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Hi, I'm Tim and this is Paws On Point. Enjoy the episode and don't forget to like, subscribe, share and leave a comment after.
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Hi! Are you okay?
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The Calm Dog Studio, founded in 2017, introduced a new concept to the dog grooming industry. A shared vision that brings the opportunity for you to be able to bring your fearful aggressive dog to the groomers, to the vet and even in general. By working with you to bring that fear and aggression to an overall calmness. How do they do it? Based on four core principles. If you see the value of keeping up with grooming,
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and you want to invest in your dog's health and happiness, you want to create the most positive experience for your dog, and you want to work on training and conditioning with your fearful or reactive dog, then the Calm Dog Studio is the place for your dog. I got the chance to sit down with the Calm Dog Studio crew in between their very busy schedule and talk about the beginnings, lessons dogs teach, and the dog world in general.
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So sit back and enjoy. The Calm Dog Studio, where did that begin? Was it an individual idea? Was it both of you coming together and formulating it? It was us coming together. Kind of just happened. It was literally happened during COVID. And we were sitting in the backyard at my old place and just we had a dream and time because of COVID. And we kind of just started with that. And then it just exploded after that.
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We had both, we met working together at a previous groom shop and it just, the shop itself got quite busy and it was a lot of stress and pressure on all of the groomers. Kayla was, I was the manager and Kayla had been hired on as my assistant manager and
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Things in the salon started out really great. We had a really great couple of years and then things, the dynamics just changed a little bit and it got to be really popular, really high pressure. Just tons and tons of clients and expectations and the burnout rate among our staff was unbelievable. We basically lost an entire staff base one by one, every groomer quit because the pressure to keep up with the demand was insane.
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And none of us were okay. so Kayla actually quit. And then I was the last one who quit and we were pretty much both really honestly on the verge of complete and total burnout of just feeling like we didn't even want to, you know, work with dogs anymore. And it was like literally right at the same time as COVID. And that's when Kayla, on the place she was renting, there was a little sort of like garden shed area and she completely converted it into her own little one person grooming space. And so that's where she.
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was working a couple of days a week. And when I quit, that's when we reconnected and she was like, hey, I have this space I built and it's just meant for one groomer, but I'm only using it half the week. And she offered to let me take my client list there and work there the other half of the week. then just naturally throughout COVID, we just spent a lot of time together and time together outside of that really high pressure environment that we were in, actually.
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didn't even get along super well. And a lot of times when we were working our previous place because of the demands that were coming from above that then I would have to put down. And it just, was a really tense, difficult environment. And working together during COVID like separately, but together really made us realize like how much we actually enjoy each other as people. And like Kayla was saying that we realized we really had the same dreams and goals and we were both single and
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Not wanting to wait for any external party to get our dream started. I had a client who wanted to invest in support my dream and believed that I, you know, we could do something really big. And so with his support, we were able to work together and come up with. Basically we spent a lot of time discussing what wasn't working and what made us really hate our jobs and really feel just sobered out and so unseen and so unhappy.
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And we just basically said, we're going to do everything differently, polar opposite differently. And in ways that I think a lot of people thought we were crazy. You can't make money this way. That's not how this industry works. No one's going to pay that. You're never going to be able to make that happen. And I think we were just so done. I, Kayla too had worked in lots of different environments in Saskatchewan as well. She'd done mobile grooming.
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taught grooming school, worked in high pressure salons. And so we had our hand at lots of different working environments and none of them were what kind of felt really good for us in terms of long-term. And then when we started kind of really deciding what is working for us and what isn't, that's when the idea of the Calm Dog Studio was born, that we just, wanted the same experience for dogs that we wanted to have.
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We were tired of feeling strung out and exhausted and we were tired of working with dogs who were strung out and exhausted. And so if we were going to do this, we wanted to just do it in a way that was going to be really sustainable. And that made us basically fall in love with our careers again. Yeah. It's interesting that you have to get to that point before it, the, before the conception begins. Do you see what I mean? you're like, right. And I think because everyone's used to getting to that point.
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They can't see it when you do come forward and go, so this is how we're going to do it. Everyone's like, why? That's not the norm. Yeah. It's so true. It's like, there has to be this massive breaking point before something can change. And it's something I wish now that we're on the other side of this, it's, I, we so want other groomers to get to feel this and how good it feels. And there's so many people who just.
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who aren't ready and who don't feel like it's possible and are still waiting for their own breaking point to feel like, okay, I can ask for what I need. I can determine how I want to engage with this industry. I think it's a tough one because I think there's people who are in.
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the line of work that we do and they love it and it's their passion, it's what they've always wanted to do. But that's as far as it can go. And now I'm gonna put myself in a vulnerable position now, but that's as far as it can go for them. Do you see what I mean? It's the dream, it's the passion. But I think there's another cohort of people that go, okay, that's not working, that's not happening, here's what I'm gonna do. And they make the change, do you see what I mean?
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I think in order for us to get to the part where we are now is we needed all those some failures, some successes to make it as to make it what it is now just because we know what works, what doesn't work, what we didn't want, what we want. And I feel like because we've gone through all of those challenges along the way, I feel like it's gotten us to the point where we need to be now. And it sucks it took us, it's taken us so long, but also we didn't really have any of the opportunities.
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that we had during COVID when this all begun basically. Yeah. You effectively broke the cycle. Yeah. Yeah. Because what makes you happy makes the dogs happy, which makes the clients happy, which makes the dogs happy, which makes you happy. Yeah. So you created the break in that cycle of stress, stress, stress, stress, stress. It's so true. And it's something we talk about a lot, like especially on our social media. There is no
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the dog had a bad time, but it was pretty good for me. know, like it's tied. So when they're struggling, we're struggling. When we're struggling, they're struggling. So it really, you hit the nail on the head there. It was when our mental health got so bad that we were just so burnt out. That I was like, if we're going to do this, it has to be with our needs being met first. And then it just coincides that our needs are also benefiting the dogs. Yeah.
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And it just shows that everything that's done in the dog industry is that common theme is how the human is and where the human is at will depend on the reaction of that dog, what they're feeding into. Do you know what I mean? And it gets overlooked, it gets missed or it gets dismissed. Totally. Yeah. And it's something we've seen a lot. It's I'm sure you have as well.
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But now you have the Calm Dog Studio, now you're out there, you're at the top. You are setting the precedent and it's cool to see. It's so cool. your social media for the listeners that haven't ventured into the social media at the Calm Dog Studio, get on it because there's some pretty cool reels out there. Thank you so much. Yeah. It's all Kelsey. She does a lot of the, she does all of the social media and we wouldn't be the Calm Dog without that.
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So she puts a lot of effort and time and energy into it. So yeah. Definitely pays off. Definitely pays off. The message that comes across is cool because again, it's something that groomers don't do. You're stepping outside of that pigeon hole. Totally. And so this is what we find wrong. This is what's wrong and this is why it happens. And it's really fun to share it. Even just whether it's...
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how Kayla and I are feeling on a certain day or something that we've discovered or something we want to share. I feel like, it's just the two of us that work together right now, I've found it to be something that has brought a lot of community to us and has made it feel like we're not alone in this little bubble. And I've really just been enjoying a lot of even other groomers that are gathering around us. And it makes it feel like we're all in it together and that it's, makes it a lot funner for Kayla and I to be able to share what we're doing and have some really good discourse online about it.
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And I think it's about giving those of us that have been true to the profession and actually shown that window into the profession. Yeah. And dispelled the myth that the dog comes to us. Ta-da! Off it goes. Totally. Like we're gonna have magic wands. Yeah, we go through the journey as well. There's a lot of work that goes into that end product. It's the case of in a couple hours out, done. I think that's what's starting to...
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spark of fire, people going, oh, there is a lot that goes into that. Yeah, it's not all with puppies all day. And wanting more than anything, we have found this niche that is just incredibly underserved, like arguably abandoned for people whose dogs have had very traumatic handling experiences, grooming experiences, bed experiences, just naturally have behavioral issues, fearful of people. It's a huge demographic of dogs.
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especially since COVID, that are really struggling behaviorally with their mental health. It's a whole thing and there just, isn't anything for them. And I think it's important, what I really want, especially with our social media is for any groomers who have a similar passion, and there's a lot of them out there who want to be able to do the kind of work Kayla and I do, is to be able to educate them and show them it can totally be done and this is how you do it.
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But then there's a lot of people who are like, I just want to groom dogs. And it's not their job to fix trauma and to make behavioral modifications and to do training. And I think the biggest thing I want people to make sure that they don't look at what we do and think that's just the standard that all groomers should meet. Because there's a lot of groomers who will take a dog that has behavioral issues and be like, I don't do this kind of thing, but the calm dog does and they can help you. We're just those groomers who know what they want to do and it's not their job.
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to do the rest, but for the rest of the people who are like, really want to help these dogs, they come in and I just don't know how to help them. That's, think what we're really passionate about in our future is being able to work with other groomers and make way more calm dog studios. There's just no shortage of it. So let's share. Quick pause. If this podcast means something to you, following us is the single best thing you can do to keep it going.
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Every follow helps more people find us. And more people finding us means more change for the Service Dog community. So hit that follow button now and let's keep going. Absolutely. And I think that that's the important bit is that is it recognizing the niche. You put your flag in the sand and you said, hey, this is what we're prepared to do. This is what we're prepared to work with. We're not against any other groomer. We're not saying it's bad or anything like that. It's about...
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giving you the option of going, that's not my clientele, but it is that. And I would waive rather that than groomers who want to muscle through and cause serious trauma or further the trauma cycle because they just wanted to get it done and muscle through. And I think I just saw a post about a groomer was posted a massive scratch that they got and they had been
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fighting a hundred pound dog and they just got the nails done and they were showing this big wound on their arm as like a badge of honor. And it was like, this dog probably needed our conditioning program. This dog probably needed four to six weeks of sessions that built on each other with positive association and conditioning and all these things. That's what that dog deserved. But it's just this twisted world where, but I muscled through and I did this thing and I did it.
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And it's, I appreciate that you wanted to help and do something nobody else could, but at the end of the day, that's the kind of thing that just does more damage. And that dog deserves to have a real shot at being okay for the experience in the future. Yeah. And I think, dare I say it, some of the professions, there's an echo from a long time ago that's still echoing now. Yeah. It's like get it done. And that whole big, deep muscle food.
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push through, you're a complete failure. You shouldn't be here. If you're thinking that way, get out sort of. You don't deserve to be in the profession. And I think that's an echo from a long time ago. I think it's getting better. I think it is getting better. Like when I first started grooming 20 years ago, it was like, do as many dogs as you can, as many, as little time as you need in and out, pump, pump. And now it's just, that's not okay for myself. And that's also not okay for the dog because that's not how we were.
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And so I think it is an old school mentality of go huggle, because that's how you're going to make money in grooming. But if you take a step back and look at the areas where dogs struggle or people struggle and they can't do it, it's just find someone else that can help them with whatever they're struggling with. So, I mean, that's where you guys have been very instrumental in helping of the service dogs and building them up.
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And it's so cool. It's so cool to see the dogs go through the program and me and Kelsey troubleshooting through each session if a dog can do a certain thing or if it's too much too hands on with both of us, one of us will take a step back. And it's just so very interesting and amazing just to see from day one session six or they booked six sessions and we've got it done in four and the parents are over the moon. Like they've never had this done before or they've never had their dog's nails done.
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without this and this. And so it's so nice to see that the footage that we've heard, the, can't think of word, just the course that we've made or the programs that we've made actually see them through and see how the dogs just react to that instead of pushing them through the limit and them having peeing or pooping or whatever. Your job satisfaction goes to whole new level because you go through that journey. you know what I mean? Yes, you could, I guess you could have the doggy.
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trim it, could do whatever and you go, yeah, that's okay. Job satisfaction, but going through the journey that you go through with those dogs individually, that takes a whole new level. Totally. Yeah. And the dogs wear it. It's special on lots of levels to feel like, oh my gosh, we did this for this dog. What an incredible thing that we feel so lucky to be able to help them do. And then there's the gratitude on the parent level where the dog guardians are just the relief when somebody realizes they can
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finally provide basic care for their animal, a nail trim, a vet visit, a haircut, things that are just very basic quality of life pillars that people need to be able to do when you can't. It's incredibly distressing for people. And it gets to the point where animals are having to be fully anesthetized multiple times a year to have a simple five minute nail trim procedure done. And so when you're able to alleviate that stress from someone, just it's one of my favorite
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Things as watching people's face when, because we record all our sessions when I can show them the video of the first time we clipped a nail and people just the look on their face and the gratitude that yeah, how much it means to them. And then my favorite of all is for sure seeing how proud the dogs are. Like pride I think is one of the most underutilized motivating factors for dogs is to teach them they can do something hard.
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and endure it and come out on the other side okay. They are so proud of themselves and it's just palpable in the room when we've had a success and Kay I are cheering like fools and the dogs are just like, oh my God, did you see that? It is the best feeling in the whole world. Yeah. Yeah, there is something magical when you see the dog who's not so confident become confident in their own skins and be a dog. And I think, yeah, it's a liberating moment.
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When you see that happen for the dog, we've seen it with dogs where the team have worked on them and the dog that was frightened to go outside will be around that. The dog suddenly starts interacting appropriately with other dogs and has a blast and runs around. It's cool to see all those things and it's just a wild piece. And it's funny, I've noticed a lot over the last probably at least a year and a half, but like how much overlap we have in clients like Woofability and Condog, like the amount of time.
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I'll have a message come through and it's, my God, like April's, oh my God, you have, or like the parents are like, yeah, he's at Wolfability, he's doing amazing. And I'm like, I totally noticed he was way less reactive in studio today. So it's really neat, I think, for us to see that like we seem to have naturally, like even though we enjoy working together, and I don't want to talk about how much we love the puppies in a second, we're working together and we naturally found each other, but it just has really organically happened that we have this.
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sharing of clients and that we're dealing with similar people because we have similar values and similar ways about going about things and how we want to work with the dogs. And we see the effect of what you guys do. And we'll see a photo of a dog that we know can't be around other dogs. And it's at your facility with four other dogs with a derpiest smile on its face. I'm just texting clients to be like, Oh my God, look at Louie. I think Louie and Katie were two of my favorite.
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pairing friends that I saw from you guys and I was like, I can't believe that. I know it's, it's, it's cool. And I'm pleased that we're able to do that. And I'm as soon as we found you in suddenly saw what you do. And like you said, organically, it's just grown from there. it's the impact on both sides. Cause we get to see the impact you guys have. Yeah. And vice versa. It's so neat.
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Yeah. So cool. We go to touch a dog's paw and it's, whatever. Whereas before, it's, you touch me there and you're going to get it. The wise choice, human. And the puppies have been such a refreshing thing to add to what we do in a day because it was like I posted the reel the first time we came to your facility for this most recent litter.
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of just how often our first experience with dogs is fear. They're fearful of us. They're suspicious of our space. They've had bad experiences. They're waiting for us to let them down or hurt them or scare them. And the funnest thing about the puppies is the way that they grow up with you is that every new thing is just an adventure they haven't had yet or a friend they haven't met yet. And it's just like polar opposite energy. And it's the hour and a half or whatever that we have the puppies. It is a
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hilarious utter chaos and be just like the most uplifting lighthearted. We just are cackling the entire time and it is. Pause on Point is brought to you by Pausabilities Service Dogs Society. A Canadian non-profit funding life-changing service dog partnerships for people who couldn't otherwise afford them. If today's episode has moved you, head to pausabilitiesservicedogs.ca and make a donation.
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Every single dollar goes directly to training and care. Nothing else. I love the fearful stuff. is my heart, my soul. I love it. But this is just, there's some levity to it, like right off the bat. That is a really nice breath of fresh air just to see dogs that never had to experience anything traumatic. And they're just coming and be like, what's going on? And it's so fun. I know. Almost to the point where you're like, okay, guys, you're too calm.
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Yeah. You could be humbled a little. Like when Bruce went flying over our coffee table in the backyard, just jumped and the coffee table hit him at chest height. It sent his two front legs completely backwards and he just was sailing, landed in a pile on the floor and me and Kayla had this moment where like my heart dropped to my stomach and he just gets up and looks at us and was like, that was awesome. And he kept running.
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Yeah, the puppies have a purpose. Their purpose is to be service dogs. yeah, there's a lot of work that the team do in making it, April and the crew do in making them as resilient as they are. It's incredible. It proves a point that the positivity that's put in from early pays dividends later on.
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Yeah, that's the exact same thing on our end. feel like that's another thing I'm always trying to hammer home is don't just muscle through the groom. Stop, slow down, break it into a few sessions, positively associate and everything you do upfront, like front loading with positivity is going to pay off in speeds down the line and it's going to save you so much work. So you can just carve out that extra time and just make things really positive. It saves so much stress and trauma. It's the exact same thing. For us, for the leaders.
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Bless them. It begins before they're even born. Yeah. that when midnight was, if you like, when she was carrying them, she was there supervised 24 seven. But during that process, three weeks before they're born, she's been exposed to sounds and things like that. So it becomes the norm before they're even born. And even when they're born.
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those noises that though they can't hear them, still doing it because it's being absorbed. It's all being absorbed. And then their eyes open and then their ears open and then we continue on with the training. So we start crying before they're born. And it works. It does make a huge difference. I think a lot of people don't understand that trauma in utero can affect everything about how a dog comes out and lives and that even
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the time what's happening to the mother while she's pregnant is incredibly important to how these puppies are going to grow up. And especially working in the rescue world, I've seen a ton of that of pregnant mothers that have just been through severe trauma. And it's like, those puppies are going to be a total mixed bag. They can not experience anything negative once they're born, but what happened before they were born will have potentially a heavy impact on how they experience life, which is wild. Yeah, it is. It's wild.
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when you get your head around that factor, it plays, it's massive. It's huge. But it also finds, I found, once you learn that, once you see it, once you wrap your head around it, it helps you with other dogs. They're like, oh, he's only two months old and he's been with us and he behaves this way. Nothing's happened. And when your brain's going, okay, it might not be happening now.
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but it probably happened before. see the precursor happening. It's like, wow. People like us, we undo all that as much as we can and unpick it and do our best for the dogs. You are a huge asset to our community. We love working with you guys. have so much respect and admiration for you. Likewise. Wow. You've taken the...
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what many would regard as the nightmare part of your industry. Kind of. You've literally gone, that's okay, we can do it. You found a way, you found a model that makes it work. See what I mean? It's not old school. It's not, here we go. 15 dogs, push them through, It's literally, here's the dog. Okay, this is how it works. We're gonna scale this back. We're gonna go right back to basics and we're just gonna be friends. Yeah.
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And I think a big piece, I don't know, Kayla, if you would agree with this, consent-based training, in my opinion, can sometimes get to a bit of a cuckoo place that I can't follow because at the end of the day, that's not life. We can't consent to every single second of everything. But I think there is a lot of consent is missed in grooming. It's this, grooming is its own weird little corner of the industry where...
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training expectations and rules won't apply because there is a basic level of care that has to be provided. The haircut has to happen. These are not things that you have eight months to train through. It's not, we're gonna work on the reactivity on a six month plan. It's like to a certain extent there is a lot more of a shorter timeline for working through this kind of stuff. But having said that, considering how unbelievably
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physically involved and intimate grooming is like talking about scissoring within millimeters of a dog's eyeball and the trust they have to give us to do something that I would never let someone do to me if I didn't fully understand what was happening and there couldn't be full communication is slowing down and realizing how can we be more collaborative? How can grooming not just happen to a dog? How can we involve the dog? And that's often where all of the
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problematic behaviors come from is that consent has been taken away from these dogs in a really aggressive way where drastic measures have been taken. And this is no shade to the drastic measures necessarily. Muzzle, pin, force, like when you take that kind of autonomy away from a dog, the trust that's broken doesn't regrow. You have to burn it all down and start again. And there is no fixing it from that place. It's like we go back to the very beginning and we talk about, can we just consent to you being in the room?
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Can you, how do we find a way for you to just be here where you're okay being here? Does your parent need to stay? Do we need to feed you steak the entire time? Do we need to go play ball? What do we need to do for you to feel good about just being here? And then we work on how do you, how do we work on you being okay to share your foot with me? I'm not gonna force you to do it. How do we work on you being, and I like to call it maybe collaborative is a word I use a lot.
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because it isn't always about consent, but it needs to be a lot more about consent. And the more we can collaborate with the dog in front of us, surrounding a service that has to happen for their own wellbeing, whether they like it or not, that I feel is the picture that's really missing in the grooming industry is that it just is, the haircut needs to happen. And I have an hour and 20 minutes booked. know, however it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen in that time.
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but it's finding it's okay, so it doesn't have to be a fully consent-based year-long program. But I'd say 90 % of the dogs we work with, we can sort it out in a month, six weeks maybe. They just need to just stop for a minute, slow it down, don't do it all at once. Think about the animal in front of you, the experiences it's had, the relationship you wanna have going forward with it, and how do you create that relationship? You do it with collaboration, with trust, with reciprocal.
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actions and training situations and co-regulating and nervous system work. And it's all so complex. And I feel like that's the biggest thing that I want to shout from the rooftops in our industry in particular is just that if a dog is giving you a hard time, it means it's having a hard time. And what do you need to do to alleviate that and to show up and prove yourself as a trustworthy leader that this dog can?
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blindly follow while you do this crazy thing and shape its eyeballs. And I think, I don't think I know, when a dog has made me earn the respect, the bonds that you have with that dog is phenomenal. is like no other. It makes me smile when you have those dogs. You go to do the norm in dogs world. The episodes you hear on this podcast exist because of one simple belief.
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that everyone who needs a service dog should be able to access one, regardless of what's in their bank account. If you believe that too, support us at pausabilitiesservicedogs.ca. 100 % of donations go directly to the dogs and the people who need them. I don't know who you are. You've now got to spend the next extra amount of time proving to me that you are someone okay. All right, here we go. But it's just...
31:26
Yeah, it's just from, it's cool to be part of that when that happens to be part of that trust building because you feel it. You literally feel it to your core. Yeah. And you can see it in the dogs. It reaches deep in, you know what I mean? It's like, it's real deep in there. it's, yeah. If you want to pin down a dog, they're not going to want to come back. But then if you
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change the tactic and do breaks and cookies and go outside and come back in. They're going to remember that. They're going to, they're going to, come back. And it's, yeah, apart from if you're April, then you can just walk in a room with any dog and just, but she got that magic. She's got the magic. She's got it. And to be fair, some of us, that's what makes the team very valuable and very unique is they all have that with different types of dogs in different stages. can all do. Oh, true.
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Yeah. That's what makes the team. It's fantastic is what they are. I'm going to say that obviously, but it's true. They can back where one can, the other can. And that's what makes the team so strong. Yeah. And all bases are covered. They're phenomenal. And being able to identify that and nurture it and hire it and train it. That is, I think you have to experience the magic to be able to see it. And even Kayla and I.
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have such different realms of strengths with dogs. I was actually just looking back at some footage from a couple of years ago and we had Kayla's magic is with.
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For lack of a better word, slattitudes and just are for whatever reason, just persnickety, snappy, aggressive, difficult. And it usually comes often from a place of giving too much, kind of a spoiled monster. Not necessarily like really like big fear-based stuff, but just dogs that need to have a little bit more respect. There was a dog we were working on and I have a video and I had spent three sessions just like
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softly moving, doing all the things, snip here, good boy, like doing my thing. This dog is just looking at me like, I don't want to play the game. This is stupid. I know what you're doing. I have no interest in it. And like he snapped, I think he bit me and I went in the house and I came back in the studio and Kayla has this dog by the chin and she's just fully trimming his face and he's completely relaxed. And I hadn't been able to do that in three sessions with this dog. I'm talking about Teddy. Yeah, Teddy bear. was just a moment where she just, she was...
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know what pal, you've had every opportunity to be successful and you're just making choices to control the room and control what's happening. And so she just, he put her hand under and she grabbed his chin. And when he went to snap at her, she just was like a stone and she just stood there and she held his chin hair and she didn't engage. And she let him have an absolute tantrum. And when he was done, he was like, Oh, okay. And that was literally what that took. She still had to do some work after that, but that was a unbelievable.
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moment for this dog where all of the tomfoolery stopped after that. And Kayla just has this magic with dogs like that, this confidence and just this enough's enough. And you got to know when that's appropriate. And that just takes experience to know what that would be completely inappropriate for some dogs. But Kayla was able to know those dogs, know exactly how to handle them. And she can do things that even owners like, oh, I wouldn't pick them up. And two seconds later, Kayla's like cradling them with the dog on her back. And like it's
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just small dog magic that she has and it's something that like I can't do. And I think dogs have an, they have an ability to identify those people. So as soon as they, as soon as they see them, they're like you. You are the one that is now permitted to do whatever you want because I feel you, whatever energy it is, they're like, you're the one, tell your mate to go away.
35:25
and I'm only being with you. Oh, true. It's so true. I can think of at least four dogs off the top of my head that are like that with Kayla, that's only Kayla. And I can like maybe give them a little pat, but they're like, you ain't it. I'm sorry. It's hard when you're looking at dogs and when you're reading body language like we do and as we do, I find sometimes it can be quite comical. Like when you're stood there.
35:54
and you're working with a dog and they look at you like, they literally look at you as if they are subliminally communicating. You are stupid. You are so stupid. And that's exactly what was happening with that dog was I could just tell it thought everything I was doing was stupid. And so it was just unwilling. And then when Kayla stepped in, he's all right, you were a lot clearer. You were a lot more direct. Let's you and me go ahead and take this thing all the way home. And I was like, I'll just show myself out.
36:24
But those are the teaching moments. think those are the teaching moments and I joke about it, but the serious part is those are the teaching moments for us that work in the industry in understanding that's what's really happening. The dog is actually showing us that lesson. know what I mean? It's like, totally. This is what I need you to do. And until you learn that, it ain't happening. It's all feedback. It's all feedback. And what you do with the feedback is totally up to you. And think knowing your strength, there's stuff that I...
36:53
No is my strength. Working breeds is probably more like really complex, intelligent dogs. Like when I'm having to really puzzle and think my way out of something, that's my strength. And it's really awesome. Kayla and I have a lot of natural opposite strengths and we've both completely naturally fallen into two roles. We've never discussed it. It's just happened how we go into it. And we just both sit in these two camps. They work super well together. We know exactly.
37:22
who's going to handle what dog and how it's going to go. I think knowing what is your strength and how can you best serve the industry, stick with that. And if you aren't the person for that, find somebody else who can do it better. You don't have to be able to do all of it. Know what your strength is and play to it. And I think that's what's, that's the evolution. I think of the dog industry is losing the mentality of you've got to be the master of all. I think it's, you've got to be a master. You've got to do it all.
37:52
Have you? Why? If it doesn't work for me, why should I keep pushing myself and going through that? Do you know what I mean? But then there's someone next to me who can do it, loves it, enjoys it, does it naturally. Does that not make more sense to make that a unified team? It didn't work that way. 100%. Yeah. And you could learn something along the way. Feel like Kayla and I are constantly learning from each other in like...
38:19
how we experience things and what works and what doesn't. it's, if you're doing it right, you're never not learning. You've never arrived. There's always something to learn. So if you can watch somebody else do it better, like. And I think that's a crucial point as well within the industry is understanding you'll never ever, if you're doing it properly, reach the ceiling. You'll never get there. Yeah. Because there is always something. Even just watching back when I was looking back on some old footage.
38:46
I was watching, it was probably from, I don't know, two years ago, but I was watching, I just was watching some sessions we filmed and I was really surprised by how critical I was of it. I was like, oh, I wouldn't do that now. Or, oh, I'm surprised I held on that long. Or I just feel like we're refining it more and more because we're paying so much attention and you just, if you're open to being like, okay, so that used to work, but this is actually gonna work better. And now I can look at how we do the sessions and it's.
39:14
I didn't know how much has changed over the course of only two years. We've been doing the program for probably five, but even just the last two years, I noticed so many things that I'm like, oh, I would do that completely differently or oh God, I would completely want to tell that Kelsey off two years ago and be like, you did that wrong. There's a way better way to do that. I remember when, yeah, definitely I remember in the early days when I was, I didn't really know about.
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body language, dog body language. And it was, I was learning about, I heard about it and I was like, yeah, well, I'm not bad in that. Whatever. And then I embraced it. And then that was the turning point for me. That was a really big turning point. I had to eat a bit of humble pie. There's several areas where I to eat some humble pie. You know what? That's me, not the dog. And that's learning. Yeah.
40:09
The lesson was that it made me a better person because I had to eat that humble pie and change myself and the way I presented myself in certain situations. So yeah, it was worth it. It was definitely worth it. I think at that moment of the dog body language definitely opened my world and I see it and view it very differently now, especially with dogs. see dogs very differently now.
40:34
I feel like the equivalent dog body language is super important in grooming and it's shocking how little of that is taught. In grooming schools, is predominantly just the technical work. People, the groomers are not read to understand behavior, body language, all that kind of stuff. But something that's really blowing up our world, I'd say within the last year is taking into account like the nervous system and nervous system work and how...
40:58
truly dogs and humans co-regulate. Whether you know it or not, your dog is regulating with your nervous system. And that is why dogs are our mirror. And if you're stressed or the groomer's having a bad day, that goes to the dog. Or why if you're anxious that your dog's going to be reactive, it's traveling down the leash. The reason when we talked about it being energy, it's all nervous system work. And the deeper we're getting into understanding somatic work and how we can...
41:26
regulate and train a nervous system and how much more pliable a dog is to learning when you've regulated them first. It's unbelievable. And it's, this is the one area that I am chomping at the bit to learn more and take courses when we have a bit more capacity is I feel like it's been a real light bulb moment for me of this makes so much sense for everything in my entire career. And I just had never really considered it like
41:51
we have been, cause we're just learning more, right? We're learning a lot more about the biochemical relationship between dog and human. Yeah. Those light bulb moments are big for me. were big moments. remember Nemeera, first dog, April's first service dog, her sister ended up coming to us in, at that point it was large group play and Nim and her sister were there in something. It was, yeah.
42:20
It still blows me away when I think about Aeon hounds. They were not dominant dogs. They were not. They were blue tick coon hounds, but they were socially awkward anyway by default. But the two of them, because at that point I'd accepted the dog body language and I was watching it and I was in it. But I watched them and every now and then they would come together and they would tap noses and they would walk off. one would be one end, one would be the other, they'd be interacting with the other dogs.
42:49
and then they'd come back and then they'd just tap each other's nose and then walk off. And it suddenly dawned on me, was like, they're actually communicating, they're controlling this in a passive way. They're talking to each other and checking in with each other, did everything talk. I was, it blew my mind because I was like, no one told them that. No one taught them that. There was two sisters. Yeah. After eight weeks, went in a separate ways. They came back many years later and they still did that. That's unbelievable.
43:19
That's phenomenal. And it was so cool to see. And yeah, that was a big light bulb moment. That was like, yeah, dog body. This, this language thing. Yeah, this is it. This is nailing it now. Huge thanks also to Helmican Veterinary Clinic, a fantastic local team here in Victoria, BC, who genuinely care about the animals they treat and the people who love them. Knowledgeable, friendly.
43:48
always there when you need them. Find them at HelmicanVets.ca. When you're open to looking at something and seeing something, there's so much to see. But if you don't know what you're looking for, you're missing it all. I also find as well when you're watching it, it's like hearing the conversations in your head. And so you can walk in and you're hearing the speech. It's a very weird thing to explain, but...
44:15
No, I think we do that in the studio all the time. We'll just catch the way a dog even looked at us or responded to something. we'll both, I will break out laughing because we know exactly what that dog just said to us in its own way. is. And for me, that's confirmation that you're in the right place. You're in the right place, the right space and you are on their level. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. Yeah. is. But yeah, it's an interesting one.
44:43
I think we're learning or have learned. It's definitely between the two of us. think we've definitely learned that there's more. There's definitely more that we do that fits with each other than two separate entities. that make sense? We feed each other. think that there's a lot more that we do. Whereas again, old school is you are groomers. We are trainers. That's it.
45:13
come to training, that's it. But I think there's to see that's actually now merging. That's cool. think that's really cool. Super cool. I think it's the next step. think it's the next step. I think it's the way forward. I think it's how that we how professionalism in this industry will move. it's the next next tool step. I definitely feel like the winds of change for sure. I don't
45:41
pay as much attention to other industries, but even just in the grooming world, like how you saying there's the old school way that there's a lot of discourse about that, about this being a very archaic way of learning. And if you can't break the cycle as you were saying, or learn in a different way, more and more people are calling something out and being like, sure, you can do that, but that's a really uneducated old school way to do something. And if you don't want to move on with the rest of us who are learning a better way to do it and who are
46:11
eating the humble pie as we go because that's a part of it. It's the pie that changes you. And if you refuse to it, you're not going to learn, you're not going to change. I think when I refer to old school, there's traditional stuff that I believe belongs, it's the backbone of our industry. I'm not saying trash can it completely. I think there's some traditional stuff. There is some stuff that still works. But I think it's about
46:41
understanding that and acknowledging that there is some very important traditional stuff that will probably still keep going for the testament of time if I'm honest. But there's also some bits and pieces that it needs to move forward. And that's the stuff I find it speaks for itself, like the kind of the pillars that have always been there as things evolve, they still hold up, they still matter, they're still effective and fair and kind.
47:09
And it's the other stuff that kind of starts to fade away. That's, you know, that's the stuff that you want to throw out. And it's like, I can show you right now a better way to do that's going to get you better results, less stress, less whatever. And it's, it's where I hope, and I feel like it's organically separating, but like the stuff that's been there, that's always been there, that we're just going to keep building that's foundational. And then the stuff that really is just like, we just didn't know better and a no judgment for doing it at the time, because it's what we thought it's what we knew.
47:39
but when you know better, you do better. And I think that's another key point is that at the time, a lot of that was designed for the time, for the way it was. we are clearly not in that time now. No, totally. It's even like an old TV show that you love to like, something you love to watch in the 90s and you rewatch it you're like, oh, it's so cringy. There's all this stuff. We would never say that. We can't laugh about that now. That's not okay.
48:08
What did I like about this? Yeah, totally. No, I think it's great. I think it's cool. think, you know, I think there's a lot of work in the industry as a whole. think it's developing. I think it's gaining momentum. It's moving. The speed is starting to pick up, I think. And I think in years to come, in a few years, I think there's going to be a big shift.
48:37
I think there will be a big shift and I think it will definitely establish those that have been paying attention and those that haven't. think it's totally time. Time will out all of it. Yeah. think there's a brutal time coming and that's sad, but I think it's something that needs to come. It feels good feeling like, you know, it's coming, but I'm already anticipating it. I'm at the, feel like especially
49:05
Even just you having us on here to have these conversations is it's so important. It's important to hear people talking about this. It's important to say it out loud. It's important to encourage this kind of conversation. And as not to sound horrible and braggy, but as organizations that are at the forefront of this is how we want to change and grow and learn and do better.
49:29
to be including as many people in the conversation as possible. Not just quietly going about our business and doing things in our own way, but wanting to collaborate with other people who have the same morals and values and talk about it and share it. think that is a big part of the responsibility of wanting to make changes for the better is bringing as many people with you as you can. And I think that's the difference of now to old school, because old school, was just like, I'm not going to talk to anyone. I'm not going to...
49:58
talk to any other groomers, this is what I was taught, this is what I'm doing. And now that there's social media and like, yeah, and everything that we can be involved with, I think that's really opening people's eyes. Because 20 years ago, we didn't have any of this, we couldn't really reach out to other groomers. But now platforms that we can use, I think it's just gonna be like, we're just gonna go up from here. That's super true. Yeah, and the painful part is those of us that are
50:27
for front runners in the years to come, the generations behind us, that it's gonna be easier, because they haven't got that part, and we're gonna be like, oh, you know nothing. Totally. The journey you're taking, ain't even put up. And I love that for them. Yeah, it's been good, and it's... This episode is supported by True Panyon.
50:54
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51:24
It's been good to be part of that, to know that you're part of that mechanism that's moving forward. You know what I mean? It's super energizing and inspiring. Exciting. Yeah. It's It's draining. It's tough. It is. But at the end of the get the result. to know that we're molding something with next evolutionary step to me is big. Yeah. Because the adults are going to benefit in every way, shape and form. Yeah.
51:53
or something, and you're right. Having these conversations, it's hard to hear for some people. And I know that some people will be like, whoa, that's a bit of harsh way of looking at it.
52:03
It is, but that this is the reality. This is where we're at. This is how we evolve. This is how we go on and change things. yeah, it is. It's how we make things better. Totally. Let's maybe give space for people to have made mistakes and want to do better. What we're saying, if 15 years ago, you know,
52:31
The internet was what it was. I don't think I would be as proud of how I was grooming and handling things 15 years ago. Not that I was doing anything nefarious, but I just know how much I've learned now and what my expectations are like for myself now. So I think there needs to be grace for, yeah, okay, this was done. It wasn't great. There's a better way, but instead of.
52:57
punishing, shaming, judging. Let's judge the people who refuse to change. Let's judge the people who don't want to learn better, don't want to hear it, are closed off, are, you know, choosing willful ignorance. I'm not talking about that, but I think it's also important, especially in the day and age where social media is what it is, just to be kind in how we go about trying to create change and giving grace to people as they're learning and having to choke down the humble pie, because it's an uncomfortable experience.
53:26
Yeah. I grew up in a time where dogs were thought of very differently to how they're thought of now. Yeah. I hold my hands up. I was party to that thinking, that way of behaving with dogs because that was how it was. That was how it was done. There was no trailblazer. There was no, there wasn't anyone coming forward and going, Hey, let's try it this way. It was literally that way and that way alone. But to be part of that.
53:55
moving forward bit, yeah, it's a humble place standing there going, wow, whoa, that was bad. it's the learning curve is I say, yeah, that was bad. Yeah, it was, but it was more a case of that makes sense. Do you see what it made sense? Why that was happening? Yeah. It was like an answer that came many years later.
54:25
Yeah, make the best decisions you can with the information you have available to you. Yeah. And when everyone around you is teaching you that way and you have no one else to go to, but you're being taught that way. It's totally. But it's cool. It's good. I think we're in a good place. I think we're moving to good places. I think so too. Awesome. Yeah. So because we love talking about dogs.
54:54
We've had to make this episode in two parts. That's right, two parts. I need you to keep an eye out for part two. That'll be coming real soon. That's a wrap on today's episode of Pause On Point. A huge thank you to everyone involved in today's episode. These conversations mean everything to this community. If today's episode resonated with you, please share it with one person who needs to hear it. That's how we grow.
55:24
And that's how we create change. And if you want to support the mission behind the podcast, head to pausabilitieservicedogs.ca. Every single dollar goes directly to funding a life-changing service dog partnership for someone who needs it most. Until next time, take care of yourselves and each other. And remember, hit that like button and share. Thank you.
Hi, I'm Tim and this is Paws On Point. Enjoy the episode and don't forget to like, subscribe, share and leave a comment after.
00:18
Hi! Are you okay?
00:26
The Calm Dog Studio, founded in 2017, introduced a new concept to the dog grooming industry. A shared vision that brings the opportunity for you to be able to bring your fearful aggressive dog to the groomers, to the vet and even in general. By working with you to bring that fear and aggression to an overall calmness. How do they do it? Based on four core principles. If you see the value of keeping up with grooming,
00:56
and you want to invest in your dog's health and happiness, you want to create the most positive experience for your dog, and you want to work on training and conditioning with your fearful or reactive dog, then the Calm Dog Studio is the place for your dog. I got the chance to sit down with the Calm Dog Studio crew in between their very busy schedule and talk about the beginnings, lessons dogs teach, and the dog world in general.
01:26
So sit back and enjoy. The Calm Dog Studio, where did that begin? Was it an individual idea? Was it both of you coming together and formulating it? It was us coming together. Kind of just happened. It was literally happened during COVID. And we were sitting in the backyard at my old place and just we had a dream and time because of COVID. And we kind of just started with that. And then it just exploded after that.
01:56
We had both, we met working together at a previous groom shop and it just, the shop itself got quite busy and it was a lot of stress and pressure on all of the groomers. Kayla was, I was the manager and Kayla had been hired on as my assistant manager and
02:21
Things in the salon started out really great. We had a really great couple of years and then things, the dynamics just changed a little bit and it got to be really popular, really high pressure. Just tons and tons of clients and expectations and the burnout rate among our staff was unbelievable. We basically lost an entire staff base one by one, every groomer quit because the pressure to keep up with the demand was insane.
02:47
And none of us were okay. so Kayla actually quit. And then I was the last one who quit and we were pretty much both really honestly on the verge of complete and total burnout of just feeling like we didn't even want to, you know, work with dogs anymore. And it was like literally right at the same time as COVID. And that's when Kayla, on the place she was renting, there was a little sort of like garden shed area and she completely converted it into her own little one person grooming space. And so that's where she.
03:18
was working a couple of days a week. And when I quit, that's when we reconnected and she was like, hey, I have this space I built and it's just meant for one groomer, but I'm only using it half the week. And she offered to let me take my client list there and work there the other half of the week. then just naturally throughout COVID, we just spent a lot of time together and time together outside of that really high pressure environment that we were in, actually.
03:43
didn't even get along super well. And a lot of times when we were working our previous place because of the demands that were coming from above that then I would have to put down. And it just, was a really tense, difficult environment. And working together during COVID like separately, but together really made us realize like how much we actually enjoy each other as people. And like Kayla was saying that we realized we really had the same dreams and goals and we were both single and
04:12
Not wanting to wait for any external party to get our dream started. I had a client who wanted to invest in support my dream and believed that I, you know, we could do something really big. And so with his support, we were able to work together and come up with. Basically we spent a lot of time discussing what wasn't working and what made us really hate our jobs and really feel just sobered out and so unseen and so unhappy.
04:42
And we just basically said, we're going to do everything differently, polar opposite differently. And in ways that I think a lot of people thought we were crazy. You can't make money this way. That's not how this industry works. No one's going to pay that. You're never going to be able to make that happen. And I think we were just so done. I, Kayla too had worked in lots of different environments in Saskatchewan as well. She'd done mobile grooming.
05:06
taught grooming school, worked in high pressure salons. And so we had our hand at lots of different working environments and none of them were what kind of felt really good for us in terms of long-term. And then when we started kind of really deciding what is working for us and what isn't, that's when the idea of the Calm Dog Studio was born, that we just, wanted the same experience for dogs that we wanted to have.
05:31
We were tired of feeling strung out and exhausted and we were tired of working with dogs who were strung out and exhausted. And so if we were going to do this, we wanted to just do it in a way that was going to be really sustainable. And that made us basically fall in love with our careers again. Yeah. It's interesting that you have to get to that point before it, the, before the conception begins. Do you see what I mean? you're like, right. And I think because everyone's used to getting to that point.
05:59
They can't see it when you do come forward and go, so this is how we're going to do it. Everyone's like, why? That's not the norm. Yeah. It's so true. It's like, there has to be this massive breaking point before something can change. And it's something I wish now that we're on the other side of this, it's, I, we so want other groomers to get to feel this and how good it feels. And there's so many people who just.
06:27
who aren't ready and who don't feel like it's possible and are still waiting for their own breaking point to feel like, okay, I can ask for what I need. I can determine how I want to engage with this industry. I think it's a tough one because I think there's people who are in.
06:45
the line of work that we do and they love it and it's their passion, it's what they've always wanted to do. But that's as far as it can go. And now I'm gonna put myself in a vulnerable position now, but that's as far as it can go for them. Do you see what I mean? It's the dream, it's the passion. But I think there's another cohort of people that go, okay, that's not working, that's not happening, here's what I'm gonna do. And they make the change, do you see what I mean?
07:13
I think in order for us to get to the part where we are now is we needed all those some failures, some successes to make it as to make it what it is now just because we know what works, what doesn't work, what we didn't want, what we want. And I feel like because we've gone through all of those challenges along the way, I feel like it's gotten us to the point where we need to be now. And it sucks it took us, it's taken us so long, but also we didn't really have any of the opportunities.
07:42
that we had during COVID when this all begun basically. Yeah. You effectively broke the cycle. Yeah. Yeah. Because what makes you happy makes the dogs happy, which makes the clients happy, which makes the dogs happy, which makes you happy. Yeah. So you created the break in that cycle of stress, stress, stress, stress, stress. It's so true. And it's something we talk about a lot, like especially on our social media. There is no
08:10
the dog had a bad time, but it was pretty good for me. know, like it's tied. So when they're struggling, we're struggling. When we're struggling, they're struggling. So it really, you hit the nail on the head there. It was when our mental health got so bad that we were just so burnt out. That I was like, if we're going to do this, it has to be with our needs being met first. And then it just coincides that our needs are also benefiting the dogs. Yeah.
08:35
And it just shows that everything that's done in the dog industry is that common theme is how the human is and where the human is at will depend on the reaction of that dog, what they're feeding into. Do you know what I mean? And it gets overlooked, it gets missed or it gets dismissed. Totally. Yeah. And it's something we've seen a lot. It's I'm sure you have as well.
09:02
But now you have the Calm Dog Studio, now you're out there, you're at the top. You are setting the precedent and it's cool to see. It's so cool. your social media for the listeners that haven't ventured into the social media at the Calm Dog Studio, get on it because there's some pretty cool reels out there. Thank you so much. Yeah. It's all Kelsey. She does a lot of the, she does all of the social media and we wouldn't be the Calm Dog without that.
09:31
So she puts a lot of effort and time and energy into it. So yeah. Definitely pays off. Definitely pays off. The message that comes across is cool because again, it's something that groomers don't do. You're stepping outside of that pigeon hole. Totally. And so this is what we find wrong. This is what's wrong and this is why it happens. And it's really fun to share it. Even just whether it's...
10:00
how Kayla and I are feeling on a certain day or something that we've discovered or something we want to share. I feel like, it's just the two of us that work together right now, I've found it to be something that has brought a lot of community to us and has made it feel like we're not alone in this little bubble. And I've really just been enjoying a lot of even other groomers that are gathering around us. And it makes it feel like we're all in it together and that it's, makes it a lot funner for Kayla and I to be able to share what we're doing and have some really good discourse online about it.
10:29
And I think it's about giving those of us that have been true to the profession and actually shown that window into the profession. Yeah. And dispelled the myth that the dog comes to us. Ta-da! Off it goes. Totally. Like we're gonna have magic wands. Yeah, we go through the journey as well. There's a lot of work that goes into that end product. It's the case of in a couple hours out, done. I think that's what's starting to...
10:59
spark of fire, people going, oh, there is a lot that goes into that. Yeah, it's not all with puppies all day. And wanting more than anything, we have found this niche that is just incredibly underserved, like arguably abandoned for people whose dogs have had very traumatic handling experiences, grooming experiences, bed experiences, just naturally have behavioral issues, fearful of people. It's a huge demographic of dogs.
11:26
especially since COVID, that are really struggling behaviorally with their mental health. It's a whole thing and there just, isn't anything for them. And I think it's important, what I really want, especially with our social media is for any groomers who have a similar passion, and there's a lot of them out there who want to be able to do the kind of work Kayla and I do, is to be able to educate them and show them it can totally be done and this is how you do it.
11:56
But then there's a lot of people who are like, I just want to groom dogs. And it's not their job to fix trauma and to make behavioral modifications and to do training. And I think the biggest thing I want people to make sure that they don't look at what we do and think that's just the standard that all groomers should meet. Because there's a lot of groomers who will take a dog that has behavioral issues and be like, I don't do this kind of thing, but the calm dog does and they can help you. We're just those groomers who know what they want to do and it's not their job.
12:26
to do the rest, but for the rest of the people who are like, really want to help these dogs, they come in and I just don't know how to help them. That's, think what we're really passionate about in our future is being able to work with other groomers and make way more calm dog studios. There's just no shortage of it. So let's share. Quick pause. If this podcast means something to you, following us is the single best thing you can do to keep it going.
12:53
Every follow helps more people find us. And more people finding us means more change for the Service Dog community. So hit that follow button now and let's keep going. Absolutely. And I think that that's the important bit is that is it recognizing the niche. You put your flag in the sand and you said, hey, this is what we're prepared to do. This is what we're prepared to work with. We're not against any other groomer. We're not saying it's bad or anything like that. It's about...
13:23
giving you the option of going, that's not my clientele, but it is that. And I would waive rather that than groomers who want to muscle through and cause serious trauma or further the trauma cycle because they just wanted to get it done and muscle through. And I think I just saw a post about a groomer was posted a massive scratch that they got and they had been
13:50
fighting a hundred pound dog and they just got the nails done and they were showing this big wound on their arm as like a badge of honor. And it was like, this dog probably needed our conditioning program. This dog probably needed four to six weeks of sessions that built on each other with positive association and conditioning and all these things. That's what that dog deserved. But it's just this twisted world where, but I muscled through and I did this thing and I did it.
14:16
And it's, I appreciate that you wanted to help and do something nobody else could, but at the end of the day, that's the kind of thing that just does more damage. And that dog deserves to have a real shot at being okay for the experience in the future. Yeah. And I think, dare I say it, some of the professions, there's an echo from a long time ago that's still echoing now. Yeah. It's like get it done. And that whole big, deep muscle food.
14:45
push through, you're a complete failure. You shouldn't be here. If you're thinking that way, get out sort of. You don't deserve to be in the profession. And I think that's an echo from a long time ago. I think it's getting better. I think it is getting better. Like when I first started grooming 20 years ago, it was like, do as many dogs as you can, as many, as little time as you need in and out, pump, pump. And now it's just, that's not okay for myself. And that's also not okay for the dog because that's not how we were.
15:14
And so I think it is an old school mentality of go huggle, because that's how you're going to make money in grooming. But if you take a step back and look at the areas where dogs struggle or people struggle and they can't do it, it's just find someone else that can help them with whatever they're struggling with. So, I mean, that's where you guys have been very instrumental in helping of the service dogs and building them up.
15:41
And it's so cool. It's so cool to see the dogs go through the program and me and Kelsey troubleshooting through each session if a dog can do a certain thing or if it's too much too hands on with both of us, one of us will take a step back. And it's just so very interesting and amazing just to see from day one session six or they booked six sessions and we've got it done in four and the parents are over the moon. Like they've never had this done before or they've never had their dog's nails done.
16:08
without this and this. And so it's so nice to see that the footage that we've heard, the, can't think of word, just the course that we've made or the programs that we've made actually see them through and see how the dogs just react to that instead of pushing them through the limit and them having peeing or pooping or whatever. Your job satisfaction goes to whole new level because you go through that journey. you know what I mean? Yes, you could, I guess you could have the doggy.
16:36
trim it, could do whatever and you go, yeah, that's okay. Job satisfaction, but going through the journey that you go through with those dogs individually, that takes a whole new level. Totally. Yeah. And the dogs wear it. It's special on lots of levels to feel like, oh my gosh, we did this for this dog. What an incredible thing that we feel so lucky to be able to help them do. And then there's the gratitude on the parent level where the dog guardians are just the relief when somebody realizes they can
17:05
finally provide basic care for their animal, a nail trim, a vet visit, a haircut, things that are just very basic quality of life pillars that people need to be able to do when you can't. It's incredibly distressing for people. And it gets to the point where animals are having to be fully anesthetized multiple times a year to have a simple five minute nail trim procedure done. And so when you're able to alleviate that stress from someone, just it's one of my favorite
17:34
Things as watching people's face when, because we record all our sessions when I can show them the video of the first time we clipped a nail and people just the look on their face and the gratitude that yeah, how much it means to them. And then my favorite of all is for sure seeing how proud the dogs are. Like pride I think is one of the most underutilized motivating factors for dogs is to teach them they can do something hard.
18:00
and endure it and come out on the other side okay. They are so proud of themselves and it's just palpable in the room when we've had a success and Kay I are cheering like fools and the dogs are just like, oh my God, did you see that? It is the best feeling in the whole world. Yeah. Yeah, there is something magical when you see the dog who's not so confident become confident in their own skins and be a dog. And I think, yeah, it's a liberating moment.
18:30
When you see that happen for the dog, we've seen it with dogs where the team have worked on them and the dog that was frightened to go outside will be around that. The dog suddenly starts interacting appropriately with other dogs and has a blast and runs around. It's cool to see all those things and it's just a wild piece. And it's funny, I've noticed a lot over the last probably at least a year and a half, but like how much overlap we have in clients like Woofability and Condog, like the amount of time.
18:59
I'll have a message come through and it's, my God, like April's, oh my God, you have, or like the parents are like, yeah, he's at Wolfability, he's doing amazing. And I'm like, I totally noticed he was way less reactive in studio today. So it's really neat, I think, for us to see that like we seem to have naturally, like even though we enjoy working together, and I don't want to talk about how much we love the puppies in a second, we're working together and we naturally found each other, but it just has really organically happened that we have this.
19:27
sharing of clients and that we're dealing with similar people because we have similar values and similar ways about going about things and how we want to work with the dogs. And we see the effect of what you guys do. And we'll see a photo of a dog that we know can't be around other dogs. And it's at your facility with four other dogs with a derpiest smile on its face. I'm just texting clients to be like, Oh my God, look at Louie. I think Louie and Katie were two of my favorite.
19:54
pairing friends that I saw from you guys and I was like, I can't believe that. I know it's, it's, it's cool. And I'm pleased that we're able to do that. And I'm as soon as we found you in suddenly saw what you do. And like you said, organically, it's just grown from there. it's the impact on both sides. Cause we get to see the impact you guys have. Yeah. And vice versa. It's so neat.
20:23
Yeah. So cool. We go to touch a dog's paw and it's, whatever. Whereas before, it's, you touch me there and you're going to get it. The wise choice, human. And the puppies have been such a refreshing thing to add to what we do in a day because it was like I posted the reel the first time we came to your facility for this most recent litter.
20:51
of just how often our first experience with dogs is fear. They're fearful of us. They're suspicious of our space. They've had bad experiences. They're waiting for us to let them down or hurt them or scare them. And the funnest thing about the puppies is the way that they grow up with you is that every new thing is just an adventure they haven't had yet or a friend they haven't met yet. And it's just like polar opposite energy. And it's the hour and a half or whatever that we have the puppies. It is a
21:20
hilarious utter chaos and be just like the most uplifting lighthearted. We just are cackling the entire time and it is. Pause on Point is brought to you by Pausabilities Service Dogs Society. A Canadian non-profit funding life-changing service dog partnerships for people who couldn't otherwise afford them. If today's episode has moved you, head to pausabilitiesservicedogs.ca and make a donation.
21:50
Every single dollar goes directly to training and care. Nothing else. I love the fearful stuff. is my heart, my soul. I love it. But this is just, there's some levity to it, like right off the bat. That is a really nice breath of fresh air just to see dogs that never had to experience anything traumatic. And they're just coming and be like, what's going on? And it's so fun. I know. Almost to the point where you're like, okay, guys, you're too calm.
22:20
Yeah. You could be humbled a little. Like when Bruce went flying over our coffee table in the backyard, just jumped and the coffee table hit him at chest height. It sent his two front legs completely backwards and he just was sailing, landed in a pile on the floor and me and Kayla had this moment where like my heart dropped to my stomach and he just gets up and looks at us and was like, that was awesome. And he kept running.
22:50
Yeah, the puppies have a purpose. Their purpose is to be service dogs. yeah, there's a lot of work that the team do in making it, April and the crew do in making them as resilient as they are. It's incredible. It proves a point that the positivity that's put in from early pays dividends later on.
23:18
Yeah, that's the exact same thing on our end. feel like that's another thing I'm always trying to hammer home is don't just muscle through the groom. Stop, slow down, break it into a few sessions, positively associate and everything you do upfront, like front loading with positivity is going to pay off in speeds down the line and it's going to save you so much work. So you can just carve out that extra time and just make things really positive. It saves so much stress and trauma. It's the exact same thing. For us, for the leaders.
23:48
Bless them. It begins before they're even born. Yeah. that when midnight was, if you like, when she was carrying them, she was there supervised 24 seven. But during that process, three weeks before they're born, she's been exposed to sounds and things like that. So it becomes the norm before they're even born. And even when they're born.
24:15
those noises that though they can't hear them, still doing it because it's being absorbed. It's all being absorbed. And then their eyes open and then their ears open and then we continue on with the training. So we start crying before they're born. And it works. It does make a huge difference. I think a lot of people don't understand that trauma in utero can affect everything about how a dog comes out and lives and that even
24:44
the time what's happening to the mother while she's pregnant is incredibly important to how these puppies are going to grow up. And especially working in the rescue world, I've seen a ton of that of pregnant mothers that have just been through severe trauma. And it's like, those puppies are going to be a total mixed bag. They can not experience anything negative once they're born, but what happened before they were born will have potentially a heavy impact on how they experience life, which is wild. Yeah, it is. It's wild.
25:13
when you get your head around that factor, it plays, it's massive. It's huge. But it also finds, I found, once you learn that, once you see it, once you wrap your head around it, it helps you with other dogs. They're like, oh, he's only two months old and he's been with us and he behaves this way. Nothing's happened. And when your brain's going, okay, it might not be happening now.
25:43
but it probably happened before. see the precursor happening. It's like, wow. People like us, we undo all that as much as we can and unpick it and do our best for the dogs. You are a huge asset to our community. We love working with you guys. have so much respect and admiration for you. Likewise. Wow. You've taken the...
26:13
what many would regard as the nightmare part of your industry. Kind of. You've literally gone, that's okay, we can do it. You found a way, you found a model that makes it work. See what I mean? It's not old school. It's not, here we go. 15 dogs, push them through, It's literally, here's the dog. Okay, this is how it works. We're gonna scale this back. We're gonna go right back to basics and we're just gonna be friends. Yeah.
26:43
And I think a big piece, I don't know, Kayla, if you would agree with this, consent-based training, in my opinion, can sometimes get to a bit of a cuckoo place that I can't follow because at the end of the day, that's not life. We can't consent to every single second of everything. But I think there is a lot of consent is missed in grooming. It's this, grooming is its own weird little corner of the industry where...
27:10
training expectations and rules won't apply because there is a basic level of care that has to be provided. The haircut has to happen. These are not things that you have eight months to train through. It's not, we're gonna work on the reactivity on a six month plan. It's like to a certain extent there is a lot more of a shorter timeline for working through this kind of stuff. But having said that, considering how unbelievably
27:39
physically involved and intimate grooming is like talking about scissoring within millimeters of a dog's eyeball and the trust they have to give us to do something that I would never let someone do to me if I didn't fully understand what was happening and there couldn't be full communication is slowing down and realizing how can we be more collaborative? How can grooming not just happen to a dog? How can we involve the dog? And that's often where all of the
28:08
problematic behaviors come from is that consent has been taken away from these dogs in a really aggressive way where drastic measures have been taken. And this is no shade to the drastic measures necessarily. Muzzle, pin, force, like when you take that kind of autonomy away from a dog, the trust that's broken doesn't regrow. You have to burn it all down and start again. And there is no fixing it from that place. It's like we go back to the very beginning and we talk about, can we just consent to you being in the room?
28:37
Can you, how do we find a way for you to just be here where you're okay being here? Does your parent need to stay? Do we need to feed you steak the entire time? Do we need to go play ball? What do we need to do for you to feel good about just being here? And then we work on how do you, how do we work on you being okay to share your foot with me? I'm not gonna force you to do it. How do we work on you being, and I like to call it maybe collaborative is a word I use a lot.
29:03
because it isn't always about consent, but it needs to be a lot more about consent. And the more we can collaborate with the dog in front of us, surrounding a service that has to happen for their own wellbeing, whether they like it or not, that I feel is the picture that's really missing in the grooming industry is that it just is, the haircut needs to happen. And I have an hour and 20 minutes booked. know, however it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen in that time.
29:30
but it's finding it's okay, so it doesn't have to be a fully consent-based year-long program. But I'd say 90 % of the dogs we work with, we can sort it out in a month, six weeks maybe. They just need to just stop for a minute, slow it down, don't do it all at once. Think about the animal in front of you, the experiences it's had, the relationship you wanna have going forward with it, and how do you create that relationship? You do it with collaboration, with trust, with reciprocal.
29:58
actions and training situations and co-regulating and nervous system work. And it's all so complex. And I feel like that's the biggest thing that I want to shout from the rooftops in our industry in particular is just that if a dog is giving you a hard time, it means it's having a hard time. And what do you need to do to alleviate that and to show up and prove yourself as a trustworthy leader that this dog can?
30:26
blindly follow while you do this crazy thing and shape its eyeballs. And I think, I don't think I know, when a dog has made me earn the respect, the bonds that you have with that dog is phenomenal. is like no other. It makes me smile when you have those dogs. You go to do the norm in dogs world. The episodes you hear on this podcast exist because of one simple belief.
30:56
that everyone who needs a service dog should be able to access one, regardless of what's in their bank account. If you believe that too, support us at pausabilitiesservicedogs.ca. 100 % of donations go directly to the dogs and the people who need them. I don't know who you are. You've now got to spend the next extra amount of time proving to me that you are someone okay. All right, here we go. But it's just...
31:26
Yeah, it's just from, it's cool to be part of that when that happens to be part of that trust building because you feel it. You literally feel it to your core. Yeah. And you can see it in the dogs. It reaches deep in, you know what I mean? It's like, it's real deep in there. it's, yeah. If you want to pin down a dog, they're not going to want to come back. But then if you
31:50
change the tactic and do breaks and cookies and go outside and come back in. They're going to remember that. They're going to, they're going to, come back. And it's, yeah, apart from if you're April, then you can just walk in a room with any dog and just, but she got that magic. She's got the magic. She's got it. And to be fair, some of us, that's what makes the team very valuable and very unique is they all have that with different types of dogs in different stages. can all do. Oh, true.
32:20
Yeah. That's what makes the team. It's fantastic is what they are. I'm going to say that obviously, but it's true. They can back where one can, the other can. And that's what makes the team so strong. Yeah. And all bases are covered. They're phenomenal. And being able to identify that and nurture it and hire it and train it. That is, I think you have to experience the magic to be able to see it. And even Kayla and I.
32:49
have such different realms of strengths with dogs. I was actually just looking back at some footage from a couple of years ago and we had Kayla's magic is with.
33:01
For lack of a better word, slattitudes and just are for whatever reason, just persnickety, snappy, aggressive, difficult. And it usually comes often from a place of giving too much, kind of a spoiled monster. Not necessarily like really like big fear-based stuff, but just dogs that need to have a little bit more respect. There was a dog we were working on and I have a video and I had spent three sessions just like
33:31
softly moving, doing all the things, snip here, good boy, like doing my thing. This dog is just looking at me like, I don't want to play the game. This is stupid. I know what you're doing. I have no interest in it. And like he snapped, I think he bit me and I went in the house and I came back in the studio and Kayla has this dog by the chin and she's just fully trimming his face and he's completely relaxed. And I hadn't been able to do that in three sessions with this dog. I'm talking about Teddy. Yeah, Teddy bear. was just a moment where she just, she was...
34:00
know what pal, you've had every opportunity to be successful and you're just making choices to control the room and control what's happening. And so she just, he put her hand under and she grabbed his chin. And when he went to snap at her, she just was like a stone and she just stood there and she held his chin hair and she didn't engage. And she let him have an absolute tantrum. And when he was done, he was like, Oh, okay. And that was literally what that took. She still had to do some work after that, but that was a unbelievable.
34:30
moment for this dog where all of the tomfoolery stopped after that. And Kayla just has this magic with dogs like that, this confidence and just this enough's enough. And you got to know when that's appropriate. And that just takes experience to know what that would be completely inappropriate for some dogs. But Kayla was able to know those dogs, know exactly how to handle them. And she can do things that even owners like, oh, I wouldn't pick them up. And two seconds later, Kayla's like cradling them with the dog on her back. And like it's
34:57
just small dog magic that she has and it's something that like I can't do. And I think dogs have an, they have an ability to identify those people. So as soon as they, as soon as they see them, they're like you. You are the one that is now permitted to do whatever you want because I feel you, whatever energy it is, they're like, you're the one, tell your mate to go away.
35:25
and I'm only being with you. Oh, true. It's so true. I can think of at least four dogs off the top of my head that are like that with Kayla, that's only Kayla. And I can like maybe give them a little pat, but they're like, you ain't it. I'm sorry. It's hard when you're looking at dogs and when you're reading body language like we do and as we do, I find sometimes it can be quite comical. Like when you're stood there.
35:54
and you're working with a dog and they look at you like, they literally look at you as if they are subliminally communicating. You are stupid. You are so stupid. And that's exactly what was happening with that dog was I could just tell it thought everything I was doing was stupid. And so it was just unwilling. And then when Kayla stepped in, he's all right, you were a lot clearer. You were a lot more direct. Let's you and me go ahead and take this thing all the way home. And I was like, I'll just show myself out.
36:24
But those are the teaching moments. think those are the teaching moments and I joke about it, but the serious part is those are the teaching moments for us that work in the industry in understanding that's what's really happening. The dog is actually showing us that lesson. know what I mean? It's like, totally. This is what I need you to do. And until you learn that, it ain't happening. It's all feedback. It's all feedback. And what you do with the feedback is totally up to you. And think knowing your strength, there's stuff that I...
36:53
No is my strength. Working breeds is probably more like really complex, intelligent dogs. Like when I'm having to really puzzle and think my way out of something, that's my strength. And it's really awesome. Kayla and I have a lot of natural opposite strengths and we've both completely naturally fallen into two roles. We've never discussed it. It's just happened how we go into it. And we just both sit in these two camps. They work super well together. We know exactly.
37:22
who's going to handle what dog and how it's going to go. I think knowing what is your strength and how can you best serve the industry, stick with that. And if you aren't the person for that, find somebody else who can do it better. You don't have to be able to do all of it. Know what your strength is and play to it. And I think that's what's, that's the evolution. I think of the dog industry is losing the mentality of you've got to be the master of all. I think it's, you've got to be a master. You've got to do it all.
37:52
Have you? Why? If it doesn't work for me, why should I keep pushing myself and going through that? Do you know what I mean? But then there's someone next to me who can do it, loves it, enjoys it, does it naturally. Does that not make more sense to make that a unified team? It didn't work that way. 100%. Yeah. And you could learn something along the way. Feel like Kayla and I are constantly learning from each other in like...
38:19
how we experience things and what works and what doesn't. it's, if you're doing it right, you're never not learning. You've never arrived. There's always something to learn. So if you can watch somebody else do it better, like. And I think that's a crucial point as well within the industry is understanding you'll never ever, if you're doing it properly, reach the ceiling. You'll never get there. Yeah. Because there is always something. Even just watching back when I was looking back on some old footage.
38:46
I was watching, it was probably from, I don't know, two years ago, but I was watching, I just was watching some sessions we filmed and I was really surprised by how critical I was of it. I was like, oh, I wouldn't do that now. Or, oh, I'm surprised I held on that long. Or I just feel like we're refining it more and more because we're paying so much attention and you just, if you're open to being like, okay, so that used to work, but this is actually gonna work better. And now I can look at how we do the sessions and it's.
39:14
I didn't know how much has changed over the course of only two years. We've been doing the program for probably five, but even just the last two years, I noticed so many things that I'm like, oh, I would do that completely differently or oh God, I would completely want to tell that Kelsey off two years ago and be like, you did that wrong. There's a way better way to do that. I remember when, yeah, definitely I remember in the early days when I was, I didn't really know about.
39:42
body language, dog body language. And it was, I was learning about, I heard about it and I was like, yeah, well, I'm not bad in that. Whatever. And then I embraced it. And then that was the turning point for me. That was a really big turning point. I had to eat a bit of humble pie. There's several areas where I to eat some humble pie. You know what? That's me, not the dog. And that's learning. Yeah.
40:09
The lesson was that it made me a better person because I had to eat that humble pie and change myself and the way I presented myself in certain situations. So yeah, it was worth it. It was definitely worth it. I think at that moment of the dog body language definitely opened my world and I see it and view it very differently now, especially with dogs. see dogs very differently now.
40:34
I feel like the equivalent dog body language is super important in grooming and it's shocking how little of that is taught. In grooming schools, is predominantly just the technical work. People, the groomers are not read to understand behavior, body language, all that kind of stuff. But something that's really blowing up our world, I'd say within the last year is taking into account like the nervous system and nervous system work and how...
40:58
truly dogs and humans co-regulate. Whether you know it or not, your dog is regulating with your nervous system. And that is why dogs are our mirror. And if you're stressed or the groomer's having a bad day, that goes to the dog. Or why if you're anxious that your dog's going to be reactive, it's traveling down the leash. The reason when we talked about it being energy, it's all nervous system work. And the deeper we're getting into understanding somatic work and how we can...
41:26
regulate and train a nervous system and how much more pliable a dog is to learning when you've regulated them first. It's unbelievable. And it's, this is the one area that I am chomping at the bit to learn more and take courses when we have a bit more capacity is I feel like it's been a real light bulb moment for me of this makes so much sense for everything in my entire career. And I just had never really considered it like
41:51
we have been, cause we're just learning more, right? We're learning a lot more about the biochemical relationship between dog and human. Yeah. Those light bulb moments are big for me. were big moments. remember Nemeera, first dog, April's first service dog, her sister ended up coming to us in, at that point it was large group play and Nim and her sister were there in something. It was, yeah.
42:20
It still blows me away when I think about Aeon hounds. They were not dominant dogs. They were not. They were blue tick coon hounds, but they were socially awkward anyway by default. But the two of them, because at that point I'd accepted the dog body language and I was watching it and I was in it. But I watched them and every now and then they would come together and they would tap noses and they would walk off. one would be one end, one would be the other, they'd be interacting with the other dogs.
42:49
and then they'd come back and then they'd just tap each other's nose and then walk off. And it suddenly dawned on me, was like, they're actually communicating, they're controlling this in a passive way. They're talking to each other and checking in with each other, did everything talk. I was, it blew my mind because I was like, no one told them that. No one taught them that. There was two sisters. Yeah. After eight weeks, went in a separate ways. They came back many years later and they still did that. That's unbelievable.
43:19
That's phenomenal. And it was so cool to see. And yeah, that was a big light bulb moment. That was like, yeah, dog body. This, this language thing. Yeah, this is it. This is nailing it now. Huge thanks also to Helmican Veterinary Clinic, a fantastic local team here in Victoria, BC, who genuinely care about the animals they treat and the people who love them. Knowledgeable, friendly.
43:48
always there when you need them. Find them at HelmicanVets.ca. When you're open to looking at something and seeing something, there's so much to see. But if you don't know what you're looking for, you're missing it all. I also find as well when you're watching it, it's like hearing the conversations in your head. And so you can walk in and you're hearing the speech. It's a very weird thing to explain, but...
44:15
No, I think we do that in the studio all the time. We'll just catch the way a dog even looked at us or responded to something. we'll both, I will break out laughing because we know exactly what that dog just said to us in its own way. is. And for me, that's confirmation that you're in the right place. You're in the right place, the right space and you are on their level. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. Yeah. is. But yeah, it's an interesting one.
44:43
I think we're learning or have learned. It's definitely between the two of us. think we've definitely learned that there's more. There's definitely more that we do that fits with each other than two separate entities. that make sense? We feed each other. think that there's a lot more that we do. Whereas again, old school is you are groomers. We are trainers. That's it.
45:13
come to training, that's it. But I think there's to see that's actually now merging. That's cool. think that's really cool. Super cool. I think it's the next step. think it's the next step. I think it's the way forward. I think it's how that we how professionalism in this industry will move. it's the next next tool step. I definitely feel like the winds of change for sure. I don't
45:41
pay as much attention to other industries, but even just in the grooming world, like how you saying there's the old school way that there's a lot of discourse about that, about this being a very archaic way of learning. And if you can't break the cycle as you were saying, or learn in a different way, more and more people are calling something out and being like, sure, you can do that, but that's a really uneducated old school way to do something. And if you don't want to move on with the rest of us who are learning a better way to do it and who are
46:11
eating the humble pie as we go because that's a part of it. It's the pie that changes you. And if you refuse to it, you're not going to learn, you're not going to change. I think when I refer to old school, there's traditional stuff that I believe belongs, it's the backbone of our industry. I'm not saying trash can it completely. I think there's some traditional stuff. There is some stuff that still works. But I think it's about
46:41
understanding that and acknowledging that there is some very important traditional stuff that will probably still keep going for the testament of time if I'm honest. But there's also some bits and pieces that it needs to move forward. And that's the stuff I find it speaks for itself, like the kind of the pillars that have always been there as things evolve, they still hold up, they still matter, they're still effective and fair and kind.
47:09
And it's the other stuff that kind of starts to fade away. That's, you know, that's the stuff that you want to throw out. And it's like, I can show you right now a better way to do that's going to get you better results, less stress, less whatever. And it's, it's where I hope, and I feel like it's organically separating, but like the stuff that's been there, that's always been there, that we're just going to keep building that's foundational. And then the stuff that really is just like, we just didn't know better and a no judgment for doing it at the time, because it's what we thought it's what we knew.
47:39
but when you know better, you do better. And I think that's another key point is that at the time, a lot of that was designed for the time, for the way it was. we are clearly not in that time now. No, totally. It's even like an old TV show that you love to like, something you love to watch in the 90s and you rewatch it you're like, oh, it's so cringy. There's all this stuff. We would never say that. We can't laugh about that now. That's not okay.
48:08
What did I like about this? Yeah, totally. No, I think it's great. I think it's cool. think, you know, I think there's a lot of work in the industry as a whole. think it's developing. I think it's gaining momentum. It's moving. The speed is starting to pick up, I think. And I think in years to come, in a few years, I think there's going to be a big shift.
48:37
I think there will be a big shift and I think it will definitely establish those that have been paying attention and those that haven't. think it's totally time. Time will out all of it. Yeah. think there's a brutal time coming and that's sad, but I think it's something that needs to come. It feels good feeling like, you know, it's coming, but I'm already anticipating it. I'm at the, feel like especially
49:05
Even just you having us on here to have these conversations is it's so important. It's important to hear people talking about this. It's important to say it out loud. It's important to encourage this kind of conversation. And as not to sound horrible and braggy, but as organizations that are at the forefront of this is how we want to change and grow and learn and do better.
49:29
to be including as many people in the conversation as possible. Not just quietly going about our business and doing things in our own way, but wanting to collaborate with other people who have the same morals and values and talk about it and share it. think that is a big part of the responsibility of wanting to make changes for the better is bringing as many people with you as you can. And I think that's the difference of now to old school, because old school, was just like, I'm not going to talk to anyone. I'm not going to...
49:58
talk to any other groomers, this is what I was taught, this is what I'm doing. And now that there's social media and like, yeah, and everything that we can be involved with, I think that's really opening people's eyes. Because 20 years ago, we didn't have any of this, we couldn't really reach out to other groomers. But now platforms that we can use, I think it's just gonna be like, we're just gonna go up from here. That's super true. Yeah, and the painful part is those of us that are
50:27
for front runners in the years to come, the generations behind us, that it's gonna be easier, because they haven't got that part, and we're gonna be like, oh, you know nothing. Totally. The journey you're taking, ain't even put up. And I love that for them. Yeah, it's been good, and it's... This episode is supported by True Panyon.
50:54
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51:24
It's been good to be part of that, to know that you're part of that mechanism that's moving forward. You know what I mean? It's super energizing and inspiring. Exciting. Yeah. It's It's draining. It's tough. It is. But at the end of the get the result. to know that we're molding something with next evolutionary step to me is big. Yeah. Because the adults are going to benefit in every way, shape and form. Yeah.
51:53
or something, and you're right. Having these conversations, it's hard to hear for some people. And I know that some people will be like, whoa, that's a bit of harsh way of looking at it.
52:03
It is, but that this is the reality. This is where we're at. This is how we evolve. This is how we go on and change things. yeah, it is. It's how we make things better. Totally. Let's maybe give space for people to have made mistakes and want to do better. What we're saying, if 15 years ago, you know,
52:31
The internet was what it was. I don't think I would be as proud of how I was grooming and handling things 15 years ago. Not that I was doing anything nefarious, but I just know how much I've learned now and what my expectations are like for myself now. So I think there needs to be grace for, yeah, okay, this was done. It wasn't great. There's a better way, but instead of.
52:57
punishing, shaming, judging. Let's judge the people who refuse to change. Let's judge the people who don't want to learn better, don't want to hear it, are closed off, are, you know, choosing willful ignorance. I'm not talking about that, but I think it's also important, especially in the day and age where social media is what it is, just to be kind in how we go about trying to create change and giving grace to people as they're learning and having to choke down the humble pie, because it's an uncomfortable experience.
53:26
Yeah. I grew up in a time where dogs were thought of very differently to how they're thought of now. Yeah. I hold my hands up. I was party to that thinking, that way of behaving with dogs because that was how it was. That was how it was done. There was no trailblazer. There was no, there wasn't anyone coming forward and going, Hey, let's try it this way. It was literally that way and that way alone. But to be part of that.
53:55
moving forward bit, yeah, it's a humble place standing there going, wow, whoa, that was bad. it's the learning curve is I say, yeah, that was bad. Yeah, it was, but it was more a case of that makes sense. Do you see what it made sense? Why that was happening? Yeah. It was like an answer that came many years later.
54:25
Yeah, make the best decisions you can with the information you have available to you. Yeah. And when everyone around you is teaching you that way and you have no one else to go to, but you're being taught that way. It's totally. But it's cool. It's good. I think we're in a good place. I think we're moving to good places. I think so too. Awesome. Yeah. So because we love talking about dogs.
54:54
We've had to make this episode in two parts. That's right, two parts. I need you to keep an eye out for part two. That'll be coming real soon. That's a wrap on today's episode of Pause On Point. A huge thank you to everyone involved in today's episode. These conversations mean everything to this community. If today's episode resonated with you, please share it with one person who needs to hear it. That's how we grow.
55:24
And that's how we create change. And if you want to support the mission behind the podcast, head to pausabilitieservicedogs.ca. Every single dollar goes directly to funding a life-changing service dog partnership for someone who needs it most. Until next time, take care of yourselves and each other. And remember, hit that like button and share. Thank you.
