kat-the-dog-trainer

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Can I ask, who is Bree?

Seems the time to answer this. For those who don’t know.

Bree is a girl who I’ve never met. I did give her some bad feedback on her writing many years ago, which resulted in a bit of a childish teenage feud online. Years later, in 2016, she decided to take all my Facebook and Instagram pics and statuses (and images from sites I hadn’t used in ages - the worst one I found was from 3 years prior to all of this). These included pictures of my friends, family, wildlife in my care, even my dog. She made a blog called crazy-possum-lady, in which she posted all those images, interspersed with made-up statuses about beastiality fantasies and fetish porn.

Tumblr users reported the blog - but they reported me, because I was the person in the pictures (and were encouraged to do so by a page called report-a-predator, which was quickly revealed to be run by drastically underqualified teenagers). 

So I had a very uncomfortable chat with my wildlife rescue group and the RSPCA. All of which has been cleared up. Confidentiality agreements have even been signed. SAPOL and ACORN got involved. Unfortunately, legal ramifications for Bree have been somewhat difficult. As far as we can tell, her actions are certainly illegal in her state, but cyberlaw is hard to fight. Even when it cost someone their local reputation, and almost stopped me from working in the wildlife field (which thankfully, I do now!)

When the water got hot, she deleted her entire current blog, but we’ve already got all the screenshots linking her to crazy-possum-lady. Been planning to put them online for a while, buuut ...

Well, in my experience, Tumblr seems to have an issue with vigilante justice. I experienced it myself, and I’ve seen the disgusting things sent to r-a-p following this post I made. Don’t get me wrong, I hate this girl. She nearly stopped me from being able to pursue my biggest passion in life, cheesy as it sounds. But I can’t be part of that kind of insane pseudo-justice with a clear conscience. That’s why I’m not saying anything but her first name, that’s why I’m not linking the blog she abandoned (her personal blog), and that’s why I’m on the fence about putting my evidence online. If this can be settled quietly and through legal routes, that’s preferable.

If not, then hell, it’s all going up.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Screw your stalker smdh I hope she backs the fuck off and leaves you alone once and for all

I hate having to talk about her so much tbh. She doesn’t deserve the attention. But now that I’ve got a few followers it’s good to have a few extra sets of eyes on the look-out. 

The girl wants to be a teacher. If she’s got any sense, she’ll recognise that impersonating people online doesn’t look great on the ol’ resume.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Psa

Just had an insta notification that my stalker is following me. Guessing that it was accidental given that she immediately unfollowed, but please keep your eyes peeled.

The fact that she's on my page still puts me on edge. Remember that in the past, this girl has taken my Facebook/insta images and pretended to be me. This is my only blog. You see this face elsewhere, tell me.

Love ya lots folks.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

is there any other good blogs with training tips on you recommend?? i love your post btw they are really helpful

@humanelytrained is my personal favourite here.

Outside of tumblr: Karen Pryor, Zak George and KikoPup!

(And thank you!!)

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Why did you get into animals

I’ve been trying to find the right words to answer this, but honestly the simple answer is: I really like animals.

And whilst I love dogs (don’t get me wrong - LOVE dogs) my passion is wildlife, particularly Australian wildlife. We’ve got such beautiful native animals who are so susceptible to feral invasion, habitat loss and human activity. We also top the world in mammal extinctions. To me, that was a field that was really important to get involved in - it’s why I did wildlife rescue for so many years (and continue to help out - despite Bree’s imitation blog last year. They’re well aware who was running that blog so that cleared my name up quickly), it’s why I’ve volunteered at multiple zoos, and it’s why I’m so happy to have this new job.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

No context.

Well kiddo, that’s enough out of this then. I’m happy to face constructive feedback, but in respect to my followers I’m not going respond to pointless posts.

I’d wish you a great day, but given it’s most likely Bree … I dunno, just have a day.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Ur posts on tickld are gone!

Awh, that’s a shame. I miss Tickld.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Didn't you have an account for Monty too. I forgot the url 😭

I did, but I’ve since disabled it. Good memory!

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

How is it different training disabled dogs? (blind, deaf or missing limb)

I’ve trained disabled dogs that are visually impaired or deaf before, and honestly it depends on the dog and the owner.

For visually impaired dogs, verbal cues need to be bang on point, because you don’t have a hand signal to fall back on. These owners need to rapidly get ahold of the (very human) urge to repeat commands if they’re not being followed - because that kind of mistake, for these dogs, can ruin the whole training regime. These dogs also benefit from directional cues such as left, right and stop. I’ve never trained a fully blind dog, though.

Deaf dogs have the opposite issue: verbal cues are not effective, so you need distinct hand signals, including a reliable “look at me” (engagement) cue.

I’ve never trained a dog with a missing limb - although I have trained dogs with limited mobility, and that’s just been a matter of patience. Monty is living proof that a little patience goes a long way with differently-abled dogs :) 

It’s all doable.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Your Commands (As Viewed By A Dog)

[Their name] - look at the owner

Sit - bottom on ground

Drop - whole body on ground

Stay - don't move

Come - go to owner

No - dont go there???? dont stay still???? dont go on that??? dont jump on that person???? dont growl???? dont bark???? Dont eat that??? Dont refuse to eat???? Dont drink that??? Dont pee there???

Your dog can't do a "no". Stop using it for every adverse behaviour.

#does not apply to NRMs

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Dog owners: "Pfft I can't use that positive reinforcement crap on my dog! He's too big!"

Modern Zoos: *exclusively utilise positive reinforcement training on lions, rhinos, chimpanzees, tigers, hyena, crocodiles ...*

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Fake

Context...

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Your description says you already have your b.s.

It just says "B.Sc Animal Sciences" as far as I'm aware. And I have one elective left, meaning all the core competencies are completed. I've been holding out for the past year for one particular course to round it out and gear it a little more toward my career path

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

What degree! What certification!?

Degree: B.Sc in Animal Sciences. One elective left for that oneCertification: Cert III Captive AnimalsAlso hoping to knock out either a Cert IV or a graduate certificate in Captive Vertebrate Management down the track.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

Your blogs kinda dumb

Can't win em all :)

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

How much time do you spend brushing/grooming your fur children? It's a lot of fluff between three dogs XD

Not super often! Daisy mostly has puppy fluff which doesn’t shed a huge amount - and a daily maintenance brush for Monty and Shimmer helps to keep it mostly under control.

It also doesn’t hurt that I’m pretty chill about dog fur on the carpet.

[kat-the-dog-trainer]

You're active a lot but you don't post very often do you have another Tumblr

I’m assuming you’re also the one who sent “How many tumbles do you run”?Just the one active blog. I do have the app which I often accidentally open instead of Facebook (blue app, y’know how it is). But I also do just scroll aimlessly sometimes so I guess that makes me look pretty active.

And I’ll be honest, I still log on to keep tabs on Bree’s old blog now and then - as do the others who were affected by her actions. Which, given that the girl tried to ruin my career and reputation, is a pretty fair move. Thankfully she seems to have grown up.