We need to talk about what happened at the dog park today. Reality Dog Training

This is Reality Dog Training (This video contains paid promotions) Get 50% OFF a 2 week trial of Nom Nom HERE: 🐾

🌊 Get $25 OFF Vessi WATERPROOF sneakers: Use discount code zakgeorge at

🌪 Get 20% OFF the Hoover High Performance Swivel XL Pet vacuum: Use discount code ZAK20 at

Check out Hoover’s Holiday Pop-Up Shop too:

For more daily dog training tips and videos FOLLOW US!
➡️ @zakgeorge on Instagram:
➡️ We’re on TikTok too!
➡️ Like us on Facebook!
➡️ @breejustine on Instagram:
🤔 Is there another social network you’d like to see us on? Tell us in the comments! ⬇️

🌈🎨 Do you love the ART in this video?? Get AMAZING CUSTOM PET PORTRAITS from our awesome friend Lee HERE (tell them we sent you!! 🥳): 🐾💕

Support my videos by making a contribution on patreon:

Order my NEW book here (if your dog is like Chop, get this one!!!)

And check out my other book (broad overview of choosing, raising and training a dog) here:

Can you relate with our experience with Chop today??? 😬😅🤔 Tell us what you want to see Chop learn in upcoming episodes!!!

0:00 Intro, morning report
1:00 Potty training update with Nom Nom
2:15 How Zak monitors play between Chop and Inertia
3:07 How to introduce your dog to a vacuum (or other scary things!)
6:42 Training Chop to STAY for a period of time, and with distance!
11:14 How Zak breaks up Chop and Inertia when things get TOO ROUGH
12:15 Bree caught Chop RESOURCE GUARDING a toy from Inertia
14:25 How I prepare Chop to succeed with training in public
16:24 Training Chop IN PUBLIC at a DOG PARK… we need to talk about this experience.

We need to talk about our experience at The dog park today why do i keep finding Myself Saying that line in these series without Intervention this could get out of Control very easily [Music] This is chop he is a homeless wild Alaskan dog and it’s my job to train him And our job to find him home but it Won’t be without plenty of challenges This is reality dog training subscribe And click the bell so you never miss an Episode Good morning as you might imagine i’m About to let him out it is bright and Early here in anchorage alaska his Overnight Manners or Demeanor is so so good and i think that Is in part because he’s a great dog Secondly we’ve been extremely consistent About giving him structure overnight Controlling his environment but i still Hope to make some progress on getting Him to be a bit more adjusted inside the House he recently just had his first Potty accident in the house for a Grown-up dog we need to get that in Check for sure one thing i can do though Is to take him directly from that crate To outside and that is something we Should do and we’re potty training our Dogs right the thing about house

Training a dog like chop is that you Always have to be one step ahead of him And while this might seem obvious Feeding chop on a regular schedule or Any dog is going to definitely help with House training but i also know with some Dogs if you give them their meal not all Dogs will eat it instantly one hack that I’ve found to make sure that dogs gobble Up their meal right away is to feed them Extra delicious really good quality food There’s just nothing quite like nom nom This food is actually made from Restaurant quality ingredients and Customized by a real veterinary Nutritionist so that you’re getting the Best possible formula for your Individual dog they even portion the Food out perfectly for your dog too in Individual packets it’s literally Portioned out to the individual calorie Sometimes i can’t resist taking a few of Those calories for myself though if you Want to try this food or even let your Dog try it all of you can get 50 off of A two-week trial by going to my special Link trinom.com Zac i’ll have a link below of course our Dog inertia and chop are still working Out their relationship so i do want to Give them a chance to have a little bit Of social time first thing in the Morning and see how they do and by Getting chopped to play and have some

Fun first thing in the morning i really Think this will prime him for his Overall training throughout the day easy Buddy don’t be too rough she’s small Hey Too biggie Easy She’s And she’s taking it though I mean my my Concern with chop is he’s bigger than he Realizes As we’ve been bringing in foster dogs Throughout inertia’s life it’s been Giving her so many great experiences With different types of dogs inertia is Becoming a different dog because of George and because of chop and all of These dogs that she’s having great Experiences with and it’s so rewarding To see her gain this much confidence Anybody who adopts chop is definitely Absolutely a hundred percent going to Have to vacuum all of the time As you might know dogs get thrown off And scared a whole bunch By the household vacuum cleaner and it’s Something that i like to be very Purposeful with new dogs especially a Dog like him who has such little Experience being inside of a house like This he almost certainly has never seen A vacuum cleaner like this and has no Idea what it is so i want to be very

Methodical in other words i don’t want To wait for him to freak out over a Vacuum cleaner and start barking and Scratching at it to then try to fix that I want to be preemptive knowing that This could very well Cause him a good amount of stress If he doesn’t understand what it is so The first thing i want to do is just let Him investigate the vacuum if he wants To i’m going to give him a treat really Near it just to make sure he’s Comfortable let him smell it yes Love how he’s reacting you see how i Haven’t even turned it on yet i love Doing this kind of training with dogs Because it’s a really good example of How you can take a bunch of small steps To make pretty dramatic progress in a Short period of time i’m gonna let him Know that it moves like this it goes Back and forth in other words i want to Be really sensitive to all of the things That might cause him to be nervous by it And now for the moment of truth let’s See what happens Good man i meant to just start it one Time but i accidentally started it twice See how i didn’t just turn it on and Wait for him to start reacting i wanted To catch him succeeding i’ve had it on a Total of two seconds and it’s already Like filled up with hair but you can see How he’s intrigued by it

Look at that moving it a little bit Good man so so far Really great reaction and by the way if Your dog was already super scared of the Vacuum these are the steps you would do You would do the same thing but you Might have to do it with your dog Farther away or even behind a closed Door at first and maybe you have someone Help you along with it by treating them On the other side of the door Good man Yes Let me see if i can treat him while the Vacuum is on Here Yes He’s a little like flinchy let’s go Ahead and turn that off i like to go at A dog’s pace when i’m doing things like This you can see here that chop is free To walk away at any time and if he did That or anything else to indicate that He was feeling a little bit more anxious I want to notice things like that right Away so that i can slow things down and Keep them feeling comfortable this is Really embarrassing breathe Look how much hair Is just on this rug so far And notice i’m not like going right at Him at all i’ll let him check it out yes Here Good

So i’m also showing him how to behave in The presence of the vacuum In other words when he starts to Approach it i’m trying to get him over Here instead by the way this is the Hoover high performance swivel xl Pet Edition Talk about high performance that is so Much hair yeah you did that Are you proud of yourself thank goodness We live in an age though where you can Have a hairy dog like this and fix the Problem so that’s cool At least it’s easy to empty though i’m Gonna have more information about this Hoover in the description of this video And where you can get one My objective today is to teach chop how To stay for a period of time and with Some distance and i’m going to introduce Those separately we’re kind of late in The game to be working on a basic stay i Did work with him on stay at doorways he Did really well with that but he has not Generalized what stay means in a variety Of contexts and settings i don’t know About you guys but i get really weak Need in places like this this is so high Up and it’s pretty much a straight cliff Down there so I really will need to be careful About not letting chop go over the cliff The other benefit to training out here

Is that it’s pretty secluded and there Aren’t very many distractions for some Dogs simply being outside would be a Huge distraction to them for him not so Much he doesn’t find this type of Environment to be overwhelming remember He’s spent his entire life outside so Outside isn’t that distracting to him It’s only reasonable to allow chop and Myself and maybe even you guys a second Here to take in these surroundings Because wow just look at this place oh You want to play with the ball don’t you I suspect he wants the ball But i feel like he’s pretty adjusted Here i mean he’s still a little Distracted let’s see how it goes i’m Going to start with a stand stay right Now because he’s really comfortable in a Stand let’s start off uh with some Warm-up exercises Chop here yes He’ll get better with those catches over Time here right now i’m just simply Making sure that i get his attention on Me And so now i just want to go for a one Second stay here Yes i don’t really mind the backing up So much the fact is he’s focused on me He’s not running off we can fine-tune The stay later let’s teach him what the Word stay means stay Yes

Good boy one of the reasons this is a Great place to train is that it’s pretty Secluded and there actually aren’t many Distractions like cars or pedestrians or Other dogs even the local wildlife Mostly stays down the mountain a bit so Finding low traffic areas like this is Going to be a key part of me training Chop before we test him in more tempting Locations now let’s teach him what the Hand signal means Yes I mean right there i just caught him Staying i don’t know that he was Intentionally doing anything so while I’m training chop to stay really is About catching him succeeding even if he Can only stay for a micro second at First that’s okay with me because that’s A success my attitude is if i have to Work up to four microseconds over the Next four months so be it don’t worry Though it won’t take that long here Stay Yes that was a really long one really Good eye contact there so i’m thrilled With that let’s move on to teaching him How to stay while i walk away this is Going to be harder stay Ah See how he wants to close the distance Between us it’s understandable for dogs To be confused by this concept at first Most dogs really love to follow us

Everywhere so it makes sense Yes He started to walk forward he corrected Himself a bit there so i’ll take that He’s trying look at me Yes That time i wanted to make it easier i Just took a step a foot back let go Here [Music] Yes Good So notice the distance at first it’s Pretty insignificant i’m just moving Inches away from him that’s how we can Focus on setting our dogs up for success And then if we slowly build on that Before you know it you’re at 6 10 20 or More feet here stay Yes Good really good example right there Okay hand signal now Yes Okay Way to not flinch bree thumbs up for Brie that was pretty slick from my Perspective back up good Stay Yes Okay he’s really good on that okay isn’t He He seems to really understand that so We’ve done stay for a period of time We’ve done stay with a little bit of

Distance i feel like he’s understanding The concept of stay somewhat i need to Practice this a lot but if you take Nothing else from this keep it easy for Your dog and they’ll learn fast chop and Inertia are really getting to know each Other very well here and they’re getting Much more confident about playing Together everywhere including my living Room but just because dogs play well a Handful of times doesn’t mean that You’re completely out of the woods and They’re gonna get along forever and Everything is perfect so i’m gonna Continue to supervise them thoroughly And make sure that i step in before play Accelerates to a point where it could Potentially cause a conflict between the Two dogs or at least i’ll do my best And this is a great example of what i’m Talking about here inertia is just a Little startled by falling here and i Think she probably needs a break right Here to recover emotionally from being Frightened so i’m going to step in and Make sure that chop gives inertia the Space she requires this is the kind of Incident that can escalate with some Dogs if you’re not paying attention and You’re not right there to intervene and So by giving these dogs lots of Opportunities to interact with each Other in short periods of time allowing Them to take a break and then resume

Playing i’m hopeful this will be Successful a little while later brie was Out with the dogs and she caught Something on camera That she thought i needed to see it Looked to me like he got protective of a Toy Okay So i showed it to zach what did you Think well uh yeah i agree with you he Was protected but it seems like Playful Selfishness at first i was really Nervous because he’s so big and you know I just don’t want to take any chances But every time he does it he like Pounces on the toy and then inertia goes To another and then he’ll pounce on that One Seems more bratty right yes That scene is more brandy hey brat I’m not too concerned about it because i Mean i’ve seen a lot of this stuff Before it’s really how dogs communicate With each other and if you can get in There and build some communication with Them so you can be like you can do this But you can’t do that then i think we’ll Be okay but you never know i mean Sometimes those are signs that there are Other issues that could escalate and That’s the last thing we want so I’m hoping it’s going to be a textbook Case of resolving resource guarding it’s

Not a funny topic but i was smiling While you were saying that because i was Thinking about how Chop now that i’ve gotten to know him Intimidates me so much less than Pancake whoa dude chill or tiberius you Can’t do that what are you doing and They are two of the cutest dogs on this Earth and yet i was way more scared of Them than i am of this guy but you’re Right i still want to be careful How did you get that our garbage goes Under the counter and i guess it wasn’t Closed all the way he’s a smart guy i Watched him try to open it yesterday and He wasn’t just like randomly digging at The cabinet like he went for the handle Where we grab it and like gently tried To figure out leverage just you stinker I’m gonna have to develop a strategy as To how to handle that my plan for the Immediate future is to just do a good Job of managing resources like toys or Bones things like that when he and Inertia are together i’m going to be Very vigilant in my supervision and Otherwise yes I think it’s time that we go Practice around other dogs to see if we Can make progress on his conduct you Might remember not too long ago when i Took chop out in public we definitely Had some issues he was crazy every time He saw a dog i’m hoping to get some

Energy out of him because i still want To go practice in a more distracting Environment than this but i want to set Them up for success so trying to give Them some good exercise before that just Thinking about how important just having Your dog’s attention is and how that’s Probably 90 plus percent of dog training And when you teach them Obedience or tricks or just how to Generally listen to you it’s kind of a Measure of how well you’re able to hold Their attention chop come on let’s go Come on there we go good Nice and timely there thank you for Almost listening Come on let’s go buddy Something i like to do is get into a big Field like this throw the lead on them Just kind of walk aimlessly Let them smell wander a little bit get That fixation out desensitize them to The world be fair to him let him explore On his terms a little bit You have to meet them halfway and let Them do what they love doing too it’s Such a wet day look at that And when you’re training a dog you have To get out in conditions like this just Because it’s a little wet outside Doesn’t mean you don’t train so having The right gear is important these shoes Have been incredible they’re completely Waterproof which is insane that foot is

Completely dry There you go see that there’s hair on Them and they’re a little dirty But They’re not wet and look at this Slip right back on it’s the best vessies Seem to have invented magic shoes there Are now two mysteries i have on earth Number one how do eels procreate Secondly how do vesis keep your feet dry I’ll have a link and discount code in The description where you can go and get Your pair of bessies We need to talk about Our experience at the dog park today why Do i keep finding myself Saying that line in these series i Really thought i had built enough Communication with him going into that Training lesson i thought i would have Better results than i did the thing is Sometimes my job is just downright hard It really is sometimes it’s hard to get A dog not to bark at lunch at a dog when They’re excited by a dog today we’re Gonna go train around lots of different Dogs the catch is chop won’t be engaging Or playing with any of them we’re going Out to a dog park but we’re gonna stay Outside of the dog park my goal will be To see if i can somehow get his Attention on me when there are dogs Close by I mean when he sees dogs he is like i’ve

Got to get to them geez and right away We have an adorable dog coming up to Check us out here Yeah very distracted as you can see That’s okay i’m just gonna let him Observe these dogs for a little while Before i try to train him and like with Many dogs chop is so stimulated in this New place that he’s not interested in Treats and he’s not interested in toys The plan is for this to change as we Give him more experiences in places like This Over Time so okay he was doing all right at This distance for a little bit but now He’s had enough of just looking at these Dogs and it seems like he really just Wants to play with them so right now He’s just frustrated here and he just Wants to play that’s exactly the issue If he’s out taking a walk with somebody And they encounter a dog we can’t have Him think oh When i see dogs i get to run up to them And play with them i’m going to increase Our distance from these dogs the thing That he’s finding very enticing and Exciting since chop seems to be a little Over threshold here remember that’s Where he’s too excited to pay attention To me because he’s so interested in his Surroundings chop There are so many people watching this

Right now can you just please pay Attention to me there can be a certain Level of anxiety when your dog is Causing a scene in public people that Have reactive dogs i mean i feel like They have to know what you’re talking About yes i have i know what you’re Talking about i have a reactive dog i Mean you know i’ve had to work through That for me when indy was younger she Was very reactive to other dogs out in Public and i always felt so alone But i think it’s just because you spend All your time running away from everyone Else that you see so like even if there Is someone who understands your plight You’re busy trying to get two blocks Away from them because your dog’s gonna Bark at them so it’s a it’s a lonely Endeavor sometimes to train a reactive Dog i feel like especially in the Beginning part of it yeah but not for You because you have a lot of friends Watching you so that’s nice yeah that’s Delightful so now we’re backed up all The way to the woods here we can’t get Much farther away than this and chop is Still reacting in my experience creating Distance from these other dogs plus Giving chop time to observe them should Equal chop being able to summon a little Bit more self-control clearly we have a Little ways to go though this is a Really important point here i don’t need

To scold chalk for this behavior and That’s for a number of different reasons For one thing he’s not open-minded to Learning complex skills like ignoring Other dogs when he’s overwhelmed like This also even though i’m not scolding Him there is still a consequence in his Mind or hopefully for this outburst he Is being taken farther away from the Thing that he’s interested in right now Ideally i’m trying to compensate for the Error that i made here by trying to find The ideal distance where chop is able to Pay attention to me so we’ve moved over Here we’re very far away this has Quickly evolved into a screensaver Training session here My hope was that i i would be able to be You know 10 or 20 yards away from the Dogs and i’d be able to focus on getting His attention on me and doing some leash Training but he was way over threshold Pretty instantaneously when i was giving Him that initial exposure to those dogs Behind the fence but let’s keep things In context this is literally his second Time in a park-like setting where there Are dogs you remember last time we made A lot of progress we sat there for a Good while close to three hours if i’m Not mistaken to let him like take it in And then intermittently he would be Responsive right now i can live with This behavior because you see how he’s

Not just fixating on the dogs he’s Looking at the traffic over here sitting Down Leaning on me more suggesting that he’s Semi-relaxed getting him calmed down Is going to hopefully Set us up here but this is a sign that He’s adapting and he’s not Too over threshold right now but if you Think back to a few minutes ago when he Was inconsolable impossible to Communicate with i can understand why so Many people would be discouraged and say Their dog is stubborn or my dog will not Pay attention to me around other dogs I think what a lot of people don’t Realize is that the cure is a little bit Of patience And being flexible on your game plan now The catch is you have to do this over a Prolonged period of time with most dogs The steps aren’t particularly Complicated it’s just letting your dog Observe things and let those things Become normal to them i mean if you Spend enough time around something it All becomes normal that’s probably the Missing ingredient i think that most People are lacking when it comes to Resolving issues like this i talk about That in both of my books by the way Links below Ah look at this there we go a nice Natural settle do you see that

So he finally you know a sign that he’s Calming down which is Good there we go that’s it first ball Grab of the training session so that’s a Sign that things are getting a little More normalized you might wonder whether Trying to get chopped to play with this Ball is counterproductive since we’re Also trying to get him to stay calm Around exciting things but if he’s Definitely going to be excited i’d much Rather channel that excitement into Something more productive like paying Attention to me and this ball when he Starts to show interest in a toy that i Know he loves at home i think that’s Probably an indicator that he’s starting To adjust to the excitement around him In my mind i was like man what are we Gonna do i don’t think he’s going to pay Attention at all because i couldn’t get His attention on me i couldn’t get him Interested in his favorite toy he wasn’t Taking treats all he wanted to do is Focus on those dogs we come over here we Chill out for a little bit i don’t know 15 minutes or so and he’s kind of Relaxed a little enough to get back into Kind of our normal way of training now The chop is doing a little bit better i Want to test again and see if we can get A little bit closer to those dogs chop Over here Let’s go back see that little

Vocalization tells me all right i need To get back here because That’s likely to just continue to get Worse and worse and then i’ve taken a Step back so maybe i’ll hang out right Here we’re still quite far away from the Other dogs and i think that we’re right On the cusp right on that borderline so I’m hopeful that he’ll calm down and Observe them Leash not lunging towards them that’s What i’m choosing Was choosing to call a success but i Guess you could make a case that i Probably need to go farther back but my Gut’s telling me will probably be okay Here if we just give it a few things Like that automatic sit lying down Patiently and politely observing It’s exactly the kind of body language That i’m looking for out of it this is The formula no shortcuts folks i’m going To walk around a little bit just in this Area seeing how compliant he is now my Hypothesis is supported here that we’re Right at the line because when we walk Towards the dogs look how uninterested He is Come here yeah good man That’s it so i’m loving that i can get Him to go away from the direction of the Other dogs Good man do you want this yes Ah

How about that May not look like much but we were Walking towards the dogs and he was Receptive to taking the reward if he’s Receptive to taking the reward then the Idea is that i can motivate him to Behave a certain way if he’s willing to Find enjoyment in that reward alright Chop is now starting to like the ball Again it’s normal for dogs moods and Desires to shift throughout a training Session so really aiming to be in sync With them is a goal of hours when we’re Training a dog and look how much closer To the other dogs we are now i’m telling You time a little bit of patience can be A dog trainer’s best friend sit Yes I’m trying to heavily reinforce that sit Because he’s really struggled with it Today we’re getting good sits getting Chopped to pay attention to me and look Up to me for direction is something that I want him doing regularly and often in All environments so this might be a good Opportunity to practice around these Guys this is a major level up in Difficulty for chop see if we can get Back to normal training where he’s Focused on my eyes instead of the ball Remember at home Yes He does that really well and right now He’s doing it really well

So we’re seeing quite a turnaround at The moment Here Good yes Rewarding intermittently trying to get Several steps in And then seal in that good behavior by Giving him a reward Something he values Yes Choosing to reward that sit 95 plus Percent of the time right now Yeah buddy good job Good job and so really the reward here Is continued access to observing the Dogs here he’s behaving politely He can look at the dogs when he when He’s not we’re going to continue to get Him farther away good man here Good recovery chop sit Good man As a reminder you’ll notice i’m saying Good to let him know he’s on the right Track and i’m saying yes to let him know When he’s earned a reward i would love To be able to get his eyes on me and Walk away come on Doesn’t take much to make me happy That’s what i’ve been working for this Entire afternoon look at me with dogs Nearby and let’s walk away without me Having to escort him away you know Sometimes you have days where your dog Just is learning so fast and making so

Much progress and you have other days That don’t go so well you have days like This where you get some success but you Really have to earn it but he’s still Pulling on the leash i’m not gonna hold Him to the bar of perfection right now There’s so much give and take choose to Be happy with small bits of success Especially in the beginning you guys Know that saying it gets worse before it Gets better well i’m not saying that That’s accurate to this series but i’m Not saying it’s not accurate either This is reality dog training subscribe And click the bell so you never miss an Episode get fifty percent off a two week Trial of nom nom the hoover high Performance swivel xl pet can be yours For 20 off and get 25 bucks off a pair Of amazing vessies what more could you Need in life i’ll have my special links And discount codes in the description of This video follow us on tik tok and Instagram and get both of my books too I’ll have the links below see you in the Next episode