After 40 years on ‘The Pet Show,’ KRLA radio’s Warren Eckstein knows LA’s dog and cat concerns

Warren Eckstein knows dogs. Actually, helium loves to speech astir each kinds of pets – yes, dogs, particularly – truthful overmuch truthful that he’s been doing it connected the vigor for a agelong time. In fact, Nov. 8th marks the 40th day of the motorboat of “The Pet Show,” heard locally connected KRLA (870 AM) Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Eckstein really does 2 shows, 1 for the section KRLA assemblage and a 2nd for a nationally syndicated assemblage that begins instantly pursuing the KRLA amusement astatine 1 p.m. That’s 4 hours a week of talking pets. Let’s conscionable accidental it’s successful his blood.

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Internationally known arsenic a favored and carnal expert, helium mightiness beryllium considered a favored communicator. It started astatine a young age, successful ample portion owed to shyness astatine the time. “I was capable to link easier to animals than to people,” helium explained, which led to his processing a estimation arsenic a maestro of carnal behavior. Soon helium was being asked to assistance with household pets and animals astir his hometown connected Long Island: “People said that adjacent stray dogs were trained erstwhile I was around,” helium quipped.

While helium was ever comfy astir animals, his grooming expertise came from his observations made portion moving successful Europe. “I really snuck into East Germany successful 1969,” helium said, doing truthful successful bid to spot for himself the techniques they utilized successful grooming dogs for the subject and police. “I obtained a fake passport successful bid to get crossed the border,” helium said.

Warren Eckstein is the big of KRLA’s “The Pet Show.” (Courtesy of Warren Eckstein)

But it wasn’t a vocation successful the aboriginal days. “You effort to find a occupation arsenic an carnal scientist successful 1971,” Eckstein said laughing. “So I took different jobs including astatine a adust cleaners.” But helium loved the training, truthful helium enactment an advertisement successful the section Pennysaver stating that helium would “teach your canine Yiddish for $15.” It worked … helium got immoderate calls.

Eventually, his sanction started getting around, and section veterinarians started recommending him to assistance clients with their favored problems. What made him antithetic — and truthful palmy — is that helium looked astatine dogs and cats astatine their level to effort to find what was causing the antagonistic behavior. (This seemed to beryllium astatine likelihood with what helium observed successful East Germany, and helium confirmed that helium didn’t needfully follow the grooming techniques helium saw, but the acquisition helped him to spot what worked and what could beryllium done better.)

What developed was a passionateness that comes done the interrogation I did with him arsenic good arsenic his shows, on with the tips and tricks you tin work astir successful his posts helium makes astatine thepetshow.com. Eckstein not lone knows animals, you tin archer helium loves and respects them arsenic well. In fact, his grooming and behaviour modifications halfway connected emotion and praise alternatively than discipline.

“I attraction astir animals,” helium says. “I attraction astir animals, kids and families. I privation them each to unrecorded successful harmony, particularly these days erstwhile our pets much than ever are afloat members of our families.”

His amusement began erstwhile helium was approached by Bob Bruno, wide manager of WOR/New York, to bash a play fill-in amusement 1 play erstwhile 1 of the hosts couldn’t marque it. The assemblage absorption was positive, and it turned into a play two-hour program.By 1995, his amusement had been syndicated retired of New York a fig of years, including a peculiar variation helium did for KABC. He decided to determination to Los Angeles and bash the programme from here. Now connected KRLA, helium continues the contented of doing a abstracted amusement for the Los Angeles assemblage truthful I asked him why.

“The assemblage successful Los Angeles is wholly antithetic than the remainder of the country,” helium explained. “It’s a antithetic vibe, a antithetic attitude. We instrumentality our animals earnestly here!”

Has overmuch changed successful the 40 years he’s been doing the show?

“Absolutely,” helium told me. “Today determination are truthful galore issues successful regular beingness that didn’t beryllium often successful the past. I get calls connected divorce, for example, and who should get custody of the household dog. You’ve heard of latch-key kids? Now we person latch-key pets, particularly arsenic much couples some enactment extracurricular of the home.” (He recommends placement with whoever would springiness the canine a amended life, particularly if 1 would beryllium capable to springiness much attraction to the dog).

“Our pets request attention, they request exercise,” Eckstein explains. “You can’t conscionable permission them alone. They request to get retired and beryllium societal and active. They request exercise. Often problems originate successful a pet’s behaviour due to the fact that they conscionable request much attraction and activity”Eckstein has worked with much than 40,000 pets implicit his career, from celebrities (David Letterman, Cheryl Tiegs, Lily Tomlin, and Rodney Dangerfield, conscionable to sanction a few) to adjacent immoderate mobsters (They whitethorn beryllium vicious, but helium says, “They emotion their animals.”).

He routinely donates to smaller rescue groups — “the smaller ones that person occupation raising funds” — done the Hugs and Kisses Animal Fund, a nonprofit enactment founded successful representation of his woman Fay, who passed distant successful 1991.

A contributor to galore tv programs specified arsenic NBC’s “Today Show” and the erstwhile “Live with Regis and Kathy Lee,” Eckstein says that he’s worked with astir each benignant of animal. By his count, helium figures he’s helped implicit 100,000 favored owners via his vigor amusement implicit the years.

If you person not ever heard the show, cheque it out. Forty years is simply a agelong clip for immoderate program, and if Eckstein has his way, it volition beryllium astir different 40.