Yanchep Two Rocks Alkimos Community

29/08/2026

29/08/2026

Adults, kids and dogs, and how to interact.

I had two encounters this morning while walking my dogs, one of whom is medium sized and the other large, that I think are worth mentioning.

Parents, please teach your children how to behave around dogs. If you’re unsure yourself, hopefully this post helps.

Dogs are animals. Even the most restrained, well trained and well behaved dog can be startled. They can react out of fear, surprise or simply because they don’t understand what is suddenly happening around them.

If children are running through an open space, please teach them not to run at speed directly up behind a dog, brush against it or squeeze past it unexpectedly. Give the dog some space and, if you want to approach or pat someone’s dog, always ask the owner first.

The same applies to adults.

This morning, someone walking behind us came right up alongside my very large dog and actually tried to physically push him out of the way as he passed. Naturally, my dog was startled and reacted by jumping up. Regardless of whether the dog is a large guard breed or a tiny companion dog, approaching from behind and unexpectedly touching an unfamiliar animal is simply not a smart
thing to do.

Think about how you would react if a stranger suddenly approached you from behind and put their hands on you without warning.

Dogs are not inanimate objects. They are living animals with instincts, fears and individual boundaries.

As dog owners, we absolutely have a responsibility to keep our dogs restrained, under control and behaving appropriately in public. But everyone else also has a responsibility to interact appropriately with animals they don’t know.

Ultimately, it just comes down to giving dogs you don’t know some space and using a little common sense.

Give them a wide berth. Don’t run up behind them. Don’t brush against them. Don’t reach out and touch them without asking the owner.

It really is that simple.

A little space and common sense keeps everyone safe, adults, kids and dogs.

28/08/2026

Sensor lights are a very helpful addition to your home. Not only can they sometimes act as a deterrent to would be prowlers, they are also incredibly useful for lighting up
driveways, entrances and areas around your property when you’re coming and going at night. But be mindful, they are not necessarily as big a deterrent as you might think. A determined burglar may simply break them, cover them or move them out of the way.

However, sensor lights should be positioned downwards, illuminating the area they are intended to protect, without unnecessarily inconveniencing everyone else.

People are perfectly entitled to use public footpaths at night, whether they’re walking their dogs, exercising or simply enjoying an evening walk. Unfortunately, some properties have extremely bright LED sensor lights positioned almost horizontally, meaning anyone simply walking past on the footpath gets absolutely blinded by them.

We are also seeing sensor lights being vandalised. While there may sometimes be nefarious reasons for this, it is worth considering that in some cases it could simply be people becoming frustrated after repeatedly being blinded while going about their own business.

So please have a look at your sensor lights. If you’ve installed one yourself, or had one professionally installed, stand out on the footpath at night and test it.

Point the light down towards the area you actually want illuminated. It will still serve the purpose you installed it for, while allowing everyone else to use our footpaths without being blasted in the face by a massive LED spotlight.

A little consideration goes a long way. 👍