Too bad about that Dog Whisperer guy.. I've watched the show a few times and thought he was OK. (For diagnostics, anyways, we don't really see much of the training.) Some of his ideas we used on horses and cattle, like exercise before training and distraction when misbehaving. (Mostly turning, not shock collars.. did I read that right??) We never trained our dogs, besides getting them used to harnesses and leads. They seemed to pick up a lot from the other dogs. They weren't really pets, though. We had one problem dog, but he didn't last long. Dad said he'd sent him back to the breeder.. never did believe that story.
As for cat training, my cat is perfectly well-behaved if someone is watching her. It's the paw prints on the counters that give her away... and the missing wallpaper. I tried toilet training, what a disaster. She's blind and at least a bit deaf now, so it's time to give up.
Chickens? I've had them come when called, ride on my shoulders, and go to sleep when asked, but I've recently heard that you can litter train them. Anyone had success with that? I have friends that need to keep the chicks in the house at night, and it's a squishy world...
