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Dog training experts Zak George and Bree join us to explore the dark side of animal training and how the weaponization of the human-animal bond perpetuates systems of oppression. We examine how our treatment of animals reflects deeper societal values about power, control, and our approach to both animal and human behavior.

• Traditional dog training methods often rely on pain and fear, including shock collars, prong collars, and physically harmful techniques
• The police dog system has roots in colonialism and was historically used to control marginalized communities
• When an animal misbehaves, asking "why" rather than focusing on stopping the behavior leads to more effective and humane solutions
• The parallels between punitive approaches to animal behavior and human behavior in our criminal justice system
• How fear-based training makes veterinary care more difficult and sometimes dangerous for animals
• The importance of consent, cooperation, and relationship-building in animal training
• The story of Mohammed Bahar, a Palestinian man with Down syndrome who was killed by a police dog, highlighting the human cost of weaponizing animals

To learn more about modern, humane dog training techniques, follow Zak George's Dog Training Revolution on YouTube or find their intersectionality content on Instagram and Facebook.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz9drj14e0lo

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/aharon-bonus-episode-innocent-and-pure-from-sin/id1624487374

Zak:

https://instagram.com/zakgeorge

https://TikTok.com/@thezakgeorge

https://facebook.com/thezakgeorge

Bree

https://instagram.com/breejustine

https://avsab.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/AVSAB-Humane-Dog-Training-Position-Statement-2021.pdf

https://YouTube.com/zakgeorge

https://perretologia.substack.com/p/weapon-dogs

https://www.themarshallproject.org/mauled

https://www.democracynow.org/2023/7/27/hannah_beckler_investigation_prison_dogs

https://www.businessinsider.com/correctional-officers-prison-staff-attack-dogs-bite-2023-7

https://aclucalaction.org/2024/01/new-report-weaponizing-dogs-the-brutal-and-outdated-practice-of-police-attack-dogs

https://www.aaihs.org/police-dogs-and-anti-black-violence

https://daily.jstor.org/the-police-dog-as-weapon-of-racial-terror

Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):
https://uppbeat.io/t/hartzmann/no-time-to-die
License code: S4CEQWLNQXVZUMU4

Artwork and logo design by Misty Rae.


Special thanks to Joanna Roux for editing help.
Special thanks to the listeners and all the wonderful people who helped listen to and provide feedback on the episode's prerelease.


Please feel free to email Matt topics or suggestions, questions or feedback.
Matt@unitedstatesofPTSD.com