All tagged cat

475: Creating a Business to Prioritize Yourself with Shannon Hendon

How can you navigate the twists and turns of life through fostering community? Shannon Hendon, founder of Ocala Pet Sitting, takes us through her 18-year saga of transforming challenges into opportunities. From altering her career path away from vet school to implementing cool new services like kitty cam rentals, Shannon's story is a masterclass in adaptability and passion. She also discusses the power of community, the evolution of her business model as she adapted to personal challenges, and her dedication to setting new standards in the pet care industry.

447: From Leashes to Lattes with Alisha Riley

What does it mean to embrace change while staying focused on the client experience? As your business grows, you may face necessary changes that push you out of your comfort zone. Transform any doubt in your abilities into motivation to learn, grow, and discover new methods. Alisha Riley, the owner of Alisha’s Pet Playcations, exemplifies this. She restarted her business after relocating across the country. In her journey, she discusses the importance of integrating oneself into the community and leveraging personal connections through your network. Additionally, Alisha shares her decision to start a coffee shop driven by a very special mission.

443: Being Serious About Business with Kerri-Ann Griffith

How do you help potential clients see the value you provide? Connecting with the right clients is an art form as you refine who you are for, and who you are not. More than simply selling yourself, it’s about connecting at an emotional level with a client’s needs. Kerri-Ann Griffith, owner of Nashville Kitty Sitter, joins the podcast to explain how she runs a boutique business, while also finding clients who have never used a professional service before. Kerri-Ann shares why emergency planning is so important, and how it helps you become a better business owner. She also talks about how she uses her show business background to make the most of her meet and greets.

437: The New Era of Tech-Savvy Pet Care with Beth Pasek

Are you embracing technology or are you frustrated by the rapid changes in the industry and pet care? Whether we like it or not, more and more clients are brining high tech devices into their homes to care for their pets. From smart feeders, to more advanced litter robots, our roll as pet care providers is becoming a lot of tech support. Beth Pasek, owner of Finicky Cat Sitting and Behavior, joins the show to share how to make technology part of your business, and how we still provide immense value to clients, regardless of the devices they bring in. She shares how to use technology to deepen the relationships we have with our clients and to provide even higher quality care to their pets.

424: Navigating the Unexpected Death of a Client’s Pet

How do you deal with the sudden death of a client’s pet? As pet business owners, we will have client’s pets that pass away. We do our best to plan and prepare, but what about an unexpected death? We find ourselves reeling and wondering if we could have done more. We have to continue running our business, while looking for ways to find space and time to recover. On this episode, we walk through the implications at the personal, staffing, and business levels.

419: Selling the Gap with Rachelle Steele

How do you sell your services to potential clients? While many of us believe that our service quality speaks for itself, many clients will have additional questions or needs that we must address. With 30 years of high-end retail experience, Rachelle Steele, owner of Loving Arms Pet Services, shares insights into guiding clients through the purchasing process. Rachelle explains how to ask good questions to better understand how you can serve your client and how using the Platinum Rule can help you meet your clients' needs.

417: Lost Pet Rescue and Prevention with Annalisa Berns

What will you do if an owner’s pet escapes? When seconds count, planning and preparation are your best friend. Annalisa Berns, The Pet Detective, walks us through common ways dogs and cats go missing and explains the simple steps we can take to prevent that from happening. She points out that the normal behaviors we expect are replaced with more unpredictable ones once the pet goes missing. Annalisa speaks on the methods to recover a missing pet, and reminds us to get helps as soon as possible.

398: Risky Business?

What risks have you taken on in your business? While running a dog walking and pet sitting business is inherently risky, as the business owner you have control over the amount of risk and exposure you take on. We walk through the steps in a risk assessment and the questions to consider as you review the threats to your business. We also share how to know if the mitigation processes you’ve put in place are actually working.

366: Best Pet Sitting and Dog Walking Tips from Listeners

What’s your best pet sitting or dog walking tip? We asked, and you answered! Everything from how to deal with nervous cats, to when should you get a poop bag ready, you sent in your best tips. On today’s episode, we share the results and share some tips of our own. Thank you to all who submitted feedback!

359: Pet Behavior and Honing Your Pet First Aid Skills with Arden Moore

What does it mean to understand animal behavior? As pet care professionals, we need to make sure we are communicating well to our clients and are prepared for emergencies. Arden Moore, author and radio host, joins the show to discuss confounding behaviors for both dogs and cats. She also dives into how to make sure we have a great first aid kit and how emergency preparedness is all a mental game. Arden gives her best tips for pilling cats and discusses the importance of being a poop-ologist.

357: Empowering Empathy with Stephanie Castro

What does it mean to be empathetic in our business? Showing empathy allows you to connect with nervous clients. It also helps both clients and staff feel like they are understood and are not alone. Stephanie Castro, owner of Stay Home Pet Sitting, joins the show to share why the words we use help clients see the value in our business. She also explains how she’s growing her company culture, and what it means to make hard decisions.

356: Using A.I. in Your Business

Are you using A.I. in your business? Artificial Intelligence is a growing area of research and development. A.I. can seem overwhelming, but holds many promising tools to give clients more peace of mind. We break down what A.I. is and how it can help your business. We give examples of existing programs and also how we’re currently implementing it in our own business.

340: Tech Hacks for Your Business

What kind of technology do you use in your business? The world of tech is almost endless, with new things being developed all of the time. Today, we break down some of the most underutilized technology business owners should be taking advantage of. In pursuit of saving time, money, and providing better quality services, technology can provide a lot, but we have to make sure we know why we’re adding it.

337: Staying Unexpectedly Different with Brandi Hendrix

What does it mean to be premium? How do you let that influence everything you do and provide to your clients? Brandi Hendrix, owner of Bayou City Pet Sitting, shares how she works hard to delight her clients in unexpected ways. From seeking out the latest information, to thinking through the problems her client’s face, Brandi wants the best for her clients. She shares how she implements GPS collars in her services and the impact that has on her business.

321: Meeting Pet Parent Needs with Eleanor Oates

What are you willing to do to make your business run exactly how you want? Eleanor Oates, owner of Sitter4Pets, went as far as developing her own software to run her business. Eleanor shares how her corporate background helped her get off the ground in pet care and the importance of time management. After a car accident left her out of work for 7 years, she decided to do something new. She shares how she moved through those dark times and shares have she uses videos to connect with clients.

313: Troubleshooting Cat Behavior Issues with Molly Kelsey

How do we empower our clients to live better lives with their cats? As cat care becomes a larger part of pet services, more clients are looking for help. Molly Kelsey, The Cat Counsellor, joins the show to give us insights into feline behavior. Cat communication is all about body language, so not only must we understand it, but we also must be willing to teach out client’s about it. Molly has advice for troubleshooting common cat issues but ultimately, we have to realize it’s up to the owner to decide how much work they’ll put into it.

311: Flourishing through Customer Service with Jan Brown

Self-doubt continues to come up, even after almost three decades in business. Jan Brown, owner of Jan’s Pet Sitting, shares how fear and self-doubt never really go away, and how you use them to make you better. Jan strongly believes that the pet care industry is better when more people pursue education, and that professionalism is the key to a flourishing industry. She gives some amazing advice on what it means to serve the long-term clients and why we need to get out of our own way as business owners.

256: Fear Free Pet Sitting with Mikkel Becker

Mikkel Becker, from Fear Free and Fear Free Happy Homes, discusses how following the Fear Free philosophy impacts our ability to build trust with the pets in our care. It not only makes our job easier, but also sets up the pet and owner for success. Mikkel shares how fear manifests itself in dogs and cats, and what we can do to help them in those moments.