The Dog Whisperer
You know our society has reached it's psychological self-help zenith when a guy billed as "The Dog Whisperer" gets his own TV show. Yeah I saw him on Oprah and frankly he didn't do anything that remarkable. He just treated the dogs like, well dogs. Totally respect his journey from being an illegal immigrant to a television and publishing success story. Great for him. He should milk us for all we're worth.
"...where I am from, the dog is always behind. Here the dog is always in front. I thought maybe you guys were doing it right and we were doing it wrong. Because to me America is the country where everybody is always doing it right. I thought you knew and we were wrong."Well said my friend.
He quickly discovered: no. Americans were letting the dogs, rather than the humans, be the pack leaders, in almost every respect. "Americans work against Mother Nature, and that's why dogs don't listen to the general population of America," he said. "Why are dogs growing up on a farm much happier than a dog living in the city? Because on a farm, it gets to be a dog. And in the city they become a child, they become a husband, they become a soul mate. They become something the human wants before they are willing to do what is best for them." - New York Times
4 comments:
I actually really appreciate what he is saying. I have a relative (who will remain nameless) who has a dog and treats the dog better than his family. (Don't worry- it's not my husband.) I don't have a problem with dogs- they're not my favorite, but I can deal with them. It's when people start treating dogs better than they treat people- that's when it really starts to bother me. So, I agree. Dogs SHOULD walk behind. They should not be treated as if they are on the same intellectual level as humans.
Erin you make a great point. Last night I was watching the NBC Nightly News and I saw this exact dynamic played out. One segment was Brian Williams, Gordon Brown, and Bono in Africa. Bono was up to his usual amazing self and the segment showed the extreme poverty, abhorrent school situation, and the need for just the basics in the country of Nigeria. The very next segment was all about Barbaro and the outpouring of emotion that people have in hoping this horse gets better. The report was clear to state that Barbaro was getting the absolute best medical care, round the clock attention, and the hopes of a grateful nation. There was also the mention that Barbaro was worth millions as a stud, all of which was in jeopardy. WHAT! Before anyone thinks I would like to cut down all the trees in the world for more McDonalds or gather up all the little bunnies to test new mascara formulas, let me say that I really do love and like animals and nature. But the two stories contrasted against each other was just so amazingly ludicrous it almost made me sick to my stomach.
On one hand we have an impoverished little girl whose capital generating power is nothing. It takes the worlds biggest rock-star and thousands of other people to make us pause to see her plight for a few minutes before we go on our way. On the other hand we have a horse whose capital generating power is in the millions, and it becomes a national (probably international) news story. To NBC's credit the little girl got three times as much air time as the horse, but I wish that the horse didn't get any at all because it would not have been considered news.
Did you see his profile in the New Yorker last week? Some of those case studies are so hilarious/sad. (Sorry for the deleted comment above. Should proofread before posting.)
Post a Comment