About us

Two Australian Shepherd dogs sitting side by side, facing forward, with a white background.

Dogs are social animals. Some of the most important things they learn, they learn from each other.

Safe, positive time with dogs of different ages, sizes, and breeds teaches them how to read body language, respect boundaries, and understand proper dog manners. Puppies learn from seniors. Younger dogs learn patience. Older dogs set calm boundaries. They all have something to teach.

Dogs who miss this kind of social learning often become unsure or nervous around other dogs. That insecurity can grow into fear-based behaviour over time.

Socializing isn't just about play. It's about learning, confidence, and trust.

At Dogstar, giving dogs a safe place to learn from one another, play together, and grow into the best versions of themselves is at the heart of what we do.

  • Close-up of a woman with pink and blonde wavy hair wearing glasses and a red top, with a textured gray background.

    Linda

    Linda came to Dogstar in 2009 looking for part-time work she could bring her dogs to. Seventeen years later, she's still here. That's probably all you need to know about how it went.

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    She's been studying dog behaviour her whole life, less as a formal pursuit and more as something she can't switch off. What she's learned over those seventeen years, across every size, age, breed, and background, is that dogs don't judge each other the way people assume they do. They aren't reading breed or size. They're reading energy and body language, and the rules don't change depending on how big the dog is.

    Her approach in the yard is closer to a bouncer than a referee. She's not intervening in every interaction. She's watching, reading the room, and letting dogs have their own experience with each other. Tension introduced by humans is often the thing that turns a moment into a problem.

    Every dog is still a new lesson. After seventeen years, that hasn't changed.

  • Close-up of a woman with long light brown hair, blue eyes, and wearing a light-colored tank top and a small necklace, smiling in front of a blue background.

    Jasmine

    Jasmine came to Dogstar the way a lot of good things happen: her dog Arlo used to come here, she saw a job posting, and it felt less like a decision and more like an inevitability.


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    She spent years in a grooming salon before landing here, which means she arrives with both a practiced eye and zero illusions about what dogs are actually like. Her take: every dog carries its own personality and its own insecurities, and the job is figuring out which is which.

    Her favourites are the goofy ones. She's good with most, but the goofballs have her heart.

    One moment that stuck. Jasmine used to be genuinely afraid of shepherds after a bad experience as a kid. Then she spent a day babysitting Vader, a shepherd who turns out to be one of the sweetest dogs in the building. She doesn't let old fear write the story anymore.

    At home she has Dexter (Belgian Shepherd/Collie), Arlo (Lab/Cane Corso), and DeeDee, a calico cat who presumably tolerates all of it.

    Outside work she runs a mobile nail trimming side business, putters in the garden, and takes her family to the river when the weather cooperates.

    Ask the dogs to describe her and she'll tell you: kisses, food, and sneak attack.

  • A smiling woman with brown hair and freckles, wearing a grey shirt, standing against a light blue background.

    Stasa

    Stasa has been at Dogstar since fall 2011, which makes her the kind of person who has seen everything and stays unrattled by most of it.


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    She didn't grow up comfortable around dogs. Some early experiences left her wary, and instead of leaving it there, she went looking for understanding. What does this look like from the dog's point of view? That question has driven most of her working life, from helping on a family farm to caring for parrots to landing at Dogstar through a friend's tip over a decade ago.

    Her specialty is the shy ones. She watches for the small signals: body language loosening, a tense dog starting to settle, the moment a nervous animal decides the room is safe. She finds those shifts genuinely interesting, not just professionally useful.

    Ask her about her favourite part of the day and she'll give you all three: the bright morning energy when the dogs arrive ready to play, the midday lull after they've burned it off, and the heavy-eyelid afternoon when serious napping takes over.

    Outside work she makes jewelry and ornaments, tends a garden, and photographs insects and plants. The through-line is the same: she pays close attention to small things.

    She hopes the dogs would describe her as a friend, trusting, and calm. After almost 15 years, they probably would.

  • A young woman with long dark hair, wearing a black hoodie, a black choker, and layered necklaces, standing against a light-colored wooden wall.

    Charley

    Charley has been at Dogstar for five years, but she's been in the world of dogs much longer. Growing up, she learned alongside her mom, a groomer who taught her early that dogs communicate constantly and that reading them is a skill worth building.

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    She's good with anxious dogs. Not just patient with them, but genuinely interested in the process of helping them settle, watching regulation happen in real time as a nervous dog finds its footing.

    What keeps her coming back is progress. Seeing a dog grow in confidence, watching behaviour shift over weeks and months, knowing the team's consistency is part of what made it happen.

    The dogs would probably describe her as silly. She's fine with that.

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Golden retriever dog laying down, looking at the camera with a happy expression.