TV host charged with animal cruelty...

Glenda--What I'm getting at is, why was he so exhausted??

My guess would be that he was on that treadmill for far too long and/or at too high a speed.

But, what?? Was he the first dog they EVER did this with??  I would think that they would of had some sort of idea of how long and how fast.  So, maybe this dog just didn't have the normal stamina?? 
 
I'm not saying they didn't do something wrong, but how in the world did this go down? [8|]

ORIGINAL: jman

Laywers suck.

People want to control their dogs. Somebody shows them how. They don't like it.. sue.

If these people had kids, we'd be watching them on Nanny911. It's just another case of some idiot that wanted a dog and had no clue how to raise one.

You control your dog by putting him on a treadmill and hanging him within an inch of death? I bet that's a rewarding relationship. Does your local humane society know about this?[8|]

ORIGINAL: calypso

I don't understand the trauma to his leg area.

I'm thinking maybe he became so exausted that he fell. Falling on a treadmill can do a fair amount of damage.

Lori,to have been a fly on the wall and be able to tell you!
 
I took a fall on the treadmill once in PT.  That's a good thought as a possibility for the bruising.  I was toe to thigh bruised on both legs.

ORIGINAL: sillysally

ORIGINAL: calypso

I don't understand the trauma to his leg area.

I'm thinking maybe he became so exausted that he fell. Falling on a treadmill can do a fair amount of damage.

That makes sense.  Cousteau runs on a treadmill when the weather is too hot or cold to be outside, but it's a dog powered treadmill.  If he were to slip or stop the treadmill does, too.  Our training school chose this kind on purpose because it's safer.  Each of the dogs who use the treadmill must wear a harness, not a collar and they were all trained - with a clicker and treats/toys - to run.  It took all of the dogs, even the genius border collie, about 2 sessions to really understand what they were supposed to do and for the first few sessions we had two people on hand, one to be at the dog's head and offer encouragement and reinforcement and the other to help the dog on and off, to watch to make sure the dog was moving properly and to help if the dog suddenly got spooked.  One of the more fearful dogs took about 4 sessions.  Heck, even the "F you all, nothin' scares me!" dumpster diva rescue and Cousteau, who rarely shows any uncertainty took some time to get used to the treadmill.

Even our most fit canine athletes only do 7-10 minutes on the treadmill and they're tired.  One of these dogs has her AD title, which is a Schutzhund endurance title involving her running 12 miles next to a bike in a set amount of time with breaks after 4 and 8 miles for a vet check.  The thing with the treadmill is that it's constant movement and if it's electric, it doesn't give the dog a chance to pace itself.  That's why Cousteau is completely exhausted after he's done 5-6 minutes but can play fetch for 30 minutes - he's not going full out constantly when he plays fetch.  It's more of an interval training type of deal. 

Where was the vet check with the dog named in the suit?  How often were his breaks?  How much time did the dog get to become acclimated to the treadmill before the "training" began?  I guess we'll never know, but I suspect I know the answer.

Some of you older timers may remember that I had to euthanize Beamish, my rescued Lab, because he'd become a dangerous dog.  We did everything I could think of but he still progressed to transfering a bite onto my human.  Even knowing the pain of euthanizing a dog I adored, I would do it again before submitting him to that kind of treatment.  IMO there are some fates worse than death and terrifying Beamish (who was already fearful) and breaking his spirit would have essentially killed him anyway since it was his spirit that I fell in love with and made him who he was.

IMO there are some fates worse than death and terrifying Beamish (who was already fearful) and breaking his spirit would have essentially killed him anyway since it was his spirit that I fell in love with and made him who he was.

Hear hear!

Knowing the methods that Milan uses, I think something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. Poor dog![]

I'd like to see CM's wife use this method on HIM when he's not "submitting." [sm=evilfire.gif]

My best guess is that it was a typical, seriously overweight lab and tired out very quickly.

Quite a few years ago, before I had internet access and knowledge of training methods and such, I taught my mom's dog, Toby, to run on a treadmill. I was just a kid, probably 13 or 14. Common sense dictated that I use a harness. I chopped up a bunch of carrots and fed him little bits of carrot, with the treadmill moving *very* slowly, and gradually worked up to him moving more quickly. Now, he happily trots on the treadmill. He'll be 13 in two weeks, and he's quite healthy. It's HOT here, and it's hard on any dog to be outdoors for long, especially if they're older. Speaking of, I need to teach Teenie to run on the treadmill. Emma will NOT do it. Weird kid.

Willow...Labs are actually prone to a problem something along the line of exercise intolerance...they collapse, pant, have some really, really serious issues. It's a problem in the breed...and if Cesar's lawyers are worth any salt they will look this up. Sounds like what happened here...hopefully he has some sort of waiver stating that the dog is healthy enough for exercise on file. Lazy as most dog owners seem to be these days....judging from all the fat dogs out there...might've been the first time this dog walked more than 5 minutes...
 
Usually affects the younger dogs...but if you never walk you Lab much...who's to say what actual exercise could cause?? the trauma to the back legs would fit in nicely with this issue and if they were paralyzed the dog might've tried to run and dragged them for a bit and not even felt they were being hurt...poor dog.
 
BTW if the dog had this problem it needn't have been exhausted....it can take only minutes,

[color=#000000]"Affected dogs can tolerate mild to moderate exercise, but 5 to 20 minutes of strenuous exercise induces weakness and then collapse. Severely affected dogs may collapse whenever they are exercised to this extent - other dogs only exhibit collapse sporadically and the factors important in inducing an episode have not yet been well established.
The first thing noted is usually a rocking or forced gait. The rear limbs then become weak and unable to support weight. Many affected dogs will continue to run while dragging their back legs. In some dogs this progresses to forelimb weakness and occasionally to a total inability to move. Some of the dogs appear to be incoordinated and have a loss of balance, particularly as they recover. Most collapsed dogs are totally conscious and alert, still trying to retrieve. Others will appear stunned or disoriented during the episode.
It is common for the symptoms to worsen for 3 to 5 minutes even after exercise has been terminated. NOTE: A few affected dogs have died during exercise or while resting immediately after an episode of exercise-induced collapse so the dog's exercise should ALWAYS be stopped at the first hint of incoordination or wobbliness.
Most dogs recover quickly and are usually normal within 5 to 25 minutes with no residual weakness or stiffness."
[link[/color]>http://thelabradorclub.com/library/eicstudy.html]http://thelabradorclub.com/library/eicstudy.html[/link][/size][/color]

Actually I think I'll post this link to the NGC site in case they haven't seen it yet, []

Gina - they may be prone to it, but I've gotta say in the 4 years or so that I've volunteered with Lab rescue, including fostering and sitting on the board of directors, I've never encountered this.  I haven't seen it in the dozens of Labs that come through our training school or doggie day care, either.  I know it exists - an episode of ER Vets or whatever that show was called on Animal Planet talked quite a bit about it.  I'm just saying it's not super common.

Common enough for the parent club to take notice of it at any rate. You might not see it a lot as the article mention Field stock and Field work being the primary carriers and venues it expresses itself. It states:
 
Dogs that exhibit the symptoms of EIC are most likely to have intense, excitable personalities, and it is apparent that their level of excitement plays a role in inducing the collapse. There are some severely affected dogs who, if they are very excited, do not require much exercise to induce the collapse. Dogs with EIC are most likely to collapse when engaging in activities that they find very exciting or stressful. This can include retrieving of live birds, participation in field trials, training drills with electric collar pressure and quartering for upland game.
 
[size=3][color=#000000]Type of Exercise. Routine exercise like jogging, hiking, swimming , most waterfowl hunting and even agility or flyball training are not very likely to induce an episode in dogs with EIC. Activities with continuous intense exercise , particularly if accompanied by a high level of excitement or anxiety most commonly cause collapse. Activities commonly implicated include upland hunting, repetitive "happy retrieves", retrieving drills, and repetition of difficult marks or blinds where the dog is being corrected or anticipating correction[/size][/color]
 
This dog was stressed, this dog was doing continuous intense exercise in that state, fits right in IMO...I would be interested in knowing if it was a Field bred dog or "conformation" bred. Th word "anxiety" is a big one to me...indicating the liklihood in this case....but I am only an amatuer detective...lol.

I agree the owners should have known about that (if it was the case, of course this is a hypothetical statement) but maybe they didnt from pure lack of exercising the dog on their own, and in any case the people at the facility should have been more in tune to the poor things demeanor on the darn thing and not let it happen!

Yup agreed...I can see hooking the dog up...watching a couple mins...then shrugging and going off to do something else, simply becuase you've done something 100 times before and nothing ever has happened. WRONG attitude to have...as a parent I've done similar things and it almost ALWAYS bites you in the ass...
 
When the baby rolls over the first time, or NEVER messes with that, or NEVER puts that in their mouths or COULD NOT possibly open that, or as a dog owner...my dog aways comes when called, or never starts fights,...etc. All these situations can lead to just as tragic if not more so circumstances. Complacency and taking things for granted are always a bad idea...but hard to avoid when things beecome "rote"...
 
It'd be interesting to watch this one on CourtTV lol!