Lara’s Blog

When it comes to Guide Dog interactions, over 40 per cent of Guide Dogs Handlers across Australia have reported an increase in their Guide Dogs having to deal with distractions from pet dogs and owners in the past 12 months, which is putting both the handlers and Guide Dogs at risk. To help provide guidelines for the community when it comes to Guide Dog interactions,...

Thunderstorm anxiety is common in many dogs, causing them to be come extremely stressed and fearful long before us humans can even hear a rumble thunder. Dogs have much an acute sense of sound and can hear far better than we do. They hear nearly twice as many frequencies than we do, so they can hear sounds much farther away and higher than we do....

Despite all of the research showing the multitude of physical and mental health benefits that pets provide to people, there is still an alarming lack of pets in aged care, with only 18% of aged care facilities allowing residents to keep a companion animal, according to national animal welfare charity Companion Animal Network Australia's 2023 Aged Care Survey: Status of Pets in Aged Care. From reducing...

Do you know what dog love language your pet speaks?  If you do, it can help you to understand what is going to motivate them the most in your training, help you to understand how to best bring them joy and reward them for their unconditional love, and even identify if something is going on with your dog's health. Much like humans, our pets have...

New Year’s Eve is a time of celebration with millions of people across the country enjoying the many fireworks displays that will light up our skies. Unfortunately for the hundreds and thousands of pets that are exposed to fireworks during the Christmas and New Year's Eve celebrations,  and again over Australia Day, this is the most terrorising time of the year that results in a...

Given the endless support and love that dogs bring to us, it is no surprise many homeless people across Australia live on the streets with a dog by their side, so I'd like to encourage people to think about the pets of the homeless. With 1 in 200 people falling under the Australian Bureau of Statistics’s definition of homelessness and the 2016 Australian Census showing...

Having your pet go missing is a very traumatic experience, and it can be hard to know what to do if you have a lost dog or cat. The importance of microchipping your dog and cat Even though the microchipping of dogs and cats is compulsory across most of Australia, far too many of them end up lost and in shelters due to contact details...

There’s no better feeling than adopting a dog but it’s important to remember it can take a few weeks, or even months, for them to fully adjust to their new surroundings and family members. Adopting a dog is a lifelong commitment and you will need to dedicate time to help them settle in and train them. It can be quite daunting and challenging for the...

Anyone that loves to take their dog out and about with them, one of the struggles can be transporting them if you are catching public transport.  To help, the Uber Pet service launched in 2020, which allows riders to match with a driver-partner willing to transport their fur friend too. Since launching this , the Uber rideshare service has seen a 79% increase in pet...

Many anxious dogs may bark, lunge and even go to bite when feeling threatened by strangers or other dogs that get too close to them, this is known as fear-based aggression.  I have this with my rescue dog Vindi, which is why I am so passionate about educating people about responsible dog interactions. Then there are those dogs that are submissive or back away when...