Meet Jodie Krammer
Jodie is your trainer and owner of Boo Magoo's Positive Pooches. She is an animal lover from way back and has always had animals in her life from cats and dogs to bearded dragons, axolotls and even a foster wallaby. She has been in the business of helping and training humans most of her working life as a volunteer responder and training officer with St John Ambulance, a first aid trainer with the Queensland Ambulance Service and currently, as an FCO, trainer and peer support officer with Queensland Fire & Emergency Services.
She has seen and experienced the difference that a positive relationship with a dog can have on a person, whether it be the family pet, a Delta therapy dog or a working assistance dog. Her aim is to help owners build the foundation of a life-long bond with their pooch and make training an enjoyable experience for both human and dog in a safe and supportive environment.
In addition to her career in emergency services, she has a keen interest in the way companion animals can assist people with mental health challenges and has first hand experience in training one of her own dogs as a psychiatric assistance dog. She also volunteers with Fresh Start Rescue - a relationship without which Boo Magoo's may never have eventuated.
She lives and works in Brisbane with her husband, her three maremma sheepdogs - Bundy Bear and her two Fresh Start foster fail girls, Boo Magoo and Emma Maremma - as well as two cats -Yasi, a rescue Himalayan cat, and Cookie the tortoiseshell.
Qualifications & Memberships
- Professional Member - Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) Australia
- Provisional Member - Pet Professional Guild Australia (PPGA)
- Bachelor of Arts (Psychology)
- Certificate IV Training & Assessment
- Certificate IV Frontline Management
- Certificate IV Companion Animal Services (partially completed) - Delta
Who is Boo Magoo?
In October 2014, I volunteered to do a last minute transport run for two maremma sheepdogs that had been picked up by Fresh Start Rescue and needed a ride to their new foster carer. While 2 year old Max was more than happy to jump in the car for the trip, the 8 month old female pup, Annabelle, was terrified and had to be lifted into the car where she tried to hide from the world under Max on the back seat all the way to their new foster home.
Two weeks later, the BWD (big white dog) taxi was called upon again, this time to take Miss Annabelle to a vet appointment and then to Acacia Ridge Pet Resort to board for a week or two. She managed to have a few hours relaxing with my maremma boy, Bundy, who took an instant shine to the young lady, impressing her with his toys and paddling pool. Even Yasi the cat approved of Miss Annabelle!
Two weeks in the kennels passed and after seeing how well Annabelle and Bundy got along during her previous visit, I offered to be her new foster carer and home she came. I probably knew what the outcome was going to be, even before picking her up from Acacia Ridge and I'm pretty sure she knew as well, judging by the grin on her face in the car on the way home (pictured). The next few months were spent building up her confidence, teaching her to trust people again and giving her plenty of love and TLC to make up for the not-so-great first 8 months of her life. We officially "foster failed" in April 2015 - one of the few occasions the word "fail" is a positive - and renamed her Boo to celebrate her "fresh start" in life!
Jodie