Human Canine Enrichment

05/09/2026

Another brilliant podcast from Shikashio from aggressivedog.com all about 'The Real World of Consent-Based Care'. Really worth a listen. If you haven't checked out his podcasts yet, I highly recommend them! He's also got some great courses and resources for those struggling with aggression and other challenging behaviours https://open.spotify.com/episode/5iYO7i45fsgDPzK6UIDxrV?si=xSGZ9cc5TlGbCxeZnRpOwQ

The Bitey End of the Dog · Episode

19/08/2026

Therapy dog? Assistance dog? Canine-assisted services? Accreditation? Registration?

If you’ve ever tried to work out what all of these terms mean in Australia and ended up more confused than when you started, you’re definitely not alone.

I regularly get enquiries from people wanting to know where they can train or “accredit” a dog, and one of the first things we need to establish is:

What do you actually want the dog to do?

Because these are very different pathways.

🐾 Canine-assisted services

This is where a practitioner incorporates a dog into professional work such as counselling, allied health, education or other therapeutic/support services.

I provide a Canine Assisted Services Certification program, with graduates eligible to apply for registration with Animal Therapies Ltd, a national registration body for animal-assisted services.

🐾 Assistance dogs

An assistance dog is different.

These dogs are trained to assist an individual person with disability, including psychiatric, medical or physical support needs.

Under Australian Commonwealth disability law, there isn’t simply one universally required “national accreditation card.” An assistance animal may meet the legal definition through recognised accreditation pathways or through appropriate training to alleviate the effects of disability, together with suitable standards of behaviour and hygiene in public places.

That sounds straightforward.

In practice... not always. 🤦🏽‍♀️

Different states and territories have different schemes. Public transport can have additional processes. Airlines have their own requirements. Evidence may be requested. And unfortunately, even appropriately trained assistance-dog teams can encounter access misunderstandings.

For psychiatric assistance dogs, I am an approved trainer with mindDog, which supports owner-trained dogs and assesses teams through its Public Access Test. They have assessor’s that come to Darwin 🙂

For assistance dogs supporting other medical or physical needs, I recommend Mundy Dogs in NSW.

And then there is another very important conversation:

How should an assistance or working dog be trained — and what does a good life look like for that dog?

A dog can perform its job reliably without training that relies on intimidation, suppression or aversive handling.

But welfare is also about more than how the dog is trained.

It includes whether the dog has:
• genuine opportunities for choice and agency
• rest and recovery
• play, exploration and species-appropriate behaviour
• relationships and activities they enjoy
• freedom from excessive pressure
• a quality of life that is more than simply “coping” or performing tasks

For me, one of the most important welfare questions is:

Does this dog have a life worth living?

Not just a dog who can pass a public access test.
Not just a dog who can perform tasks.
Not just a dog who appears compliant.

A dog whose life contains enjoyment, engagement, connection, curiosity, rest and the opportunity to simply be a dog.

An assistance dog is not simply equipment. It is a living animal participating in a working relationship with a human being.

Conscientious training and good practice considers the wellbeing of both members of that team.

There is a lot of misinformation and complexity in this space. I do my best to share useful information publicly, but I don’t always have capacity to talk through every individual situation or pathway one-to-one.

I am, however, very happy to offer a community forum or information session on assistance dogs, canine-assisted services, registration, public access, welfare and training if there’s interest.

Sometimes the hardest part is simply working out which pathway you actually need — whether the dog is genuinely suited to that role — and then making sure their wellbeing and quality of life remains central throughout

14/08/2026

I really recommend making some time for this podcast — and this episode in particular.

One of the things I value about good science-based conversations around dogs is that they can take us beyond strongly held positions and ask a more useful question:

What actually improves outcomes for dogs?

This episode, Breed Better. Shelter Less., looks upstream at how we might prevent dogs entering shelters in the first place — through thoughtful breeding, health and temperament considerations, better education and matching of dogs with humans, breeder accountability, lifelong responsibility, and greater collaboration between breeders, rescues and shelters.

I particularly appreciate the move away from the simplistic “breeder versus rescue” divide.

Both worlds ultimately have an opportunity to contribute to the same outcome: fewer dogs experiencing relinquishment, instability and shelter life.

Listening to thoughtful, evidence-informed discussions like this can help us question assumptions, broaden our understanding, and make more informed choices about breeding, acquiring, raising and supporting dogs.

There is a lot here worth thinking about — whether you are a dog guardian, trainer, breeder, rescue worker, or simply someone interested in canine welfare.

🎧 Breed Better. Shelter Less. With Kate Dalman.

Breeding is one of the quickest ways to start a fight in the dog wo...

30/07/2026

🐾 Doggo Social – Out & About 🐾

Looking for a relaxed way to get out and about with your dog?

Doggo Social – Out & About is a small-group adventure where dogs and their handlers can explore new places, enjoy positive experiences, and simply spend time together in the real world.

This isn't a formal training class. It's an opportunity to reinforce calm, appropriate behaviours through everyday experiences while dogs sniff, explore, observe, and share time with familiar canine friends. Handlers also get the chance to connect with like-minded people who enjoy watching their dogs thrive.

🐶 Maximum of 6 dogs
📍 Different location each outing
🕕 Monday evenings (most weeks)
💚 Free for existing Human Canine Enrichment clients

Participation is available to dogs that have completed an assessment and/or individual session with Linda to help ensure a positive experience for everyone involved.

Come along for the adventure, the connection, and the joy of watching your dog become more confident in the world—one outing at a time.

Bookings: https://www.humancanineenrichment.com.au/contact-bookings

16/04/2026

This 👇🏼👌🏽❤️🐶❤️

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/15qkDUcmV7R/?mibextid=wwXIfr

𝗜𝗧'𝗦 𝗧𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛 𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗡𝗢𝗪, 𝗕𝗨𝗧 𝗬𝗢𝗨'𝗟𝗟 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘

We've just come off an amazing weekend, where my dogs took home 8/10 qualifications on offer in Scent work, 6 of those with Belmont at Excellent level.

This weekend has had me reflect on the tough journey here because when you're in the midst of the tough, it's hard to acknowledge that you'll get there with time, persistence, and 3rd party help.

I imported Belmont from the Czech Republic; he came out of Quarantine at 13 months of age, full of p**s and vinegar, and also being a primative of a breed I had never had before.

I knew the road was going to be challenging to take this non-traditional sports dog breed down the road I wanted to go on, but I'm also pretty headstrong myself.

I understood there was a genetic bandwidth to what we could achieve and that he was not going to train or perform like a traditional sports breed, but I also didn't want to use that as an excuse....more so, an understanding and having reasonable expectations.

The Xolo is an incredibly smart breed, very trainable, but lacks biddability. They're quite sighthoundy in personality, and some have said they're like training a Huskie to be a people pleaser 😅 There are, of course, outliers who behave like Labradors!

The Xolo is headstrong, independent, and self-interested, and they want to see what's on offer. They also like to be aroused and can be sensitive to the environment and their humans' emotions.

I fkn love Xolos!!!! I think they're so awesome, quirky, sassy, and just so funny! They love to be silly, and they love to play, but they can also be moody like a teenager and cross their arms and say "no" 😅

I do have to say that Belmont's daughter, whom I bred and raised myself, whilst still Xolo in temperament, has been a joy to work with mostly 😂

The first year of Belmont was challenging; he did not want to be on the same page; he wanted to be his own person. He did not want rules and boundaries. He didn't want to train, and his mental resilience was low, so you couldn't even ask much of him.

I've always worked with professionals with my past dogs. I really enjoy private sessions and classes to advance your skills and have another set of eyes on the dog, especially in sports, and that's what I did with Belmont.

Sometimes you have to change professionals until you find the one that works best for you and the dog, and Belmont went through 2 scent work trainers until he got to one that had worked with a number of primatives before and really got him, and from that first session, he just blossomed. And that's not to say the first 2 weren't good, they were well regarded with other people I knew who worked with them.

The same for agility, although I don't really do much agility other than private lessons once a week - his current trainer really gets him, her own personal dog is a bit like him, so it was good to get her insight about how to work with him in agility, which required a lot of braining that he didn't want to do.

Then my good friend, who is an all-round trainer and has a really good head for tricky dogs. When I first started working with her, she'll remember this, I said "I don't think this dog is ever going to sit". It's not that he couldn't, it was because he did not want to. He didn't want to do a lot of things 😂 She was such a massive help in that first year in keeping me positive and on track and is still my sounding board today if I want another opinion on something.

Today, Belmont is a pretty cool dog, and a pretty easy dog these days.

Whilst Xolos had only been in the country for around 15 years, he quickly became the most accomplished Xolo in Australian history. He is the most versatile and the most titled, currently with 28 titles to his name.

Belmont is the result of a lot of hard work and a lot of time, but I've also learned to meet him in the middle.

If you're in struggle town at the moment, gather the people who know more than you around you, gather the people who want to see you succeed - I think that's the most important thing.

There will people that will try and minimise your success, focus on your failures rather than clap for you, but just let them motivate you to achieve even more.

Know that with time, persistence, help from friends and great minds.....and some grunt, you can reach your own milestones even when they seem impossible right now.

Get comfortable with the fact that failure is how we learn.

Lastly....allow yourself the years vs months to reach your goals, don't rush yourself or your dog.

Interested in Xolos? Join us at:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/xolodownunder

---
Photo: Ben

06/04/2026

Really worth listening to ❤️🐶

There's more to those beloved pouty-eyes than you might think. Join our Director of Sciences, Janna Levin, as she hosts experts Brian Hare and Alexandra Horo...