Los Angeles – Cesar Millan, best known as the Dog Whisperer, has been cleared in probe over animal cruelty. Jane Robison, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, announced on Monday that the investigation had ended because there was insufficient evidence to file charges against Millan.
The investigation, conducted by the Department of Animal Care and Control in Los Angeles County, was launched after a Feb. episode of the Nat Geo WILD TV series Cesar 911. On the show, Millan trains a French bulldog-terrier mix called Simon to peacefully live alongside a pot-bellied pig.
Simon had already killed two of his owner’s pigs. Unfortunately, the dog is seen in the episode as he chases the pig and bites its ear, causing it to bleed. The show led more than 13,000 people to sign a change.org petition, describing the dog trainer’s methods as inhumane and accusing Millan of using the pig for “entertainment” purposes. The petition called on Nat Geo WILD to cancel Cesar 911.
The American Humane Society called the incident an “abuse” and said it had received complaints about the show.
On the other hand, the unit of 21st Century Fox supported Millan and said that a clip from the episode that was shared online caused concern for people who did not quite understand the whole context of the encounter between the bulldog-terrier and the pig.
Cesar Millan’s methods are ‘safe and human’
Brian Klein, Millan’s attorney, said the dog trainer had fully cooperated with the investigation. He called his methods “safe and human,” according to Reuters.
“My team and I are 100 percent dedicated to the proper care of all animals, including the farm pig in this case,” Milan said in a statement.
He affirmed he would continue his work rescuing and rehabilitating all kinds of difficult canines and noted that he has helped save the lives of thousands of them which would have been euthanized without his methods.
The widely known 46-year-old dog trainer became famous thanks to his Dog Whisperer TV show, which has been broadcast around the world. Millan has also sold a large number of books teaching his training techniques. He said that the pot-bellied pig and Simon “became best friends” and the bulldog-terrier had stopped being aggressive toward pigs. This was proven in a follow-up segment of the same episode as Simon is seen co-existing peacefully with a group of animals, including pigs and a chicken.
Source: Reuters