Cesar Millan's advice on watching TV with your dog – Quartz
Dogs enjoy watching TV just as humans do. In fact, they like it because their humans do.
“Dogs love to watch things,” dog behaviorist Cesar Millan tells Quartz. “That’s how they learn. When the dog went inside with the human, the window became his first TV. Humans now spend lot of time getting information and entertainment from TV… That’s how the dog finds out that that is the way of entertainment.”
Millan, dubbed the “Dog Whisperer” by his first National Geographic TV show, curated a list of series and movies to watch with man’s best friend this National Dog Day, August 26, with streaming-TV provider Sling TV. It includes movies like Jurassic World, sports like the X Games, and animal shows like Rocky Mountain Animal Rescue. The 45 picks are available to subscribers of Sling TV’s basic Orange and Blue bundles through the My TV section of the service until August 28.
For all other occasions, Millan gave Quartz his tips for channel surfing with your pet.
Our furry comrades learned to watch—and even enjoy—TV from watching us. If your pet sees you jump for joy while watching a baseball game or chuckle at a TV sitcom, they’ll channel that energy and feel excited or relaxed when watching those kinds of programs, too.
“Each household has its own culture and the dog becomes part of that,” Millan says. “You have households that watch movies a lot and the dog becomes, you know, a Jumanji lover,” he said, noting that it’s one of his personal favorites.
In the same vein, if a heated debate on CNN has you feeling stressed, that anxiety could rub off on your pet. “The dog is going to vibe from you,” says Millan.
When picking a show for your dog—especially if you’re leaving the house–think about what makes you happy or relaxed. Odds are, your dog will enjoy it, too.
Millan has some go-to genres that engage the eyes and ears of man’s best friend:
Many pet owners leave the radio or TV on to keep their doggos company when they’re out of the house. That’s completely fine, Millan says, in moderation.
Pet parents should think of using TV time with their dogs in the same way they would with human children, as a reward for completing their homework or doing chores, for example. In a dog’s case, it could be a relaxing treat after coming back from a nice long walk. Millan recommends getting in a good hour of continuous physical activity in before sitting your pet down in front of the TV.
That could also help prevent your dog from getting too excited by the action on screen. Remember, dogs can’t distinguish between onscreen action and the real world. Millan says he has filmed episodes of his reality-TV shows, where he helps rehabilitate dogs, in which he’s had to stop dogs from attacking the TV. “You learn what makes the dog feel excited—but not too much,” says Millan.
So, if your doggo, like a goofy-eared pit bull I know, is transfixed by gophers, it’s probably best not to leave Caddyshack on the tube when you’re out of the house. But an episode of Planet Earth or Sesame Street could be just the thing.
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