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Help your dog with Alex and Harriet

Welcome to The Nugget, a 24k gold newsletter about Castlemaine's people and events

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The Nugget
May 02, 2025

★ How to help your dog cope with the world ★

Harriet Alexander and Alex Matsoukas

Levitating and screaming. That's what my dog Phoebe does when she encounters another dog on a walk.

I've been trying to help her through this, but we've hit a wall.

I would bet that I'm not the only person in town with a dog that struggles to be in the world. So, I have been looking for local experts who can help us.

Castlemaine dog trainer, Alex Matsoukas, has been where I am. She knows that having a dog with tricky behaviour can be isolating.

“People feel embarrassed, they feel ashamed, they feel like they've done something wrong and often it's none of those things,” Alex says.

“We can help your dog. It will take practice and repetition and patience … and it will work. It does change. It just takes some time."

Did anyone else really need to hear that, or, just me?

Thank goodness for compassionate trainers like Alex, of Dig Dog Training and Harriet Alexander of All Dogs are Good.

"We both just want to have dogs in the community that do feel happy and safe and aren't a threat to things," Harriet says.

"It feels like a really nice thing to bring people together who are facing a similar struggle.”

Alex and Harriet have teamed up to run a 5-week puppy course. It opens this month at the Wesley Hill Hall.

They also help dogs of all ages curb chasing and reactivity, improve recall and more.

It’s good for people to know that dog training is not regulated. Anyone can claim to be trainer and practice without any qualifications. There is a lot of conflicting information in the marketplace and it can be hard to know which training approach to take.

Alex and Harriet are both part of professional membership bodies including the Pet Professional Guild Aus, which does not use fear, pain, or force to change behaviour.

They focus on rewarding positive behaviour.

Their puppy class is designed for young pups because the most important window for socialization is before dogs reach 16 weeks of age.

"That's when puppies are just a lot more open to new experiences and less likely to become really fearful of new experiences, provided they're exposed to things in a nice, happy way,” Harriet says.

“That window's so crucial for getting puppies out there, getting the learning happening and building that relationship with their person.”

It’s safe for dogs to take part as long as they are up to date with their vaccinations, per their vaccination schedule.

The first week is online, without the puppies.

"That's because puppies are really distracting and there's a lot of important information we want to share and get people on board with, right from the start. Then we go straight into four, in-person practical sessions with the puppies and we've also got support calls for the owners in between," Harriet says.

A week in puppy life is a lot and the owners' need to debrief is real.

"Stuff happens and the dog's toileting in the wrong place and it's quite frustrating. We wanted to be able to quickly support people in those moments. So, we are including 20-minute support calls,” Alex says.

Harriet and Alex have both had transformative experiences with dogs that led them to leave careers in the arts industry to become full-time trainers.

Harriet was living in London when she adopted a rescue dog.

"I thought I knew loads about dogs because I grew up with dogs. I quickly discovered I knew very little.”

Harriet’s dog had an awful past and a lot of complex problems.

"I went through what I think a lot of dog owners do, which is trying lots of different things before I found the thing that really worked for him.

“Then I just … got the bug. I just couldn't stop thinking about dogs and dog behavior, so I ended up following that track, doing various courses on dog behavior. And then the hobby became the job. So that was, gosh, yeah, over 10 years ago.”

She moved back to Australia and switched her focus from training city dogs to working with country dogs.

Harriet specializes in chase behavior, which can be deadly in the case of snakes and dangerous for everyone.

"It's something we see a lot of in this area because there's lots of wildlife and there are also lots of dogs that love chasing, particularly some of our working breeds and dogs that were that were bred to control movement,” Harriet says.

“So, it's very hard for them sometimes to resist that desire."

It's important to acknowledge that chasing and reactivity are not going to be solved in a day.

Alex has some good words of encouragement on this front.

"It feels impossible when you start training. You're like, is this gonna work? It's a lot of being, like, trust the process," she says.

"I have been where you are, I know that feeding some food to a mat will not make everything change right now, but it will pay off. Be kind to yourself and be kind to your dog because it is a journey and, yeah, it doesn't change in a day."

Both Harriet and Alex have worked with aggressive dogs who have completely changed their behaviour and gone on to work as mentor dogs, helping other pups who are still learning.

Change happens. It's possible. And... pssst, Phoebe: Alex is coming for you.

❀ Are you a tapper? ❀

Full disclosure: I am not a tapper and I don’t really know what tapping is.

Merchants of Mostyn are going to help me fix that, today, and you can come, too.

MoM is hosting a free tapping instructional and Q&A with resident tarot & tap practitioner, Mel-O.

I think we can expect a lovely, witchy gathering. It’s open to folks like me, who have no idea, and the more advanced.

I’m looking forward to the chance to learn, unwind, and connect.

Did I mention there there will be also be gin cocktails and 20% off storewide? Madness. See you there.

  • Fri, 11 Apr, group tapping starts at 5:30 PM

  • Sat, 12 Apr, group tapping starts at 3:00 PM

♡˖ EVENTS ˖♡

𖥔 TALK TO MOI PLOISE 𖥔

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