Cesar Teaches Dog Park 101 to Sahzi and Me

After the other dogs were rounded up, we were ready to go to the park.  We live across the street from Huntington Beach Central Park's Dog Park.  Cesar wanted to teach me what to look for at the dog park and how to handle different situations.  First he told me not to worry about Sahzi getting in front of me or not staying at my side today.  He wanted her to continue in her excitement and happiness at being home.

His crew put his pack back in the RV while we walked to the park.  He was just starting to talk about what to expect, when he noticed Junior and Mr. President, without leashes, running to join us.  He made a cutting motion and quickly walked back to the RV.  The crew was trying to guess who was going to be in trouble for not latching the door properly and letting the dogs out.  They filmed Sahzi jumping around happily while we waited for Cesar, then we started to the dog park again.

He told me not to go when it was too crowded or when I didn’t like the energy of the dogs or the people present.  He said to stay away if larger dogs like Rottweilers were there because often their owners are not in control of the situation.  We decided weekends were definitely out.

The public started staring at our group as we neared the gate.  Cesar looked the visitors over and decided there were some good dogs there.  He told some of the crew to stay out, so our group wouldn’t affect the dogs negatively.

He waited until there were not a lot of dogs near the gate, then we entered and removed Sahzi’s leash.  We walked the perimeter.  He wanted me to stay away from the main activity area because those dogs were playing and very excited – not the energy she needed.  One dog came up to her as we continued walking.  They sniffed each other’s tails which I had never seen Sahzi do before.  Cesar said the most she would do was a little bark to tell another dog to back off.  In the eight days he had been with her, he had never seen her be aggressive with another dog, just give some warnings to back off.  Our role was to walk, stand dominantly, and let her know we had things under control.

As we walked, she was busy looking for the perfect tennis ball.  When she found a likely specimen, I started to lean down and asked Cesar if I could throw her the ball.  He told me not to play ball yet.  I was to walk and let her greet the dogs politely, then at the very end of we would throw the ball.  This was very similar to his walk advice:  spend most of the walk seriously moving forward, then allow her to sniff and relax for a bit.

Our Huntington Beach dog park covers about three acres and is on a hill.  When we neared the benches and shade at the top of the hill, there was a large brown Labrador on one of the benches with his owner.  She looked like a college student surrounded by her books.  She started to move out of the way of the cameras, but Cesar said she could be on TV if she wanted but mostly he wanted her dog to be in the shot.  She smiled and said to go ahead.  The brown lab jumped off the bench and greeted Sahzi.  He was happy, calm, and very polite.  Eventually Sahzi lay down and the lab moved on.  A Rhodesian ridgeback came up and Cesar was pleased with him, too.  He approached Sahzi slightly sideways with head down.  He then licked the air near her.  Cesar said that was another way of greeting besides physically touching.  The dog was licking the air to better get her scent, then he moved on.

Sahzi went to check out the water bowls and Cesar told me that during her first few days she would only drink moving water from a bottle poured into someone’s hand.  Eventually she’d drink from a held bowl, and finally she drank from the metal bowls with the pack.  I couldn’t wait to see if she’d do that for us (she did later that afternoon when we returned to the dog park without Cesar).

While Sazhi was relaxing, Cesar pointed out other dog body language.  A younger pit bull and husky were playing very rough.  There was an older German shepherd loping along with them.  Cesar told me the older dog was going to pin the pit bull to the ground soon in an attempt to calm it.  Within a few seconds it happened just as Cesar said.  The German shepherd was playing, too, but much more quietly and was definitely in control.

A golden retriever was off on its own sniffing and rooting around in the wood chips.  Cesar said that even though the dog was standing still, it was too excited to approach.  Cesar copied its body language for the camera and said that it was obsessed with a scent right now.

We looked back at the playing pit bull and husky.  The husky had something like a velcro wallet and was playing keep away from all the humans.  Cesar told me that the owners were doing just the wrong thing, chasing him and laughing.  The wallet’s owner finally grabbed it and then played tug-o-war for a bit.  The husky never let go, but the man wrenched it out of the dog’s mouth.  Cesar said the husky was just going to try to get it again because the dog didn’t drop it out of submission.  Sure enough, the husky was jumping up on the man trying to grab it.  Another man took out a treat and distracted the husky trying to help.  Cesar said, “And now, he’s feeding it a reward!”  I was very glad Sahzi was behaving perfectly at the time.

We continued our walk towards the exit.  I reminded Cesar about throwing the ball, and he said to go ahead.  Other dogs were behind us so I turned to throw it the other way.  He said that was just right because Sahzi was not ready to share me or her ball with others.  He wanted us to take her to the dog park just like this about three days a week to keep giving her a chance to get used to other dogs and people.

As we were leaving and the cameramen relaxed, the human dog park occupants all raced down to the fence and yelled greetings to Cesar.  One man said, “Love your show Cesar.  What’s the name of the sheep herding place in Long Beach I saw on one episode?”  Cesar told him Stuart and one of the crew told the man to look up Jerome Stuart on the internet.  He has a flock of sheep and people can bring their dogs down to work the sheep.

As we were walking down the path to the house, an older lady walked by holding her long hair chihuahua.  Sahzi gently sniffed the little dog’s tail as it dangled down from her arms.  That was amazing to see and very out of character.  I was amazed at the transformation.

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.