useful for specific sports (agility, obedience, etc). +1 I think that's where people go wrong with Cesar - they think the TV program shows them enough information and background to go home and try it on their non-behavioural issue dog. I am not really a fan of any TV-based dog training show for that very reason. There are SO many other books and DVDs out there that provide more useful and sufficient information for the average owner and their dog who doesn't yet have any major issues. Of course, going to an obedience club is ideal so that you can get some one-on-one advice when needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skruffy n Flea Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 although cesar's methods are mostly for red zone dogs, every time i watch his show i garner from it lil bits here and there that i can apply to handling my two lil flufflies. do you have your pup enrolled in puppy school? that's an excellent start to a puppy's life with you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~*Shell*~ Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 (edited) I really enjoy Cesar Milan but just because he uses a technique, doesn't mean you should too. He has a very special way with dogs and just using the actions that he does won't get you the same result. Case in point - I am training to be an obedience instructor (with Terranik, who posted before). One night in class we had a woman come with a rotty pup. She was told by her breeder to roll her pup over on it's side whenever it was doing something she didn't like (it's called an alpha roll) and now that the pup was 4 months old, it had started biting her when she went to touch it. Forced submission is not the way to go - it's about your energy and unfortunately that can't be taught easily because it's very easy to become frustrated when the dog doesn't do what you want which does a whole lot more harm than good. I do however agree with his "exercise, discipline, affection" mantra - a lot of the time what manifests itself as a problem is because a dog is bored or has a lot of energy to waste (keep in mind that energy is not always "physical" energy - nothing tires Zero out more than a game of "what can you do to get you the click?" and Zero knows some pretty cool tricks because of it - clicker training is a great way to drain some energy). I recommend reading some of his books - I think he has a book out about puppies and I know "A member of the family" and "be the pack leader" explained a lot to me. Edited January 21, 2010 by ~*Shell*~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FranVT Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I think some face to face training for you and your pup would be more beneficial. Join an obedience club or attend some classes.DVDs and books are great as an addition to personal instruction but I don't think they're as good as one on one training. Cesar Milan is very talented at what he does but some of his methods are not for your average pet owner. You might find the training advice here more relevant for your situation. Agree wholeheartedly, I had watched some of the dog whisperer DVDs / austar shows before I took Atlas to obedience but never really employed any techniques (except for using my mantra which I borrowed from him - "calm/assertive" - repeat it in your head and try to keep this demeanour) because it's just a TV show. Taking him to dog obedience was the best thing we've ever done and same with puppy preschool, Atlas would not be the well adjusted dude he is today if we hadn't socialised him early and learnt all the great info we did from the people there Cesar Milan's DVDs are interesting to watch to see how he deals with dogs with extreme problems. They are NOT instructional DVDs and I think are of limited use (if any at all) for training purposes, especially as you are starting with a puppy. I agree with poodlefan that face to face training would be more useful. There are other DVDs that would be MUCH more useful for specific sports (agility, obedience, etc). +1 I think that's where people go wrong with Cesar - they think the TV program shows them enough information and background to go home and try it on their non-behavioural issue dog. I am not really a fan of any TV-based dog training show for that very reason. There are SO many other books and DVDs out there that provide more useful and sufficient information for the average owner and their dog who doesn't yet have any major issues. Of course, going to an obedience club is ideal so that you can get some one-on-one advice when needed. Another +1 for me, that show, to me, is entertainment not instructional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melbomb Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I think some face to face training for you and your pup would be more beneficial. Join an obedience club or attend some classes.DVDs and books are great as an addition to personal instruction but I don't think they're as good as one on one training. Cesar Milan is very talented at what he does but some of his methods are not for your average pet owner. You might find the training advice here more relevant for your situation. Yep i have to agree with Poodlefan. I think from another thread that you have a boxer pup? If this is the case it will be especially important that you take your little one to classes and get them socialised without letting them run mad and having a free for all in a dog park. Training is also a great way to build up a bond and also some respect between you and your puppy. Personally i watch Cesar's shows as entertainment only, although as Stormie & Shell mentioned his philosophy of rules, boundaries, limitations is a great one to follow especially with a boxer puppy! If you have any question's Mumsy please feel free to pop into the Boxer thread in the breed sub-forum or send me a PM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megan_ Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I think some face to face training for you and your pup would be more beneficial. Join an obedience club or attend some classes.DVDs and books are great as an addition to personal instruction but I don't think they're as good as one on one training. Cesar Milan is very talented at what he does but some of his methods are not for your average pet owner. You might find the training advice here more relevant for your situation. Agree 100%. Cesar says that you shouldn't try any of the stuff he does at home without a professional consult! He is also dealing with some very difficult dogs and the methods he uses (eg rolling) aren't applicable to most dogs. I do like his mantra Exercise then Discipline then Affection - keep that in mind when dealing with your dog and things will go a lot more smoothly. Save your money and use it for classes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 He has some great philosophies, I don't like the way he sets about achieving them though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickasyoucan Posted January 21, 2010 Share Posted January 21, 2010 I too like his philosophies and I like to watch the way he instinctively interacts with dogs, particuarly those dogs that people have all but given up hope on. but that is his special talent and I don't think it is particularly transferable except in general terms that others have spoken of such at the treat dogs as dogs and exercise discipline affection mantras which I think have general application. The books are good from a general philosophy point of view and are easy reading. But he is the first to say he is not a dog trainer. Enjoy the DVD for entertainment, but better still invest the money in a one on one hands on session with a trainer to set you on the right course with your pup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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