‘Dog Whispering’ is largely a media contrivance. It alludes to the “Whisperer” moniker made famous by Monty Roberts in his work with horses, and directly appropriates the title of Paul Owens’ 1999 book “The Dog Whisperer” – a very different kettle of fish entirely, promoting as it did an entirely positive reinforcement approach to training dogs.
The entire television package is carefully crafted – its shrewd juxtaposition of a telegenic matinee idol over an overtly macho rendering of how to interpret and alter undesirable dog behaviour – and it has proved to be a winning formula. Add a little New Age mysticism, and some rehashed ‘energy theory’, and it’s a marketer’s dream. The end-product is a bizarre concoction of fact and fantasy – sort of Marlboro Man meets Dr Doolittle meets Deepak Chopra – and from the moment the programme first aired, it seemed to fire the popular imagination. Read more on Local Dog Whisperer: Whispering Sweet Nothings – Part 2…
Accidents do happen.. or so they say. And I guess it’s true (rhetorically, in any case), that any dog can bite under some specific set of circumstances. But when the dog that bites is owned and supposedly under the control of a controversial and opinionated young ‘dog rehabilitator/shaman/psychologist/whisperer’ with no recognizable roots in the local dog world, and no apparent industry-specific qualifications in a field already compromised by its lack of official regulation, it quickly becomes controversial.. and newsworthy. And when this sort of thing has happened twice to the same self-promoting individual, in different places and at different times, with each event posing serious questions about the human judgment in play, it just screams out for an investigation into the circumstances that led to this, and of the bona-fides of the individual implicated. Read more on Local ‘Dog Whisperer’s’ dogs bite.. again: The Incidents – Part I…
The holiday season is upon us once again and spirits soar as we contemplate this annual break from drudgery, commitments and work. A departure from the mundanity of everyday rituals is suddenly on offer, as is the possibility of spending more quality time with friends and family.
In the south of this planet, we also enjoy annual leave at this time, and our weather is usually hot and sunny as a goodly number of us are either en route to holiday destinations, or already settling in having arrived. The rest of us simply spill into the outdoors more frequently, all the while imbued with a sense of relief and altruistic goodwill – at least that’s how it all starts. Read more on The flipside of holidays…
Despite their unparallelled popularity amongst humans, until the end of last century there had been very little dedicated scientific inquiry into the domestic dog. Not into its behaviour, the beguiling history of its domestication or even that ubiquitous bond they seem to have forged with our species.
Nowadays it doesn’t take too much effort to find snippets of useful information on the internet, but it’s often the same old stuff. However, this programme “The Secret Life Of The Dog“, an episode of the popular BBC series Horizon, should be required viewing for anyone with a real interest in dogs, and their unique relationship with us. Those from the UK have probably already seen it, but for the rest of us it’s a real treat. Read more on Videos: Recent scientific research about dogs.. and us….
One year ends, another begins..