When CLEAR Dog Training owner Caroline Strainig began conducting home visits around ten years ago, Cesar Millan was a name clients constantly quoted. These days, she hears much less about him. But the famous Dog Whisperer still has millions of fans.
Among experienced dog trainers and behaviourists, the reaction has often been rather different. “Yuck, he’s awful!” sums up a response Caroline has heard more than once. So why does one of the world’s best-known dog trainers attract such admiration from the public and such strong criticism from professionals? And has he changed his methods in response?
The man who made dog training great television
Mexican-born Cesar Millan became a household name through his television series Dog Whisperer. His message was simple: dogs needed exercise, discipline and affection, in that order, guided by a calm, assertive pack leader.
And he was compelling to watch. Owners appeared overwhelmed by their dogs, while Millan seemed to restore order almost effortlessly. His confidence was reassuring, his explanations easy to follow and the transformations often dramatic.
He also made an important point: owners themselves can contribute to their dogs’ problems. Better routines, exercise, consistency and clearer boundaries can make an enormous difference. But television rewards dramatic results. A dog that suddenly stops growling or lunging looks impressive on screen. Whether it has actually become less frightened, frustrated or anxious is another question.
When the Dog Whisperer reached the training ground
Years ago, before becoming a professional dog trainer, Caroline watched someone at flyball pin a dog to the ground in what she thought was an unnecessarily harsh manoeuvre. When she asked what on earth the trainer was doing, someone explained that it was an alpha roll, a technique associated with Cesar Millan.
That doesn’t mean the trainer learnt it from him, but it illustrates how ideas popularised on television can find their way into everyday dog training.
Your dog isn’t plotting a takeover
Millan’s philosophy places considerable emphasis on dogs needing a strong pack leader. But the wolf research often used to support dominance-based training has been widely misunderstood.
Wolf researcher David Mech helped popularise the term alpha, then subsequently explained that wild wolf packs are generally family groups led by breeding parents, rather than collections of animals constantly fighting for dominance.
More importantly, dogs don’t necessarily misbehave because they’re challenging our authority. A dog guarding its dinner may be worried about losing it. One lunging at another dog may be frightened or frustrated. Your lounge room is not a wolf enclosure, and your puppy stealing a slipper is not necessarily staging a coup.
Understanding why a dog behaves as it does is far more useful than assuming every problem is a contest for leadership.
Why the experts aren’t impressed
Millan’s television programmes have featured physical corrections, alpha rolls and confrontational approaches to unwanted behaviour. Veterinary behaviour organisations, including the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, warn that such methods can increase fear, provoke aggression and damage trust.
Research has reinforced those concerns. A 2009 study of owners seeking veterinary behaviour advice found that 31 per cent of dogs whose owners had attempted an alpha roll reportedly responded aggressively. The study wasn’t about Millan specifically, but it highlighted the potential risks of physically confronting a dog.
In 2016, Millan attracted criticism after a dog injured a pig during a training session filmed for Cesar 911. An official investigation concluded the incident was accidental, found no evidence of animal cruelty and resulted in no charges. Millan defended his handling of the incident, although the controversy contributed to the wider debate about his methods.
How has he answered his critics?
Millan has certainly defended his approach. He argues that physical contact can interrupt unwanted behaviour rather than punish a dog, and that discipline should not be confused with cruelty.
In a 2014 interview with Westword, he defended stronger interventions when dealing with particularly difficult dogs, saying that extreme cases sometimes required more extreme techniques. He has also argued that critics can misunderstand his intentions and that his aim is to help dogs and their owners live more harmoniously.
His critics take a different view. Veterinary behaviour organisations argue that even serious aggression can be addressed through carefully managed, reward-based behaviour modification without resorting to confrontational methods.
And there’s a crucial difference between a dog learning to feel comfortable in a situation and one that simply stops protesting because it is frightened or overwhelmed. A quiet dog isn’t necessarily a happy dog.
Millan has said his approach has evolved, particularly towards helping owners understand how their own behaviour influences their dogs. But in a 2024 Parade Pets interview, when asked whether his training philosophy had changed, he replied: “My training philosophy has always been the same.”
His more recent interviews continue to emphasise calm, assertive leadership, discipline and pack order. Despite looking through his interviews and more recent material, Caroline could find little evidence that criticism had persuaded him to abandon specific controversial techniques. That doesn’t mean he still uses every method seen in his earlier television programmes.
What seems clear is that Millan has become more focused on communicating his philosophy to owners while continuing to defend its central principles.
What would CLEAR keep — and ditch?
Despite the controversy, some of Millan’s messages are worth keeping. Dogs benefit from appropriate exercise, clear routines, consistent boundaries and owners who remain calm rather than becoming frustrated or angry. Owners who take responsibility for their dog’s behaviour rather than blaming everything on the dog are already heading in the right direction.
But none of those things requires being an alpha, physically dominating a dog or forcing it to confront something frightening. At CLEAR, the emphasis is on understanding why a dog behaves as it does, managing situations sensibly and teaching dogs what we’d like them to do instead.
Kind, consistent training doesn’t mean allowing dogs to run riot. There’s room for boundaries, rules and good manners without turning every disagreement into a battle for supremacy.
So where does that leave the Dog Whisperer?
After reviewing Millan’s own explanations, the criticism of his techniques and the available research, Caroline’s opinion hasn’t changed. He isn’t a trainer she would recommend to dog owners seeking advice.
That’s not to say he hasn’t made a contribution. He brought dog training to an enormous television audience, encouraged owners to take responsibility and offered hope to people struggling with difficult dogs. Some of his practical messages remain useful.
But there are better places to turn for sound, practical advice that reflects current understanding of canine behaviour. CLEAR’s own Training Tips library is a good starting point, along with the many excellent trainers and veterinary behaviour professionals who favour reward-based methods.
