The Principles of Dogma
This post is a review of the book Cesar's Way (~300 pages) by Cesar Millan and Melissa Jo Peltier.
Cesar is an internationally famous dog expert. His show, the Dog Whisperer on the National Geographic Channel, ran in 206 countries. He has worked with many celebrities, such as Jada Pinkett Smith, Oprah Winfrey and Nicolas Cage. He runs a Dog Psychology Center near Los Angeles.
Many of his videos, of various lengths, are available on YouTube. I have been fascinated by them for a few years now, as they show him fixing, often in real time, problems that owners have with dogs.
From his expositions, we learn a lot about dogs and also about ourselves: his work involves a deep yet practical understanding of animal as well as human psychology. (In fact, it has so much useful to say about humans that many who attend his seminars are not even dog-owners - they are just there to get lessons in human leadership and behavior!). In that sense, I regard as the book as a science book and thus eligible for review in this blog.
Though he has received no formal academic training in the subject (he has read a lot though, and there is a bibliography of recommended texts at the end of the book), Cesar is an excellent communicator and a natural teacher. His explanations and demonstrations are to-the-point and revealing. His sense of humor and timing is excellent (on display in his videos). He dispenses his wisdom in aphoristic packets easy to remember. Some of his by-now famous `pet' prescriptions are listed below:
Exercise, discipline and affection: the right combination, in that order, for achieving a harmonious relationship with your dog
Affection, affection, affection: a formula for disaster
Rules, boundaries and limitations: the proper way to train a dog
No talk, no touch, no eye contact: instructions for first time meeting with a new dog
Rehabilitate dogs, train humans: description of his own job
Calm-assertive: the right energy for a leader
Calm-submissive: the right energy for a dog
Flight, fight, avoidance, submission: the four responses an animal has to any situation
Nose, eyes, ears: the hierarchy of sense-organ dominance in dogs' perception of the world
No surprise that the book is lucidly written and entertaining as well as educating (Jo Peltier deserves her share of the credit as well). It begins with Cesar's early childhood in Mexico, especially his time on his grandfather's farm, his illegal border crossing into the US, and fairly quick and remarkable rise to being a famous dog expert.
In most of the book, Cesar reveals how animals operate, the importance of the notion of a pack, the role of a pack leader, and common problems that arise with dogs when we do not provide that leadership, and also when treat them like humans instead of as dogs (there is a big difference).
In an informal manner (Cesar strongly recommends the consultation of experts for handling major cases), the book identifies and suggest solutions for dog behavior problems such as aggression, dominance, and fixation. Always underlying the discussion is the fundamental role played by energy and attitude (both internal and body-language-wise) in how dogs perceive us and how we should communicate with them.
Summary
While the book is probably (certainly!) useful for dog-owners, I would recommend it generally as even those of us who are not owners often cross paths with dogs and need to know how to interact with them. Also, it gives us a chance to know ourselves better and evaluate and improve our relationships with other humans since humans are also pack animals. Finally, from a scientific point of view, the behavioral analysis is simply fascinating.
