Unhurried International

03/02/2026

For things to reveal themselves to us,
we need to be ready to abandon our views about them.
(Thich Nhat Hanh)

I interviewed Dr Saranyu Pearson, my trusted vet for close to a decade now, about her thoughts and experiences on animal hospice care. In the hour-long conversation we talk about how to accept that death is something natural and takes its course at the end of life. We discuss why she has chosen to not euthanise animals anymore in her practice and we also speak about the effects of pharmaceutical drugs on the body compared with natural medicines and how to navigate an integrative approach.

Here's the link: https://youtu.be/6w6uBg8636E

My hope for you - if/when you watch our conversation - is that it lands in you exactly where you need it … be that to open your eyes and become curious … or maybe to encourage or even uplift you. My wish for you is that this hour of watching us enriches your life and fills you with gratitude that you took the time to listen to our conversation.

25/01/2026

The interest in animal hospice care is on a rise. There are animal death doulas offering their services and wisdom as well as some courses available online. Overall, the information available is still scant. And the quality of the information available varies greatly. So does its depth. Much of what’s offered still operates in the euthanasia paradigm, meaning that it’s still assumed that your pet will be euthanised in the end.

What I have been offering for the past six years via 1:1 sessions and my animal hospice care blog articles aligns with what Spirits in Transition and Bright Haven have been sharing as pioneers in this field: Education on what natural dying in animals looks like (where euthanasia is an exception, not the rule) and guidance on who we need to be to walk this path.

Many of you know that I started writing a book six years ago and no, it’s still not available. Sorry. I had every intention to publish it in 2024. In preparation for it, I interviewed people in the field. My plan was to offer these additional gems when I launched my book. That hasn’t happened so far and I am sitting on this treasure. I decided recently that I want to be the world I’d like to live in. One where resources are available, where there is enough for everyone.

I’m making these interviews available for free. I’m not even asking for people’s email addresses. They will be available on my YouTube channel in the Animal Hospice Care playlist. Because the world I want to live in is also a world where I don’t need to scream while doing digital backflips to get anyone’s attention, bore the mind with mind-numbing clickbait or forcefeed the fact I exist and overload people’s inboxes with several emails a week (or a day!). I also trust that people know when they are ready for something and don’t need my nudging or threats of missing out.

Crazy or what the world needs? Time will tell.

The first video available will be the panel discussion I hosted with five professional animal communicators on death and dying from the animals' perspective. This video was available for a short time earlier and is now accessible again.

In the next month I’ll also make available two more videos, each an interview with a holistic vet on the topic. I just need to preface each with a little intro and I’m not yet finished editing it.

I thank everyone who’s passed on my name, website or blog articles to people who were searching for more info and as a result these people not only got that but also felt less alone. Keep doing that, please!

My animal hospice care blog articles are full of practical considerations, heartwarming end of life stories and grief wisdom. https://unhurried.com.au/category/animal-hospice-care/

Here's the link to the first free animal hospice care resources video, the panel discussion about death and dying from the animals’ perspective. https://youtu.be/MsntYLr4Njc

Email me if you are interested in 1:1 support from me. [email protected]

I will finish this post with an announcement: An Introduction to Animal Hospice Care video will be available for purchase in the next little while. Watch this space!

Signing off with one of my favourite quotes. It’s by Haruki Murakami.

Death is not the opposite of life. It’s a part of it.

✨⭐️🌈⭐️✨⭐️🌈⭐️✨⭐️🌈⭐️✨

02/01/2026

Happy 8. Birthday, Marvel! 🩷🪷⭐

Where has the time gone? How are we both old(er) and don't feel it? 😄

24/12/2025

Happy holidays! Merry Christmas! Or, simply a beautiful day! ⭐

08/09/2025

What a lovely client testimonial! 🥰

"Mia taught me the Trust tTechnique with my dog Boston over many weeks. We had a number of issues that needed addressing, including pulling on the lead, barking at visitors and jumping on people. I also needed to crate train him for overnight stays while I was traveling.

Mia provided me with wonderful skills and tools I could use with my young dog, and since we started we have developed a much closer bond. Lots of things are falling into place now and I can even walk him off lead and he stays right next to me! Crate training has gone well and he can stay for many nights at friends super happy in his crate overnight.

I highly recommend Mia to anyone who would like to understand how their dog's mind and nervous system work."

29/07/2025

Shelby was adopted from an animal shelter earlier this year. Her new human was told that Shelby had a problem with men. The extent of that issue became clear at the fortnightly dinners when Shelby's new human's two adult sons come visiting with their families. Shelby would bark at the two men incessantly. You can imagine what that was like for everyone. 😫

When Shelby's human phoned the animal shelter she had adopted her from she was advised to have her sons calmly sitting on the floor offering Shelby treats.

That did not work. Shelby was not interested in any food, her level of arousal simply too high to be able to focus on anything else but her extreme alarm. 🫨😵‍💫😨 When a nervous system is in such a state of fight/flight, eating or playing are not accessible.

After several months of stressful, barky family dinners, Shelby's human contacted me for help. We fit in our first 2 sessions before the next family gathering.

This is the feedback I received afterwards:

"Shelby did very well Friday night with my family. She barked at first but I kept her on the lead and she settled, stopped barking and seemed relaxed even though she did not lay down.
She reacted a little if either of my sons stood up, not barking but just wary. After dinner we were all in the lounge watching a movie and she got up on the couch between my daughter in law and myself and went to sleep. It seemed an excellent new start." ✨

The family was impressed and relieved. 🤗

Well done, Shelby! 🥰❤⭐️

01/07/2025

When Boston's human first contacted me she described him looking like a messy black scribble. Then she sent a photo and I saw that he is the spitting image of Hairy Maclary - protagonist of many children's books by Lynley Dodd. 🤗😊

Boston's human was looking for help with his seemingly unpredictable behaviour towards other dogs, pulling on the lead and familiarizing him with a crate.

Much has changed over our three sessions via Zoom. As a beautiful bonus Boston now loves to sit on his human's knee. What's so special about that?

Well ... during our first session his human confessed that it irked her that Boston would often hop on visitors' knees for a cuddle but never on hers. She felt a bit confused and a little hurt by that. It all makes sense to her now! Animals and humans are able to perceive each other's inner state. Boston's human has a very busy mind - the opposite of restful.

With the aid of the Trust Technique she has learned to be calmer, more quiet inside her head. So much so that Boston now loves to sit on her knee! 💖

It's heartening to witness my clients discovering new depths in their relationship with their animal. Of course, improving and solving the problems is great but they usually take way so much more. ⭐

Now look at the two images below and how much they look alike - Boston and Hairy Maclary - even down to their cheeky eyes! 😁

13/06/2025

Your dog, your protector?

Family members? Guardians? Can they be both? I interviewed an expert to find the answer.

Was personal or home security a criterion when choosing your dog? – A little while ago, a poll I did here on FB revealed that most chose their canine family member for companionship. Although some appreciate the added bonus of their pooch’s barking to announce visitors or their appearance working as a natural deterrent.

However, over the years I've been contacted by people looking for help with their out-of-control young dog that they got as a puppy from a working dog line with the purpose of protecting the family. Usually such a dog has already bitten someone and is unmanageable to walk.

Such situations always deeply affect me, sometimes even disturb me. The ignorance, the good intentions, the lack of understanding, the belief in false myths ... they all add up to a dog becoming a hazard ... a dog on the line of losing their life.

In my new blog article I explore this topic with Eki Arifovic who has trained and handled attack as well as detection dogs worldwide. He's been in active war zones. Worked for military police, police and other security departments and private organisations. He's a certified dog trainer and has extensive knowledge on dog behaviour.

It's a fascinating and informative read I recommend for anyone who loves dogs.

https://unhurried.com.au/your-dog-your-protector/

Enjoy, share and leave your thoughts as a comment!

09/06/2025

Many of us have experienced an older family member or friend (or perhaps ourselves!) dubiously eyeing a couch and declining to sit on it because they know they would be struggling – or failing – to get up from it again. Adjusting the physical features of a home to meet the changing abilities and needs of a senior is part of the standard age care provided for humans. What about our golden oldie canine (or feline) family members? 🐶🐱

Set up your Senior Dog to Thrive is the title of my new blog article. 🥰

Read it here: https://unhurried.com.au/set-up-your-senior-dog-to-thrive/

And share it! 🙏

31/05/2025

Happy Sunday and Happy first day of Winter from Marvel & Henry's alter egos - Wednesday & Pugsley! ❄😛💙

30/05/2025

The topic of end-of-life experiences (ELEs) in animals is an emerging area of research that aims to investigate and understand the behaviours and phenomena observed in domesticated animals during their final moments of life.

Renowned biologist Rupert Sheldrake, PhD, together with several other scientists have conducted research into the similarities of ELEs between animals and humans as well as After Death Communications parallels between the two.

I feel equal measures excited and grateful for these studies and their findings. I hope that they reach and touch many people who are afraid of dying and death, perhaps turning their fears into curiosity and awe.

For me as an Animal Hospice Care educator and guide this research provides another excellent resource for my clients.

You can watch Rupert Sheldrake in this YouTube video below presenting some findings of one of the studies.

For more in-depth info visit Rupert Sheldrake’s website where you can read pdfs of this research including many case studies.
https://sheldrake.org/research/end-of-life-experiences

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2TbJ5YYXx8

Join Rupert's Substack Here: https://rupertsheldrake.substack.comIn the remarkable phenomenon of “terminal lucidity”, people who have suffered from dementia ...

14/05/2025

Joining households with one very reactive and one selectively reactive dog is a tall order. I have posted about Kaiba and Jett before. Many small and patient steps have lead to now being able to be walked together without being muzzled. And being able to share space in a calm environment. Being able to each play with their own toy while in each other's presence. 🤗

A gold medal and a thousand gold stars to their humans whose continuous effort in supporting their dogs is paying off. ⭐🏅⭐ And that's a reward beyond any medal or gold star! 🙏

This certainly hasn't been a straight journey from A to B. Time, money, creativity, flexibility, persistence and resilience have been expended. But what a return on investment! 🐶💛🐶