ABOUT US
We help people understand dogs, and the systems that shape their lives.
I’m Zak George, a Lebanese-American dog trainer and educator. I’ve spent more than two decades helping people understand and teach their dogs. My partner Bree and I have worked together since 2011, bringing research, writing, and video production together through Dog Training Revolution.
Zak George (he/him)
I teach people how to help their dogs learn, with attention to both practical skills and the dog’s experience. My work includes training videos, books, television, and investigations into how dogs are treated.
Education
University of Washington
Certificate in Applied Animal Behavior
Background
- Host of Dog Training Revolution on YouTube, 2006–present
- Author of Zak George’s Dog Training Revolution and Zak George’s Guide to a Well-Behaved Dog
Bree George (she/her)
Bree is an animal behavior specialist, producer, and writer with a background in biology. She works across research, scripts, production, and editorial direction, helping shape both our training content and our investigations. Her work connects the evidence behind a story with how we explain it to the people watching.
Education
University of Washington
Certificate in Applied Animal Behavior
University of New Orleans
Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences
Venus and the early years
In the early 2000s, I was working in real estate when I brought home Venus, the Border Collie who would change my life. Watching Frisbee competitions had made me want to experience that kind of communication with a dog. With Venus, I found it. As I wrote in Dog Training Revolution, “she seemed as obsessed with learning as I was with teaching.”
By the time Venus was about ten months old, she had won her first three Frisbee competitions. I wanted to make teaching dogs my career. For my PetSmart interview, I brought along Venus and all three trophies. We demonstrated what we could do together, and I got the job immediately. By the end of our first year competing, Venus and I had won five extreme dog-trick competitions. I went on to become PetSmart’s top trainer worldwide, building experience helping dogs and their families with the everyday challenges of living together.
I also welcomed two more Border Collies, Alpha Centauri and Supernova. From 2006 through 2008, I toured with Chris Perondi’s Stunt Dog Productions, performing with all three dogs at theme parks and fairs around the country.
I started sharing training videos on YouTube in 2006, bringing those lessons to people who wanted help teaching their own dogs. Venus helped set all of that in motion. The relationship we built through play became the foundation of how I teach.
Television
SuperFetch premiered on Animal Planet in 2009. I created and hosted the series, then went on to create and host Who Let the Dogs Out? for BBC and CBBC, where I also served as an executive producer. I appeared as a guest expert on several episodes of Animal Planet’s Dogs 101.
How we approach the work
Training should help dogs understand what to do and make daily life easier for their guardians. When a dog struggles, we consider the situation, their learning history, and what might be making the task difficult. We adjust the environment, break skills into manageable steps, and use positive reinforcement to teach. We also pay attention to fear, frustration, and the dog’s willingness to participate.
Our training series let viewers follow the learning process, including setbacks and changes of plan. Research, writing, and editing are part of the teaching, too. We ask what the evidence supports, what remains uncertain, and how to explain it clearly. Our work continues to develop as we learn, and we want people watching to have room to question their assumptions alongside us.
For collective liberation
As a Lebanese American, I feel a responsibility to use my platform to speak about the violence and injustice that affect our communities. Bree and I stand with Palestine and support Palestinian freedom and self-determination.
Our work is anti-carceral, anti-capitalist, and decolonial. We challenge systems that normalize punishment, exploitation, and dispossession, including the ways those systems shape relationships between people and animals. Our commitments guide the questions we investigate and the futures we work toward.
Training is political
Palestine and collective liberation
Decolonizing our relationships with animals
OUR CURRENT INVESTIGATION
COPS + DOGS
COPS + DOGS examines police violence against dogs and the use of dogs as weapons against people. Through footage, records, and reporting, we look at what happened, how authorities explain it, and the consequences for the people and animals involved. That includes asking whether the practices themselves should continue.
Watch, read, and explore
Find help with a training problem, follow a full training series, read my books, or explore our research and investigations. You can also hear more in interviews and conversations.
Find training help
Videos, books, and podcasts
Interviews and appearances
Dog training science and evidence
The bigger picture