Hello Pup

16/07/2025

This is a great article about pain in dogs and how it intersects with behaviour.

On many occasions, I've walked a dog or attended a consultation for a behaviour concern and recommended investigating the possibility of pain with a vet. Dogs hide pain SO well, and it contributes to far more behaviour struggles than pet parents realise.

Article by All Dogs Are Good behaviour trainer Harriet Alexander (BA, GDipPsych, KPA-CTP).

How to make sure we’re treating the whole dog, not just the symptomsHave you ever woken up with a blinding headache and found yourself snapping at everyone before breakfast? Most of us have, and afterwards we (hopefully) apologise and look for painkillers or drink that forgotten glass of water. Do...

14/05/2025

So proud to be part of the Thrive Canine team!

We filed against Whitehorse Council in VCAT today and I’m not afraid to talk about it.

We had a contract with Whitehorse to use one of their parks for dog training classes. After we filled our first round of classes, trained staff, bought equipment and developed course programs, Whitehorse tried to cancel our contract without compensating us. There was no valid legal basis for them to do this, and they breached other laws in the process. We’ve suffered $3,500 in loss.

To top it off, when we refused to cancel our classes as the contract had been terminated invalidly, they sent two burly male rangers to the park to harass us and force us to cease operating in front of our clients.

That was the final straw.

Do not pick a fight with a lawyer.

Thrive will not be bullied, and we will not allow either us or our force free colleagues to be treated unfairly. We work so hard to do everything completely by the book, and operate solely to serve the community and improve animal welfare and safety. This conduct was completely unconscionable. See you in court.

Our classes continue to run at an alternative location. Visit our website to enrol and train your dog with a strong, women-owned and operated business which proritises ethics and fairness - across all aspects of our company.

13/05/2025

This should be a no-brainer really! If you're NOT in a designated off-leash area, please don't let your dog roam and approach other dogs on leads. He may be "small & and friendly" but he'll still scare the wits out of a reactive dog.. 😢
𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 | 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗗𝗼𝗴 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿: http://bit.ly/2Nw3o6e thanks to 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗛𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 from 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱𝗼𝗴 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗗𝗼𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴

24/04/2025

18/04/2025

Meet Bert, the baby papillon. He is, as you can see, 90% ears 🐰- and at the moment, it feels like the other 10% of him is entirely tiny teeth!

Bert is going through a bitey teething phase, and because he's full of beans and loves other dogs, he's recently developed some frustration barking on leash.

Thankfully his human has done a wonderful job in immediately seeking help to teach Bert to regulate his emotions and behaviour around dogs he meets. The longer a dog rehearses reactivity, the harder it can be to modify - but little Bert here has had a head start to rival his ears.

We went over some management and enrichment to handle Bert's biting, and best practice and skills to help his frustration reactivity. He demonstrated he's a keen and very clever little learner indeed!

13/03/2025

So proud to be a trainer with Thrive Canine

11/02/2025

Bowie, Willow's, Champion and Pip sure know how to have fun in the sun 🌞🐾

07/02/2025

Very excited that I'll soon be teaching classes for adult dogs in the eastern suburbs! Please come join us ✨🐕‍🦺✨

Welcome to twenty twenty THRIVE. 👑

Starting SATURDAY 29 MARCH Thrive Canine will be running weekly group classes for dogs of ALL ages at Eley Park in Blackburn South.

Classes will be available on Saturdays both in the morning and afternoon. When we kick off, we’ll have three classes available immediately:

🐕 Puppy Two (9.15 am to 10.15 am) - A four week course for graduates of our Puppy One course and other preschool programs.

🐕 Manners One (12.15 pm to 1.15 pm) - A six week course for dogs who haven’t trained with us before or who completed Puppy One with us a long time ago.

🐕 Manners Two (10.30 am to 11.30 am) - An eight week course for dogs who have completed Puppy Two or Manners One with us.

But that’s not all. We want ongoing progression! We want dog sports! We want a social drop-in class! Say no more. Check back here in mid-2025.

More information, including pricing and eligibility requirements, is available at www.thrivecanine.com.au/group-classes.

Enrol NOW using this link: https://linktr.ee/thrivecanine.au

17/01/2025

🙌

17/01/2025

Caught these two sharing a "bed" today! Is it lifelong friendship? Is it love? Or... Is it an intense, mutual desire to be comfortable? Either way, it's pretty dang cute.
🐾 Jett & Coco

15/01/2025

It was so nice to see this soft little face again for one of our first consultations of the year! Louis graduated both our Puppy One and Puppy Two programs last year, and is now sporting a beautiful wavy coat to complement his smile.

Unfortunately, Louis has developed some fear-based reactivity to things outside his home, and has a big voice for a little dog! His family are now equipped with some management and training strategies to prevent him rehearsing his barking, foster confidence, and teach him calmer, preferred behaviour responses. Louis is an avid learner, and was already demonstrating the ability to make calmer choices by the end of our consultation. Such a good boy!

09/01/2025

Last year we offered our ‘Puppy Two’ advanced puppy class (for dogs up to six months of age) exclusively to graduates of our Puppy One preschool course.

In 2025, we’ll be offering more Puppy Two classes, more often, and extending the invite to graduates of other preschool programs (eg graduates of pet store or vet clinic programs).

We have very limited space available in our next two Puppy Two classes, starting on Saturday 18 January at the Blackburn Vet. There are not one but TWO times slots available for this class due to demand.

Read more about our Puppy Two program: thrivecanine.com.au/puppyclasses

And enrol here: https://tinyurl.com/2uj9hdm4

Have a new puppy and looking to enrol in our Puppy One preschool program? We have classes starting in both Blackburn and Camberwell on Saturday 1 February, and you can enrol via our website. 🐾