Dogs In The City TV
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3,193 Posts
Sorry. I saw a one minute segment and turned it off. Not enough information for an opinion but I have no intention of putting in more time...
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1,536 Posts
I cant finish one of his shows. They seem really watered down and pretty boring. I've tried watching 3 and the last one was the only one that was remotely interesting, but we never really learned anything. I still have no idea what his methods are. Its like "here's a bad dog" *cut out all the training scenes and fun stuff* "here's how the dog is now that it was trained by the host."
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5,406 Posts
I only watched the first episode because I was stuck in the hospital and didn't have anything better to do. Unimpressed.
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4,552 Posts
Eh. He's nothing special and can only, in my opinion, deal with the dogs that don't have big issues. The first episode I remember only a bit, but one was about an overweight Bernese. What can I do? Ah, how about instead of spending money to be on this show, that you should exercise and lower your dog's intake of food? Also tell people, "Just because my dog is cute, please do not feed him/her." But maybe that was too much brain work for the owners, so they had to have an expert come in.
Sorry, that might've seemed too sarcastic. But that's what I saw. I won't be watching the show.
Sorry, that might've seemed too sarcastic. But that's what I saw. I won't be watching the show.
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1,593 Posts
wvasko you read my mind. i was about to start a thread on here about it.... i finally watched it for the first time last night.... im a bit confused on his methods (or lack there of). im watching the show going "ok this is what i would do"... and then he does something that makes no sense to me. there were two bloodhounds that were barking and driving neighbors crazy, and creating chaos in the house. my thoughts? the dogs are bored. mentally stimulate them, get them out of the house more, etc. his solution? sit, stay...... no really... that was it... sit, stay....... he told the owners that THAT was "giving the dog a job"....they were also reactive at the fence... solution for me? you bark at the fence you lose your permission to be out there, time out inside, then back out. his solution? sit, stay..... no im not kidding... sit, stay...... wtf?! and then the dog who barked at people while the owner pushed it in a stroller, slution: walk the dog instead..... we needed a segment on a tv show about that?
bottom line, totally boring. plus ive already seen some questionable behavior from him. like the pit wearing the muzzle at the park (thats a whole other can of worms for me). he asks the dog for a sit then before the dog can even react to sit down he places him with leash manipulation AND a knee to the chest... huh? and all the owners that i see are placing their dogs (probably by his instruction) but they never even give the dog a chance to sit after asking! its "sit"spinyouaroundandpushyouintoasit... instead of "sit"... oh no response? *place*.
heres a clip of the bloodhounds for those interested:
http://www.tv.com/shows/dogs-in-the-city/watch/duke-and-daisy-2483623/
bottom line, totally boring. plus ive already seen some questionable behavior from him. like the pit wearing the muzzle at the park (thats a whole other can of worms for me). he asks the dog for a sit then before the dog can even react to sit down he places him with leash manipulation AND a knee to the chest... huh? and all the owners that i see are placing their dogs (probably by his instruction) but they never even give the dog a chance to sit after asking! its "sit"spinyouaroundandpushyouintoasit... instead of "sit"... oh no response? *place*.
heres a clip of the bloodhounds for those interested:
http://www.tv.com/shows/dogs-in-the-city/watch/duke-and-daisy-2483623/
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12,194 Posts
I've been watching and it seems like most of the situations are just silly owner problems, like the woman who was worried that her dog was depressed because she had a baby. The dog looked perfectly fine and he spent the whole segment showing the woman that the dog wasn't a delicate princess and could have fun being a dog (how anyone can think a bulldog is a delicate princess is beyond me!). How was there training in that?
On another episode he met with a K-9 officer who was retiring his old dog and working with a new one. His whole solution was to have the old dog play fetch with the cop's kid so it wouldn't feel left out. Then he walked the new amped up Malinois with the retired dog, they got along, and all was well. What? What did he actually do? He didn't even show that the Malinois could be allowed into the house to interact with the retired GSD, so it didn't seem like he accomplished anything.
Seems like silly situations set up with helpless owners just for entertainment. When he actually does some training, it seems pretty basic and not particularly effective.
On another episode he met with a K-9 officer who was retiring his old dog and working with a new one. His whole solution was to have the old dog play fetch with the cop's kid so it wouldn't feel left out. Then he walked the new amped up Malinois with the retired dog, they got along, and all was well. What? What did he actually do? He didn't even show that the Malinois could be allowed into the house to interact with the retired GSD, so it didn't seem like he accomplished anything.
Seems like silly situations set up with helpless owners just for entertainment. When he actually does some training, it seems pretty basic and not particularly effective.
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1,536 Posts
I saw the bloodhound one too. It is what mostly made me think they are skipping out showing 99 percent of the training he is doing. I fear it is going to give people unreal expectations of their dogs, if they teach their dog sit stay it will automatically fix any problem.
I had just switched back when the sit issue happened with the pit so I didn't see the command first and just the knee/leash forced sit.
I am not impressed.
I had just switched back when the sit issue happened with the pit so I didn't see the command first and just the knee/leash forced sit.
I am not impressed.
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891 Posts
I thought it was dreadful & very irresponsible. I couldn't watch beyond 20 mins or so. One dog who was lunging & biting her owner's model clients was tethered to a desk to stop the problem. Genius @@. Finally switched it off when the "trainer" told another client to tell his barking dog to "stop it" without even assessing if the dog had been taught any kind of "quiet" cue. Dude is dangerous, IMO.
I tried to watch an episode today - I usually LOVE training programs (end of my leash is my favorite)....but not this one. Which is a shame, because we live in the city, and I was hoping for some tips that relate specifically to big-city behavior....guess that that isn't going to happen!
I think that the layout of the program is the biggest issue - while others focus on ONE dog per show, this one tried to cram in 3-4 dogs per show, which means that you don't actually get to see all the work being done with each issue - you just see the problem, and then the "magical" result.
I also think that it really focuses on the "crazy owner" side of things - the one I watched, the people all had really obvious issues - I think that it is more along the lines of bubblegum tv rather than a useful dog training show.
I think that the layout of the program is the biggest issue - while others focus on ONE dog per show, this one tried to cram in 3-4 dogs per show, which means that you don't actually get to see all the work being done with each issue - you just see the problem, and then the "magical" result.
I also think that it really focuses on the "crazy owner" side of things - the one I watched, the people all had really obvious issues - I think that it is more along the lines of bubblegum tv rather than a useful dog training show.
This was the one I watched!! I just think that they are not giving enough INFO on why things are being done, or for how long...
Like the desk tethering. Great, in theory...starting off with stationing the dog, and then building up to having it on a leash, working on the sit/stay at the same time, and finally getting to the point where it recognizes it's "station" and stays there, and then come out and waits in a sit stay to say hello - that is actually a great way to deal with the issue. But I bet that people watching will literally just tie up the dog and leave it at that. Sigh...
Also - What is with his little "therapy" sessions with the dog - sitting and actually talking about the issue with it without the owner present.....yeah, it may make a lovely bit of tv, but it just encourages people to anthropomorphize their dogs FURTHER, and treat them like they think the same way we do and want the same things...SMH
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891 Posts
Exactly! That was a very serious issue and that woman was annoying me to no end with her excuses. When she said "Are you counting blood bites?" when talking about how many times her dog has bitten someone, he should have insisted that she not bring the dog anywhere until the biting issue was completely under control. Instead, he ties the dog under the desk & lets the viewing public think the problem is solved. Why doesn't someone give Dr. Dunbar a show already?!
OMG the "blood bites" comment. I heard that and was just flabbergasted!! How on earth can you have a dog with a biting issue so bad that they are drawing blood on a regular basis and still be bringing it to work with you every day?? And to use the term "blood bites" she must have done some research...its like terms such as resource guarding - those aren't everyday terms, so if someone uses one, they must be doing at least SOME reading. Yet she is still unaware that this is a really serious issue..
On the plus side, it made me feel much better about my little play-biting issue....suddenly, the odd jump-and-nip from a little puppy seems incredibly manageable - at least I'm not counting "blood bites" and "regular bites"!!! (I'm mostly kidding on that one, but you know what I mean..)
I got the impression that it wasn't explained because he wasn't actually putting them on the dogs - he was just using whatever collar they already had. I'm not sure on that one, but I didn't see him putting one on at any point, it was never mentioned, and it wasn't something that happened with all the dogs.
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915 Posts
I just saw the most recent episode. The one thing I liked was him suggesting to the woman going through a divorce that she "lighten her load" given she didn't seem to have the time/space for all four dogs...but maybe a better trainer could have made it work. *shrugs*
The other two homes didn't interest me that much. Just bored bloodhounds with no structure and a blind peke (?) being babied by an owner with good intentions.
The other two homes didn't interest me that much. Just bored bloodhounds with no structure and a blind peke (?) being babied by an owner with good intentions.
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9,307 Posts
That very well could be the reason for no collar explanation.
Possible but I do believe that the owner was just over dogged and meant well but just not the right experience necessary for the dogs she was trying to help.
I had to chuckle a bit when the Bloodhound's owner was told getting another Bloodhound would solve their problem.
What I found misleading is people viewing this and think that talking to the dogs and 5 minutes of work and all will be good. Cause you know there will be some, then the dog will be labeled dumb or worse.
There are just not that many Gurus with the magic touch/voice etc training dogs. Wait I should not say that, there have always been a few self titled Gurus around working dogs. (Notice I did not say training dogs)
I've seen all of the episodes and I am very disappointed in the show. There is little to no training, and due to editing it seems like he randomly throws a dog into a new situation and magic happens.
I was very upset during the "blood bites" dog segment, where instead of being hands on and working with the owner, he's sitting in another room while the owner and another lady ,who have no sort of training or experience with dogs, by themselves and the smaller dog gets attacked by the aggressive dog. The worst part is it was probably intentional to create drama. I believe all safety precautions should be taken, the aggressive dog should have been muzzled.
He's hardly a trainer and definitely not a guru. I'll probably continue watching this show for what little entertainment it'll give me.
I was very upset during the "blood bites" dog segment, where instead of being hands on and working with the owner, he's sitting in another room while the owner and another lady ,who have no sort of training or experience with dogs, by themselves and the smaller dog gets attacked by the aggressive dog. The worst part is it was probably intentional to create drama. I believe all safety precautions should be taken, the aggressive dog should have been muzzled.
He's hardly a trainer and definitely not a guru. I'll probably continue watching this show for what little entertainment it'll give me.
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