Pooch Pals Australia

14/10/2025

Help them share in $500,000 of grants this year

23/09/2025

We lost a beloved client today, one favourite Pooch Pal to ticks.

Please ensure you check your dog after each walk, use a Tick Preventative and clear low hanging branches and bushy areas, tall grass etc, as much as possible in your garden and yard area.

Please note the information in the link below, but also, buy a wart gun or tick freezing gun and please, always freeze the tick before removal. Ticks inject most of their poison upon removal, this goes for human treatment also.

If you suspect your dog, cat or pet is suffering from tick poisoning, you need to get help now. After hours? We're the tick paralysis experts.

23/09/2025

07/08/2025

Scent detection games are brilliant for a multitude of reasons! This is a great way to redirect and desensitise this dog, away from his reactive behaviour towards the vacuum. If you would like 1:1 in home support just like this, get in touch. I also offer Zoom sessions for people outside the Northern Rivers region.

31/07/2025

Excellent tips here for observing body language. A wagging tail is not always a friendly and happy sign either, it depends on tail and body position/body language and posture.

A general rule of thumb is to never introduce dogs in their home territory where possible, and if you are introducing them at a park or beach, ensure you have a very strong recall capacity with your dog.

Practice this every day by calling your dog to you multiple times a day, and rewarding. Do NOT just wait until it is time to leave the dog park, to call your dog back. Call them back several times, and release back to play. Otherwise to them: recall at the park = leaving the fun.

If you observe a stiff dog, yell out, distract and run AWAY from the encounter, this will often distract enough to extract your dog from the interaction.

Follow, share and get in touch for more Positive Reinforcement Dog Training and Behaviour Tips

"All good ☺️Neither dog are growling"
Hang on.
Dogs can and do growl in play.
It can be completely normal.

"So how can I tell"?
It can be tricky to tell the difference between healthy play and those interactions that are something else entirely.
There are some areas we can look at to help us decipher.

➡️Immediate posture changes/rigidity/stillness

Some dogs pause, go still..... then explode with loose and wiggly movements. That’s often play.
The problematic kind of rigidness is different. It can linger for longer.
Even when the other dog is showing everyway they can "all's good here"
That stillness and posture is "tight".
It can come with hard stares, leaning or standing over.
Stiff body posture from either dog.....even the one on the ground.
That’s not play

➡️When high energy switches to frantic

Chasing and being chased.
Some dogs love this.
There can be an energy change with chasing that we need to watch for though.
It can turn.
It can become far more frantic and direct.

If one dog is always the chaser, and when they catch the other.....the tone changes, the body language tightens, the movements escalate and it stops looking mutual...that’s when caution is needed.

We don't want to stop dogs playing....but we do need to recognise when it is no longer fun for all dogs involved.

21/06/2025

There is a way to build acceptance.
It starts outside of the home.
Two bits to this....and both of those areas can go very wrong.

Introducing a new dog into your own home.👈
Maybe you have just adopted and have concerns already because of other dogs that have entered your home.
It is a big deal for dogs and many won't take kindly to another dog just waltzing in, especially if they have never met them before.

Some have criticised these tried and true methods....that is ok.
You do you.
However, these are approaches that have worked, they are safe and they are not based on "individual highly social dogs" but looking at a much bigger picture.

Meeting a dog out and about?👈
Different again.
Try the 3 second "rule".
The meet and retreat is a great way to encourage everyone (dogs and humans alike) to read what is happening.

Do dogs "need" to meet all other dogs when out and about?
No.
They don't.
If you have a highly social dog....that may be difficult to hear.
You likely don't have the same challenges as others.
Your dog can easily socialise and read signals.
Others need a helping hand.

If you do struggle with helping your dog meet others....try this.
It also give dogs confidence.

Everyone can benefit from those little "I can do this" moments.

03/06/2025

A fun adventure for you and your pooch!

Registration opens!

01/06/2025

We fully support initiatives like this one! 🙌🫶🏽

19/05/2025

Please share and donate if you can. May he rest in peace

Our beautiful, kind hearted nephew dallas was tragically taken from us last Saturday in a horrific motorbike accident, the beautiful Griffith community have set up a go fund me page to help raise some money to assist his parents with the costs they will face in the coming weeks, these funds will help ease the burden and assist Dallas’ parents not only navigate their grief but that of Dallas’ 2 younger siblings.
Please don’t feel obligated to donate but please feel free to share the link.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/dallas-brown-gone-to-soon

19/05/2025

A good one to save!

23/04/2025

Can totally relate!

31/03/2025

An excellent resource pack for those adopting challenging dogs or wanting to improve their own dogs lives. Get in touch for more support anytime. In home and online consultations available.

Is your dog a senior dog, or is he newly adopted or recovering from illness or injury?
Are you looking for gentle (but fun) confidence building activities you can do together?

Many of us have unwittingly ‘flooded’ our dogs, by doing too much too soon. Society can make us feel like we are ‘bad dog owners’ if we don’t walk our dog(s) every day.

But for many dogs, especially those who are newly adopted, going for a walk in a busy park can be terrifying, overwhelming and counterproductive in our efforts to help the dog feel safe in his new home.

If your dog is newly adopted, remember he will initially need lots of sleep and rest to adjust to his new surroundings, so please take things slowly and gently.

There are lots of other gentle but fun activities you can do with your dog besides walking in a busy park. Grab a coffee and take a look at some of these useful links and resources.

If your dog has a favourite game or activity please share your photos in the comments section below. 🐾

Enrichment ideas for Fearful Dogs
https://www.amatterofmannersdogtraining.com/single-post/2017/06/18/Enrichment-for-Fearful-Dogs

Great tips from Learning About Animals
https://www.facebook.com/97862280384/posts/10159965798180385/

Let your dog decide what’s enriching.
https://www.facebook.com/1000395490078012/posts/1588729551244600/

Are we doing too much of the wrong stuff?
https://www.dogcommunication.co.uk/articles/enrichment-activities-are-we-doing-too-much-of-the-wrong-stuff/

Important information from The Dog’s Nose.
https://www.facebook.com/168833753731932/posts/310077389607567/

The importance of allowing your dog to sniff:
https://www.silentconversations.com/importance-of-allowing-your-dog-to-sniff/

Struggling with walking your dog?
https://www.canineconfidenceacademy.com/blog/the-deconstructed-dog-walk

Time to Rethink the Walk
https://www.facebook.com/275731239204783/posts/1726974370747122/

Sniffing on walks:
https://www.facebook.com/97862280384/posts/10160359039905385/

Steve Mann’s Back Pack Walk:
https://www.facebook.com/131337460539272/posts/615446988794981/

A great podcast on canine enrichment:
https://www.facebook.com/223829504298147/posts/3365394686808264/

An interesting study on the effects of walking on a dog’s pulse:
http://www.dogfieldstudy.com/en/pulse-study/at-the-heart-of-the-walk

DIY Canine Enrichment Toys:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/556732034667990/

A searchable website of UK secure fields for hire:
https://www.dogwalkingfields.co.uk/

Sensory Gardens:
https://www.yourdog.co.uk/dog-care-and-advice/dog-health-and-care/can-i-create-a-sensory-garden-for-my-dog/

Click on the book link for a fabulous free online book on building a sensory garden:
https://www.pdte.eu/post/what-is-a-sensory-garden