Your dog isn't being difficult. He's being a dog. I help you read what he's telling you, so the behaviour you want follows without constant instruction.
236+ Google reviews
Read what clients say →
15+
Years of
Experience
Where would you like to start?
Dog owners
Private training from $400
Dog trainers
PACE Intensive from $1,500
Breeders
Breeder partnership: $160/puppy
Dog owners
Private training, puppy program, and online consultations worldwide.
Private training from $400 →Dog trainers
Cohort program. Theory online, shadowing in Melbourne. Small intake.
PACE Intensive from $1,500 →Breeders
Partner rate for the Good Puppy Blueprint. Free development guide included.
Breeder partnership: $160/puppy →
Melbourne-based, originally from Hong Kong. Veterinary Science degree, Masters in Early Childhood Education, fifteen years across zoos, wildlife reserves, and assistance dog programs before launching my own practice in 2022.
My dog Murphy is a certified assistance dog. She's calm and reliable off-leash and around other dogs. Not because I drilled her. Because I stopped commanding and started listening.
What I believe
Most dogs I see haven't been trained badly. They've been read wrong. They're under-rested, given too much freedom for the brain they've got, and asked to perform when there's nothing left in the tank.
No method on earth fixes that, because the problem isn't method. It's diagnosis. The whole reframe lives in a short PDF I've written. Eight chapters. The conversation I have in the first ten minutes of every session, so you can have it with yourself first.
Read the guide — $10 →The insight came from a dog before Murphy. Kirin was trained for assistance dog work, built around cues and reinforcement. She was reliable in the right hands. But assistance dog placement requires a dog that works for a handler who may be in pain, managing a medical episode, or hands full with children. Someone who can't always give a cue at the right moment. Kirin wasn't suited to placement for that reason. Not because she wasn't trained well. Because the training depended on the handler being capable.
That's the ceiling. Obedience that requires a capable handler fails exactly when it's needed most. In a normal household, that's most of the time.
That question led me to a different approach. Not how to get a dog to respond to commands, but how to set up a life where the dog makes good decisions because the structure makes the good choice obvious. Murphy is what that looks like in practice.
Read All Client Reviews →15+
Years across zoo, wildlife, and private sectors
3,000+
Dogs transformed across Melbourne and online
236+
5-star Google reviews
BSc + Masters
Veterinary Science and Early Childhood Education
A cohort program for dog trainers who want to build a practice on something more than obedience cues. Two parts: theory delivered online to the whole cohort, and shadowing in person in Melbourne. The framework is PACE: PLAY, ANCHOR, CALM, EXPLORE.
Six live theory sessions cover learning theory, body language reading, equipment, behavioural needs, the PACE framework, and session structure. Eight shadowing sessions put you in real client homes alongside Diona, watching the method in practice.
WhatsApp support runs throughout. Every applicant is reviewed before a place is offered.
Paper-based knowledge has a ceiling. Courses give you a vocabulary, but not judgment. Judgment develops through proximity to someone who has been in the room with hundreds of cases and can watch you work and tell you specifically where your timing is off. That transfer happens in person, over time. It is the part most trainer education skips.
This cohort is for you if:
Part 1: Theory
Online · Six live group sessions over six weeks · Learning theory, body language, equipment, behavioural needs, the PACE framework, and session structure
$1,500
Part 2: Shadowing (requires Part 1)
In person, Melbourne · Eight sessions sitting in on real client work including reactivity cases · Debrief after each session
$2,200
Bundle: Parts 1 + 2
Founding cohort rate · Save $200 · Payment plans available
$3,500
What my students say
AUD $400 · 90-min initial session
For dogs 12 weeks and older
One-on-one sessions tailored entirely to your dog. Whether it's leash reactivity, anxiety, aggression, or a dog who listens when he feels like it. We work on the actual problem, not a generic curriculum.
After the initial session I'll recommend whether a follow-up program is right for you. Most clients continue with one, and the four-week program is enough for almost all cases.
Sessions run Wednesday to Saturday. I take on a limited number of new clients each week. Fill in the form to check current availability.
What's included
How it works
Fill in the form
Tell me about your dog, your goals, and your availability.
I'll be in touch
I'll review your enquiry and reach out to discuss the right program and schedule.
We get started
First session begins with a full behavioural assessment and a training plan built around your dog.
You keep the progress
Week by week, the changes stick. WhatsApp support between sessions the whole way through.
Booked already? Fill in The Waterline Workbook first — $25 PDF, seven days. We skip the first thirty minutes of context-setting and go deeper, faster.
Free assessment · 2 minutes
AUD $440 · 9-week self-paced
For puppies under 12 weeks. This program starts before your puppy comes home, not after the chaos does. Replace puppy school with expert guidance you access anytime, anywhere.
Preparation before day one
Lessons designed to be completed before your puppy arrives home.
2 personal video call check-ins
20-minute calls with Diona directly, included in the program.
Weekly socialisation tasks
Structured week-by-week guidance through the critical first weeks.
Available worldwide
Fully online. Accessible from anywhere, at your own pace.
★★★★★"We can't say enough great things about Diona and her program. Absolutely recommend."
★★★★★"Patient, supportive, and explains everything in such a clear, practical way. Our puppy Stormi absolutely adores her and sees her as part of the pack."
For Breeders
Your job doesn't end at handover. The Good Puppy Blueprint Partnership gives every family you place a puppy with a structured 9-week program, so the work you put into early socialisation actually carries through.
Puppy families who struggle in the first few weeks come back to the breeder with questions. This program means they have real support, and your reputation stays intact.
$160
per puppy
Standard Partnership
Full 9-week online program for each puppy family, with 2 personal video check-in calls. 65% off the individual rate.
$600
per litter
Premium Live Support
Includes 2 live group sessions (weeks 7 and 9) for your puppy families, plus full program access.
Free Guide
The Week-by-Week Puppy Development Guide: Birth to Handover. Practical breakdown of what to do, what to socialise to, and when.
The methodology, in writing
Methodology · Routine
A standard walk is daily practice at reacting for a dog who isn't ready for it. Structured cycles replace walks until the dog has the regulation to handle a walk without both of you just surviving the experience.
Read →
Methodology
Reactive dogs aren't unpredictable. The Still Waters waterline model explains why the same dog walks past six triggers and reacts to the seventh, and what to do about it.
Read →
Foundation
Every dog's day, organised into four distinct modes with different expectations and rules. Most behaviour problems aren't about the dog's temperament. They're about mode confusion.
Read →
Fill in the form and I'll get back to you to discuss which program fits your dog and your goals.
Fill In the Form →Not sure which one fits? Email me directly and I'll point you to what makes sense.