Julie is getting ready to sit her initial assessment in September to enter an Assistance Dog in Training program, so I recently caught up with her and Karina to see if there were any last-minute areas we needed to troubleshoot.
Alana has done amazing work with Julie around cause and effect, so we’re now progressing that further - actively creating movement and noise.
For now, we’re starting with Mum. Mum is Julie’s safe person. She’s someone Julie knows, trusts and can read really well, so she gives us the perfect starting point for introducing bigger or more unusual experiences.
Before something happens, Mum gives Julie a clear heads-up that something is coming. Julie then gets to make a choice. She can stay engaged and see what happens, or she can disengage knowing that Mum will listen and won’t continue at that intensity or sometimes not even at all.
That part is incredibly important.
We want Julie to learn that when she says “that’s enough,” she’ll be heard. When a dog genuinely understands that they have an out, they often become much more willing to explore and push their own boundaries because they know they’re never trapped in the experience.
Eventually, of course, real life won’t always give Julie a warning.
Things move. Things fall. Doors slam. Trolleys rattle. Objects wobble. People make noise. The world can be unpredictable.
The goal isn’t to teach Julie that nothing unexpected will ever happen. It’s to help her learn that movement, noise and unpredictability can happen without it necessarily meaning anything.
We’re building that understanding first with the person she feels safest with, giving her agency throughout, and then gradually helping that confidence transfer out into the real world. 🌏
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Welcome to the assistance dream team, Luisien.
Some dogs handle movement like it’s nothing.
Others? The second the world moves underneath them, they’re not so sure.
One thing I deliberately include in my Raising Puppies: Real-Life Ready class is exposure to motion.
The vestibular system sits within the inner ear and helps with balance and processing movement. While puppies are still young and developing, I want to give that system lots of safe, manageable experiences to work with.
This might include sliding on a rug across the floor. Spinning on a chair. Standing on something that shifts underneath their feet. Rocking on a swing. Walking across something wobbly.
This is not about making them “tough it out”. Don’t go wild with it, and don’t force them.
It’s simply giving their body a chance to experience movement before the real world suddenly asks them to deal with it.
Because the real world moves. Cars move. Boats move. Elevators move. Surfaces wobble, shift and feel different underneath their feet.
The more little experiences we can give puppies now, the less completely unfamiliar those sensations may feel later.
Like everything I do with puppy exposure, I start small and watch the puppy in front of me. If they’re unsure, I make it easier. If they’re curious and coping well, we can explore a little more.
The goal is never to overwhelm them.
It’s to give them a bigger library of experiences to draw from when the world throws something new at them.
Introducing Flicker ✨
We kicked off our very first Raising Puppies: Real-Life Ready class at Hall Veterinary Surgery 🐶
And the very first thing we came into class with wasn’t “sit”, it was this: a worried mind can’t truly learn.
Safety always comes first and when it does, everything else grows from there. 🌱🌿🌻
09/08/2026
We’ve been keeping a little secret 🤍
There’s a little someone we’ve been counting down the days for…
One more sleep. 🐾
It is with the greatest sadness that we share that Jana, Alana’s beautiful girl, has passed away.
There are some dogs who somehow become so much more than a dog. They become part of the fabric of your life; your shadow, your constant, your safe place, your family, the other half of your heart.
She and Alana were so deeply intertwined that it is impossible to imagine one without the other. Their bond was built over their lifetime together of ordinary moments, adventures, comfort, companionship and simply being side by side.
Our hearts are breaking with you, Alana. The depth of this grief is a reflection of the love Jana leaves behind. That is her wonderful gift.
She was that dog. The one who touched hearts with her gentleness, who seemed to carry a quiet understanding of the people around her, and whose beautiful soul somehow knew exactly what you needed.
She was so deeply loved, and the space she leaves behind is immeasurable.
There are no words that can make a loss like this any less devastating, because there are no words big enough for the love that existed between Jana and Alana.
Jana, it has been a spectacular honour to love you. And thank you for bringing Alana to me.
Rest gently, beautiful girl. 🪽
You were loved for your whole life, and you will be missed for the rest of ours.
Thank you to everyone for the love, kindness and patience you are showing Alana as she begins the impossible task of trying to comprehend a life without Jana in it. Your compassion and understanding mean more than words can express.
Alana, we are holding you so tightly and walking beside you through the unimaginable. 🤍
A few weeks ago, Alana and I hosted our first Focus Class - this 3 hour intensive was all about handling.
We were so caught up teaching that we barely took any footage, but thank you apple, live photos captured some raw little moments.
Stitched together, it almost looks kind of artsy… let’s pretend that was the plan. 😂
Anywho, we had eight cracking teams join us:
🐾 Lyn and Amber
🐾 Dan and Lily
🐾 Katie and Wednesday
🐾 Deb with Marmite and Hiccup
🐾 James and Sundae
🐾 Kristen and Daisy
🐾 Kasia and Foxy
🐾 Jodie and Dash
In the grand scheme of nose work, 3 hours isn’t long. Yet in that short time, we all watched each team’s handling transform.
Witnessing how that newfound clarity elevated their searches was pretty spectacular.
Can everyone help me by coming together and wishing Alana Rhodes a huge happy birthday 🥳 🎉
Your laugh is absolutely infectious, your love for animals is inspiring, and your kindness and passion shines through in everything you do.
Jana is one lucky doggie to have you as her soul human, and you are one lucky girl to have Jana as your soul dog. I hope you had the gentlest birthday, with plenty of time for you both to simply be together and soak up the magic of your beautiful bond. 💜
Happy Birthday Honey 😘
A dog has to have opportunities to just dog. Period.
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