Let's Talk Dog Business Jo & Vicky

In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Kim Brophey, they will be talking all things L.E.G.S, but not in the way you may expect. She shares her journey from running her behaviour centre to launching her world-renowned L.E.G.S course, teaching, consulting and presenting. Kim has recently launched a new online education centre to reintroduce Applied Ethology to the industry.

She talks about dealing with imposter syndrome, online bullying, being at the helm of two huge businesses and getting back to enjoying a more balanced life. 

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Working in the dog behaviour field is emotionally as well as physically demanding. You have to recognise this and create enough space to top yourself up.
Dog behaviourists need support to help them with mental health.
Tribalism is currently destroying the dog industry. It is in shambles. We need to find a middle way.
We must stop judging each other so harshly.
Dog training is a mix of task and care. Currently, we are often too focused on the task.
Think about the human half of the relationship.
Whatever a client brings to you is just the tip of the iceberg.
Invest in your client and their dog as a family unit and be prepared to work with them across the long term.
How you treat dogs impacts how you treat humans. If you Alpha Roll dogs, the chances are you are doing something similar to people too.
Market to the right customers for you and systemise everything.
The industry still values credentials over merit to the point where it has become disruptive. We are all still learning.

BEST MOMENTS

‘The model is burnout, bleed yourself dry. It's  a self-destroying martyrdom kind of profession.’

‘We are making more of an impact one human being at a time … they are then going to start treating their other humans in their lifestyle differently .’

‘Forget the ego system, join the ecosystem.’

 

GUEST RESOURCES

https://www.familydogmediation.com/

SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS

https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness

https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com

Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/

 

KELLY DUNBAR MENTORSHIP

https://mailchi.mp/c3b471796d88/kelly-dunbars-more-than-mentorship-membership-inquiry

 

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The ultimate hub for dog business enthusiasts! 

Join hosts Jo and Vicky as they unravel the entrepreneurial journey within the canine realm. This podcast delves deep into the business side of owning a dog business, spotlighting inspiring stories of individuals who've seamlessly woven their passion into a profitable lifestyle. Tune in for candid discussions on the human behaviour behind dogs, strategies to attract dream clients, and a behind-the-scenes look at Jo and Vicky's collaborative training ventures. Get ready for client interviews, tales behind the dogs, and insightful perspectives from actual dog owners on what they seek in a trainer. This is your go-to source for navigating the dynamic world where business meets the wagging tails.

In this episode, Jo & Vicky discuss why winging it with no plan, isn´t any good for anybody. They both share what motivated them to start a dog training business. Vicky explains how losing focus on her why led to her winging it which created problems for her and her business. Jo & Vicky discuss why that happens and how to completely avoid that situation.

They also discuss how having a clear why and goals makes running your business so much easier and helps you to grow. Jo & Vicky also explain exactly how their business coaching service works.

 

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Figure out your purpose, write down your why, and plan how you are going to achieve that business why.
If you cannot clearly explain what your business does, and achieves for your clients, you need to identify your business why.
Once your business why is clear, marketing becomes super easy. You know who you are trying to reach, the problem you solve and the benefits.
A clear why helps you to set more focused goals.
If you don´t believe in what you offer, you won´t be able to sell it.
Charging a bit more does not mean you care less about the dogs. If you don´t earn enough to pay the bills you have no chance of turning up for your clients with a healthy mindset.
Retaining your customers in one complete service for a longer period of time is much better than having them complete a course, take a break, and then trying to tempt them back to take another more advanced course.
Aim to make the customer journey as smooth as possible.
Do what feels right for you.

 

BEST MOMENTS

‘I wanted to play my part in preventing the problems that people relinquish their dogs in rescue for. ´

‘If I hadn't concentrated on understanding what that why was, then I wouldn't have been able to grow the business in the way that I did.’

‘Never ever think that if you start having targets that are financial, that that is going to take away from your clients because it won't.’

 

 

SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS

https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness

https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

 

KELLY DUNBAR MENTORSHIP

https://mailchi.mp/c3b471796d88/kelly-dunbars-more-than-mentorship-membership-inquiry

 

 

Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com

Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/

 

 

 

ABOUT THE HOSTS

 

Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

 

 

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The ultimate hub for dog business enthusiasts!

Join hosts Jo and Vicky as they unravel the entrepreneurial journey within the canine realm. This podcast delves deep into the business side of owning a dog business, spotlighting inspiring stories of individuals who've seamlessly woven their passion into a profitable lifestyle. Tune in for candid discussions on the human behaviour behind dogs, strategies to attract dream clients, and a behind-the-scenes look at Jo and Vicky's collaborative training ventures. Get ready for client interviews, tales behind the dogs, and insightful perspectives from actual dog owners on what they seek in a trainer. This is your go-to source for navigating the dynamic world where business meets the wagging tails.

In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Andrew Hale, a human behaviourist who switched to specialising in the behaviour of other animals, in particular dogs. He, Jo & Vicky discuss, in-depth, how to take care of your wellbeing while working in the dog industry.

Andrew explains why the damaging behaviour patterns he sees in those who work in the industry develop and what to do about them. This episode is packed with practical advice you can use to build your self-esteem, avoid burnout, ensure that you get to do the work you love and truly help your clients.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


We need to consider the well-being of ourselves, as well as that of our clients.
Compassion is powerful, it enables you to care for and help others even those with which you do not agree. Self-compassion is the most powerful.
Compassion fatigue is an issue. Andrew explains how to tackle it.
Emotional health is like physical health you need to work at it.
Be yourself and confident in your abilities. You don´t need to spend an hour convincing a client you know what you are doing.
Don´t dismiss feelings borne out of trauma. Instead, learn to change your relationship with that trauma.
Stop letting guilt chain you to the past.
Celebrate your wins.
Find your purpose and be yourself.
Some things will work others won´t, that´s OK, accept that fact.
If things are not working out for a client, find out why and guide the client through it.

BEST MOMENTS

‘People talk about finding ways to believe in yourself. Actually, I think the first thing is to find ways to be yourself, ´

‘Burnout, compassion, fatigue, and imposter syndrome, they're all kind of connected.’

‘The more our purpose is about our mission, the better.’

‘You cannot be empathetic and compassionate to others. If you're not compassionate, with good boundaries yourself.’

 

EPISODE RESOURCES

https://dogcc.org

Socials - @DogCentredCare

https://caninearthritis.co.uk/

SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS

https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness

https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com

Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/

 

KELLY DUNBAR MENTORSHIP

https://mailchi.mp/c3b471796d88/kelly-dunbars-more-than-mentorship-membership-inquiry

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The ultimate hub for dog business enthusiasts! 

Join hosts Jo and Vicky as they unravel the entrepreneurial journey within the canine realm. This podcast delves deep into the business side of owning a dog business, spotlighting inspiring stories of individuals who've seamlessly woven their passion into a profitable lifestyle. Tune in for candid discussions on the human behaviour behind dogs, strategies to attract dream clients, and a behind-the-scenes look at Jo and Vicky's collaborative training ventures. Get ready for client interviews, tales behind the dogs, and insightful perspectives from actual dog owners on what they seek in a trainer. This is your go-to source for navigating the dynamic world where business meets the wagging tails.

In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Hannah Molloy to talk about how to find your purpose and why character development is important for growing your business. Hannah is a qualified animal behaviourist who with her team has trained 10,000 dogs in 10 years and featured in the TV show Puppy School. Today, she is a government advisor, author, and the creator of a dog body language qualification.

Hannah shares how she built her business and the role that grace, manifestation, her faith and giving back have played in her life and success. 

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Take a step back and think about character development – Get a mentor.
Hannah´s purpose is to train as many people as possible to understand dog body language. With the aim of improving how people treat dogs.
All of Hannah´s successes have come about from being brave and saying yes then showing up and giving her best. 
You can have the most successful business in the world, but if you have not been working on your character you will experience burn-out.
When you run a big business regularly remind yourself of why you are doing it.
You have to work on being good with people as well as dogs. 
Do not be afraid to charge enough. 
Collaborate with other trainers.
Writing a book, automatically gives you authority and when it sells well it becomes an asset that earns you money without you doing more work.

BEST MOMENTS

‘For me, changing the world looks like people being kinder to their dogs. ´

‘What you define as success, if you are growing, will continually shift.’

‘Use social media, don´t let social media use you.’

 

EPISODE RESOURCES

https://www.amplifiedbehaviour.com

Socials - @amplifiedbehaviour or @thehannahmolloy

Hannah´s book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Whats-My-Dog-Thinking-Understand-ebook/dp/B08DXZ6MK1/

Strength Finders - https://www.amazon.co.uk/StrengthsFinder-2-0-Upgraded-Discover-Strengths/dp/159562015X 

SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS

https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness

https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com

Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/

 

KELLY DUNBAR MENTORSHIP

https://mailchi.mp/c3b471796d88/kelly-dunbars-more-than-mentorship-membership-inquiry

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The ultimate hub for dog business enthusiasts! 

Join hosts Jo and Vicky as they unravel the entrepreneurial journey within the canine realm. This podcast delves deep into the business side of owning a dog business, spotlighting inspiring stories of individuals who've seamlessly woven their passion into a profitable lifestyle. Tune in for candid discussions on the human behaviour behind dogs, strategies to attract dream clients, and a behind-the-scenes look at Jo and Vicky's collaborative training ventures. Get ready for client interviews, tales behind the dogs, and insightful perspectives from actual dog owners on what they seek in a trainer. This is your go-to source for navigating the dynamic world where business meets the wagging tails.

In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Sarah Whitehead, an internationally renowned canine behaviour and trainer, speaker, and author. She started working in the industry 35 years ago when only Barbara Woodhouse talked about dog training. At that time, hardly anyone had heard of positive reinforcement clicker training. 

Sarah talks about what working in the industry was like. She, Jo & Vicky discuss how to manage the fact that working as a dog trainer is so stressful and how to reduce your stress levels. Sarah also reveals a really interesting new dog business model which anyone can start providing.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Research shows that being a dog behaviourist is incredibly stressful.
Sarah´s research has revealed that most dog trainers share remarkably similar personality traits. 
Weirdly, dog trainers are more likely to be blood group A.
Set boundaries and stick to them.
Stop treating your business like a hobby.
Get off the hamster wheel.
Look at things from a client perspective. Ask – is this something my clients really want or need? If it is not, don´t waste your time and energy on it.
People are paying a fortune for pre-trained dogs.
Add an online booking system to your website and the ability to book a call with you.
You learn a lot more from doing than you will from constantly taking courses.
Focus on offering the service that you enjoy delivering.
Imagine what you want your business to look like in a year. Then, take the necessary steps to get there.
Look outside of the dog industry and learn from other successful business owners.

BEST MOMENTS

‘From the outset, go, this is what I want to do, and this is what I don´t and be really comfortable with that. ´

‘We need to make it much easier for people and be much more professional.’

‘Invest in yourself, invest in your business…it will avoid burnout.’

 

GUEST AND EPISODE RESOURCES

https://sarahwhitehead.com/

https://sarahwhitehead.thinkific.com/

SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS

https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness

https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com

Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/

 

KELLY DUNBAR MENTORSHIP

https://mailchi.mp/c3b471796d88/kelly-dunbars-more-than-mentorship-membership-inquiry

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The ultimate hub for dog business enthusiasts! 

Join hosts Jo and Vicky as they unravel the entrepreneurial journey within the canine realm. This podcast delves deep into the business side of owning a dog business, spotlighting inspiring stories of individuals who've seamlessly woven their passion into a profitable lifestyle. Tune in for candid discussions on the human behaviour behind dogs, strategies to attract dream clients, and a behind-the-scenes look at Jo and Vicky's collaborative training ventures. Get ready for client interviews, tales behind the dogs, and insightful perspectives from actual dog owners on what they seek in a trainer. This is your go-to source for navigating the dynamic world where business meets the wagging tails.

In this episode, Jo & Vicky talk about dog training from a client's perspective. They are sitting down with Jess Bolton, who is an author, podcaster and content creator who mostly works on Instagram. Through these mediums, she has been telling the story of Jess her very anxious 10-year-old whippet and their new anxious dog Otto. Sharing her experiences and those of other owners of anxious pets.

Jess explains how specialist trainers have helped her and her husband to understand their anxious dogs. Enabling them to help both dogs, while looking after their own mental health.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Most dog owners are not well equipped to look after an anxious dog.
Learn how to read your dog´s body language.
Overcoming separation anxiety takes a while, so you have to be really committed.
Jess first got help over Zoom, during the pandemic. Not all anxious dog training has to be done in person.
Some of the behaviours are brought on by medical conditions, which need to be addressed first.
Owning an anxious dog can limit where you can go and when which can negatively impact your mental health. Be aware of this and be strategic about tackling this issue.
Sighthounds are predisposed to anxiety.

BEST MOMENTS

‘She's worried about leaving the house, meeting new people and being anywhere near the edge of her comfort zone. ´

‘With anxious dogs, you have to go straight to the professionals and get yourself some really robust support.’

‘Manage those expectations up front.’

 

EPISODE RESOURCES

https://www.worriedwhippet.co.uk/

Worried Whippet by Jess Bolton - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Worried-Whippet-Book-Bravery-Bolton/dp/1400242126

https://www.instagram.com/worriedwhippet/

Brave Little Podcast - https://shows.acast.com/brave-little-podcast

https://www.tiktok.com/@worriedwhippet

SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS

https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness

https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com

Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/

 

KELLY DUNBAR MENTORSHIP

https://mailchi.mp/c3b471796d88/kelly-dunbars-more-than-mentorship-membership-inquiry

ABOUT THE HOSTS

Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

PODCAST DESCRIPTION

The ultimate hub for dog business enthusiasts! 

Join hosts Jo and Vicky as they unravel the entrepreneurial journey within the canine realm. This podcast delves deep into the business side of owning a dog business, spotlighting inspiring stories of individuals who've seamlessly woven their passion into a profitable lifestyle. Tune in for candid discussions on the human behaviour behind dogs, strategies to attract dream clients, and a behind-the-scenes look at Jo and Vicky's collaborative training ventures. Get ready for client interviews, tales behind the dogs, and insightful perspectives from actual dog owners on what they seek in a trainer. This is your go-to source for navigating the dynamic world where business meets the wagging tails.