Cesar under investigation for cruelty to pigs

Cesar Millan, the animal psychologist famously known as the "Dog Whisperer," is under investigation for an animal cruelty complaint authorities received after a recent episode of his TV show, "Cesar 911," on National Geographic, authorities confirmed to Patch.

In the show, Millan was rehabilitating an aggressive french bulldog named Simon, which had recently attacked some pet pigs, at his "Dog Psychology Center." When Millan brought new pigs to a "training session" with Simon, the dog attacked one of the pigs, biting its ear and drawing blood.

A Change.org petition claims that Simon was a "known pig killer" and had more than 9,000 signatures Friday morning.

Investigators visited Millan's center in Santa Clarita, California, on Thursday evening, but Millan was not there, so they spoke with his son instead, according to Aaron Reyes, deputy director of the County of Los Angeles Department of Animal Care and Control.

The department posted a 24-hour notice for Millan to contact authorities, and a couple hours later an investigator heard from a "key staff member" of Millan's show, Reyes told Patch. The staff member said Millan was aware of the investigation and will fully cooperate with it, Reyes said.

Investigators want to know how badly pig was harmed, why Millan chose that method of rehabilitation and anything different he could have done, Reyes said, adding that at this point, all they've seen is the video.

"You’re looking at the key piece of evidence we’re looking at," Reyes said.

National Geographic did not immediately return requests from Patch for comment but in a statement to multiple media outlets, National Geographic said the clip only showed Simon, "chasing a pig and nipping its ear, causing the ear to bleed."

The statement continued: "It is important to clarify that Cesar took precautions, such as putting Simon on a long leash to assess his behavior, before making initial corrections and removing the leash. The pig that was nipped by Simon was tended to immediately afterward, healed quickly and showed no lasting signs of distress."

Following the controversy surrounding the dog-bites-pig incident, National Geographic released an extended clip to media, showing the troubled dog coming full circle.

In the clip, Simon is brought back into a pen with more pigs, and Millan works his magic on the dog. Eventually, Millan ties a leash from one of the pigs to Simon, and has the pig take Simon for "a walk" around the pen.

The two animals appear to be thick as thieves by the time it's all said and done.

"As the additional clip reveals, Cesar and his animal pack effectively helped Simon to overcome his aggressive behavior toward other animals," the National Geographic statement said. "As a result, Simon did not have to be separated from his owner or euthanized."

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no comments to this story, but some on the Psychology Today article.

and more mainstream comments here.

Jill Breitner the originator of the petition has a youtube channel and has an app called Dog Decoder.  She currently has 101 subscribers.  Maybe it'll jump up after this.

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Pro-Cesar comments on facebook

A statement from Simon's owner

Cesar speaks with people.com about the incident.

The episode is online (and on the Nat Geo app), but only available to cable subscribers to Nat Geo Wild.  Non-subscribers can purchase Cesar 911 episodes on Amazon.com, iTunes, vudu, MGo.

Season 3 episodes will supposedly be made available on Hulu 30 days after the original air date.  Season 2 episodes are currently available on Hulu.  Season 1 episodes are available on Netflx.

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We have been informed by Los Angeles County Animal Control that their investigation into the farm pig incident is over and they have found that we did nothing wrong and no charges will be brought against me or my team. I am pleased but not surprised by this news. My team and I are 100% dedicated to the proper care of all animals and our animal handling procedures are safe and humane. We will continue to  rescue and rehabilitate even the most difficult problem dogs. Our work  has saved the lives of thousands of animals that otherwise would have been euthanized.