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Narrator: Do not attempt these
techniques yourself without
consulting a professional.
On this episode of
the Dog Whisperer.
Alan: He has this
thing about cars.
He loves to chase cars.
Rhonda: He can be killed,
and I can get killed.
So it's really a very,
very dangerous situation.
Cesar Millan: We are working
with a dog who has already
accomplished killing; we can't
allow one second of fixation.
Mia Coveny: Every time the kids
would ride by on a skateboard,
something in her becomes
unhinged. She just loses it.
Narrator: When good dogs
go bad, there's one man who's
their best friend,
Cesar Millan.
No dog is too much
for me to handle.
I rehabilitate dogs.
I train people.
I am the Dog Whisperer.
Greg: We got Buddy
about three years ago.
He was a rescue.
Kim: Greg was sold
from his picture.
He kept going, but honey,
look at him, look at him!
Greg: We saw his face and we
just kind of fell in love.
Kim: When we first adopted
Buddy, he was very, very skinny.
Greg: He was found wandering
the streets of South Central LA.
He'd been homeless
for a long time.
He has bite marks all over
his legs and his torso.
But he's such a
sweet dog to people;
we just really wanted
to give him a chance.
Kim: He's a really,
really good dog.
Greg: He's so sweet and
submissive around us, you know,
I can flip him over, I
can hold him, you know,
in my lap like a baby and he'll
just stay there as long as
I want him to stay there.
He's 60 pounds, but he
loves to be a lap dog.
Kim: He's just really, really
good except when he's bad.
The first time that I remember
Buddy attacking another
creature, we were
out in the backyard,
and I looked over
under our big tree.
Greg: All of a sudden this
squirrel popped his head out
behind this tree and said,
"Will you be my friend?"
Kim: Buddy looked over
and he charged over.
Greg: Argh-and just
grabbed him and killed him.
Kim: Just ate it.
Greg: And we went, "Ahh!"
Kim: And I was so horrified.
Greg: That's when we found
out that he uh, you know,
has this really
sharp prey instinct.
He's aggressive to any
small animal, pretty much.
It's kinda like a
Jekyll and Hyde thing.
In the past year, it's
gotten a lot worse.
If we had one wish, it would
just be that Buddy could just
get along with all creatures.
Narrator: To avoid more
attacks, Kim and Greg looked
to dog behavior expert Cesar
Millan for a solution.
Greg: This is Buddy.
Okay. He is
wonderful with people.
Okay. But we have a problem
with pretty much any
other creature.
He, he just has a very,
very strong prey instinct.
Kim: Because he's part
pit-bull, you know,
that's always the concern
just in the back of our,
I don't know as much for you,
but in my mind, like, okay,
that's a breed you don't want
to take any chances with.
Cesar: How long
have you owned him?
Greg: We've had Buddy for
about three years now.
Cesar: From the beginning, do
you notice anything or you just.
Kim: Oh yeah.
Cesar: Oh yeah?
Kim: Well, from the beginning
the first thing we noticed was
that he had separation
anxiety, horribly.
The minute he hears the garage
door go up, he just goes crazy.
And it's still that same anxiety
that he had when we'd come home
and he was in the crate.
It's just, now he's
not in the crate.
Cesar: So let me give you the
understanding why, in my belief,
dogs develop anxiety.
One, is because they're
lacking in exercise,
so when the energy accumulates,
they don't know what to do
with the energy.
Second is when they
are the pack leader,
the follower's not
supposed to go away.
He's supposed to
tell you where to go.
So when you make your own
move, he gets anxious,
because you are going
against his program.
Greg: So you think that
Buddy considers himself
to be the pack leader?
Cesar: Absolutely.
Greg: Why is he so
submissive to us?
Cesar: When there is no
distraction, there is no,
no excitement, you can
tell the brain what to do.
See, because the mind
is in a calm state.
But when the mind is in an
excited, dominant state,
there's nothing you can do.
Pack leader is when you control
animal in the outside world.
When you control behind
walls, of course the
animal is behind walls.
Notice that I am not
talking about Buddy,
I'm talking about animal.
If you control animal,
you control instincts.
And what you're having
problem with is instincts;
you don't have a
problem with Buddy.
I see. Your animal has to
be in control of his animal.
His animal doesn't believe
you're the dominant one.
Friendship doesn't equal
leadership; it equals love,
but doesn't equal leadership.
Once you're pack leader you
control instincts and genetics.
Greg: Can the both
of us be pack leader?
Cesar: Yes, sir.
Okay. Absolutely, you should.
Greg: Well we certainly
have the will.
Cesar: Yes, you do. Obviously,
you are very dedicated
human being.
Greg: We are very
dedicated to him.
Kim: We are.
Cesar: I'm ready.
Narrator: Can Cesar put a stop
to Buddy's killer instincts?
Narrator: Kim and Greg Benson's
Pit Bull/Lab mix, Buddy,
has killed small animals in
their neighborhood and
is aggressive
towards other dogs.
Cesar uses a special collar
that gives him maximum control
over Buddy's behavior.
Cesar brings Buddy to meet some
special assistants that will
help him with his
rehabilitation.
Cesar: Shh. Right there.
The nose was bringing
him towards the animals.
At that moment I touch,
at the moment I touch,
I broke the concentration.
The animals are right
here in front of him.
Shhh, right there, right away.
The touch has to be firm we
can't allow one second of
fixation.
There we go, already
killing the animal.
Now we're going to do
it my way, not his way.
We ask him right now to
lay by them and ignore.
Shhh we're working with a dog
who has already
accomplished killing.
So we can't lose focus
on what he is doing,
he's working really hard and
trying to ignore the scent and
the sight of them.
We have four options in animals:
fight, flight, avoidance,
and submission.
What we have right now is
a submissive position with
avoidance state of mind which
is blocking the brain from
going into a fight mode.
So because the animals are not
sensing any challenge from,
from the predator, they can
behave calmly, curious, relaxed.
This is a very important rabbit.
Pack leader have to tell
follower that this rabbit is
now part of our pack.
Now I'm going to
make him come to us.
And when he is in that
good state of mind,
we can share affection.
This means tensions to me,
this holding the leg like this,
this is the more relaxed
part of the body,
but this part is tense.
And because of that,
that is a symptom.
What is best for him is to go
into that state of mind, calm,
submissive state of mind,
and the rabbit to feel safe.
That's submission.
Greg: The whole time in the
back of my head I was thinking,
is he really this calm?
Kim: I kept thinking, oh, all
it'll take is one chomp and
it'll all be over.
Cesar: He's not fixated
anymore, that's really good.
That's really good, that means
he's giving a space to
the rabbit.
Greg: Amazing.
Kim: Wow.
Narrator: Cesar's next Guinea
Pig is an actual Guinea Pig.
Cesar: So right now we're making
the rabbit and we're making the
guinea pig the dominant one,
that's why we're having the
guinea pig and the rabbit
in the top position.
And the dog is going into
a submissive position.
A lot of times, predators, when
they hear that they get into
that state, like that.
But because he's not
in a predator mode,
this sound is now
becoming relaxation.
Tail wagging doesn't
mean he's happy.
A lot of people interpret tail
wagging as dog is really happy,
well right now this is just
another symptom that tells you,
I'm ready to strike.
We have to be able to keep
everybody in a good state of
mind so they can
relate with each other.
Even though they are
different species,
we can create same frequency.
Look, Buddy is falling
asleep with the sound.
Oh, look at that.
This can only happen if you
are not nervous, tense,
fearful, anxious.
Give him a kiss. That's
right. Kissy, kissy.
Kim: When I saw Buddy with the
rabbit and the small animals,
first of all, I was amazed.
I mean I really didn't think
that that could happen.
Because of the way that he's
reacted with squirrels and
possums, I really didn't think
that that was a possibility.
Cesar: Shoulders up, head up.
Narrator: Before handing
the reigns over to Kim,
Cesar demonstrates how to be
calm and assertive with Buddy.
Cesar: Go for it.
Dog whisperer time.
But you're not
really copying me.
Kim: The first time I did it, I
was surprised because I thought
I was doing what Cesar was
doing, and then he said, well.
Cesar: Notice that I don't
hold my shoulders down,
and I don't keep my head
down on the ground. So be me.
Kim: I was really, you know,
surprised that I was doing that.
I had no idea.
So then the second time, I think
I was just focused totally on
me, and then I forgot to look
at what the dog was doing.
Cesar: Kim doesn't
want to harm anybody.
I want her to feel that by her
touching Buddy in a physical
way, she wasn't harming the
body, the mind, the heart,
or the spirit.
Watch this.
By not setting rules,
boundaries, limitations,
it's a different way
of harming somebody.
Kim: Okay, let me
try one more time.
Cesar: Yes. I like that
attitude.
Kim: The last time I did it,
I was able to see
the final outcome.
I did it with the
final goal in mind.
Cesar: She got the body, the
body is good, not the mind.
There we go.
Very good.
The head have to be on
the ground, that's right.
I like that.
Kim: I was really proud of him.
And me, for being able to do it.
Cesar: How do you feel?
Kim: I, I feel great, I mean
it's so amazing, it's just,
it's really amazing to be
sitting here with him like this,
it's not something that I
would've thought was possible.
Cesar: Perfect. I hope they
saw that working with Mother
Nature give them access to
accomplish their goal.
To accomplish their dream.
To remove this is stereotype
about a killer dog, a Pit-bull.
You saw that Buddy was able to
remove that killer side of him
and give you the
other side of him.
But, one thing that I observed
is that you have a high level of
excitement and anxiety.
So, before I give you
homework in the outside world,
you have to take over
in the inside world.
Because you have to accomplish
leadership from the moment
you go away and the
moment you come back.
Today is one of those rare cases
where I am not even teaching
the owners how to walk
the dog from day one.
I am going to be back in one
week Yay. and to practice a
little bit more dog psychology.
Cesar: Kim had the
light bulb today. You know?
Maybe next time it's Greg.
That's going to be a
fantastic experience,
once we accomplish two light
bulbs in one household. Yes.
Greg: Bye, Cesar.
Cesar: Bye, bye guys.
Kim: Bye.
Greg: Nice to see you.
Kim: Hi.
Cesar: So, how things
are coming along?
Greg: We definitely feel
much better since you, uh,
were here last week.
He, uh, he pays more
attention to us.
Cesar: The whole point of our
exercise today is for you to
master the walk.
Plus, you're gonna be able
to have two dogs on the side.
So that intensifies
the leadership.
So, you guys up
to the challenge?
Greg: Absolutely.
Kim: Yeah.
Cesar: You guys feel great.
The energy today is awesome,
more empowering, more uplifting,
more let's do this.
Greg: Let's do it.
Cesar: Very good, you
keep him right there.
Very good. Good boy,
Ha ha ha.
Very good. Grab,
very good. Yeah.
That's right, very good.
Cesar: You can see a
very powerful Greg now.
His timing is really good.
His energy is really good.
He's not questioning.
He is really
believe what I said.
Shoulders up.
That's right.
There you go, hold the leash.
And Kim, you don't see
the fear, you don't see
a lot of that anymore.
You see a different couple,
which is wonderful to observe.
Narrator: Next up, a big
challenge for everybody.
Greg, Kim, and Buddy need
to run the gauntlet of their
neighborhood dogs.
Cesar: You got to match
the energy, remember.
So the correction have
to be firm enough.
His job is to ignore.
See that, that walk is tense.
So, we have to help him to
really just pass by like
nothing is happening.
Very good. That's the one.
Greg: That's better.
Cesar: That's the one I wanted.
Walter, it was a pleasure
to work with you, mister.
You are the epitome
of calm submission.
See how the dogs are
all over the place?
When we see an owner with their
dogs and the dogs' in front of
them, that should be a
red flag to say, well,
I have to avoid this dog.
Greg: Now he's already
getting excited. Ah, see. Oh!
Are you alright?
Cesar: Buddy show us today,
that he makes mistakes.
But, if you go back and fix it,
he gives you a hundred percent.
We just passing by.
Right there.
Just passing by. See it's
just a matter of energy.
Shh Right there.
Calm submissive pack.
Calm submissive pack.
You do it.
Give yourself, right there.
You are not keeping him
focused on following.
So, he's doing this a lot.
That's right, that's respect.
That's perfect.
That's perfect. Yes.
Thank you so much.
Lady: Oh you're very welcome.
Kim: I mean, we really
encountered every dog that
we see on a daily
basis, on that walk.
So, it was really nice to see
how we can help him interact
with all of them in the
different ways that they are.
Greg: This dog will
bark like crazy.
Cesar: Very good.
Greg: Here we go.
Cesar:
Come on. We gonna do this right.
Right when he did that. You
got to stop him right there.
Correct him from that.
Help him to go all the way
to a calm-submissive state,
then you move.
See it, what you creating?
You are helping him to be.
That's right.
Kim: Seeing him sitting by Foxy
and seeing her lay down behind
the fence, like, we've never
seen that with the two of them,
you know, them just sort
of peacefully co-existing.
I would never have
though that could happen.
So that was really exciting.
Greg: It was pretty amazing.
Cesar: The impact one dog can
have to the neighborhood is
amazing.
What we experienced today is
a ripple effect when a dog is
under control.
So, one dog created a calm,
submissive neighborhood today.
Greg: We have always known
that Buddy is a great dog,
but now that Cesar has
given us these tools,
we know he will really be able
to reach his potential of being
a perfect dog.
Cesar: They really want
what is best for the dog,
and Buddy deserves it.
Greg: We are very
proud of you, Buddy.
Kim: Yes, we are.
Greg: Very proud of you.
Kim: You are a smart dog.
Greg: Good boy.
Alan and Rhonda: Oooh!
Alan: Ahh, I love it. Teddy
is special to me,
because for myself and
for my wife,
neither of us grew up
with a dog in our homes.
And so it was very special to
have Teddy as our first dog.
And it was like having a child.
Rhonda: Teddy is a
bright, energetic prince.
He's, he's part prince.
Alan: Teddy's full
of personality.
He's always done tricks.
So he loves to play
soccer with a basketball.
He's very coordinated.
If you throw up a
tennis ball in the air,
it's rare that he drops it.
He always catches it.
Sometimes he does a double-jump
and almost like a gymnast.
He turns upside down and
catches, comes up with the ball.
He's in many ways we
feel he's remarkable.
Narrator: Although 5-year-old
Teddy is generally well behaved
he has one bad habit that
is spiraling out of control.
Alan: The spinning occurs
because he has this thing about
cars because he has
this thing about cars.
He loves to chase cars.
We don't know quite
why he does that,
but he just likes
to go after cars.
He's on a leash.
He can't escape, so he runs
around in a circle like a top.
Spinning like a top.
He could spin his
way into a car.
So far it hasn't happened.
We've seen some close calls.
Just a matter of inches.
Rhonda: He can undo his leash
and he could get killed.
And I can get killed.
So it's really a very,
very dangerous situation.
Narrator: Can Cesar help Teddy
from spinning into a highway
hazard?
Narrator: Rhonda and Alan
Levy's poodle Teddy spins
wildly whenever cars speed by.
Rhonda and Alan are hoping
Cesar Millan can stop
their poodle and their lives
from spinning out of control.
Rhonda: Hi.
Cesar: How are you, ma'am.
Rhonda: Come on in.
Nice seeing you.
Cesar: Cesar Millan.
Alan: So good to see you, Cesar.
Cesar: Thank you, sir.
Thank you.
Rhonda: We have a
wonderful standard poodle.
Cesar: Mm-hm.
Rhonda: And if I can get him
to stop spinning like a top,
I will be indebted to
you the rest of my life.
Cesar: Just for the spinning?
Rhonda: It sounds like,
just the spinning.
It's so dangerous it's a hazard
for Teddy and also for myself
sometimes I think
I'm gonna choke him.
I pull the choke so hard and
then he spins so hard that
I don't know how he's breathing.
And I'm really afraid.
I'm afraid for myself also
that he's, I can get hurt.
Cesar: Yeah. Well,
that we I'm gonna see it.
How you handle the dog and
when do you actually apply
discipline.
You know, when do you apply
calm assertive of energy.
What energy are you applying
when you are trying to help him.
What kind of fun
games that he does?
What is his chasing.
Anything about chasing.
Alan: Well Yeah.
He loves to play with balls.
He just loves kicking that ball
and playing soccer with it.
Cesar: Now, can you stop him
from playing the game and then
ask him to play the game again?
Alan: Not easily.
You have to actually pick the
ball up and put it away from
him. And then.
Cesar: He doesn't back
away from the ball?
Alan: No. No, he doesn't.
Okay.
That's something
you have to learn.
Rhonda: We rescued a
second standard poodle and
she's very dominating.
And it's okay with him.
Like if she comes by, she'll
grab the ball out of his mouth,
he'll just drop it.
As soon as he sees
it, he'll drop it.
Cesar: So, he does
drop the ball for her?
Rhonda: Yes.
Cesar: But not for you guys.
Rhonda: Right.
Cesar: In her case
she just comes close.
Rhonda: And he'll go.
He drops it.
Alan: Yeah. Yeah.
Cesar: And he drops
it, backs away.
Alan: Yeah.
Cesar: What is her name?
Rhonda & Alan: Amanda.
Cesar: Amanda.
Alan: Yeah.
Cesar: Amanda is not
saying, Give me the ball.
Amanda is just
claiming the ball.
Alan: I think you nailed it.
Rhonda: Amanda's physical
Alan: Amanda has a better
control of him than we do.
Rhonda: Amanda's physical
presence demands.
Alan: Right. That's true.
Cesar: Some people born leaders.
Some people born followers.
Alan: Exactly.
Cesar: Nothing wrong with
that as long as you find your
position in life.
Alan: That's right. So he's
certainly not an alpha dog.
Cesar: No. And he was
born this way.
Alan: Yeah.
Cesar: And it's more
followers than leaders.
A pack of dogs is only one pack
leader and seven followers.
Alan: Do we have to see
ourselves as being part of
the pack.
In other words, a pack of four
rather than a pack of two?
Two humans and two dogs?
Cesar: Yeah. The humans are
the dominant one,
and the dogs are the followers.
Alan: We have to. That's what
we have to learn to enforce.
Cesar: Yes. You can't control
side-effects because
you're a follower.
Even though you
pay the mortgage.
Alan: That's true.
Cesar: So you have to
be dominant energy.
Alan: In other words,
you have to be emphatic.
Cesar: Yeah.
Alan: I mean, the
message has to be clear.
Cesar: Clear. It is not, "Would
you like to do it today, Teddy?"
Because they don't use
verbal communication.
They don't debate
with each other.
They don't go in a room and
say, "Well, you're gonna be CEO.
You're gonna be treasurer.
You're gonna be this." No.
Meetings are said like this:
Alan: It's eye contact.
Cesar: It's eye contact, body
language, energy projection.
And then if one of them don't
back away from the eye contact,
it's a fight into one of them
pinning each other in
the ground.
That's how they settle meetings.
Alan: I'm better running a
business and giving orders to
people and having them
follow through with it.
Because when I do that, I just
have a way of defining things in
terms of black and white.
Cesar: That's right.
Alan: We're confusing them.
We're giving them mixed
signals all the time, so.
Cesar: Of course, we're gonna
go on and walk around cars.
And I... So I can show
you how to stop this behavior.
Alan: Okay.
Cesar: But I would like to start
at home, if you don't mind.
Rhonda: Yeah.
Cesar: Let's go.
Alan: Okay, let's go.
Cesar: Let's do it.
Thank you, guys.
Alan: Now you say we should be
able to go up to him and just
stop him from doing this.
Cesar: Sure Rhonda:
Cesar: You want to see it?
Alan: Yes Cesar: Now,
normally, what would you do?
What is your style?
Without doing it.
Alan: We would normally
take the ball away from him.
Cesar: Which ball?
Alan: Uh.
Cesar: The basketball?
Alan: The basketball first, yes.
And put it somewhere that he
can't reach it and then he would
lose attention and then, uh,
drop the other ball immediately.
Cesar: Right.
Alan: And that would
be the end of it.
Rhonda: He's in his glory. He
has, That's like Amanda
coming over.
Hey, good boy.
Good boy.
Cesar: All right. So that's just
going in and claim the ball.
Alan: Yeah.
Cesar: The ball is
gonna stay there.
We're not gonna remove
him away from it.
We're just gonna show him that
whenever I make the decision to
stop the game, the
game's stopped.
And then when I bring you the
game back, then the games begin.
Alan: I see.
Cesar: Mexico against
United States.
Mexico against
United States. Mexico goal!
So I showed them a different way
of allowing the dog to come and
playing with you.
To allow the dog to come and
join you in the backyard.
So you have access to his
brain every time he goes into a
behavior that you
don't agree with.
So if you don't want him to
bark to the neighbor's dog,
that's because you
claimed that fence.
So if he believes that you're
claiming that,he gives it to you
But if you are not claiming
that, they won't give it to you.
Alan: Okay.
Cesar: That's right.
Rhonda: He's so smart,
I guess. He got it. He got it.
Alan: He got it.
Narrator: Next, Rhonda and Alan
take Cesar and Teddy on a trip
to Spin City.
Cesar: Of course, we can't go
and block a behavior if we're
not being seen as leader.
Rhonda: See how scary that
is? Cesar: Yes, yes, yes, yes.
Rhonda: And I could
be holding him. That's just one.
He'll spin numerous times.
And you see that,
look at this.
Alan: There he goes.
Rhonda: Look at this.
Cesar: Yeah. Yeah.
Rhonda: And that one's
not, He's You tell 'em boy.
Cesar: A very fast car went by.
That's when Teddy went
into a spinning mode.
And I saw Rhonda
just getting tense.
Just pull him back right away
and holding the dog so the dog
doesn't go into the car.
Which that only intensifies
the behavior of a dog.
So, when you correct,
how do you correct?
Rhonda: I just stand there.
Usually, I'll just stand there.
Alan: We just usually tug at him
and pull him and say, "No spin."
Cesar: You pull this way
or you pull to the side?
Alan: We pull back from the
direction he's spinning.
And say, "No spin."
Rhonda: See, he knows you're,
I mean, he got your energy.
Cesar: See, I'm not gonna let
him pay attention to the cars.
So I was explaining, even
though he's not spinning,
he was doing this
thing the whole time.
Rhonda: Oh, yeah.
Cesar: Well, that is a good
time for you to correct.
So that's level one.
And then when he's looking
for cars like that,
that should be corrected.
But he never received a
correction in that state of
mind.
Rhonda: How do you
correct that? What do you do?
I think Cesar: Well, in
the beginning Right there.
Ssh! Right there.
Right when he pay attention,
he got a correction.
Rhonda: Wow!
Cesar: I am stopping him at
level one of a possible reaction
Rhonda: I can't
believe this! Alan: I see it.
Cesar: A lot of people, what
they do when they're correct
dog, they go into
this or they do this.
Rhonda: That's me.
Alan: That's us.
Cesar: They start
holding themselves.
Rhonda: Brace myself.
Cesar: Yes.
Rhonda: Yeah. Exactly.
That's me.
Cesar: Yeah. So instead they
making a dog become out of
balance, the dog becomes
more powerful.
Rhonda: Wow. He's still looking
like that. He went like that.
Cesar: Yeah, like that.
But he's here. So the energy.
Alan: Yeah. He's still
looking at cars.
Cesar: Right there.
Rhonda: Okay.
Cesar: Okay.
Rhonda: It's starting
to build again.
Cesar: That's right.
Rhonda: Oh, gosh.
Cesar: So they were not able to
stop him when he become alert or
excited about the car moving.
They were waiting to level 10.
Meaning the dog was
already going in circles.
Which to me, a little too late.
How do you normally
hold a leash?
Rhonda: Like this.
I have my hand through here.
Cesar: Uh-huh.
Rhonda: And then I have
Cesar: Whoa.
I saw, their, you know,
their corrections.
Especially Alan,
way too weak. Way too weak.
Rhonda, way too tense.
Right? So one was too weak.
The other one was too tense.
Rhonda: And he probably
feels that tenseness.
Cesar: Look
at this right there. That's you.
I want you to see yourself.
So, what do you say, Cesar?
So if you correct, you're
correcting with tense energy.
See, look at the correction.
Rhonda: And he can sense it.
Cesar: Right there.
These people surrendered to
whatever I have to say and
they got it.
So that gives a lot of
hope, you know, for Teddy.
That's right.
This is better.
Alan: This seems to work.
Rhonda: Cesar, I
don't I know I got it.
I know what has to happen.
I'm gonna make it work.
I know it.
I can do it.
Cesar: I like to
hear those words.
Rhonda: I feel very empowered.
I can't even thank you enough.
Cesar: Good.
Rhonda: Thank you.
Cesar: Thank you.
Rhonda: I really Cesar:
How do you feel, sir?
Alan: I feel great.
Cesar: Yeah?
Alan: I really thing they were
lessons we needed to learn and
you taught them to us.
Cesar: Excellent. They just have
to put the knowledge into
practice what they
learned today.
That the way to pull the leash.
The way to hold your shoulders.
The way to keep your
head up. The way to feel energy.
They have to go
back into instincts.
Alan: We have been practicing
the psychology for humans
on our dogs.
And we're not treating them, we
haven't been treating them
like animals.
And if we listen to
what he's saying,
everything he's saying comes
down to an essence of treating
the dog as a dog
and not of human.
Cesar: Keeping him as a human
is not gonna make him balanced.
Even though he's a great
dog, he's not a human.
He's happy being Teddy the dog.
The poodle. The animal.
He's happy.
The poodle wins!
The poodle, There you go,
Teddy. Good job.
Mia Coveny: Everytime the
kids would ride by on the
skateboards, something
in her becomes unhinged.
She just loses it.
Mia Coveny: Matilda we found
through a breeder on
the internet.
And she was born on John's,
my husband's, birthday.
John Coveny: She showed me a
picture of her online and said
she arrives in 8 weeks.
Mia Coveny: So she was a
birthday present to him.
John Coveny: And she showed up
in a little crate about
the size of a bunny rabbit.
Mia Coveny: Oh she was so cute.
I mean she was always very eager
to please, very quick to learn.
She's actually
quite a smart dog.
John Coveny: The fact that she
bit your toes with those razor
sharp puppy teeth, was
a kind of a drawback,
but in general it was,
she was a really fun dog.
Narrator: But as their
English Bulldog matured,
the Covenys discovered there
was one thing that could drive
their sweet puppy to the
edge of madness.
John: There's our buddy.
Mia Coveny: Every time the kids
would ride by on skateboards,
something in her becomes
unhinged, she just loses it.
And she makes noises like you've
never heard a dog make before.
John Coveny: It was like
a nervous breakdown.
It was the craziest thing.
It was like she was trying
to talk to you to tell you,
why is that person
on that contraption.
Mia: My God. We thought maybe
she was in love with skateboards
and so we bought her one.
John Coveny: I'm thinking my
dog's gonna be that skateboard
dog that rides the skateboards
and I can retire off all the
performances, you know.
Mia Coveny: But we quickly had
to put it in the garage because
she didn't want to ride it she
wanted to flip it over and bite
the wheels until her mouth
bled and her feet bled.
She looks like a deranged animal
when she's actually quite sweet.
She's a really sweet girl, so,
She's so strong and has such a
low center of gravity that we
can't control her very easily.
Increasingly it's kept us
from going out to having lunch
outside at cafes.
You never know how
she's going to behave.
We do fear for Matilda's
safety about this problem.
John Coveny: My fear is
that she could hurt someone,
hurt herself.
I just want her to be able to
keep herself safe and keep kids
safe and I don't want her
running into the street at a
skateboarder.
I just want her to
be normal, you know.
Mia Coveny: You know we want
to be good neighbors and
have a well-behaved dog.
Narrator: For some
purebred dogs,
obsessive behavior can be a
sign of natural instinct run
amuck. Dog behavior expert
Cesar Millan is curious about
getting to the roots of
Matilda's misplaced mania.
Cesar: So, How old is she?
Mia & John: 2 and a half.
Cesar: And how long has been,
has the behavior been happening?
John: Since the
beginning of puppydom.
I was trying to
pinpoint a moment.
Mia: We have a professional
skateboarder living in our
neighborhood and so she would
spend a lot of time in a picture
window and as he would ride back
and forth and doing tricks and
popping the board, she would
just go nuts and screech from
inside the house.
Cesar: What did you do when she
was at the window doing
that behavior?
What was your reaction?
Mia: I mean initially
we probably laughed.
I mean it was just probably
somewhat entertaining.
John: The short
answer is nothing.
Cesar: We have a case here
where the owner's saw a behavior
earlier and thought it was cute.
And then they suffer the
consequence later on in life.
Mia: You wonder if
it's painful to her, I,
You don't know what's going on?
But Cesar: Do you
ever hire a psychic?
How can that be pain, if the
wheels have never hurt her?
Mia: The sound.
Cesar: So early in the
conversation um, you know,
I don't remember who asked you
if she can be in the middle and
then you say I don't think she
will be able to cooperate with
that, why?
Mia: Well I didn't think
we could wrangle her into a
specific spot.
Cesar: Why not?
Mia: She just seems like
she wants to sit at the end,
I don't know.
John: She. Cesar: She can make
decisions.
John: Um, yeah she's very smart,
she can decide for herself.
Mia: I guess that's right.
I guess she does decide.
Cesar: What it means to me is
that you give her access
to dominate.
So that's the only problem,
just the skateboard.
You don't have anything else.
John: No cats she'll,
she'll snarl at a cat.
Mia: Well, she looks at cat
like sport, like a squirrel,
like you might like to.
Cesar: What she means is
it's a bad thing, all of it.
John: If someone says
kitty cat, kitty cat.
One time we were
walking the other day.
And she's sweet, she's like,
'look squirrel.' You know.
We had this ongoing debate
of squirrel, squirrel, cat,
cat just makes her go.
Mia: I like her to be aware
of the names of things.
Cesar: What?
Mia: The names of things.
She knows the names but I would
feel horrible if she ever bit
someone's cat or...
Cesar: You notice you're
contradicting yourself, right?
Mia: What, that you
point the cat out?
Cesar: Yeah.
Mia: That you're telling them to
Cesar: To get excited about it,
which is already an instinctual
sight of them to become excited
about small creatures.
Mia: Right.
Cesar: So what I'm seeing here
is you practicing one thing and
you're practicing another
thing, right? It's obvious.
Mia: Yeah, no, I get
uncomfortable when he
aggressively pushes her nose
down to the ground and makes her
submissive.
I do feel in some ways
like he's being cruel and.
Cesar: Matilda is "okay,
my owner here is practicing
something but he doesn't
know how to follow through,
that's John.
And Mia, she doesn't want to
practice anything because she
doesn't want to
feel mean about it.
You know, so it just
create confusion.
You know I'm not saying we're
not going to love Matilda.
Mia: Right.
Cesar: You know what I mean?
I'm just saying we're going to
give Matilda what she needs to
become balanced.
Mia: Do we have to de-sensitize
her after this to the
skateboards or will it just
happen naturally when we happen
to come across.
Cesar: Oh no, no, no,
you're gonna work on it.
Mia: Okay.
Cesar: Because you're still
working on your common sense.
What I'm trying to get through
you is the simplicity of animal
life in order for you to
bring peace of mind home,
in order for you to bring
tranquility, you know,
harmony and all that stuff.
Mia: We look forward to
getting to the bottom of this.
John: That's pretty true.
Cesar: Well we're getting to
the bottom of this. Right.
Narrator: Cesar goes toe to
toe with a skateboard chomping
bulldog.
Narrator: Mia and John Coveny
ask Cesar Millan to help them
with Matilda, their two and
a half year old bulldog that
relentlessly
attacks skateboards.
First, Cesar needs to determine
the degree of Matilda's
fixation.
Cesar: Hey. She went after the
skateboard.
So immediately, I start touching
certain part of the body in
order for me to redirect the
behavior She does exactly what a
bulldog would do to a bull,
attack, grab the neck,
bring him down.
But she's re-directing this
powerful way of being to a
skateboard.
Hey, sssh. Hey, sssh.
After I took Matilda in my
hands and I started leading
her around.
I saw that she was listening.
So I took advantage of that and
I asked my son Calvin to come
immediately and start
riding the skateboard.
We have to take advantage
of this right away.
Narrator: Cesar's two sons
often help out in his work,
but their safety
always comes first.
Cesar only allows them near
dogs that are completely under
his control.
Cesar: Very good.
Right there, hey, there we
go. Hey.
When you work with
aggressive dogs,
they're going to put up a fight
before they let you have it.
The whole point is to stay there
until you accomplish your goal.
There we go, sssh, just that
little bitty move need to be
corrected, so we're not allowing
one second of the intention of
trying to bite the skateboard.
See, at the moment she's
about to move forward,
you see that my body moves
just to redirect her.
Hey you guys would
you like to help us?
Narrator: Matilda survived
a single skateboard test,
but can she tolerate three boys
on wheels, at the same time?
Cesar: Sssh, sssh, very
good, right there, ready,
she's looking, boom,
right there, right there,
right when she, right when she
perk up, her ears her face,
her whole demeanor, is
changing, right there.
There we go, that's a
good one, sssh, hey,
oh that's a good one Calvin.
Narrator: Cesar believes
Matilda must be disciplined
when confronting the
object of her obsession,
in order to change her
behavior.
Cesar: Very good, so she doesn't
make a mistake, no correction.
There we go, no correction.
She's doing it on her own.
Only when she makes a mistake,
there we go, that's her,
right there, see she's paying
attention too much, right away,
snap her out of it.
There we go.
That's right.
It's pretty overwhelming,
but this is how
I create rehabilitation.
Come on, Calvin, do that, do
that wheels so we can, sssh,
hey.
Discipline is discipline, it
doesn't matter how it comes,
can be a leash, can be
a tug, can be whatever.
Narrator: And consistent
discipline, says Cesar,
must be a family affair.
Cesar: But if one member of the
family is disagreeing with the
process, that person
blocks the whole equation.
Narrator: Once the Covenys see
that Matilda's behavior
can change.
Cesar teaches them how to
correct unwanted actions.
Cesar: I want them to see how I
hold the leash, when I touch,
why that I'm touching that part
of the body and what that touch
is creating in Matilda's mind.
So you gotta do this exercise,
sssh, right there, see it.
I touch with this foot, right
there and she re-direct,
there we go.
So now you see that she's
ignoring the skateboard.
Intention: stop it right away.
Mia: So you're giving
her kind of a firm.
Cesar: Just a touch.
Mia: Just a touch.
Cesar: It's just for
her to get re-directed.
Mia: Okay.
Cesar: Alright, action.
Right there, slightly, at
the intention see that, sssh,
right there, over here, hey.
John: That's so unbelievable.
Mia: So he's just tapping
her, tight on the leash.
John: He just snaps it.
That's amazing.
Mia: I can't believe it.
Cesar: Alright that's enough,
and now we bring the skateboard
over here.
Just put it right here if
you don't mind, sssh, hey,
the other one, sssh, hey.
Sssh , no.
See every skateboard
she's gonna,
she's gonna try to go after, no.
Mia Coveny: I can't believe it.
I can't believe I would ever see
Matilda Coveny laying with three
skateboards upturned
in front of her.
John Coveny: I'm, I'm kind of
stumbling because I'm amazed
that what I thought could
not be done was done. So.
Mia Coveny: I think maybe he
did slip her something when
we were in the house.
John Coveny: Yeah I think
there was a shot of something.
Mia Coveny: There was a
tranquilizer gun involved.
Cesar: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
John: She's gotta go first.
Mia: I'm the problem.
Cesar: I'm glad you're
coming along with that.
When they're in front of you,
they're the dominant one,
when they're next to you or
behind they're submissive one.
Very good, very good The reason
why I give the dog to Mia
instead of John is because
Mia requires more common sense
practice.
See we need to empower you as
you see because this gives
you access to common sense.
Just learn to feel the energy.
So you guys gotta
do this as a team.
John: Yep.
Cesar: And you have to let her
hold the leash more often so her
common sense kicks in more.
Very good, good job.
See that's good.
John: That's good for her.
Cesar: So hopefully today you
agree that discipline is good.
Mia: Oh absolutely.
Cesar: The discipline gives
you access to balance.
Mia: It's not just bulldogs
Cesar: I have to acknowledge
Mia because she really step
up to the plate. She listen.
She took my positive
criticism. There we go, perfect.
Mia Coveny: I wasn't asserting
control and I realize that
I've been too permissive in my
behavior towards Matilda and
need to set more boundaries.
Cesar: Bring it back
to the position.
Mia Coveny: She seems like
she definitely you know,
has to fight the impulse but
the progress is there and
now we know what we can do.
I mean he really did
give us the tools to,
to fix this and to take
that behavior away.
John Coveny: It's great.
Cesar: One thing about
this couple, John and Mia,
they already have experienced
being consistent with Matilda,
they just have to do it all
over again, not only for a year,
for the rest of Matilda's life.
Because I know that when
a dog is not obsessive,
that mean he's in peace.
Mia: Thank you so much.
Cesar: Thank you very much.
John: I can't believe it.
It's amazing.
Mia Coveny: She was a great dog.
And she's gonna be a better dog
now
for this experience, for sure.
Cesar: Yes?
Mia: I think we have to
buy more skateboards.
Matilda's much
better. We, we're so thankful.
She has really improved.
Here we are having coffee,
relaxing, not afraid,
not fearful of what's coming
by, and so she's good.
John: As far as the
skateboard thing goes.
She's come a long, long way.
When the wheels are approaching,
I just kind of look down at her
and give her a
little "shh" sound,
give her a little tug
and she seems fine.
I mean it's great. We get to
finally enjoy our neighborhood.
I mean we can look around
and see this great block,
and now we get to
spend time, outside,
with our dog at the cafés.
That's what we wanted and
that's what Cesar gave us.
It's great.
We're happy with it.
You know, she's a great dog,
and it's just great to see
her improve.
Cesar: Dogs are like children,
they need rules boundaries and
limitations. Right?
Buddy, Teddy, and Matilda, they
all needed some new rules in
their life.
Under new pack leaders, Kim
and Greg, Buddy is doing great.
He is getting along with any
small animal and he's the new
role model of his neighborhood.
Rhonda and Alan report that as
long as they follow through with
the correction, Teddy's
spinning is no longer a problem.
John and Mia went on a vacation
which caused Matilda to have a
set back.
The great news is they are back
on track rehabilitating Matilda
everyday to overcome her
skateboard obsession.
Calvin: Until next time.
Cesar: Sit and stay until
I get back.