Puppy yoga brings paws, poses to Eastern Beach

PUPPY love and mindful movement met Eastern Beach at the weekend as Puppy Yoga Melbourne brought its much-loved offering to the area for the first time.

Last Sunday, the Pavilion at the Geelong Waterfront opened its doors to locals looking to enjoy an hour of relaxation and puppy cuddles, with sessions now becoming a fortnightly occurrence moving forward.

Founded by couple Brittany and Darren Attard in January 2025, Puppy Yoga Melbourne is a unique program where instructors run a laid-back yoga session whilst a group of adorable puppies roam the space.

After operating as Victorian Government-licensed breeders for over 12 years, Brittany explained the idea came as they noticed how important socialisation initiatives were for their four-legged friends.

Attard said the blend of puppies and yoga equally benefits both parties, particularly for the former when they join their new families.

“It definitely is a huge dopamine hit.

“We find a lot of people come with busy lives… and they just want to almost forget and relax for that one hour.

“But in turn, they’re also benefitting the puppies just as much, because they’re obviously taking in new scents and different textures and environments.

“It really builds their confidence and develops their nervous systems, so when they go off to their new homes for the first time, it’s not like they’ve been ripped from this one environment from the last 10 weeks and then placed in a whole new one.

“It is pretty much a 50/50 benefit to both humans and puppies, (and) that’s why we’ve got a bit of a tagline that says ‘their socialisation and your happiness’.”

A typical session begins with brief meditation, before the puppies enter the space and interact with participants.

“They will naturally go and say hello to everyone, they’re quite social little beings!” Attard said.

“Everyone gets equal opportunity of interaction, we’re really mindful and the facilitators are trained to be mindful that everyone does get (that).”

Attard added that the Pavilion in Geelong was a dream location, particularly as people begin to crave more than a sleep-in on weekends.

“I feel like today, people are wanting more meaningful weekends, (they are) wanting to get up earlier and go for that walk or enjoy those meaningful experiences.

“We try to pick great locations where they can go for a coffee afterwards or go for a walk or make it a whole day type thing.”

For more information or to book into a session, head to puppyyogamelbourne.com.au