Our detector dogs are an important part of Australia’s biosecurity system, working across airports, mail centres and cargo facilities to help detect and prevent biosecurity risks. They couldn’t do their vital work without dedicated support from the kennel team behind them.
The care each dog receives throughout their working life has a strong focus on health and wellbeing and is tailored to their individual needs.
For Perrie, a Kennel Supervisor in Sydney, supporting detector dog health and wellbeing means understanding the needs of each dog in her team’s care. Working alongside kennel attendants as part of the National Kennelling, Transport and Canine Health team, Perrie helps ensure dogs receive high-quality daily care that includes feeding, grooming, exercise and enrichment.
"Our goal is to make sure our dogs are fit, happy, healthy and ready to go for work when they are deployed," Perrie says.
The team focuses on all aspects of the dogs' wellbeing while they are in their care, from health checks and grooming to enrichment activities that support their physical and mental health. By getting to know each dog's individual personality and needs, kennel attendants can provide tailored care that helps them thrive.
Purpose-built kennel facilities support this work, providing dedicated spaces for health care, training, exercise, and enrichment. We continue to invest in modern infrastructure, including the new, whole-of-government kennel facility at Western Sydney International Airport, which features specialised training areas, day yards, grooming spaces and enrichment facilities.
For Perrie and the team, quality care is fundamental to supporting detector dog health, wellbeing and operational readiness. Through their dedication and expertise, the National Kennelling, Transport and Canine Health team helps ensure detector dogs in their care are healthy, motivated, and ready to do what they do best: help protect Australia's borders.
Watch
“My Name is Perrie, and I am a kennel Supervisor in Sydney.”
What are the main responsibilities of a kennel supervisor?
So as the kennel supervisor, I work as part of the broader kennelling and transport team and work really closely with our kennel attendants to facilitate the daily feeding, cleaning, grooming, enrichment activities for our dogs.
Our goal is to basically make sure that our dogs are fit, happy, healthy, ready to go for work when they need to be deployed in their work locations.
How does the team ensure the health, welfare and wellbeing of the detector dogs in the kennels?
The welfare and wellbeing of our dogs is so important in making sure they are fit and ready to go to work.
We follow strict husbandry and welfare guidelines when carrying out the duties at the kennel facilities.
We have purpose-built facilities that allow us to perform regular health checks on our dogs, grooming, making sure that all of their husbandry needs are being met.
Enrichment and welfare is also a massive part of what we do here so making sure the dogs are mentally stimulated and also having their physical and their energy requirements met.
The kennelling and welfare of our dogs is so important in making sure our dogs continue to love what they do and to be ready to go into the field every day and our team of attendants really do get to know the dogs and individual needs and they can tailor their care based on those individual needs.
And we work closely with the detector dog capability and detector dog operations teams and make sure that any information is regularly communicated.
How is the department investing in modern kennelling facilities for detector dogs?
The department is investing in a whole range of new and upgraded facilities for our dogs.
It's a really exciting opportunity to get to design spaces not only for the dogs but also for our people that focus on improving wellbeing and operational performance.
One of the first facilities where we have been able to model this is the Western Sydney International kennel facility.
The site looks amazing and we can't wait to start work on similar builds.
What is the benefit of having purpose-built facilities for detector dogs?
Healthy happy dogs perform better, good kennel management ensures the dogs are fit, well cared for and ready to carry out their important biosecurity work every day.
It’s a key foundation for the program’s success
