An independent Australian dog magazine helping owners choose, train and care for dogs, from breed profiles and puppies to adoption, health and beach life.
Choosing, raising and living with a dog in Australia
Complete Australian Dog Guides
Start with the sections
Four guides, from choosing to everyday life
Each section opens with an index of its guides. Pick the breed questions, the puppy months, adoption and safety, or the week with a dog.
01Breed Profiles
How to read an Australian breed sheet before choosing: work drive, coat, size, health checks and the homes each breed actually suits.
02Puppy and Training Basics
The first months at home: toilet routine, basic commands, park manners and the habits that make a calm adult dog.
03Adoption Rescue and Safety
Adopting through shelters and breed programs, reading a rescue dog, and the Australian risks worth knowing: snakes, heat and roads.
04Everyday Life Beach and Services
The services and places that fill a dog week: day care, grooming, beaches, and the questions new owners keep asking.
Section 1 of 4
Breed Profiles
How to read an Australian breed sheet before choosing: work drive, coat, size, health checks and the homes each breed actually suits.
Breed Profiles
Australian Kelpie
Meet the Australian kelpie, a smart herding worker that needs daily runs, jobs and calm training, plus tips on coat, health signs and home routines.
A working dog first, a pet second: what that means at home.
Breed Profiles
Australian Cattle Dog
Meet the Australian cattle dog, a loyal heeler with strong herding instincts, and learn about exercise, training, social life and common health signals.
Heel, hold and hard work, bred into a compact frame.
Breed Profiles
Australian Terrier
Meet the Australian terrier, a small sturdy companion with a big voice, and learn about grooming, exercise, training and living in rentals or farms.
Small dog, long history, vermin-dog courage.
Section 2 of 4
Puppy and Training Basics
The first months at home: toilet routine, basic commands, park manners and the habits that make a calm adult dog.
Puppy and Training Basics
Ten Basic Training Commands
Teach sit, stay, come, heel and settle with short positive sessions, clear cues and rewards, plus fixes for jumping, pulling and poor recall outdoors.
Sit, stay, come, down and six more, in an order that works.
Puppy and Training Basics
Toilet Training a Puppy
Follow a steady toilet routine for puppies with timing, crate use and night breaks, and learn how to clean accidents and shape calm outdoor habits.
A schedule, a spot, and praise at the right second.
Puppy and Training Basics
Are Dog Parks Good for Dogs
Decide if dog parks suit your dog by reading body language and play styles, and manage greetings, high arousal, resource guarding and safe exits.
Good for some dogs, wrong for others: how to judge.
From the archive
Guides that keep their historical addresses
This domain published a dog day care and later a dog advice site for many years. These guides answer the questions those pages answered, at the same addresses.
Restored guide
Australian Kelpie
A working dog first, a pet second: what that means at home.
Restored guide
Ten Basic Training Commands
Sit, stay, come, down and six more, in an order that works.
Restored guide
Adopting a Retired Greyhound
Retired racers make quiet house dogs; the path is mapped.
Restored guide
Snakebite Risk for Dogs
First minutes matter: signs, carrying and the vet call.
Restored guide
What a Dog Day Care Does
What a good day care day looks like, hour by hour.
Restored guide
Taking a Dog to the Beach
Salt, sun, other dogs: a calm beach visit step by step.
Section 3 of 4
Adoption Rescue and Safety
Adopting through shelters and breed programs, reading a rescue dog, and the Australian risks worth knowing: snakes, heat and roads.
Adoption Rescue and Safety
Adopting a Retired Greyhound
Follow how adoption works for retired greyhounds in Australia's rescue system, from home checks and trial stays to exercise, coats and vet care today.
Retired racers make quiet house dogs; the path is mapped.
Adoption Rescue and Safety
Choosing a Shelter Dog
Visit shelters with a checklist for age, energy and history, ask about health and behaviour tests, and plan settling, training and costs at home.
The questions to ask before the paperwork, not after.
Adoption Rescue and Safety
Snakebite Risk for Dogs
Spot snake season risks on tracks and farms, learn signs of bite and shock in dogs, and act fast with restraint, pressure and urgent vet help on walks.
First minutes matter: signs, carrying and the vet call.
The reading room
Other independent dog sites worth a bookmark
The Verandah Post sells nothing and answers to no kennel club. These independent sites cover corners of dog life this magazine does not: training methods, coat genetics, joint and eye health, rescue work and breed law.
Outside this site
Alpha Dog Training NJ
A New Jersey training practice publishing plain guides on leash work, recall and household rules for family dogs.
Reward-based home training, US methods.
Outside this site
Border Collie Colors
A breed reference on border collie coat genetics, colour inheritance and the patterns behind each litter.
Coat genetics explained litter by litter.
Outside this site
Canine Joint Health
Guides on hips, elbows and ageing joints in dogs, with the checks owners can follow at home.
Hips, elbows and the ageing dog.
Outside this site
Canine Eye Certifications
What hereditary eye schemes test, how certification works and which breeds are screened most.
Hereditary eye screening schemes.
Outside this site
NC Rottie Rescue
A North Carolina rottweiler rescue sharing intake, foster and adoption notes from real cases.
Intake and adoption notes from real cases.
Outside this site
Breed Specific Legislation
Where breed bans exist, what the laws actually say and how councils apply them.
Breed bans and council rules mapped.
Section 4 of 4
Everyday Life Beach and Services
The services and places that fill a dog week: day care, grooming, beaches, and the questions new owners keep asking.
Everyday Life Beach and Services
Dog Beaches Around Melbourne
Explore off lead beaches near Brighton and Melbourne with seasonal hours, permits and fencing notes, plus etiquette for swimmers and wildlife nearby.
Where dogs may run on Bayside sand, and when.
Everyday Life Beach and Services
What a Dog Day Care Does
See what happens in a dog day care day from play groups and rest to feeding and cleaning, and compare staff ratios, safety checks and contracts today.
What a good day care day looks like, hour by hour.
Everyday Life Beach and Services
What Grooming Includes
Book a grooming visit with bathing, drying, clipping and nail care, and learn how coat type sets frequency, handling and skin checks in salons today.
Wash, clip, nails and ears: what the appointment covers.
Everyday Life Beach and Services
Taking a Dog to the Beach
Plan safe beach trips with dogs using shade, fresh water and lead rules, and watch for salt water, hot sand, rips and local council limits today.
Salt, sun, other dogs: a calm beach visit step by step.
Everyday Life Beach and Services
New Owner Questions Answered
Find clear answers on food, vaccines, desexing, microchips, barking, renting and costs, with links to official rules and help across Australia today.
The questions every first dog owner asks, answered plainly.
The verandah in pictures
Five views from the guides
Five photographs from the guides below, each with the page that explains the scene in full.
Field note 1
Beach mornings set the week
Leashed walks along the foreshore start most Melbourne dog days; the beach guide lists the rules.
Field note 2
Know the ground before the snake
A snake on the path is a normal Australian event; the snakebite guide covers the first minutes.
Field note 3
Read the park before the gate
Not every dog enjoys the off-lead crowd; the dog park guide shows how to judge the play.
Field note 4
Two dogs, one quiet street
Dogs still watch the street from the yard and the verandah; the everyday section covers the week.
Field note 5
Sand, salt and a calm exit
Rinse, dry, rest: the beach visit guide ends with the routine that keeps coats and paws sound.