My experience with animals did not start in a clinic. I grew up with dogs, cats, and horses, and that early immersion shaped everything that followed.

Over the years I have competed in the obedience and show ring with my own dogs, gaining titles in both areas, spent time working with thoroughbred horses, and more recently gained a champion title with my Dobermann, Bernard, and entered the scent work ring.

During university I worked in the large dog section of a busy boarding kennels, gaining daily hands-on experience with anxious, fearful, and sometimes aggressive dogs. I also volunteered as a trainer at obedience clubs and with rescue organisations, including picking up dogs from the pound.

After graduating I moved into emergency veterinary medicine, spending three years working with pets in crisis — an experience that gave me a lasting clinical perspective on fear, pain, and stress. I then owned my own veterinary clinic in East Fremantle, focused exclusively on dogs and cats. Our commitment to low-stress handling led to Gold Level certification from the International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM), and I gained Fear Free and Stress Free animal handling certifications during this time. I also spent a period in mobile veterinary practice, which gave me a valuable perspective on how behaviour changes when animals are seen in their own environment rather than a clinical one.

Now working exclusively in veterinary behaviour medicine, I focus entirely on behaviour problems and behaviour modification — drawing on every one of those experiences to understand not just what a dog is doing, but why.