Scaredy dog inspired scaredy cat

A bout of canine anxiety which saw local author Heather Gallagher’s dog run from another dog during a beach walk has inspired her latest picture book, Scaredy Cat.

Ms Gallagher said her dog Pip suffers from anxiety, which has worsened over the last year and when he ran away she asked him why he was so scared.

“We were walking on the beach one day and he ran away from another dog. When he finally came back I asked him why he was such a scaredy cat – and then those words kept playing around in my mind,” Ms Gallagher said.

“The idea evolved into a look-and-find style picture book where a little girl asks readers “Have you seen my Scaredy Cat? He’s afraid of this and afraid of that.”

She said readers look for a tail or a paw or other parts of the animal in each spread, until scaredy cat is finally revealed.

“While it’s primarily intended as a fun read for kids, it could also act as a jumping off point for talking about anxiety,” Ms Gallagher said.

Pip’s story has been brought to life by Queensland illustrator Anil Tortop with the book to be officially launched at Bookgrove in Ocean Grove by local vet Alicia Kennedy on June 9 at 3pm.

Alicia is the founder of Cherished Pets; a unique veterinary service that supports pets and people at all life stages and $1 from every book sold at the launch will be donated to Cherished Pets.

To RSVP to the Scaredy Cat launch phone 5255 5973 or [email protected].