Hey guys! Thanks for the feedback on everything and I really appreciate your support! And regarding the paintings in the background, they are straight! Haha! It’s just the slightly distorted camera angle!😜🤔

Keep showing us “mistakes”. Real life isn’t perfect and especially not when working with animals. I am new to training and seeing how you react in certain situations is extremely helpful when I am trying to figure out what to do with my dog. For what its worth, I didnt see anything that bothered me. I found the video extremely helpful especially for me as I am trying to figure out how to deal with an anxious dog in public. Some of the best content I’ve seen on KZfaq. Keep it up.

He presents training in 7 days. Each of 7 items are commands that he believes a dog should know. They are presented in part ii of the book kzfaq.infoUgkxK8-VQWpYThx4IC6MiIvb6VS1ebTzzdxq . The parts of the guideare divided: part i know your dog part ii the seven commands part iii cures for 7 behavior problems. Each chapter presents a topic, a dog's story, and a "what to do". It was written simply and you can jump from chapter to chapter to review anything as needed.

I thought she had actually bitten another dog. She didn't. She warned another dog off. Big difference. You and Inertia did fine. The owner of the other dog did the right thing, too.

Honestly it's more frustrating training a dog when you see someone else do it "perfectly"

The mistakes are one of the main reasons I value this series so much.

“You can’t reinforce fear by comforting your dog.” I used to believe that myth when I had my first dog and that is definitely one of the training mistakes that I regret. My current dog has only been scared once, during a thunderstorm. I spent some time hugging and comforting him (he likes to be held) and then he was suddenly brave enough to go look out the window at the weather.

No, don’t omit the mistakes. I rather see the reality and ups and downs of training and life. I actually respect you a lot more for this. Thank you

I hope you leave ‘controversial’ stuff or ‘mistakes’ in. Showing the reality of dog training is a part of your goal for the series, and importantly, it’s a picture of what happens in the real world. You’re awesome, Zak!

I find your honesty refreshing, dogs and dog training is not a perfect science. You dont hide the absolute truth, its unfortunate that not everyone can handle seeing it, most don't get to.

I love seeing the mistakes. It drives me bonkers when I see trainers do one move and all of the sudden the dog is “fixed.” It sets an unrealistic expectation when working with animals and causes a lot more frustration between owners and dogs when they portray training as one and done. Keep up the great work, I know I sincerely appreciate the honesty!

Everyone has already said it thousands of times (literally) but your training videos are incredibly helpful, you're obviously a lovely guy and you actively empower dog owners. No mistakes seen.

Good lord! Just goes to show you, it doesn’t matter how good you are if you make the smallest mistake the internet will tear you apart. You have helped me so much with my dog. I appreciate you.

I love the rawness of this series. Raising a puppy isn't always easy and I appreciate seeing a trainer experience and deal with everyday situations like this. When I brought my pup to a local trainer everything was just "too perfect" like her dogs never made any scary mistakes. Thank you Zach and don't change a thing. You and Inertia are in a exciting journey and you totally rock!!

Videos where things go “wrong” are 100x more valuable to me then watching editing that makes everything “right”. I am training my 16 month Aussie with a similar personality. Just walking him can be a challenge as it’s winter & people let their dogs out their front doors unleashed to do their business. A couple times a week random dogs will run out at my dog - the owner being at their door with a pile of snow between us. I’ve never seen any dog trainer show how to handle these situations. Real life isn’t a perfectly edited video. I appreciate what you’re doing & find it very helpful

We ordered thissince we are planning to get a dog and we've watched dog lover on tv many times. The book kzfaq.infoUgkxGQVgV21bQ7B9b9duQ1ByImyT9xHbjOKq is a simple read and easy to understand. I like that it gives examples. We haven't put it into practice yet, so that will be the true test.

I found nothing wrong with the interaction. The other dog literally ran straight into her. She “told” the dog not to do it again. She didn’t attack him. I feel that would translate into a human interaction like someone runs at you on purpose and you say “wtf? Knock it off!” We, and dogs, are allowed to have boundaries and to defend them without being accused of “attacking”.

Okay, look, I’ve watched the “controversial” video, read some comments, and listened to you try to defend yourself, your thought processes, and your operating style when it comes to KZfaq, and I know I am VERY late to all of this, but I wanted to drop my 2 cents in. I don’t think you did anything wrong, and nor do I think Inertia did. With Inertia’s history of being cautious and then warming up, I can understand how you would think she’d eventually be okay. If that bigger dog had run over my pit mix like they had with Inertia, she wouldn’t have been as nice as Inertia was. Inertia was basically saying, “WtF, man?! Back off,”and there is nothing wrong with that in the least. I first discovered your Inertia series when my pit mix (Amy Pond) was, I think, 12wks old. She was continuously play biting with us, and I hadn’t realized at the time that’s what she was doing, and I was frustrated and angry about it. It wasn’t until I discovered your channel and started watching your series, that I understood what was going on and I adapted and became more patient with her. You and Inertia helped me so much in training Amy, and I appreciated seeing all the things that went “wrong” or the instances in training where Inertia didn’t do it right the first time because it showed me how things were likely to go and you showed the best way to react to it. I’m now rewatching the series because we got another puppy (Luka, 10wks old), and I need refreshers. I, honestly, couldn’t be more grateful for you and your channel. Don’t ever change, and don’t apologize for how you do things. ❤️🤗

If someone ran me over like that I’d be throwing down too!

it is so refreshing to see even a professional dog trainer have the same struggles everyone has, it makes me feel less like a failure as a dog owner with a nervous dog

I don’t know you but I can tell you have a great heart dude. You love all animals and have shown several times you know what you are doing. You literally gave people a real scenario that people need to be aware of. Ignore what the haters say. Keep making great content .

There is an old martial arts quote that works here. "The master has failed more than the student have tried". Please show us more mistakes.

I love his show and thisjust summarizes and lays out all of the basic methods he uses on the show. What i love about this guide kzfaq.infoUgkxKkYeOoCV_w2vPX0CSyVWkhew2c4FYk0d is that you don' need to read the whole book cover to cover ... You can skip to the chapter (lesson) you want to read about. The book is arranged almost as a problem-solving guide ... Here is the problem and here is what you need to know/do to correct it. This man knows his stuff ... But more importantly knows how to teach people how they can work with their pups themselves!

Respect! You’re the only trainer I’ve seen so far with the balls to show what it’s really like to train a puppy. Kudos and please carry on doing what you’re doing!

So 1 dog corrected another dog, the problem here is what exactly?? It’s normal dog behaviour

We're raising a pup who is around 2 months younger then Inertia and I can't stress how helpful and important your series has been for us. Especially as first-time puppy parents it's really easy to worry that you're doing something wrong if things don't go perfectly when training as most online guides paint a picture of what success looks like - but don't always show what the road to success is like. Being able to see a puppy having 'real' training experiences has provided so much reassurance and helped us through some of those tougher milestones. Our puppy is 6 months old now and he's an absolute dream - and i'd definitely credit a ton of his success to your series. Please do keep mistakes in your videos - and also please do more of these 1:1 style videos - really nice to hear from you in this format. All the best.

Zak...I’m super bummed that you felt you even had to make this reaction video. You are an incredibly talented and patient dog trainer, and it is so refreshing to see the bumps along the way. We just adopted a rescue border collie mix to keep our very active 2 year old Goldendoodle company, and I am always referring back to your videos when we encounter a training challenge (some of which are with the OLDER dog!). I am so grateful for your skillful advice, and I love that you keep it real by leaving in the times when something doesn’t quite go as planned. You are a gift to new and o,d dog owners!

By all means, leave the mistakes in. We need to see these, if only to prove we’re not the only ones making them. As for the opinions of others, well... we all have them.

I keep being impressed by how level-headed you are and by how professional you are handling this. No need to apologize for anything. It's really too bad that people are harsh on the internet sometimes, however you seem to be approaching it with such great spirit. Please know that I think of your work as important. There is a massive amount of people gaining a lot of knowledge from it.

The main reason I'm watching these series is because of the honesty and kind of unfiltered nature, really. You show and voice your deliberations which is much more helpful than pretending you're in a perfect world. We're currently raising a 14mo old German shepherd and make mistakes on a daily basis (we're getting better). It really helps to talk to people about these mistakes instead of the successes because others' points of view help us make better decisions in the future. Our dog, for instance, will approach other dogs quite similarly to the dog in the video (walking straight up instead of approaching carefully) which can make other dog owners nervous about him playing with their dogs. Seeing this from the other side makes us very aware of the effect his behaviour can have on other dogs. This is incredibly helpful.

I’ve gained SOOOOOO much from this series. Thanks a million times.

The internet doesn’t love to tell you how to train your dog, they love to tell you how to do anything and everything. Your videos have helped me so much, thank you. I’m sorry people are unforgiving.

Even the best of us make mistakes. Dogs can be unpredictable sometimes and break their own patterns. And you are awesome for owning up to your mistakes. Don’t feel bad, you’re a great dog owner!

You’re a real class-act. A true honest gentleman. An every-persons dog trainer. I’m a fan 4 life. Well done.

It’s like with children. You don’t always wanna always automatically interject

We got a new puppy in July and we reference Zak George all the time in my house. "Zak said this.." and "Zak said that.." You are the best! Everything has worked thus far. Thank you so much for your guidance!

I own a very anxious dog and when she's pushed, she can appear 'aggressive' to uneducated dog owners. I completely empathise with your situation with Inertia as I've had many situations similar myself! Please keep showing your mistakes, they're really encouraging for all of us who don't own perfect dogs (so literally everyone lol)

She gave a social cue. She wasnt being mean, she was startled. You can see that the big dog started backing up and Inertia got removed from the scary situation. They were not fighting and if they were, she again would have been removed from the situation

Good grief, who doesn't make a mistake. I want to see everything.

Wow! I can't believe anything in this video would be called a mistake!! Zak,, you are so dang thoughtful and this is what makes your approach to dogs revolutionary. Your thoughtful review of your dog park visit, and the empathic consideration of Inertia's inclinations, feelings, and developmental history, made me think about how-- if we're willing to pay close attention to the impact of our own behavior--- we can become better humans through our relationships to our dogs. Your honesty and joyful attitude are a gift. THANK YOU!!

No mistakes. We don’t like everyone we meet and I believe dogs are the same. She simply told the large dog to give her space. You are one of the best trainers on the internet and I have enjoyed your series.

Honestly when I first got my dog I was sick of every video being a clearly already well trained dog, so this series is great

I don't see anything you need to apologize for! It's real life. Don't edit anything out. It helps people learn and shows how genuine you are. Your love for dogs and passion to share your knowledge with others is very evident. I've just recently started watching your videos and they are very informative! I even have a notebook I'm taking notes in as I won't be getting my puppy for a few more months- and I don't want to forget anything:) Your videos are invaluable and are helping me prepare for when I finally get my puppy. A million thank-yous! Keep up the good work and don't let others bring you down.

I have watched all your videos up to this point and it’s so refreshing to see your reality of having a dog/puppy in every situation. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t had an “interesting” experience at a dog park. I appreciate all this information in as real time as possible. We are getting a puppy at the end of July and I’m so excited to use your books and these videos.

Zak- It never even crossed my mind that you were being negligent with Inertia at the dog park. It makes me feel like I'm not alone that my dog's experiences don't always go as smoothly as I'd like since I'm still training her. Please continue to include stuff like this. It makes me feel like my mistakes are ok with my pup. Everyone makes them!!

Zac I recommend you to literally everyone I meet with a puppy. Your positive reinforcement training with dogs and your positivity towards humans is inspiring. Keep on being you! We love you for real bro.

Absolutely keep sharing your full experience. That’s what makes your videos so important. You give context to dog training and the work involved and you show us what to do when things don’t work. That’s more valuable than showing when things work often.

people were concerned with the "air snaps?" Typical dog behavior to demonstrate their displeasure with how the other dog is treating them. Happens all the time in wolf packs and dog packs. 100% that no correction should have been given. I think adding correction there would only result in the dog become less confident in itself if it cant feel like it can defend itself. Dog parks are tricky because you dont want them on a leash because it can cause tension for the dog and make them feel restricted so they get extra defensive but at the same time having them off leash and a hundred meters from you could also be trouble if a poorly behaved dog decides to start a fight with them.

This "mistakes" is what makes me confident about training my dog. I never saw the "not working" moments of training a dog, so now I know that my dog is not a "bad dog". This helps me to have way more patience with him because I espect from him what he can offer with his age.

Honestly, as a dog trainer to dog trainer, I don’t think this was a huge “mistake”. You had so many variables and a history of her loosening up. How were you to know that she would be more stressed there than other places? Sure, in hindsight, maybe she was pushed to quickly on that very day, but who’s to say that on another day she wouldn’t have been fine. Also, the other dog there - the lab - had absolutely no manners or boundaries, and for a teenage dog who’s developing mentally and physically, it was a lot. It wasn’t your fault that the other dog was a bit over the top (which is why I don’t like dog parks to begin with... the other dogs). You handled the situation extremely well. Every experience trainer - and I mean EVERY trainer no matter what methods they use to train - will at some point experience a situation like this. We all have so much information and variables to calculate during a session in addition to the fact that dogs can be like people - some days are just too much, and it’s hard to always tell when and we’re that will be 100% of the time. The best you can do is read their body language, know their personalities, know their limits to the best of your ability, and assess the environment. You did all of these things. You also handled the situation calmly and allowed Inertia a bit of a cool down before leaving the park. That allowed her to process what happened after the fact rather than just pull her out without actually leaving on a relatively good note. Now, had this been an actual dog aggressive dog with a bite history, no way would you or I have put a dog in the middle of a crazy dog park like this. But Inertia isn’t aggressive, just nervous and learning how to mentally absorb everything around her (she’s also a border collie I might add 🤣). Anyways, I really appreciate the fact that you took the time to share your thoughts about Inertia’s reaction, so that people who don’t understand dog behavior or training at the level you do will get why you made the decisions you made. Also, I really appreciate the fact that you chose to post the dog park video when you could’ve left it out altogether. That’s a bold move, considering how crazy people can get when it comes to raising and training dogs - on social media, too 😬 Thanks again for sharing. People need to see real world scenarios. It allows people to understand that you can’t plan everything perfectly when training an animal, and you have to adjust to the situation ON YOUR TOES to the best of your ability. You’re videos are great, and I see no reason for anyone to complain about what you just shared ❤️

I m a trainer and everything you did was spot on! People love to criticize for anything even though they don’t have the knowledge or the whole story. You are the expert here and the fact you were mindful to end the experience on a positive note talks a lot about your training methods. Also, not yelling or correcting a dog in a fearful state was also a great call. Inercia corrected a dog for invading her space, nothing wrong with that and you stopped it at the perfect time before it scaled to a bad situation. As trainers we don’t have the possibility of asking our dogs if it s a good day to socialize or not. The only thing we can do it s to follow pattern, check body language and step in when it s right. You are a great trainer, forget about the haters!

Thank you for being transparent! It’s actually very encouraging to see that it doesn’t always go perfect because it rarely goes perfect for me. Thank your for sharing your training with us! It has been so valuable to me and my fur babies!

Although I don't think you need to apologize for anything, this is a really great video. And yes, keep the mistakes in. It's truly what sets you apart from other celebrity dog trainers. You are much more realistic, down-to-earth, and genuine! Thanks for the great content, Zak!!

I’m sad to know you received controversy over this. The experience is what this series is about and real raw details should be a part of that. Thank you for all you do!

I think the mistakes are valuable, and that you are honest and brave in showing them - two rare traits. Providing context by explaining what was in your head is helpful. As you said, there are many posts of a younger Inertia cruising under and around furniture to regroup when playing w/other dogs stressed her. Then she rejoins the play. I liked your explanation for picking her up, that it's not a reward, it's showing compassion to a frightened dog. Perfection isn't reality. You turned this into a teachable moment. Respect!

I appreciate hearing your thought process as you walk through this situation. It's helpful to see/hear how you approached the situation, and in hindsight what you might have done differently. It helps us consider how we can work with our pups in similar situations. These types of situations happen every day!

Hi, Zak. As a fellow dog trainer, I've been following this series. While I do some puppy training, it's not my focus (I do more behavior modification work mostly with adult dogs). That said, I wanted to weigh in. I think your series is wonderful and a real benefit to anyone who is getting a young puppy and raising the puppy from almost the beginning of the pup's life. Now to the specific episode you are referring to. While I don't like dog parks for health reasons as well as I've seen far too many owners who were not paying attention to their dogs, I think your initial approach in bringing her in was fine. As you know, one challenge we face in bringing a dog into a dog park is different dogs have different play styles. That's why owners need to be attentive to the dogs to monitor this. Inertia did well until the larger dog ran over/into her. At that point, the dog didn't move off and clearly Inertia was upset. I don't know why the other dog's owner didn't immediately get his dog away from Inertia, but I'm sure this all happened rather quickly. You came in to remove Inertia as she air snapped at the larger dog who was not backing off. That was the right thing to do. If Inertia were a larger dog, you might not have been able to pick her up, but I'm sure you would have removed her from the situation regardless. Would I have picked her up? Probably not, but that's because I don't know her and if I could have moved her without picking her up, that would reduce the potential for her to bite me. This being your personal dog, you know best if picking her up during that kind of moment would be ok or not. And picking her up also got her out of the way in case the other dog decided to try to bite her. You just don't know and I wasn't there to evaluate at the moment it was happening. I also would not have given her a hard correction (and I'm a balanced trainer so I'm very well familiar with corrections). It's a judgment call and from what I saw, by the time you ran over, it was too late to correct...you need to stop the situation. In an ideal world, it would be great for Inertia to have been given time to calm down and regain her composure then be re-introduced to the other dog in a more controlled environment to prevent her from having issues with similar dogs. I wouldn't be surprised if you have a video coming up soon about just that... making sure Inertia learns how to behave with larger dogs who are also more pushy/meet and play differently from her. I don't know what the fuss was. You did just fine under the circumstances. And in reality, things happen...things we can't always predict. Leave the parts in your video where things don't go perfectly. When people only show perfection, they give the impression that imperfection never happens and that's simply a lie. Keep going....you're doing a great job!

I really dont see this as a mistake honestly. You know how Inertia reacts and interacts with new dogs, you watched her body language and responses and made judgements from there that I felt were very valid, and you intercepted when things showed signs of not going so well. Like how people have to learn language, "dog language" and boundaries are learned through interactions like this. Dogs arent born knowing how to behave with other dogs, its learned through play and interaction. And to the people claiming you needed to punish her for setting boundaries to the dog who barreled into her, I sure hope if yall have dogs you treat them kindly. Zaks entire channel is based around a positive reinforcement based training, not fear inducing punishments

I so appreciate seeing that the dogs that are not perfect and the owner response!!! I often feel like I am not getting something right because my dog isn't getting it in the first two or three tries. Or, we are doing fine, then suddenly it seems like all lessons forgotten. Its great to know not everything goes perfect!! Thank you for transparency. .

The learning of dogs , training and their behavior is unending. As a dog trainer myself , with only 2 years of experience, I really admire the sheer unedited honesty that you’ve given me. Add in the mistakes, add in what you learned , add in “in hindsight I shouldOf done this” at the end of the videos so we all can learn that 1-this is what happened 2-this is what I did 3-if it didn’t go well what you should do. Not only do we see you grow as a person along with Inertia , we too can learn your thoughts on this. I stand by your choices to include all of it. At the end of the day most aren’t mistakes , they are lessons learned & this is how we grow as a community. Thank you Zac ! You got this bro ! 💪 Anyone who hasn’t made a mistake raising a dog or a child please go ahead and take a seat! 🤥 We’re all human , and no one is perfect.

Hardly a mistake, an unexpected reaction from Inertia, and you dealt with it quickly and kindly. You are a great dog trainer.

I love the way you train and I'm learning a lot from you through this huge experience of puppy training. Please do NOT omit the mistakes! They really help keep the whole process in perspective. Thankyou!

Totally true, whoever has or had a fearful or just worried dog know that the dog reacts this way, my dog was unfortunately bitten by a big dog, and from that moment, whenever a dog run on her, she instantly shows the teeth. We need to understand our dogs not just yell at them...

I rarely comment on KZfaq videos but I think your series is great! It's so real and it shows problems you run into with training a puppy... It's not always perfect, but I really appreciate that you're never agressive towards inertia. You always try to make training fun and I think that's important and very different from a lot of dog trainers. Thank you for your work!

I really don’t see how people found this a problem

I didn't see anything that bothered me, and it keeps you honest when you show your mistakes. You are a great dog trainer, and I really like your methods. Thanks for everything you do!

Well said Zak. Appriciate your content and for being so real which is the main reason I watch your videos, and only yours. I am also a new dog owner to a border collie which we have had for a month now from the age of 11months and your videos has helped me tremendously... Thank you!

As someone who has worked with dogs at a shelter for a few years, my heart jumped when you picked her up. Seeing her body language when you picked her up clearly showed that she was comfortable, but I was so worried she was going to redirect her fear and snapping towards you. Even the best dogs can redirect if they're freaked out enough. (Also dogs correcting other dogs is completely fine and people really need to not freak out about it because if they are punished for correcting they may start to jump straight to biting which is no bueno) Never hide your mistakes. Nobody is perfect, though our hindsight is always 20/20. Making mistakes is how people learn and grow.

I think yous should include the mistakes. I adopted my rescue puppy around the same time you got inertia. Your videos have been a big help, and I think it helps to see your real experiences.

I love when you said “we don’t live in a sterile world”. This is so true to remember! Sometimes I get embarrassed when my dog does air snaps to show her displeasure to another dog that intimidates her. I distract mine and get her away from the situation because my dog is always at my hip. She rarely gets that invested and needs to know where I am. But my dog has gotten so much better with the big sounds but she still hates anything that sounds like a firework. I think your transparency in dog training is a great thing! It isn’t always easy to get the command 100% of the time and you remind people that dog obedience isn’t perfect and is not about full on control. It’s about reliability in ones dog and keeping them safe and those around them safe.

Do not stop doing what you're doing!!!!! I'm soon to be a proud new owner of a border collie puppy. I've never had a puppy and without your videos, I would never have been prepared to be a good puppy parent! I need to see it all, the good, the bad, and the unexpected! You and your work, love, and care are very appreciated.

I really appreciated being able to see a video that was realistic. I absolutely LOVE your current series because it shows what puppy training REALLY looks like, not just the ups but also the downs, and how one should handle those situations in the moment. Often puppy training videos show what training should look like, but only in an ideal situation. The real world is not like that! Please do not feel discouraged from posting these kinds of videos, even if they are setbacks, because I find them so helpful in knowing what to do during those imperfect moments. A personal example, my dog recently started snapping other dogs too. Videos say to redirect, use positive reinforcement, etc, but often those videos never show the dog snapping in the moment. A lot of the strategies are proactive but you don't really learn the strategies to use when setbacks occur. Being able to see in your video what you did in the moment was helpful so that I know what I can do the next time my dog does have a setback as well.

Honestly as a dog owner myself, I sometimes just feel like “Everyone gets it, why can’t I get it right?” and through seeing your videos I’ve realized that it’s okay if your dog isn’t perfect or like at leaat everyone goes through difficult phases and it’s not just me being a total loser when it comes to dog training😂 so thank you for the realistic view you give in these videos!

Thank you!! It’s so great to see, that it ain’t always so great and easy. I have been looking for someone to show me how to act in these stressful situations. I think these situations decide a lot and you are the first trainer that I found, that’s shows real life training!!! If you show mistakes and explain why you acted a certain way, than there is a chance of people learning how to be better partners for their dogs. My dog is also scared at first, but after a while she gets playful, but when a lot of dogs show up, she gets stressed and defensive. If you’d show the process how you help your dog in these situations and teach him/her proper manners. Thank you 🙏

Watching training videos with no mistakes with a dog that’s already fluent in the behavior does nothing but frustrate me when I try it and it doesn’t work out like it does in the video. Your videos are great at showing real world applications and what you might actually expect to happen. The air snap that she does is “ back up” dog 101. I appreciate your candor and transparency!!!

We’re human. We make mistakes. Don’t apologize for being human. (I didn’t see any mistakes btw. I thought you was patience and calm with inertia).

Zak: saying something really important Me: omg he has a painting of Inertia?

We absolutely love your style of training videos! And including the mistakes and trial and errors really help us regular people realize dog training is a process and what to expect in reality, really is a HUGE help!! Please keep on doing what you are doing, we are also training our 6 month old border collies and can use all your help! (btw--we don't think there were any mistakes made by you or Inertia, everyone needs to be able to communicate including dogs in their own way)

I really really appreciate your videos. They show what it’s like to work with and train our dogs in the real world. You can only learn so much watching people demonstrate with their dogs that are already experienced. Like you said, people with kids are quick to say “if that was my kid I would have...fill in the blank.” Thank you for sharing. We’ve all done things with our kids, our pets, etc. where we’ve looked at a situation and said to ourselves, “oops. I guess that wasn’t such a hot idea”. Keep on doing what you’re doing and never apologize. Oh, and THANK YOU for posting these videos! Such hard work putting these out there, and we get these lessons for free. Can’t beat that.

Hi. It is obvious that the comments of the "controversial" video were a bigger impact on you than the fact that you did good by providing a different reaction to your pup than other instructional youtubers. Please always offer your mistakes on a plate and if people like the dish, they'll eat it up. If they don't, then they can get a different dish--you have plenty of dishes! Don't be apprehensive in providing entire training sessions because then the possibility of something getting edited out might be what someone in your audience really needed to see. I applaud you for offering up your knowledge. You are appreciated. To the negative feedback, you can't please everyone. Keep up the great videos, they've helped me out a lot!

I love that you made this follow up - so important to clarify that you're including mistakes as you go (I know this has always been your intent!). The internet is very unforgiving. There were definitely questions I had about how you reacted in this video and hearing the full thought process is useful but I figured I'd give you the benefit of the doubt and see what's up for the next video! The thing you do next is what matters way more! Something that is all too easily forgotten. Keep including those mistakes and imperfect moments and try not to take the internet too personally ;) It's definitely a needed gap - especially with a dog that is not inherently confident in all situations at the first outtake.

Thanks Zak. When I have watched training videos and seen how easy it seems for you and then compare to our new pup and my many many failures it can be demoralizing. I am grateful for the honesty and even more thankful for the wonderful video training catalog you have created. We have started to make some real progress because of your channel and a brand new way of thinking about how to teach positively.

Don’t ever change how you present your videos! Love your honesty and authenticity...there’s a reason why you have over 3M subscribers! Love all your videos, learning so much from them.

I'm still searching for a mistake. The dog reacted; you handled it. You showed your viewers--no mistake. Great work, great series, great training. I appreciate it!

I was so worried when I saw the word “controversial” but honestly this seems like no big deal & I appreciate Zak leaving those “mistakes” in. Nobody’s perfect & neither are our pups.

You know honesty during this day in age is so hard to come by and taking accountability is really refreshing. How can anyone learn without it.

Hey, Please do keep doing what your doing. I feel and I’m sure a lot of people can agree that watching a trainer make mistakes help tremendously. It’s very frustrating when we watch these videos and wonder “why is it easy for them and not us ? What am I doing wrong ?” Thank you for your honesty and real life lessons .

"You can't reinforce fear by providing comfort to your dog." THANK YOU!!!!

This video series is my favorite dog training videos I’ve ever seen. They’re real. The video you posted about Inertia’s first time in a dog park really touched me. A day before I watched your video I took my pup to a dog park at a peek time. She freaked out and she air snapped at a dog, so I had to remove her from that situation. I was so embarrassed! She’s never reacted like that. I have been making a good effort in her socialization. So I didn’t know where I went wrong. Then I found your video and it’s reassuring to know even a dog trainer experiences this & doesn’t mask the truth of what happens! I learned a lot from the video too, such as, I will no longer bring her at peak hours at a dog park. Overall, Zac, you have taught me a lot and that video was especially what I needed at that point and time. Thank you for your transparency in your dog training!

My heart leapt when I heard you say, "should I omit the mistakes?" I wanted to shout, "NOOOO, keep the mistakes". The mistakes and the overall real-ness to your video's is what makes me enjoy so much watching this series. I've seen to many dog training video's that show the end result of what they wanted to get to and they explain how they did it but they don't show or even explain the troubleshooting parts and it is very discouraging. Not knowing how to get past your mistakes to get to where "that" dog trainer got makes you feel like you are doing something "wrong", "he got there so why can't I?". Seeing the real-ness of your mistakes and hardships makes us go, "uh huh! I am dealing with that too, so it is OK. So I am doing something "right", now I feel better". Long story short, without the real-ness of your video's it's harder to understand the "how" and feel good about how we are training our own dogs. ~ Love from Canada and a soon to be Rottie mum

Thank you so much for showing all the good and not so good moments of dog training! I really appreciate you showing your trying times as we all have them! Please don’t omit them as we all learn from our mistakes 💕🤗🇨🇦

I have an anxious dog (2 years old) & I have given in to the fear. I have a really hard time socializing him because I’m not always sure how to help him & how to respond. I found this video super helpful. It helped me see that it isn’t always easy & that’s ok! You stayed calm & focused throughout & you didn’t over react to her reactions. I appreciate you showing real life. Keep it up. Thank you!

I love the series! I'm a teen and all I've ever known is positive reinforcement and I love it! I really appreciate how real and honest you are in your videos. Keep doing what your doing!

I know this is an older video but never be afraid to show everything. It’s a learning experience for everyone

Dude... I didn't hear or read any of the comments, didn't see the original video... but F those people. They don't understand dogs half as well as you do. You've been a great help in my training of my dog, and everything you do is appreciated. Just realize that there are TONS of trolls on KZfaq... they delight in other people's misery. You did nothing wrong. Godspeed!

I wasn’t up to speed on the “controversy”. But 100% respect your frustration. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watch training videos where the command is given and the dog just does it. Very rarely do training videos show you from the very beginning what a first dog park experience is. Inertia is in great hands and I’m excited to have found your chanel to watch her story. It’s respectable that you even took the time to even acknowledge the trolls. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and your discoveries! 🐶

"You can't reinforce fear by providing comfort." Well said! This is why Zak George's training methods really are revolutionary. I wish more trainers and pet parents understood this. It's so frustrating to see a dog being scolded for attempting to communicate their discomfort in a stressful situation. I mean if a stranger suddenly got in my face, I would probably freak out too.

Thank you so much for showing real life situations! It’s so helpful to see how training a dog truly looks like without editing out moments where you are dealing with unexpected moments. My greatest challenges with my dog involve meeting new people and dogs. We named her Marley but it’s become a joke that we should have named her nervous Nelly. Marley is 3/4 mini Aussie and 1/4 border collie. Are there breed specific pointers that could help me? I’ve started bringing Marley to the dog park this past week. She gets very overwhelmed when other dogs overwhelm her. Bigger dogs do intimidate her more. Please continue showing your experiences. It truly helps me. Thank you for the real story!

You are so admirable for posting this! sooo many other trainers and people in generally would have thought, “that did not go accordingly at all. It is not a good representation of how my dog acts generally and my training and might draw criticism, so I’m not going to post it”. And sooo many trainers do just that! But we are able to learn from your mistakes and God knows are able to relate to them! That’s my favorite part about this series - you are honest and real and show how long it can take for a dog to learn regardless of how good you are at training, and it humbles me and let’s me not feel mom guilt whenever my dog “acts” up lol. You’re the best!

Zak, I just watched this video and appreciated your candor. When you are in the public eye you subject yourself to criticism. I love, love, love your videos and really hope you don’t let people’s negative opinions deter you from producing these videos. You are amazing and help a lot of people. Thank you for all you do.