The Untold Truth Of The Dog Whisperer

Millan grew up on his grandfather's farm in Sinaloa, in northwestern Mexico. During this time he became accustomed to working with a variety of animals, though he claims to have had a "natural way with dogs" from a very young age. This connection with canines was so strong that MIllan found himself being followed by dogs every time he left his home, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by the other kids. He was constantly teased by his peers, who started calling him El Perrero, which roughly translates to the Dirty Dog Boy.

On December 23, 1991, a 21-year-old Millan told his mother he was departing Mexico for the United States, and that he wanted to leave immediately. After realizing he couldn't talk him out of it, his father emptied out his life savings and gave it all to his son, urging him to make his dream a reality. With a total of $100 to his name, Millan made his way to a Tijuana bus station and started looking for a way to cross the border.

He began by tailing coyotajes (professional people smugglers who specialize in getting illegal Mexican migrants into the United States) and their groups from a distance, hoping to follow their lead. He witnessed one such group attempting to cross using a flooded canal, watching in horror as elderly and pregnant migrants were swept away to their deaths. He walked the length of the fence for two weeks after that, eventually coming to a fresh hole being guarded by a man who wanted money before he would move aside. Entry cost Millan $100—every cent he had.

Using the first English sentence he ever learned ("do you have application for work?"), Millan managed to arrange some part-time hours in a local dog groomer's office. The owners were instantly impressed with his assertive handling of larger, aggressive dogs that had previously been impossible to control. Millan saw the value in this and, after moving to Inglewood, decided to start charging for a group dog-walking service. He quickly attracted attention with his unusual (and very much illegal) style of walking his group off leash, quickly earning a reputation as "the Mexican guy who can walk a pack of dogs." Some of his first clients were Will and Jada Pinkett Smith, who paid for Millan to have a year of English language lessons.

American pit bull Daddy became an essential part of Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan, not only as the host's loyal sidekick, but as a shining example of how any breed can be trained with the right methods. Daddy was famous for his remarkably calm temperament and his tolerance for smaller dogs, though what most people don't know about him is that he used to belong to Redman.

The New Jersey rapper had Daddy until he was four months old, though his grueling schedule of touring and recording meant that he didn't have time to train him properly. He was referred to Millan through a friend, and Daddy joined Cesar's pack. The pair struck up a bond immediately, and Redman eventually decided that the dog should remain in Millan's care.

The incident with Gator the Labrador is not the only allegation of animal cruelty Millan has faced. American Humane, the oldest national organization specializing in the protection of animals, revealed they had sent a letter to the National Geographic Channel in 2006 complaining about the "inhumane" and "potentially harmful" tactics employed on Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan.

They referred to several instances of "cruel and dangerous" treatment of animals, flagging an episode in which Millan asphyxiates a dog by hanging it with choke chain before pinning it to the ground by its neck. Another letter from the director of the Animal Behavior Clinic at Tufts University accused National Geographic of setting dog training back 20 years.

Other critics of Millan's methods include certified animal behavior consultant and pet journalist Steve Dale, who refers to Millan as the Dog Screamer, and usually mild-mannered British television personality Alan Titchmarsh, who berated Millan over his "barbaric" techniques during an interview on his afternoon TV show.

Millan publicly pointed to 2010 as the lowest point in his life, though he didn't reveal the full extent of what he went through until 2012, when he opened up up about his attempt to take his own life. He claimed he lost his "source of calmness" when his beloved dog Daddy died, and the added pressure of his divorce and his financial woes sent him into a downward spiral of depression.

The famous trainer got to the point where he didn't want to be alive anymore, taking what he described as "a whole bunch of pills" and hoping not to wake up. Fortunately for Millan, his sons discovered him before it was too late and he was rushed to the hospital. He later talked about how regaining consciousness in a ward full of patients who loved his show helped him to get back on track with his life.

Millan found himself back in the spotlight in 2015, after a former resident of his Dog Psychology Center attacked a nurse on the street. Alison Bitney claimed to have suffered "disfiguring open wounds, deep muscle and tendon lacerations" when a pit bull named Gus mauled her just six days after being released from Millan's center—who, for its part, insisted that the animal was removed by its owner against the staff's recommendations. Bitney's subsequent lawsuit argues that the center is to blame for the attack, claiming that they willingly released a dangerous dog back into the public when the owner fell behind with payments, knowing that they were incapable of handling it.