Millan is best known for his TV show "Dog Whisperer." In this, his second book, Millan gives more details and anecdotes about how to train the humans who inevitably seem the cause of dog behavior problems.The rules are simple: remember that dogs are first of all dogs. Millan says you must train yourself to understand that your dog is first an animal. Second, a dog. Third, a particular breed (or mix) of dog (with associated behavioral tendencies). And only then, your companion.
This isn't so easy for dog owners. He points to near-empty nesters who treat their dog as a baby (and better than their kid). And to guilt ridden office workers who don't spend much time with their dog and spoil it.
Millan says the key to having a successful dog is: exercise, discipline, affection. In that order.
He looks for 45 minutes to one hour each morning of dog exercise (dog following the human, who must be the pack leader), and again in the evening (for perhaps a slightly shorter time). Millan says that just running around in a fenced yard is insufficient. This is for many reasons, including the need for the dog to have a mission - and that a directed walk, following her pack leader, provides that raison d'etre for the dog.
One of my personal take-aways from this is that dog ownership is quite different from having a pet hamster or gold fish. There's considerable work and time required. Not just for the daily walks, the animals maintenance and training. But also mental work, to think clearly about the signals you send the animal, to think clearly about how to best challenge it, train it, and keep it interested as well, physically and mentally.
Anyone for a Pleo instead?
