Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast

S4:E6 Retiring & Navigating The Passing Of A Therapy Dog (Guest: Sharlet Jensen) This week on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, Sam and I got to sit down with Sharlet Jensen, a Speech Pathologist based in Seattle, who's experienced the emotional process of retiring not one, but two therapy dogs, coping with the passing of her retired therapy dog, Johnny Utah and breaking the news to her clie...

S4:E5 Co-Regulation Between Handlers & Their Dogs, Impact On Relationship & Reactivity (Guest: Tim Pratt) This week on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, Sam and I had an opportunity to sit down with Tim Pratt, founder of Diverse Dogs, who shared his background in working with dogs and discussed the importance of understanding and managing emotions for both handlers and their dogs. This e...

S4: E4 Puppy Temperament Testing For Choosing A Future Therapy Dog (Guest: Serena Lynch) This week on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast we had the opportunity to sit down with Serena Lynch, the breeder & founder of M&M Companion Retrievers. This episode is best watched on our youtube channel as Serena shares some videos of temperament assessments from her previous litters and discusses wh...

S4: E3 Starting An Animal-Assisted Activities Business. This week on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, Sam sits down with go-getter Bree Rooney to discuss various aspects of running an animal-assisted activities business, including strategies for starting and growing the business, understanding roles and responsibilities, and best practices for working with dogs in different settings. They also...

S4:E2 School Therapy Dog: Sage’s Impact & Setting Up for Success (Guest: Natalie Esterhuysen). This week on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, Sam and I are joined by Natalie who has a therapy dog named Sage. We cover the positive impact of Sage on students at their school, and strategies for managing Sage in such a busy environment. Natalie also shared her experience of introducing Sage into...

S4:E1 What's On In 2025 For Therapy Dogs Australia Sam and Max chat about what 2025 might have in store, the heartbreak and healing that comes with losing a beloved pet, and, somehow, aliens and air fryers make their way into the conversation. We also share updates about our pets and some exciting plans for future podcast guests and topics. If you enjoy the podcast, don’t forget to like, subscribe...

S3.E16 Sonny's Legacy E16 Sonny's Legacy. Sonny, Sam's beloved therapy dog, crossed the rainbow bridge early on Monday morning, leaving behind a profound legacy, too great to put into words on the page. In today’s episode, Sam reflects on Sonny’s incredible career, from guiding her through her personal growth as a young adult, leading them into a caerer in animal-assisted therapy (before most peop...

S3:E15 Regulation In The Industry – Does It Exist?! Welcome to the Therapy Dogs Australia podcast. In this episode, Sam and Amy dive into the pressing need for regulation and accountability in the animal-assisted therapy field. They unpack the risks involved, sharing insights on professional responsibility and the importance of setting standards to protect both clients and animals. The conversatio...

S3.E14 Pet First Aid (Guest: Dr. Olga Lynn) Ready to learn pet first aid with Dr. Olga Lynn? Use this special discount code for 10% off: TDA10 Access the course here: https://drolgalynn.com.au/products/first-aid-course This week on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, Sam and I are joined by Dr. Olga Lynn, a veterinarian who created an Online Pet First Aid Course. We discuss recognizing early signs...

S3:E13 Navigating NDIS - Third Parties, Animal ASSISTED Therapy vs 'Animal Therapy' Quick recap Sam discusses the complexities of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and its impact on therapy sessions, emphasizing the importance of understanding the distinction between animal therapy and animal-assisted therapy. She also clarifies the role of tools and objects in therapy sessions, and...

S3:E12 Sam's Podcast Recommendations. See below the podcast/episodes recommended by Sam! Canine Paradigm: https://thecanineparadigm.com/ - Episode 275 Sam's Interview Part 1: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3UNthf2HXN7JYogDuu9ua7?si=y3CVGikIQlyji4Woa4Fzfw - Episode 276 Sam's Interview Part 2: https://open.spotify.com/episode/16322snDELZESZOFJiYWDn?si=xxIdGJLQSSWRl6SVsVF8bQ - Episode 284: Homeosta...

S3:E11 On the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast today, Sam had the opportunity to speak with Sue Clarke-Smith, a social worker and child and family practitioner who originally did our Clinical course with her senior dog Mickey and upon deciding the work would be too demanding for him, Sue made the decision to instead adopt a rescue puppy called Fonzi who has now graduated as a therapy dog to work alo...

S3:E10 Nurture Your Therapy Dog’s Personality & Hidden Talents With Breed-Specific Care On the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast today, Sam and Max are joined by Azelene Williams, a Counsellor, Social worker and Speaker who will almost always be accompanied by her therapy dog Zayda, a Hungarian Vizsla. Azelene goes into detail of how she brings out the best of Zayda's breed traits and personality...

S3:E9 Dog Breed Genetics: Harness Your Dog’s Strengths & Manage Limitations (with Brittany Muscat). Today we have the wonderful Brittany Muscat, also known as The Pet Girl (@iamthepetgirl) on the podcast today to discuss the role of dog breed genetics and how we can harness our dog's strengths while managing their limitations. We also go down a few rabbit holes about including dogs in our busy...

S3:E8 GP’s With Therapy Dogs - Incorporating Therapy Dogs Australia Training Methods Into Your Existing Toolkit. Today on the podcast Sam and I are joined by Dr. Anke Doley, a rural GP in South Australia who works alongside her therapy dog Jesse when seeing patients. Dr. Anke already had previous therapy dog experience and training before she connected with Therapy Dogs Australia, and shares how s...

S3:E7 Building Confidence & Resilience In Therapy Dogs. Today Sam is joined by Max O'Neill, owner of Down Under Dog Trainer, to discuss building confidence and resilience in current therapy dogs as well as in young dogs with a possible future therapy career. If you want to get in touch with Max you can head to his website www.downunderdogtrainer.com for more info. Enjoy! FOLLOW US! Interested...

S3:E6 Assessing Therapy Dog & Handler Teams Today on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, Sam and I discuss the assessment process for our courses, to assist those who may not understand the importance of the criteria and what we look for before we can pass a therapy dog and handler team from our courses. FOLLOW US! Interested in studying with Therapy Dogs Australia? Visit our website www.thera...

S3:E5 Decompression For Therapy Dogs With KONG. Welcome back to the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, you're in for a treat because we have a very cool conversation lined up today with Brittany Muscat from KONG Australia! We're going to be discussing the importance of decompression and enrichment for our therapy dogs and how the KONG Company product range can assist with those activities, whilst als...

S3:E4 AAT In Private Practice With Kids. Today on the podcast Sam and Max have a chance to speak with the lovely Maddi McLean. Maddi is a psychologist who works predominantly with kids, alongside her therapy dog Maple in private practice. We explore and discuss animal-assisted interventions that can be incorporated into therapy sessions and the challenges and joys that go along with that. Note tha...

S3:E3 Tips When Bringing Home A Puppy. Welcome to another episode on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast! Sam's Anatolian Shepherd puppy has arrived! She is raising Kiki to be a Livestock Guardian dog for her goats (hopefully!) and it's been an absolutely crazy first week. There's a lot of overlap and common considerations when raising a puppy, regardless of what future you intend for them - but es...

S3:E2 Frequently Asked Questions. So today on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, we're going to make our way through our most frequently asked questions - from the list on our website and beyond, diving into a whole lot of detail. This episode will be useful for people who like to understand the 'why' behind the answers to most of the FAQs that we get asked. This could be Animal Assisted Therapy...

S3:E1 What are we looking for in a Therapy Dog & Handler? Your Pre-Course Consult Questions Answered! Welcome back to Season 3 of the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast. Sam and Max are offering this podcast as a free resource for those who think they may need a Pre-Course Consultation before committing financially to studying with us. Typically, these consults are booked for a 1:1 setting, which...

S2:E16 Can I take my puppy to work or not?! There is so much conflicting advice out there about this question. You know why? Because the answer is it depends! Depends on what? Sam has finally broken the entire decision making process down in to a million pieces to help puppy owners to decide whether or not it is the right decision for them to take their dog in to their workplace or various other e...

S2:E15 Clinical or Community: Which Course Is Right For You? Clinical or Community: Which course is right for you? Today Sam and Mx take a deep dive into our two main courses at Therapy Dogs Australia and answer some frequently asked questions we receive from individuals who are looking to study with us. We explain in detail how to choose which course is most suited for you - this includes a discu...

S2:E14 Bush Adventure Therapy (With A Therapy Dog) Today on the Therapy Dogs Australia Podcast, we chat with the adventurous Josh McLean, a Social Worker and Bush Adventure Therapy Facilitator with Geelong Adventure Specialists who also brings his therapy dog Myrtle along with him on some of those adventures. Learn about the benefits and challenges of incorporating a Therapy Dog in to bush adventu...