Cesar Millan takes muzzle off 'angry' German Shepherd to prove point
When it comes to raising dogs, energy is everything.
What other dog owners fail to realize is that dogs are very keen on perceiving the energy we exude. They know if we feel fear or anxiety. They know when we feel happy. And they know when we feel angry or imposing.
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When we take into account how our feeling contributes to our dog’s reactions, it will be easier for us to command them and train them to be sociable.
Renowned dog trainer and behaviorist Cesar Milan received a call about a German shepherd dog.
Ovechkin is a handful. The large dog was described as heavily territorial. But with this dominating yet protective instinct, Ovechkin can’t discern friend from foe.
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Trish, his owner, recalled how Ovechkin “terrorized” her own family. In one encounter, some family members were trying to fix the garden sprinkler. Then, all of a sudden, she heard a scream.
Ovechkin attacked her sister. Her sister sustained wounds and Trish described her as “bit up”. The attack rattled her and urged her to take action.
Cesar Milan stepped in.
The first part of his training involved Trish regulating her emotions. He asked her to sit in the middle of the garden with her eyes closed. This way, she wouldn’t be as nervous because if Ovechkin feels that, he would feel the need to be more aggressive.
Meanwhile, Milan “marked” the house with a handkerchief containing his scent. This will enable him to impose his dominance over Ovechkin.
The first encounter was fierce.
Ovechkin kept on barking and lunging toward Milan. All the while, Milan defended himself by putting a tennis racket between him and the dog.
At one point, Milan was sure that Ovechkin was really trying to bite him. The exercise continued, though, and Trish was worried that the trainer would get bitten.
Every time Trish would feel a bit anxious, Milan would calm her down.
When he got Ovechkin under control, he brought the dog to his house where he can train the German shepherd in his own pack and territory.
The dog walked around and sniffed. He doesn’t have his muzzle on so he can attack whenever he wants. Fortunately, Ovechkin eventually surrendered to Milan.
Through the entire process, Milan was projecting the energy of dominance and calm confidence. This enabled him to go to the next stage where he can train Ovechkin to socialize.
For this step, they went to the Dog Psychology Center.
Together with the crew, they made trained Ovechkin with boundaries by establishing space and rules. As Milan said, making a dog social is all about letting them understand the rules and not break them.
One by one, Ovechkin approached the crew holding the treats. The crew members in turn pushed him off their space gently. This cued Ovechkin that the space was not his to intrude.
They did the exercise again but without the muzzle.
The crew admitted that they were a bit nervous because now, if they try to establish boundaries, Ovechkin can definitely bite back if he wanted to.
In the end, the dog respected the rules and just wandered around them whenever he was being told to step away. As they said, it all boils down to the people who train them.
It only goes to show how much responsibility a dog owner has over their dogs. And hopefully, with this exercise, other dog owners can be more confident in building better relationships with their dogs.
Watch how a renowned dog trainer almost got bitten by a German shepherd.
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Source: YouTube – Dabl, YouTube – Dabl, Instagram – @cesarsway