Pets At Work

18/04/2026

04/04/2026

We all want the best for our beloved companions. We hope they feel relaxed and calm and confident in life. If you feel this isn't the case and you'd like some help. Please do get in touch 🐾

19/03/2026

Struggling to get your pet to swallow those tablets? Worried about your next vets visit?
I'm here to help.
I specialise in confidence building for our canine friends and helping their owners implement confident handling techniques. This includes meditation and grooming techniques to make things easier in the long term.

27/02/2026

Welcome to PAW – Pets At Work 🐾

I’m Rachael, a qualified Veterinary Nurse with many years of experience supporting pets and their people across Penzance and surrounding areas.

I offer calm, professional support tailored to your pet’s individual needs — whether that’s healthcare at home or behavioural guidance outdoors.

🏡 Home Veterinary Nurse Visits

• Medication administration
• Healthcare visits
• Post-operative support
• Gentle care for pets fearful of veterinary surgeries

🐶 Training & Behaviour Support

• 1:1 personalised sessions
• Group sessions
• Practical, kind training
• Support for anxious or struggling dogs

My approach is always compassionate, calm and judgement-free.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure where to start, you’re not alone — just message 🐾

📍 Covering Gulval, Penzance & surrounding areas
📞 07580 209132

Professional care. Practical support. Kind guidance.

— PAW 🐾

12/02/2026

Some days with a dog feel effortless.
Other days feel messy, noisy, unfinished.

And that’s ok.

Living well with a dog isn’t about getting it right all the time.
It’s not about perfect walks, perfect recall, or ticking every training box.

It’s about connection over perfection.

Noticing the moments when your dog checks in with you.
Pausing to observe instead of rushing to fix.
Choosing curiosity over judgement, for them and for yourself.

Connection grows in the small, quiet things:

• slowing your pace
• softening your expectations
• listening to what your dog is telling you, not what you think should be happening

Perfection creates pressure.
Connection creates safety.

And from safety, real learning happens - for dogs and humans alike.

If you can build true connection, everything else often falls in to place.

So today, let go of “should”.
Aim for understanding.
That’s where the magic lives. 🐾💙

08/02/2026

Behaviour is communication — and sometimes dogs just need a bit of extra support.
As a Veterinary Nurse, I offer kind, practical help for dogs and their people.

09/11/2025

This Remembrance Sunday we commemorate all those who have served in military conflicts and remember the men, women and animals who lost their lives.

Alongside the traditional red poppy, the purple poppy has emerged as a symbol of remembrance for the millions of animals who served and sacrificed their lives. From horses carrying soldiers into battle to dogs detecting explosives, these animals played a crucial role in our history.

We also thank the PAT Teams who support members of the Armed Forces and their families💛

04/11/2025

SECONDS COUNT
This post is not advocating that dogs meet every other dog, but rather about how to go about it in a safer way, if and when it does happen.

The 3 second rule for dogs meeting each other is used as a guideline to help foster positive introductions, prevent either dog from feeling overwhelmed or trapped and prevent any potential reactivity and stress.

A short 3 second introduction is enough time to provide important information to both dogs.

Enough time and information for dogs to decide – “are you a threat?”, “do I like you?”, “do I want to learn more about you?”, “do I really dislike you?”, “do I want you to go away?” etc. Both dogs may not feel the same way – one may not be happy to engage while the other may want to.

All interactions should ideally happen like this, not just initially. Just like us, dogs can have off days – things like pain, trigger stacking, lack of sleep or a host of other reasons can influence a dog’s emotional state and whether a dog wants to interact or not.

There are countless times I have witnessed meetings or introductions between dogs that have gone on just a few seconds too long and have not ended well.

This can have long lasting effects on future behaviour when meeting other dogs.

Understanding body language is critically important. If we are going to share our lives with another species, protect them, advocate for them and help them feel safe, then we need to understand and respect their language.

The examples in this post of red and green flags are just a few general ones to look out for – there are many more and these will differ depending on the individual dog, context and circumstances.

Here are some resources that provide more detailed information about body language –

The Veterinary Behaviour Centre
https://bit.ly/4hwC8k1

On Talking Terms With Dogs - Calming Signals, 2nd Edition by Turid Rugaas
https://bit.ly/4oftWqW

Make sure those first 3 seconds count – they can make all the difference.