We tend to look at faces (we don't even look at hands well. This is how conjurers can trick us.), and we listen to voices. When you strip that out & focus on the bottom third of the screen, sometimes the perspective is different.
ETA: ooops, the video has cloaked itself. No worries! You can see it HERE.
Now some people say that it's not a kick. It's a 'tap'. Mhmmmm. You know what? Barring world cup soccer players, I don't think anyone has that much control of their feet, especially when kicking behind you, to deliver a precisely judged gentle tap to a moving, wiggling object. Go and stand by a wall & try to kick it behind you, a whole bunch of times, delivering the kick in precisely the same place and force. I bruised the inner side of my ankle trying it.
Anyway - watch the dogs. It hurts. In fact, it only works if it hurts.
We know this because that IS how behaviors are changed: behaviors which are rewarded increase in frequency. Behaviors which are not rewarded, or are punished, decrease. It's that simple. To the extent that anything CM does works, it works because of behaviorism.
Several bloggers tackled this topic & I encourage you to look at the thoughtful posts esp at Cesar Millan, Abuse is Not a Training Tool and Let's Call Kicking a Dog What It Is: Abuse
I want to address a question which arises in comments there & in other forums where I've heard people say "but why do you care? Just do what you do. Why do you feel the need to have these discussions & criticize him?"
The answer is simple: for the same reason people care about puppymills, about child soldiers, about slavery, about fraud and quackery.
Whether it's an injustice on a huge scale or a wrong on a more moderate scale, it's not only right for people to speak out against it, but I'd argue it's a duty to do so.
When fraudulent practices rob people of money, when medical quackery prevents people from getting real treatment, when people promise magical cures and can't deliver, it's clear that we should speak out, isn't it?
This really isn't much different. These methods are based on a mistaken understanding of dogs, rely on inflicting pain, and harnessing some mysterious 'energy'. It's all just wrong.
It's wrong because it hurts dogs, and it prevents people from seeking out appropriate training methods.
Imagine someone you knew had epilepsy. If you were living around 1600 in England, the prevalent view would have been that this person was possessed by the devil. Treatments would involve praying, immersion in holy water, as well as punishing the body by beating, pressing, and burning to cast the devil out. The proponents would have very detailed explanations for why their methods 'work'. They might even take their healing show on the road and call the villagers to the town square to witness them (no doubt with strict admonitions to 'not try this at home'). A good showman has had the capacity to grab our attention for thousands of years - that doesn't seem to change.
But today we know so much more about how our bodies work, about the scientific method and about evaluating treatment protocols. We have a different, fuller (though still incomplete! We're always learning!) understanding of illness, and more efficacious methods of treatment.
It's the same with behavior - in animals & people. We know so much more about animal behavior, and ethology is the field to watch if you're interested in scientific dog training.
So it's not a matter of just letting people choose between the chocolate and vanilla. It's not even a choice between a sundae and a salad.
The choice is between a sundae and steaming pile of melatonin laced doo-doo, with a radioactive cherry on top.
That's why we speak out.
See who else is speaking out here. Hint, it's organizations such as the European Society of Veterinary Clinical Ethology and American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior. Of course, you could just listen to some guy with no credentials & just some intuition.....
