Cesar Brings Sahzi Home from Doggie Camp

Sahzi and Cesar connected on his product shoot.

The crew, Cesar and Sahzi were supposed to be at the house at 2:30, so I arrived home from work a few minutes earlier.  Mike was in a special training class at work, so he wasn’t going to be able to make it for this part of the filming.  The producer and several cameramen were already here and apologized that everyone wasn’t on time.  I had to sign a release for Sahzi’s photos to be used in a print commercial.  The photographer thought she had all the releases for all the dogs, when Cesar showed up with Sahzi and a few other new dogs.  She's only in one of the photos, which he signed for her, but click here to go to his website and see other photos from that photoshoot.  I asked about residuals and they laughed and said, “Yea, just like our residuals.”  Often the production crew is shown during the Dog Whisperer working or acting as neighbors, but they don’t get any extra money when they appear in one of the episodes.

They told me Cesar had arrived and was getting his makeup on.  I saw the one older member of the crew at the park with Cesar’s pack:  Junior the gray pit bull, a brindle bulldog, a black and white miniature schnauzer, and a brown Chihuahua.  The producer told me Cesar was going to walk Sahzi around the circle path across the street while he was being filmed and explained what Sahzi has been doing for the last week.  I caught my first glimpse of her on the far side of the path.  I got out my camera and took some shots with my simple zoom lens.

Next they were coming down the street toward the house.  I was watching Sahzi from behind the mini‑blinds and took a few more pictures.  She seemed to see me so I stopped.  Usually, Cesar likes the dog to be very calm before they are allowed inside, and I didn’t want to do anything to get her excited.  They kept filming as they got to the door.  I was hiding in the kitchen so she wouldn’t see me, but Cesar called me to come to the door.

Because Sahzi is insecure rather than dominant, he wanted her to be extra excited.  He told the viewers this was the opposite of what he normally does which is why you shouldn’t try things at home without consulting an expert.  The director asked a few questions about the shot, but Cesar told her that right now it was about the dog, not the show, and to just film what was happening.

Cesar reminded me of the rules:  “No touch, no talk, no eye contact.”  As soon as he let Sahzi in, he wanted me to go into the problem areas for her, such as the kitchen and back room.  He hoped in her excitement, she’d follow me in without thinking.

She still wasn’t excited enough for Cesar, so he had me move closer to the screen so she could see and hear me.  She started nosing the screen door which is what he wanted.  After a few more of her attempts to push her way in, he had me open the door.  She jumped up to see me, but I went right into the kitchen.  Junior and the bulldog, Mr. President, followed me in, but Sahzi was still unsure.  I started to get a leash, but Cesar walked in and had Junior walk in and out of the kitchen until she finally came in to see me.

Then our little pack went to the back room.  She stopped at the hallway and circled twice, but she finally came in.  The other dogs were very interested in some dry cat food that had fallen on the floor and the cat box, but Sahzi was just excited to see me. 

Cesar said he didn’t have a piano to work with at home, so he wanted to work on it now while she was still happy to be home.  He had the crew block the dog door and had me play a few notes.  She didn’t care, but jumped up on the couch to see me.  When he played, she didn’t even notice.  She did not want to come any closer than the couch or stairs though.  I told him that the area in front of the piano was still the scariest part of the house to her whether we were playing the piano or not.

When I sat on the piano bench, she was willing to come over, but she was definitely not comfortable.  When either of us played a note, she tried to get away.  He explained the four stages a dog exhibits when frightened:  fight, flight, avoidance, and submission.  Sahzi never did any fighting with Cesar, usually it was flight, or as Sahzi would say, “Run away!”  When we were at the piano, she would turn her back and lean against the couch (avoidance).  He didn’t mind this as long as she didn’t pull at the leash (flight).  When she pulled, he had me pull back until she relaxed; flight wasn’t allowed.  We worked on this for at least five minutes.  Once she was willing to look at us, he had one of his crew go get some chicken.  He asked me if I knew she liked chicken.  I told him real meat, especially raw, was the only food she actually cared about.  The crew member brought back some chicken flavored Trader Joe’s dog treats.  Cesar said, “That’s not chicken,” though Junior and Mr. President were very interested.  Sahzi leaned against the couch.  Once the crew brought in some turkey sandwich meat, she was very interested and he rewarded her interest.  I played a few more notes while let her have a few nibbles of turkey.  He held it in his fist and only let her have a few bits at a time.  That way she knows he is rewarding her with it.

Meanwhile, the crew not filming at the time was busy running around the house keeping track of the schnauzer and Chihuahua who were checking out all the bedrooms and the upstairs.  It looked like the Keystone Cops, doggie style.

After Cesar was convinced that I could work with her at the piano, we took a short break.

Cesar and Sahzi: That's a Wrap

Cesar, Sahzi, Mike, and Robin Near the End of the Day

Just a few (or many) random things that come to mind at the end of the main day of filming:

When our contact called me two weeks ago, he said they might call back on very short notice early the following week.  I spent the weekend, decluttering the house.  Mike didn’t spend the weekend decluttering the yard.  On Monday, they called to say they would be there on Thursday.  I had my cleaning service come on Wednesday for a downstairs only cleaning. Mike took Wednesday off to work on the yard and still got in a game of golf.

It’s amazing how quickly you can paint your ratty looking threshold when you’re in a hurry.   I washed it Monday night with TSP.  I painted it Tuesday morning before work. 

For all the interviews, they used high folding stools.  I think it’s easier to stage a scene from a higher vantage.

The crew loved the electrical outlets in our newly remodeled house.  An outlet is required every 6 feet and I’ve got a lot of surge protectors around the house, too.  They did not like the look of the outlets in the kitchen where the outlets are required every 4 feet.  They were propping things up in front of them until I took over and brought in some nice vases and silk flowers.

We have just a few south facing windows that let in lots of light this time of year.  The blocked the windows with black fabric hung from racks.  Are those called grips?  They also liked it that we had dimmers on most lights.  Sometimes they changed the color of a shot with colored spotlights, especially blue.

They liked having the interviews from different angles.  Mike was in the living room, I was in the kitchen, we talked to Cesar in our dining room.  Cesar was debriefed in the living room, but maybe with a different camera angle.  Mike and I were filmed in the family room with my dining room sconces in the background. 

Before we consulted with Cesar in the dining room, they moved the table into the middle of the room.  One camera was over our left shoulder looking at Cesar, and one camera was behind Cesar’s left should looking at us.  Su Ann, the director, gave the directions for close-ups to the cameramen before we started talking.

When Cesar got to our house, they were setting up the dining room.  I think that’s when he was getting his makeup on.  Just before they started filming at the table, they powdered Mike and me.  I want to be a makeup lady.  I think she worked about an hour and got paid to be there all day.  That’s a cushy job.

Filming us working with Sahzi was very hard work for the cameramen.  They have to who Cesar, show Sahzi, show our expressions when we’re watching, and get out of the way in the hallways.  Cesar had to keep telling me to not worry about the cameramen because I was trying not to bump into them.  He said it’s their job to get out of the way.

The crew was so kind and polite all day.  I never heard any foul language and they made sure our house was back to normal afterward.  Several of them were in their early to mid-twenties, but they were the ones dealing with the heavy light stands and the cameras.

The microphones are clipped to your waistband and a wire run to your neckline.  They use moleskin to stick it to your clothing.  If you don’t know what moleskin is, you were never a Scout or a hiker.  We all agreed it is getting harder and harder to find.  They said when they do find some at a drug store, they buy out the store.

The crew has an RV which has all Cesar’s equipment and food for the day.  It arrived with half the crew at 8:30 am.  The rest of the crew arrived within a few minutes.  Cesar came around 11:00 for the consultation and stayed until about 4:00.  The crew left around 5:00.

Cesar just does what he does and the crew just follows along.  None of us knew he was going to invite Sahzi to the Dog Psychology Center until he did during filming near the end.  Su Ann isn’t sure if Cesar will come back to our house to pick her up or if we’ll drive up to Saugus near Magic Mountain in Santa Clarita.  I love the way Cesar says, “Santa Clarita” with his Mexican accent.

During the consultation, I told Cesar that people at the park often insist that they should be allowed to pet Sahzi.  Even when I tell them no, they’ll tell me that they watch the Dog Whisperer and know how.  Cesar said that just shows that they don’t pay attention to the show. Cesar told us we should never take a dog like Sahzi to Beverly Hills.  Everyone there feels entitled to pet every dog.  He said we should take her to South Central Los Angeles.  The Mexicans would never think to pet someone else’s dog.

Mike tried some Spanish out on Cesar.  Cesar corrected him.

During our interviews, Su Ann sat right next to the camera and asked questions.  We’re supposed to rephrase the question because they’ll edit her voice out.  Sometimes I’d forget the question because I’d be paying attention to her keeping her hair away from the lens instead of listening.  If we did well, she’d give us thumbs up, otherwise, she’d rephrase the question.

Sometimes she’d have the cameraman do a “POV” shot from Sahzi’s point of view such as walking out the dog door to the fountain to get a drink.  During filming, they also took lots of still pictures with a simple digital camera.

During one break, she told the cameraman to get a shot of Sahzi’s cat friend.  I had no idea where Spatz was, but I found him sleeping soundly on our bed.  He woke up and stared at the camera for a while.  I brought the dog in and she jumped on the bed, which made Spatz jump down.  While Sahzi stared nervously at the camera, I pick Spatz up and put him back on the bed.  The cameraman filmed Sahzi staring at the camera while Spatz walked over her feet.  I hope that makes it in to the episode.

After Cesar “left” the house for the camera, he came back in and signed autographs and let us take pictures with him.  I’ll try to get a picture of him with Sahzi next time we see him.  

They have episodes ready to air through July.  Ours will probably be on sometime this fall, and I will let you all know.  They are going to give us a DVD of the episode for free after it airing.  We’ll definitely have a get together at the house on the night it airs.

Cesar Teaches Us the Finer Points of Walking an Insecure Sahzi

Sahzi Nips Cesar's German Shepherd Puppy

When Sahzi and I go for a walk, she feels she has to protect me from all my neighbors and their dogs.  She and our other dog Zeke walked fine together when we first got her, then she started her “charge and retreat” act.  When a stranger or dog approaches, she lunges, barks, shows her teeth, sometimes nips, and then runs back.  She used to do this with most dogs, and young or elderly people, but now it can be anyone.  There may be very little warning.  A dog or stranger can be almost past us, the she charges.  Even when a friend comes along for the walk, she will be fine for a few minutes, then lunge, and then be fine again until the next lunge.

Cesar wants most of the walk to be serious.  Sahzi should be at my side, never in front, on a very short leash, but held loosely like a purse.  If she stops to look, sniff, turn away, a short jerk to the side is all I should give for correction.  Usually she is on my left, so the leash should be in my left hand, and jerked quickly to the right.  A quick bend at the elbow does the trick.

First, though, we had to get out the door.  He had me demonstrate preparing Sahzi for the walk.  She was excited, but sat, sort of, while I put her leash on.  I had her sit at the door until I released her to go outside.  Cesar told me, That was dog training, not dog psychology.”  She was very alert and not calm at all even though she was sitting.  He wanted her to be happy and excited, but not too excited, before the walk.  He said, “Right now she’s a 10.  We want her to be a 5.”

So sitting before we go out wasn’t what she needed.  We need to wait together at the door until she is relaxed enough, even bored enough, to exit at a nice even pace.  It took several very long tries until Cesar said it was good enough, but not perfect.

We started to walk.  Earlier he mentioned that he had seen me walking her with the cameraman during the morning.  She was too far ahead and too much in control.  I mentioned that I was confused by exactly what to do with Sahzi.  I have seen him allow timid dogs to take the lead during the walk.  I have seen him use a small, quick kick from the side and behind to correct dogs.  He told me that is why the show always says not to try this at home without consulting a professional.  Different dogs need different techniques.  It was so wonderful having Cesar there to answer my specific questions and tailor the process just for Sahzi.  Since she is so insecure, he said I should never use the little kick since we want her to trust me completely.  She does need to remain slightly behind my lead so that she knows I’m taking charge and can be confident in my alpha role.

Walking with Cesar was the strangest event of the day.  Here we are, Mike, Sahzi, and I, calmly walking next to a well known celebrity while two cameramen walk backwards in front of us, a sound man holds a boom mic over our heads, the director and one more technician follow at a discreet distance.  Several high school track teams are practicing for distance and we turned a lot of heads.

We walked from the house through the park over to the lake. Mike asked if taking her near the dog park fence was a good way to teach her not to “fence fight.”  Cesar said, yes, let’s go.  First we walked near the small dog park.  We all agreed laughingly that this section would have the noisiest dogs.  Several of the small dogs came to the fence to fence to sniff, but no barking.  Sahzi just kept her even pace which is quite unusual.  All the dog owners in the dog park were frozen in place staring at Cesar with slack jaws.  As one little blonde terrier barked and came running up, the owner yelled, “Sorry, Cesar.”  Cesar called back, “You are helping us.  Thanks.”

No fence fighting so we continued to the fence in front of the large dog park.  One of the cameramen, Chris, went inside to follow our progress from the other side of the fence.  No dogs even noticed us, though the slack-jawed stares from owners continued and all conversation within the park stopped.  Then Chris, walking backwards, tripped over a fire hydrant near the fence.  The crew all laughed and gave him hard time, asking if the camera was okay because he could easily be replaced.  He was embarrassed but fine.

As we got near the entrance, a husky mix started barking loudly at our little group.  The cameras turned to the husky.   We all thought Cesar would take the opportunity to use this dog to work with Sahzi and what a lucky owner the lady nearby was.  Instead the lady, I use the term loosely, yelled at the cameramen to stop photographing her.  They turned their cameras away and she continued to yell at them to move and get away from her.  As this was a public park, they didn’t move, and we all just stood there looking at her.  She finally went in to the park muttering, “Stupid people.”  We all laughed and Cesar mentioned that some humans really don’t want to be trained.

When we got back to the edge of the park near our house, Cesar asked his staff to bring Junior and another dog over to the park.  Junior and an adorable three-and-a-half-month old German shepherd puppy came over.  The puppy had huge paws and one floppy ear.  He immediately went to say hello to Sahzi who gave him a bark and nip.  Cesar got between them, helped me correct Sahzi and said it was fine because all puppies are naïve and need to learn to read dog body language.

We started walking again.  I had to keep an eye on Sahzi and correct her if she started showing signs of going after the other two dogs, but if I kept too close a watch, Cesar told me to look up and relax.  I’ve heard him say this on his show and finally got to tell him that I found it very difficult to watch, not watch, be ready, but be relaxed all at the same time.  He said I was right, and it was difficult but just takes practice and knowing your dog and feeling the dog’s body language through the relaxed leash.  He said the more relaxed I hold the leash, the more I’ll be able to feel.

As we walked back all three dogs in “our pack” were very content and Sahzi was very comfortable.  He passed Junior’s leash on to me.  I felt like I had my Zeke back.  (Zeke was my wonderful red cattle dog who passed away in August.)

When we got to the grass at the edge of the park, Cesar said they could all have a good sniff time now.  The dogs sniffed the grass, ate the grass, did their business, and relaxed.  He suggested that if a walk is 60 minutes, take the first 40 minutes for serious walking, then take 10 minutes to relax, then another 10 minutes serious walking back to the house.

In front of the house, Cesar mentioned that he would like us to work with Sahzi for a few weeks until she is no longer afraid of her house, then he will take her to his Dog Psychology Center in Saugus to socialize her with his pack since she has no social skills.

Then he walked back to his RV for the camera and a very exhausted Sahzi got to go back to her home.