MEET OUR STAFF
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| KAREN 💙🐾Founder & Owner | Head pack leader
Karen comes from a long background in medical management, but her true passion has always been dogs. 🐶💙 🐾 A Lifelong Love of AnimalsKaren’s love of animals began as a child, growing up in a family where animals were always a big part of everyday life. That lifelong love eventually became the inspiration behind Waggy Tails Doggy Day Care, which Karen opened in 2017. 💙 The Inspiration Behind Waggy TailsOne of the biggest driving forces behind Waggy Tails was Karen’s much-loved late English Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Zac. 💙🐾 While working long hours in demanding roles, Karen knew all too well the guilt that came with leaving Zac home alone for up to 12 hours a day. She dreamed of creating somewhere he could spend his days being cared for, making friends, playing and having fun in a safe and friendly environment. That dream became Waggy Tails — a place created not only for Zac, but for other busy dog owners who wanted the peace of mind of knowing their four-legged family members were safe, happy, loved and having plenty of fun while they were away. 🐶🐾 🎓🐶 Training, Qualifications & ExperienceKaren combines her many years of hands-on experience running Waggy Tails with formal training in dog behaviour, training, animal first aid and business management. Her qualifications and training include:
These qualifications, together with her years of experience working with dogs in a busy day care environment, have given Karen a strong understanding of canine behaviour, body language, group dynamics, safe handling and the importance of creating a structured and positive environment for dogs. Her background in management, combined with her canine training and practical day care experience, also plays an important role in developing the policies, procedures, safety standards and day-to-day practices that underpin Waggy Tails. 🐶💙 A Special Love for StaffiesKaren has had a special love for English Staffordshire Bull Terriers for more than 40 years and is now the proud fur-mum to two beautiful boys — Erik, her English Staffy, and Tony, her French Bulldog. 🐶🐶💙 Both boys are very much part of the Waggy Tails family, and you may spot them around day care from time to time, happily soaking up the attention and keeping an eye on everything! 💻🐾 Behind the Scenes at Waggy TailsThese days, you’ll occasionally find Karen in reception, where she loves having a chat and catching up with Waggy Tails fur-parents. Most of the time, however, she’s busy behind the scenes in the office, keeping the wheels turning and making sure everything at Waggy Tails runs smoothly. After many years of owning and operating Waggy Tails, Karen has developed a wealth of knowledge and experience and is always happy to help owners with questions about their dogs and day care. For Karen, Waggy Tails has always been about more than simply providing somewhere for dogs to spend the day. It is about creating a place where owners can leave their dogs knowing they will be cared for, understood, kept safe and treated as part of the Waggy Tails family. 💙🐾 🏋️♀️🏉 Away From Waggy TailsWhen she isn't busy with Waggy Tails, Karen enjoys weightlifting with her PT, long weekend walks, cooking and watching the footy. She is also a very passionate Port Adelaide supporter! 🏉 And the things Karen simply can't live without? ☕ Coffee, spicy food, and cheese and crackers with a G&T! 🌶️🧀🍸
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| Leah 💙🐾Team leader | pack leader | Pawparatzi
Leah brings a wonderful combination of animal experience, enthusiasm, leadership and a genuine love of dogs to the Waggy Tails team. 🐶💙 💙 Leadership & Team CommunicationAs one of our Team Leaders, Leah plays an important role in the day-to-day running of our daycare. She works closely with the team to ensure our policies, procedures and high standards of care are consistently followed, while helping to create a safe, positive and well-managed environment for every dog that walks through our doors. Communication is one of Leah’s strengths. She is great at supporting and guiding the team, providing clear direction and helping ensure everyone is working consistently when it comes to dog handling, group management, safety and our daily procedures. 🐾 🐶 Passion for Dog Behaviour & EnrichmentLeah is particularly passionate about dog behaviour, handling and enrichment. In a busy group daycare environment, understanding each dog's individual personality and behaviour is incredibly important. Leah enjoys building relationships with the dogs, learning what makes each of them tick and helping them feel comfortable and confident while they are in our care. 🐕💕 🐴 A Lifetime of Animal Experience 🐐Leah’s experience with animals extends well beyond dogs. Over the years, she has worked with dogs, alpacas, horses, goats and chickens 🐕🦙🐴🐐🐓, so caring for animals has long been a significant part of her life. Her varied background includes working as a farm hand, in dog boarding kennels and as an alpaca shearing roustabout. She has also worked as a mentor with children on a school farm, teaching them about animals, responsible animal care and how to safely interact with them. 🎓🐕 Training & Professional DevelopmentLeah has continued to build on her practical experience through further education and training. She has completed an Animal First Aid course, Do More With Your Dog Trick and Fitness Instructor courses, as well as multiple dog handling workshops. She has a real interest in continuing to learn and develop her knowledge of canine behaviour, body language, training and enrichment, and loves being able to put those skills into practice with the Waggy Tails crew. 🐾 🐾 More Than Just SupervisionFor Leah, working with dogs isn't simply about supervising them throughout the day. She believes in interacting with them, understanding their behaviour, providing appropriate boundaries and making sure they receive plenty of positive engagement, enrichment, love and affection. 💙🐶 Her calm communication style, animal experience and commitment to maintaining our Waggy Tails standards make her a valued part of our leadership team. 📚🍳 Away From Waggy TailsWhen Leah isn't at Waggy Tails or surrounded by animals, you'll usually find her cooking 🍳, reading 📚 or spending even more time with her animals. 🐾 And the two things she couldn't live without? Chocolate and her animals! 🍫🐶🐾
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| Annetteteam leader | pack leader | Pawparatzi | infection control management
Annette brings more than 12 years of professional cleaning experience, strong organisational skills and a lifelong love of animals to the Waggy Tails team. 🐶💙 Her extensive cleaning background spans residential homes, retail environments and large commercial and factory settings, giving her a wealth of practical experience in maintaining clean, organised and hygienic environments. Annette has also worked as an Assistant in a dog grooming salon, giving her additional hands-on experience working with dogs of different breeds, sizes and personalities. This experience further developed her confidence around dogs and her understanding of the importance of calm handling, patience, hygiene and making dogs feel comfortable while in her care. 🐶🛁✂️ 💙 Leadership & Team CommunicationAs one of our Team Leaders, Annette plays an important role in the day-to-day running of Waggy Tails. She works closely with the team to ensure our policies, procedures and standards are consistently followed, while helping to keep our busy daycare organised and running smoothly. 🐾 Annette is a great communicator who isn't afraid to take initiative. She provides guidance and support to the team, helps keep everyone on track throughout the day and ensures the high standards we expect at Waggy Tails are maintained. 🧼✨ Infection Control & HygieneWith her extensive professional cleaning background, Annette has a particular focus on cleaning, hygiene and infection control within our facility. Maintaining a clean daycare environment is incredibly important when caring for large groups of dogs. Annette helps oversee our cleaning and sanitisation procedures, ensuring the team follows our established protocols throughout the day. From the play areas and equipment to our floors, surfaces and shared spaces, Annette has a keen eye for detail and helps ensure our facility is maintained to a high standard. 🧹✨ Her knowledge and experience are particularly valuable in supporting our infection-control practices and helping us provide a clean, safe and hygienic environment for the dogs in our care. 🐶🐾 🐶💕 Pups, Paws & Plenty of LoveWhile Annette takes great pride in keeping Waggy Tails clean and organised, she'll happily tell you that the best part of her day is being greeted by a chorus of excited dogs and wagging tails. 🐕🐾💙 Annette has been an animal lover since her teenage years and has shared her life with dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs and birds. 🐶🐱🐰🐹🐦 That lifelong love of animals is something she brings to work with her every day. Annette believes that while structure, cleanliness and safety are essential, so too are affection, interaction and making every dog feel loved and welcome. She loves spending time with the dogs and makes sure there are always plenty of cuddles, belly rubs, love and affection to go around. 🥰🐾 🏡🐾 Annette's Home PackThe animals don't stop when Annette finishes work for the day! At home, she has two much-loved family dogs keeping her entertained: 🐶 Brucey – A Shih Tzu and a very lovable, sooky boy who is happiest when he's getting plenty of attention. 💙 🐕 Whiskers (aka Willy) – A Terrier who knows exactly how to win people over and will quickly become your best friend if there's a belly rub involved. 🐾 ☕🌻 Away From Waggy TailsWhen Annette isn't keeping Waggy Tails organised or spending time with the dogs, she enjoys watching a good movie 🎬, relaxing with a hot cup of coffee ☕, spending time in her garden 🌻 and catching up with family. And the things Annette simply couldn't live without? Her animals, family, good coffee, sweets and, most importantly, chocolate! ☕🍫🐶🐾
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