Drew Barrymore, who appeared recently in our list of the top 5 actresses who own dogs, is mourning the passing of her dog Flossie. Flossie wasn’t just any ordinary dog, as she once saved Drew’s life 12 years ago, in 1998, when she awoke the household and alerted them to a fire.

Flossie, a cross between a Labrador and a Chow, saved both Drew Barrymore and her then husband Tom Green as they slept through a fire in their home in Beverly Hills. The dog sadly passed away in July – aged 16 – and Drew honoured her lifelong pal by spreading her ashes on the Ganges in India, during a recent trip.

Now that Flossie has passed away, Drew has a new puppy that she is training. While speaking on a recent interview on the David Letterman show, Drew revealed a (more…)

Cesar Millan, for those who may not have heard of him, is better known as ‘The Dog Whisperer’. The twinkly eyed Mexican with the perfect set of gnashers has risen to worldwide fame due to his seemingly supernatural ability to tame the most vicious, neurotic or disobedient dog. You may have caught him on TV as he silences a howling pooch with a look and a stern “Tsst!”, instructs a clueless owner in the application of ‘calm, assertive energy‘ or out rollerblading with a pack of his dogs. Let’s face it, he’s such a dude that he’s made rollerskating cool again, after Cliff Richard killed it off in the video for ‘Wired for Sound‘.

Cesar doesn’t talk much about his private life in his show, so we at Dream Dogs are going to take a peek at the guy behind the curtain operating the wheels and levers.

1) Cesar grew up on a farm

Born in 1969 in Culiacán, Mexico, to father Felipe Millán Guillen and mother María Teresa Favela de Millán, young Cesar grew up on a farm owned by his grandfather. He displayed a natural affinity with animals, but more so with dogs. Such was his skill, he was nicknamed el Perrero, or ‘the dog boy‘. Cesar credits his love of animals to his grandfather. He said:

“To him, everything about an animal was beautiful. He adored them. He didn’t love animals in the way Americans love animals – to see a birthday party for a dog, he would get a kick out of that.”

“He was the epitome of honesty, integrity, loyalty. And that’s what he loved about animals.”

2) Cesar remembers the exact moment that he wanted to work with dogs

He was 13 years old and was being accompanied by his mother to a judo competition. He stopped in front of a statue, and declared to her that he wanted to be the best dog trainer in the world. He admits that at the time he was unaware that you could (more…)