Catch Laura V each Sunday at 3pm 

Friday Afternoons 2.30pm

There has never been a question of where I would end up in a career.  It was always destined to be one with animals, but as I grew older, I became more and more interested in not just the biology of animals, but the psychology of all living things; particularly when it came to the relationships between human and animal.

I was always the kid who was outdoors, sitting with the dogs and watching the birds. Riding bareback around the paddocks and feeding the calves in their stables, when they had been rejected by their mums. There were many nights I would sleep in the stables with the animals, even when I was just a young primary school kid. In many ways, I have been raised by them. They would follow me and in turn, I always ensured they were cared for, loved and listened to. That's the thing about your childhood, if you're lucky enough to learn from animals at a young age, you get to understand them and develop a passion for their welfare and happiness. They make us better people.

When I finished school, I studied a Bachelor of Animal Science, then Archaeology and then Post Graduate studies in Education and Psychology at Monash and Yale University. My passion for animal welfare became more specific to dogs when I met Chester, my 9 year old staffordshire bull terrier. An animal completely at the mercy of my empathy and understanding changed my life and now, I get to lecture all over the country on just how powerful the relationship can be.  After spending over 10 years working at Zoos Victoria, I moved away into my own business and called it something that my best buddy and I came up with; Dognitive Therapy.

Dognitive therapy was founded not just because of Chester, but because of the millions of dogs who face a lifetime of suffering each year in this world, because they are simply not understood as sentient and intelligent animals. It has become my lifelong passion. My existence revolves around helping people understand their dogs the way their dogs deserve. When an owner applies dognitive therapy to their dog's emotions and behaviours, their life improves as well as their dog's! There is quite honestly, nothing better that seeing the relationship between owner and dog flourish and bloom into a positive and fulfilling mateship. It is what I live to see. And, the best part, it is incredibly simple and easy to acheive.

Dogs are inherent experts in traits we spend a lifetime trying to acquire including; trust, respect, empathy, responsibility, loyalty, gratitude and mindfulness. If we let them, dogs make us better people. I cant wait to take you on a journey toward understanding your dog. You won't look back!  ... Because your dog will be right at your side.