Purple Pup

𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗘𝗡𝗦 𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗩𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗧?

For most of her life, Elaine Cebuliak has been the one asking the questions, examining the patient, questioning medicine and trying to work out what might help.

Then she found herself on the other side of the examination table.

Her new book, 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗪𝗲 𝗦𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄, is Elaine’s deeply personal account of living with an aggressive gastric cancer and discovering that, as it turns out, she makes a particularly troublesome patient. 😂

This isn’t a book about “fighting cancer”.

It’s about living while you have it.

Cancer is certainly in there, but so are family, food, grief, friendship, science, uncertainty and the peculiar language of modern oncology. There are metastatic “pirates”, cancer treatments that sound suspiciously like IKEA furniture, blended soup in Bali and the extraordinary kindness of friends.

It’s medically curious, irreverent, sometimes difficult, often funny and unmistakably Elaine.

And underneath all of it is a question much bigger than medicine: what actually matters when life suddenly refuses to follow the textbook?

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗪𝗲 𝗦𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄
by Elaine Cebuliak

📱 eBook: US$8.99
📖 Paperback: US$24.99

𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂, this book may be for you.

👉 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞: All proceeds go to one of Dr Elaine's many charities, both here and overseas.
👉 https://books.by/naturopathvet/the-things-we-swallow

📍 1016 Stanley Street East, East Brisbane QLD
🕗 Mon–Fri 8am–6pm, Sat 9am–1pm (Closed Sundays & most public holidays)
📞 (07) 3393 1359
🌐 animalwellness.com.au

Want to explore what’s right for your pet? Book a consult - we’re here to help.

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Signs of pain are often very subtle in dogs. Noticing (and acting on) those small changes in behaviour can make a huge difference. 🙏🐾💜

The subtle sign of discomfort most dog guardians miss during daily walks.

Have you ever noticed your dog pausing for just a few seconds before stepping off a high kerb? Or perhaps they stop and hesitate at the open car boot, taking a moment to look up before making the leap?

When we think about physical pain in dogs, we usually watch for an obvious limp or a dog who is actively slowing down. But dogs are incredibly resilient, and subtle physical discomfort rarely shows up as a limp right away. More often, it shows up as micro-shifts in how they navigate everyday movement.

A brief pause before jumping into the car, choosing to walk around a small step rather than over it, or taking longer to settle onto their bed after a stroll are not signs of stubbornness or 'getting moody in their old age'. They are gentle signals.

Physical health, emotional wellbeing, and behaviour are deeply connected. When a dog is living with low-grade joint stiffness or muscle discomfort, their stress threshold shifts. A dog who feels physically uncomfortable may suddenly seem more reactive to noises on walks, less patient with other dogs, or more sensitive to being handled.

Behaviour is simply information. It tells us how a dog is coping with their internal and external world in that exact moment. When we stop looking at a hesitation as a training issue to fix and start looking at what sits underneath it, we can begin supporting the underlying cause.

If you have noticed subtle changes in your dog's movement or daily habits and want to unpick what might be happening, our Quick Check assessment offers a simple, video-based first step to review their functional movement. See link in the comments.

Tell us in the comments: what tiny habit or movement change have you noticed in your dog recently?

"Training is about making good choices easier for your dog." Love this! 🐾💜

What if your dog reacts? 🤔

First things first, don't panic. A reaction isn't a setback; it's information. It simply tells us that your dog is finding the situation too difficult right now.

Instead of pushing through, remember these simple steps:

🐶 Retreat – Create some distance and help your dog feel safe.
👀 Evaluate – What caused the reaction? Was your dog too close, overwhelmed, or surprised?
📝 Adjust – Change your plan to set your dog up for success next time.
⭐ Capture – Reward the behaviours you want to see, even the small wins like checking in with you or choosing to disengage.
🍖 Treat – Dogs repeat what works. Reward the behaviours you want more of because you get what you reinforce!

Training isn't about perfection It's about making good choices easier for your dog.

Every reaction is an opportunity to learn, adjust and build confidence together.

For more information, please see our blog: https://www.dogtrainerliverpool.co.uk/what-to-do-when-your-dog-reacts/

Xylitol is an increasingly common ingredient in prepared human foods, especially in sweet things, but also peanut butter, and various sauces. Highly toxic to dogs, even in just a single lick. ⚠️⚠️⚠️

It's grim up North! 🤣

I’m really sorry, but the situation is getting worse. The more of the North I see, the bleaker the evidence becomes.

Just look at this absolute misery from Boulby - towering cliffs, the scars of the old alum workings slowly being reclaimed by nature, Staithes lurking horribly in the distance, blue skies, blue seas and mile after mile of dramatic coastline. Honestly, how are people expected to cope with this level of dreariness?

I’ll keep documenting it, purely as a public service. But please, take the warning seriously: there’s nothing to see here. It’s grim up North.

Sniffing is my very favourite natural dog behaviour.

And it's not just because it's Pepper's very favourite thing to do. 😉

There are SO many things I love about sniffing:

💜 Practically all dogs enjoy sniffing, given the opportunity.

💜 It's really easy to provide our dogs with plenty of opportunities to use their noses.

💜 The canine olfactory system is mind-blowingly, and endlessly, fascinating.

💜 Sniffing is really good for dogs. It lowers their heart rate and releases seratonin and dopamine.

💜 And scentwork is so much fun. For everyone.

But one of my very favourite things about sniffing is that it's the one natural dog behaviour that works alongside (almost) all the other natural dog behaviours.

👍 When and where a dog chooses to dig?

Probably, something to do with their nose.

Digging is a useful hunting behaviour and dogs have always used their noses to find things to eat. (They might also be able to hear, or even feel the movement of creatures below the surface.)

Perhaps digging is just a way to relish further investigation of a smell on the surface.

Or to find a place to cool down, or to stay warm. Canine noses are also fabulous heat detectors.

👍 Other hunting behaviours, like tracking and trailing, are literally all about their noses.

Here, their noses excel. Finding things is one of those incredible canine superpowers we can only marvel at.

Sniffing is a behaviour that makes dogs leaders, and humans followers. (And I absolutely LOVE that! 😁)

👍 Chewing obviously involves the nose, if only in the decision of whether or not to chew something.

👍 Foraging, and scavenging. Of course.

👍 Problem-solving is a natural behaviour for dogs. And those beautiful noses make dogs excellent problem-solvers.

They have a totally different perspective on the world. It's like they have access to a completely different dimension.

And they can solve lots of problems we can't solve for ourselves.

👍 Exploring. Sniffing is a dog's way of finding their way around the world. Their primary way of processing information in the environment.

Watching a dog follow their nose is one of my favourite things to do, ever. 🥰

But sniffing is not just fun for dogs.

It's serious stuff.

It plays a huge part in their wellbeing. 👌

Sniffing also influences social engagement, encourages curiosity, and underpins confidence.

In zoopharmacognosy, dogs can use their clever noses to choose the perfect remedy for themselves.

Dogs often use sniffing as a distraction, or to self- soothe.

In fact sniffing is a really helpful decompression technique. For a dog, and for their humans. Walking along with a dog who is relishing the environment through their nose, is a thing of real joy. 🥰

Stopping frequently on the end of the lead to sniff stuff encourages whoever is at the other end of the lead to just breathe. To slow down for a while. To be curious. To enjoy a few mindful moments.

On the other hand, it's one of the few natural behaviours you and your dog can take up as a fun sport to do together. Lots of different sports. 🤷‍♀️

Or even a career. There are dogs out there doing all kinds of amazing jobs with their noses! Finding cleverly smuggled contraband, truffles, burst water pipes, endangered species, and lost people or animals...

Using their noses to detect several human illnesses. Or to help someone manage an illness, or mitigate a disability...

And it's all a huge game for them. Because they absolutely *love* using their noses.

Really, it's my very favourite natural dog behaviour because it's just so incredibly cool! 😁

For dogs and their humans.

In all kinds of ways.

Let. Them. Sniff. 🙏🐾💜