From Teacher to Dog Trainer: A Paw-sitive Approach featuring Taryn Tyler with Teacher Turned Trainer

00:00:00 From Teacher to Trainer: Taryn Tyler's Origin Story

[00:00:00] Intro: Tell me your story. 
[00:00:01] John Kelley: Tell me your story. How did it all start? Do you remember? Oh, I know what happened. All good stuff. 
[00:00:06] John Kelley: You're now tuned into the Small Business Origins podcast. I love an origin story. Each week, we dive into the real stories of entrepreneurs and businesses from across the nation. Who is he? And what's his origin story?

00:00:18 Teacher Turned Trainer: Small Business Origins

[00:00:18] John Kelley: Who started with just an idea and are now making waves. I told knew this was a good idea. This is Small Business Origins. 
[00:00:31] Intro: Yeah. What is up, small business nation? It is small business origins. You're tuned into our nationwide search. We're looking for entrepreneurs that have a story to tell.

00:00:41 Teacher Turned Trainer: Empowering Educators to Become Entrepreneurs

[00:00:41] Intro: And joining me virtually in the studio, I've got an entrepreneur that wants to do just that from Kansas City. I've got Taryn Tyler. She's with teacher turned trainer. Say that 10 times fast. Taryn, welcome to the show. 
[00:00:54] Taryn Tyler: Hello. Thank you for having me. 
[00:00:56] Intro: Absolutely. It is my honor. And as always, I'm your host, John Kelly, aka John the marketer on Instagram, And I'm pretty excited for this one. I mean, you reached out, like, I think, a few days ago or a week ago or something like that. And I was reading your story, and I was like, this is This is gonna be cool.

00:01:11 Teacher Turned Trainer: Taryn Tyler Talks About Their Unique Pet

[00:01:11] Intro: I'm excited for this episode. I'm gonna enjoy this one. I know. But before we hop into it, as we do every single week, we have to start out with our icebreaker question. Today's icebreaker question is what was your most unique pet?

00:01:24 Teacher Turned Trainer discusses unique pets

[00:01:24] Taryn Tyler: Most unique pet. I We've been a dog I mean, ever since I was a kid, it's been dog after dog. It was usually, Labrador retrievers. I'd say my most unique pet was Probably a turtle, and it didn't last long. 
[00:01:40] Intro: Oh, no. 
[00:01:41] Taryn Tyler: And I got it because we we have a lake house. My Family has a lake house in, Holiday Island, Arkansas. And when we were kids, we went, and my sister ended up rescuing a turtle on the side of the road And ended up, like, taking it home and became her pet, and she named it Tex. And I'm she's my older sister. I'm the younger one. 
[00:02:01] Taryn Tyler: So, you know, had got jealous that I didn't have a turtle. And so we got another turtle that I named Tulsa to go along with the t theme because, Obviously, I love the letter t. I can tell. Yep. Right.

00:02:14 Teacher Turned Trainer: Taryn Tyler on Following Her Passion

[00:02:14] Taryn Tyler: But it didn't last long. He did not live well in a tank. So my dad and I ended up taking him to a local lake and ended up, you 
[00:02:24] John Kelley: know, letting him go. And, I mean, I don't remember for sure. I think I maybe only had him for, like, a few weeks something 
[00:02:29] Taryn Tyler: like that, but that was really my only endeavor outside of dogs was a turtle. 
[00:02:35] Intro: There was probably enough time to chill your Curious child mind. You know? I find out with my kids all the time where it's like, I've gotta have this. This is so important. I'm gonna die if it doesn't happen, then it happens, and then 2 weeks later, it's like, you wanna stop doing this now?

00:02:49 Interview with Taryn Tyler on Unique Pet Experiences

[00:02:49] Intro: Yeah. Right. They're like, yeah, please. 
[00:02:51] Taryn Tyler: Went back to, yeah, went back to the dogs we had in the house lived happily ever after. 
[00:02:55] Taryn Tyler: I needed. 
[00:02:56] Intro: I have been kind of crazy on the pet spectrum, man. I have owned snakes, which, You know, people who know about snakes, it's ball pythons. So super tame, like, really docile. But I've owned a few of those. You know, 1 I had 1 and then I had 2, so 3 total. 
[00:03:14] Intro: When I was really young growing up, We had found back in the day when, you know, you had to have, like, a little flyer hanging up, and you would tear off the phone number because it'd be printed sideways 20 times. And So we tore one of those off because just like you, little kid, I wanted this free ferret that somebody was rehoming. So I got a free ferret. I had that for a while until, we had a roommate with my mom after my parents divorced. And, she was like, it looks like a rat, and I can't live in a house with a rat. 
[00:03:43] Intro: They forced me to get rid of my ferret, and I love that thing. Of course, you know My Oh, go ahead. 
[00:03:50] Taryn Tyler: My mom and grandma, I guess it kinda stopped there, but they had some I mean, they had wild pets growing up, and the the most unique was they had a pet skunk. 
[00:03:59] Intro: Oh, nice. 
[00:04:00] Taryn Tyler: That it's, like, stinker sack was, you know, removed and stuff. It didn't know that, so it would still, like, hop around, you know, with its, like, butt pointed at you trying to Trying to spray you, but he like, my grandma said, he was, like, the most loving pet and, like, cuddled up to you like he was a dog, and he ended up passing away of a heart attack 
[00:04:19] Taryn Tyler: Because he was trying he tried to keep up with the dogs. Like, he would run around the yard like he was one of the pets. But they had They had a skunk that they rescued because it had a broken leg, and so they brought it back, like, from injury and had it at as their Childhood pets. 
[00:04:34] Intro: I've heard really good things about skunks being pets. Like, that's not some nominal thing. Yeah. You know, it it's I've heard that they are really good just like rats. Apparently, rats are extremely trainable. 
[00:04:46] Intro: I know. I'm kind of the same way. I I had a hamster. 
[00:04:48] Taryn Tyler: know if I could just get past being a rat. 
[00:04:50] Intro: Yeah. I feed those things to my snakes. So, you know, yeah, that's definitely I was like, I don't wanna sit here and have a pet rat, but I don't know. I've heard they're trainable. You know, like, you can and and they want attention. 
[00:05:01] Intro: They wanna, like, snuggle with you and all that kind of stuff. So I'm sure you would love the rat trying to snuggle with you, but, No. Thanks. Yeah. I Uh-huh. 
[00:05:11] Intro: And then, you know, the the weirdest one that I probably ever had was, and only millennials will probably get this, Tamagotchis. 
[00:05:19] Intro: Little electronic pets? 
[00:05:20] Taryn Tyler: I never had one of those. It was like and it never sparked my interest as a kid, but I I'm Fully aware, but I yeah. I love that it wasn't classified as a pet. 
[00:05:29] Intro: I mean, I'm classifying it as a pet because it was. You had to feed it. You had to exercise it. Yeah. My cousin and I had, like, these weird little ones that weren't even Tamagotchis. 
[00:05:38] Intro: It was another spin off brand, but they would fight. And so you could, like, train them. Like, physically, they were buff little creatures or whatever, and you could train them. And then you could link them to the other person who has one And then make them fight, and one would win, one would lose. It was insane. 
[00:05:53] Intro: But, yeah, I've definitely gone down the pet rabbit hole, pun intended. You know, pretty far and and has some really cool unique pets, and it's fun. But I will say these days, You know, my dog, he gets all the attention and love he needs from my daughter, and, he loves her more than anyone else in the house anyway, so he's content with that. And then Yeah. We've got cats that could just they could not care less if they were yeah. 
[00:06:17] Intro: Yeah. Like, if I was there or not, they don't care. So Yeah. Well, awesome. Before we hop into everything, I always take a second to stop and thank the sponsors of the show.

00:06:26 Teacher Turned Trainer: Taryn Tyler on her journey from teaching to entrepreneurship

[00:06:26] Intro: And if you're tired of juggling multiple platforms with your marketing and sales needs. It's time to revolutionize your business operations with Wingman. It's an all in one marketing automation software that's designed by experienced marketers who understand your struggles and combines the best tools to streamline your communication, automate your workflows, and grow your business. If you're ready to take your business to new heights, visit trust your wingman.com today and let Wingman be your copilot to success because every business needs a Wingman. But, Taryn, we're here to talk about you. 
[00:06:55] Intro: So just like I ask every other guest that's on this show, who are you? Where'd you come from? And how'd you get into entrepreneurship? What's your origin story?

00:07:03 From Teacher to Trainer: Taryn Tyler's Journey in Education

[00:07:03] Taryn Tyler: So pretty interesting take from, you know, where I started to where I am. But so I'm In Kansas City now, I've always been in Kansas City. Ever since I was a kid, I had always said I had 2 things. I was gonna go to KU, and I was gonna be a teacher. And huge KU fans, like, my dad went to KU. 
[00:07:24] Taryn Tyler: I graduated from KU. We already have our March Madness tickets. We're gonna go to, hopefully, Omaha and see them in March. Like, we, you know, we travel. We're we're big fans. 
[00:07:32] Taryn Tyler: So that was always on my list. And then I just always kind of knew that I wanted to be a teacher. So I went to k, I graduated high school in 2012, went to KU and pursued my education degree and graduated in 2017 with an elementary education degree. And so went straight into teaching. I got a job actually in the school district that I grew up in, and Was 3rd grade for 4 years, and then during my last year in 4th grade or sorry, in 3rd grade, is when the pandemic hit. 
[00:08:06] Taryn Tyler: So we were sent home right around spring break. The kids were told to take their their Nobody was prepared for it. I mean, who thought, you know, who who thought? So kinda finished out that year, came back, and then was moved to 2nd grade. So it was my first You're in 2nd grade and or no. 
[00:08:32] Taryn Tyler: Sorry. Actually, that was I had one more year in 3rd grade because I did teach. When we did bring the kids back, We the all of the families had the choice to either teach they could go in person or they could do remote learning. And I volunteered to be a remote teacher. So in the heart of the pandemic, I was teaching online every day. 
[00:08:51] Taryn Tyler: And at one point, had 27 third graders It honestly, like, turned out to be one of my favorite years of teaching. I ended up that was the first taste I'd ever had from of working from home, And so that was kind of a nice change, but, had to that's where my creative side really came out. And, You know, I came up with alter egos. Like, the kids called me every Friday. DJ missus t came out in a different costume, and I had a a remix playlist that we do and, you know, just tried to make the best of it.

00:09:29 Teacher Turned Trainer: A Conversation with Taryn Tyler

[00:09:29] Taryn Tyler: And then came back and Taught 1 year in 2nd grade and just kinda hit the infamous teacher burnout and was having a really big mental health struggle as to where I saw my future going and what is this what I'm supposed to be doing with the rest of my life? I have a very, very supportive been to told me, like, if it's causing you this much much stress, if this is not what you wanna do anymore, then don't do it. We have we're fine. We'll take some time. Figure out what you wanna do. 
[00:10:00] Taryn Tyler: And so I finished out that school year, and then just started really thinking about What I wanted to do, what my new purpose was gonna be, and I was out on a walk one day with, one of my dogs. I have 3 dogs. I have a 6 year old pit bull, a 3 year old Great Dane and a 1 year old. We call her a thing. She's literally £8. 
[00:10:22] Taryn Tyler: She fits in both hands, And she's, like, 10 different breeds. She's 1 year old. She looks like she's, like, 15. Like, she she I'm sure she I'm sure I have 2 over here on the couch one sitting laying behind me on the bed, and I'm sure she's gonna make an appearance because 
[00:10:36] John Kelley: she likes 
[00:10:37] Taryn Tyler: to jump up on the desk. But I was out on a walk with Sinclair, my pit bull, Who is you hear the term soul dog. He is my soul dog. He is highly reactive, highly anxious, literally everything in the book. And so when we got him, it was Mikey and I, my husband, in a 1 bedroom apartment, and Sinclair came to us and was terrified to even go outside to go to the bathroom. 
[00:10:59] Taryn Tyler: So It was me and Sinclair in a 1 bedroom apartment with all of the dry the, blinds drawn because he just couldn't take it. So we we bonded very quickly. So flash forward, and this was about 2 years ago, and I was out on a walk with him and done a lot of training with him through a local trainer and then taking it over myself. But it was like just watching him walk do this walk and, like, thriving in his in his environment and not freaking out about other dogs and other people in the park and things like that. I'm like, this is what I wanna do. 
[00:11:30] Taryn Tyler: Like, I wanna work with dogs like Sinclair. And See if there's 
[00:11:35] Intro: There we go. 
[00:11:37] Taryn Tyler: There they are. Yep. That's Tallulah. That's the little, the little yapper. But so the first idea was that I wanted to open a doggy day care for dogs that like Sinclair that had the reactivity and, like, Families might not actually have a place to send their dogs, and I could kinda help out with that. 
[00:11:55] Taryn Tyler: And so that's when I got the idea to get my training certification because I figured people would be more willing to work with me if I opened this kind of business, if I had something to back my name to it of, like, you know, I'm not just trying this. I I've trained. I know what to do. And then once going through my, training certification, it was actually Sinclair. The same dog was going through a double knee And I was like, I have all this downtime, so that's when I I buckled down and I got my certification. 
[00:12:31] Taryn Tyler: And doing that and doing all of the videos and everything that I had to do to past the program. It was I really fell in love with the work. And so, you know, opening my own day care, opening something might Happened down the road, but right now, I'm a private positive reinforcement trainer. So I do private sessions, which it's all in home. I come to clients, and I do it there. 
[00:12:53] Taryn Tyler: And it's it was the best career move I could have made for myself because it's like, I wake up and I'm so excited to spend time with these families. Who wouldn't wanna spend every day with different types of dogs and, you know, get to hang out with them? So it's it's awesome.

00:13:08 Teacher Turned Trainer: A Journey from Teaching to Entrepreneurship

[00:13:08] Intro: Yeah. I know you spoke highly of it, so I'm sure the answer is Yes. But, I mean, did you love teaching? Was that, like, a passion of yours as well, and you kinda walked away from that passion for maybe something you're more passionate for? 
[00:13:23] Taryn Tyler: Yeah. Actually, I the the year that I ended up resigning, I was named teacher of the year for my building. So I it was absolutely a passion. I still sometimes you know, I get asked the question all the time if I miss it. And overall, my my my answer is no just because of, like, I'm so in love with what I'm doing now. 
[00:13:45] Taryn Tyler: But, Like, there's so many families that I'm still in in contact with. Some of my old families have actually become some of my clients, and I actually bought Girl scout cookies from one of my old students last week. You know? So I'm still, like, in tune with some friends that I've made through the school and the Families and stuff like that. So it was absolutely a passion of mine. 
[00:14:03] Taryn Tyler: It's just it the normal wear and tear of being a teacher and not being able to enjoy The actual aspect of teaching and everything else that comes with it just it it took a really heavy hit on me, and it was It like, I felt almost, like, claustrophobic, you know, and, like, I needed to, like, I needed to break out and and figure out what was next.

00:14:24 Teacher Turned Trainer: Finding Freedom in Entrepreneurship

[00:14:24] Intro: Yeah. I mean, I always give kudos to teachers because 27 kids on an online environment sounds bad enough, but at least there, you can mute them, you know, in person when they're in that classroom and don't even I love kids. Okay? I'm not bashing children. I've got 3 of my own. 
[00:14:42] Intro: So if I didn't like them, I'd have already sold them. I'm just kidding. But, I cannot imagine being trapped in a room. That's how I would feel trapped in a room with, You know, 20, 30 other people's kids. Like, it just it drives me insane to even think about it. 
[00:14:58] Intro: So kudos to you and every teacher that will stand up and do that job and not only do it, but enjoy it. But, unfortunately, I think He's 
[00:15:06] Taryn Tyler: a special person for sure. 
[00:15:08] Intro: Oh, a 100%, which, I mean, a lot of jobs in the public sector do. Right? Firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, police officers. It takes a special person because there's a lot of people that say, there's no way I could be a You know, there's no way I could run into a burning building. There's no way that I could see all the blood, guts, and gore, whatever the case may be. 
[00:15:25] Intro: But, Unfortunately, I think nationwide, the story is pretty much the the same that teaching has really turned so political. And then, I mean, god, the fact that you you felt so relieved by being able to work from home because I know you had early mornings. I know you had late I know you had work to do at home anyway whenever you got off of work. You know, I've seen the lesson plans. I've seen the grading papers. 
[00:15:52] Intro: I've seen which I know in the elementary. There's probably less of the grading papers at home, but still it's it's a lot of work. And entrepreneurship gives so many people freedom That I'm assuming one big draw to this is you get to work kind of when you want to. You know, you get to schedule people when you want to. And if you wanna block off a day because you've got to go do something for that day, you can. 
[00:16:16] Intro: You know? So that's gotta be a nice change for you. 
[00:16:19] Taryn Tyler: Yeah. It's a free the freedom is definitely a big plus for me. Like, I love I love to travel, love concerts. I We figured it out. I turned 30 in May, and, I will be going to Vegas to see a concert for my 30th birthday. 
[00:16:36] Taryn Tyler: And we figured out that'll be my 60th concert I've been to. Wow. So it's like, I love yeah. Like, so being able to, like, have, you know, those other fun hobbies and stuff like that and, like, Having my own business of, you know, if I need to take a few days off, then I can take a few days off. If I have a doctor's appointment, my husband has a doctor's appointment, Something for the dog, you know, my own dogs. 
[00:16:55] Taryn Tyler: Like, it gives me I don't have to worry about trying to find a sub and doing the sub plans. It's you know, I'm on my own time, and I can still Give everything that I need to for my clients and but be able to do what I need to on my own too.

00:17:07 Teacher Turned Trainer discusses challenges of scheduling vacations during the school year

[00:17:07] Intro: Yeah. One of my sisters is in the education side of things, and She's moved all the way up from I don't even know what she started as. I don't think she started as a para. I think she kinda 
[00:17:16] Taryn Tyler: Mhmm. 
[00:17:17] Intro: Started, you know, a little bit higher up, but she's on the admin side now and and running all of the, forgive me for not knowing the proper terms for it, but basically the sped side of things. You know, she kind of admins all that stuff, and even she is stuck to those same issues of I have to be at work. So, I mean, she's somebody that we used to cruise all the time prior to the pandemic, and we would cruise with her every now and then. And it was always like, Hey. I've gotta have it during those regular breaks of school or on holidays. 
[00:17:49] Intro: I can't have this on, you know, a regular Monday through Friday because like us, Yeah. Sorry. No offense to the education system, but I would rather my kids miss the 1st week of school and get the of going to 3 other countries and be on a cruise ship than, you know, being stuck in a classroom for those 5 days. I'm like, they'll get over it. They'll still learn. 
[00:18:09] Intro: They'll come right back and be just fine. I I wanna give those experiences. So I would just we're gonna skip school for a week. I don't care. Whereas my sister's like, I can't do that.

00:18:17 Teacher Turned Trainer: Transitioning from the Classroom to Dog Training

[00:18:17] Intro: I have to be there. You know? And even at the admin side, she doesn't have to get a sub or anything else. There is no sub. It's her. 
[00:18:24] Intro: So she's stuck, and and that's gotta be rough. Now going into teacher turned trainer A little bit here. And I and I may put you on to something if you're not doing this, which is kind of when you talk to Andrew or myself, here at Beefy Marketing anytime, that's kinda like We always have a 1,000,000 ideas flooding our heads. You enjoyed so much being able to work from home and being in the online environment. You told me you come in home to do these trainings. 
[00:18:49] Intro: Is this something that you're able to turn into an online training, and have you done that yet, or are you considering it? 
[00:18:56] Taryn Tyler: I have not done that. We actually, my husband and I were just talking about that last week of, like, being an option, but I'm a you know, different Facebook groups and different, training, groups and things like that. And a lot of people do offer Online sessions as an option so then they can reach farther than just their own city. But, yeah, I've I don't do it yet. It's, been something that I've talked about, but it absolutely is an option, especially now, you know, if there's if there's heavier behaviors to deal with, like, you know, reactivity, aggression, things like that. 
[00:19:31] Taryn Tyler: That's probably not suitable for online. 
[00:19:33] Taryn Tyler: it's just like, you know, I need help potty training. Need help, like, my dog not rushing the front door. Those are absolutely things that a trainer, myself, whoever, could teach you online. But, yeah, I I know quite a few trainers that offer that, and and people really seem to like it. And especially during the pandemic and post pandemic, like, online communication and stuff like that is something People started getting used to for sure. 
[00:19:56] Intro: Yeah. I mean, the thing is, this sounds so lazy, and I'm not a lazy person. So I don't I don't mind saying it because I've I've got one of the most physical jobs in the world. I've got one of the most, like, nonphysical jobs in the world as a part time job. 
[00:20:10] Intro: And then I've got a lot going on. Right? So I don't like leaving my house to have to go do something no matter what it is. Like, I don't care if you tell me there's free ice cream. I'm like, cool. 
[00:20:21] Intro: Can you bring it by the house? Like, I'll pay you for it if you bring it to that. Like, I don't wanna leave for free ice cream. I don't wanna leave for anything. You know? 
[00:20:27] Intro: And so I've got a PetSmart And at Petco, 2 big super chain stores that offer dog training, and one of them is, like, 5 minutes away. The other one's 10 minutes away. And in Texas time, that's a very short drive. And Yeah. So I've not taken my border collie to get trained like I wanted to from the moment we got him. 
[00:20:45] Intro: Why? Because It takes too much to go there, right, and load up the dog who he doesn't like the car, and then take him there, do the training, come back, takes up my time whereas if I had something at the house, this would be so amazing. I'd hire you today to you know, especially because border collies, as you know, they're working dogs, And they want that. Like, he thrives on having a task to complete. And so, and he's so trainable.

00:21:12 Adopting a Dog from a Shelter

[00:21:12] Intro: I mean, literally, one of the girls that works in the office, we actually, like, skipped work for an entire day, CEO included, to go adopt a dog from my house from a shelter. So that was quite epic. Like, we spent half of the day during the day prior at work, like, looking for dogs because I said and then this is the thing. She's a dog lover like you, and I made the mistake of uttering in my office. I'm loosely considering adopting a dog. 
[00:21:39] Intro: And then that turned into 568 
[00:21:42] Taryn Tyler: how loose you were talking about. You had We're We're gonna 
[00:21:45] Intro: do it. Yeah. So I got, like, 568 dogs sent to me, not by spammers, not by, you know, breeders, not by shelters, but by the people in my office And my wife telling me, like, hey. Here's all these dogs, and then we got one that was named hot dog. We we changed his name to Loki, but, you had hot dog and hamburger. 
[00:22:03] Intro: They were brothers, I think, and they were border collies. 1 of them was gone. Hot dog was still available. We had to fight to get this dog. We showed up when because I guess border collies are just like, they fly out of shelters. 
[00:22:14] Intro: Yes. And, so we Got there first. We were first in line sitting at the gate ready to go, and this lady pulled up when we finally got let in 5 minutes early Through the gate to the the front office, and they said, hey. Just hang out for 5 minutes because we're not open yet, so don't go in there bugging them just yet. Give them time. 
[00:22:34] Intro: No problem. This other lady pulls up, and then she gets out and she goes inside. And I said, she's going to get our damn dog. A 100%, she's going to get our dog. So I was like, Alright. 
[00:22:44] Intro: Well, screw the rules. I'm going. So I walked in. 
[00:22:46] Intro: And they're like, hey. How can we help you? And I was like, I'm here to see hot dog, and they're like, oh, well, She was here first, and it's 1st come, 1st serve. And I said, cool. I was here first. 
[00:22:55] Intro: Well, sir, she walked in, and it's 1st come, 1st serve. And I said, I've been here 30 minutes prior to when you open, on my phone, in my car waiting, and then I followed the rules. Long story short, she was such a nice lady, and she was like, I've got 4 border collies at home. We were just gonna add to the collection. 
[00:23:11] Taryn Tyler: Right. 
[00:23:12] Intro: And I saw your vehicle when you pulled in. You're totally right. I'm gonna let you go see this dog. And we took him home, man. He was so loving right there, and then now he's so attached to my daughter.

00:23:22 Teacher Turned Trainer: A Passion for Animals

[00:23:22] Intro: But Cara, who is in the office. She's the one who, like, got us this dog. She loves training dogs, so she comes over to the house. And in one sitting, I'm talking maybe an hour of training that she was doing just as for fun. This dog sits. 
[00:23:39] Intro: He'll lay down. He'll roll over. He'll ring the bells on the back door to go out to the bathroom, and I'm Yep. We did not do potty training. We did not do any of this Stuff like he's so smart. 
[00:23:52] Intro: So, just a a word of encouragement for my little tangent there of anybody. It's like, if you've got a dog at home, if you're having issues, Dogs are so smart. I mean, they are just Yeah. 
[00:24:04] Taryn Tyler: just need guidance. 
[00:24:05] Intro: Yeah. They will they can figure anything out, and they they need that guidance. And the problem is is that, like, I can watch YouTube videos all day, but it doesn't mean that I'm gonna be the best. And he may pick it up because he is so smart, but having a training resource I could just tell your passion for animals, and that shows. And to me, that's the most important thing. 
[00:24:30] Intro: I I used to have a German shepherd, and we had to get rid of him because he was aggressive. And he was not aggressive when we first got him. I know they're obviously a more aggressive breed than others, but, He wasn't just protective. He was, like, overly protective. And then all of a sudden, I took him to get professionally trained. 
[00:24:50] Intro: And what happened was I taught license to carry courses in Texas, so I could come out and instruct you, get you a license to carry a handgun. And so we we made a trade. He was like, I'll keep Max for a period of time, and then he'll come back to you trained, and then you just come teach license to carry for my friends and family up to a certain amount of people, and I was like, cool deal. Let's do it. And so we do that. 
[00:25:11] Intro: Well, when Max came back, he was different, And I think he was either abused or, I do know that I saw a shot caller on him whenever I got back to pick him up, and I was like, okay. So they're doing some type of therapy that is abusive to this dog. And after that, he was aggressive toward males. He bit my father-in-law. He bit my niece's boyfriend at the time. 
[00:25:33] Intro: I mean, just bite after bite after bite, broke out of our house, scratched a neighbor, And so, unfortunately, we could not have him any longer, but, it's important to hire the right trainer. And just By talking to you on this show right now, I could tell you were that person. So it's exciting. It's refreshing to see. What do you think getting back to the actual reason we're here now.

00:25:57 The Benefits of Dog Training for Every Dog

[00:25:57] Intro: What do you think is, like, some common misconceptions or things people need to know before they come to you. Like, is there anything that's ever stood out that it's like, I'm telling every customer that hires me this. Like, the whole world should know it. Like, what what should we know about dog training? 
[00:26:14] Taryn Tyler: I would say the biggest misconception that I've seen is, like, Dog training. I think some people have the mindset that dog training you only need dog training if, like, your dog is showing unwanted behaviors. Whereas I am under I'm under the thought that I think every single dog could use some training. Now it doesn't have to be like, even my 3 dogs have completely different needs. You know? 
[00:26:38] Taryn Tyler: Sinclair is like I said, he's highly reactive. He's anxious to everything. Like, just last weekend when the Chiefs won The game on Sunday. We came home. We went to a friend's house to watch the game. 
[00:26:48] Taryn Tyler: We came home. We opened the door to let him go outside. He wouldn't even go outside. He, like, Coward in the kitchen, wouldn't move, and we figured out it's because there had been fireworks that were going off. And he was so freaked out by the fireworks that he wouldn't even go outside. 
[00:27:00] Taryn Tyler: So he, you know, he has completely different needs than what my other 2 need, which is not as much. And so I even I just I think that every dog can benefit from some type of training, whether it's a brand new puppy to the home and you just need basic obedience. Like you said, sit, Down, stay, all of the basics, or you need something to the level of what Sinclair needs, which is going on socialization field trips and Just getting him used to the world and to see that it's not such a scary place. But every single dog has some type of need that owners might not be able to handle themselves. And like Like you said, like, you started watching YouTube. 
[00:27:38] Taryn Tyler: You tried to do it on your own, and you probably did a lot of good of starting it starting that process and starting to build that relationship with your but you do need somebody that knows a little bit more than you might know and be able to come in and take it to the next level. But dog training is not just for dogs that are, You know, bad dogs. And I don't like to say that there's to me, there's not a bad dog out there. Dogs are misunderstood. You half of it is just learning how to communicate with them and speak their language because they obviously don't speak ours. 
[00:28:08] Taryn Tyler: So you just have to build that relationship. So it's not just for dogs that are Disobedient or not listening. It's, you know, even just my dog is crazy on a leash, and he's strong, and he pulls me because So excited to see every single squirrel and every single human. Like, that can be trained. That can be helped. 
[00:28:24] Taryn Tyler: So I always tell all of my clients, and and I offer options to come back and do, like, individual sessions just because even just a refresh here and there is so helpful to a dog's Long term bean and their long term success. 
[00:28:40] Intro: Yeah. I There's I don't know. I I think every dog needs it from what I know limited about animals in general, but, I think every dog needs it in order to just kinda have that normal this is this is what I need to do. This is my life. This is what's expected of me.

00:29:00 Teacher Turned Trainer discusses separation anxiety in dogs

[00:29:00] Intro: I mean, even with my dog, I can see there, you know, he like I said, his strongest connection is to my daughter because when we got him, it was summertime. My kids were home all the time, and my daughter was the one that paid the most attention to him. Go play with her friends down the road, and he either lays on the couch with his head on the, armrest so that he can watch the front door, Or he'll actually go lay by the front door and just sit there. You can tell he's anxious. You could tell he hates his life until she gets home. 
[00:29:40] Intro: And we are definitely my wife and I are definitely just like those things that I'll deal with for now because at least they're here, But he's definitely not as connected to us. And then, if we leave, then our Furbo camera constantly is going off. Dog howling alert, dog barking, dog whining, all of those things because he's just losing his mind. True separation anxiety. 
[00:30:04] Taryn Tyler: Yeah.

00:30:05 The Benefits of Bells on the Back Door for Dogs

[00:30:05] Intro: I'll I'll tell you the biggest thing that I would ever like, me personally, if you would ask me this question, bells on the back door. 
[00:30:12] Taryn Tyler: Mhmm. It makes a crazy difference. 
[00:30:14] Intro: Oh my god. It's the best thing I've ever done in my life because having gone through, like, dachshunds who pee on everything all the time for no reason And other types of dogs that, you know because my mom had dachshunds and all that kind of stuff and and just seeing them pee everywhere all the time. I was like, this is so nerve wracking. I hate it. I can't stand a stinky house, but my dog literally goes to the back door and rings the bells when he wants to go out. 
[00:30:37] Taryn Tyler: Rings the bell? Mhmm. And then 
[00:30:38] Taryn Tyler: did that. We we started the bells for our Great Dane, and she we don't have to use them anymore because we just getting the 3rd dog. 3rd dog was not a plan. She was a foster. She was not the plan. 
[00:30:48] Taryn Tyler: She was a foster fail. And we just we couldn't let her go. So, you know, once she came into the mix, and she's so tiny and she has such a tiny bladder that we have to have different routines in place. But our when we first got Glenda, the Great Dane. She was we trained her on the bells, and it was we it happened by accident, and then we just continued it. 
[00:31:05] Taryn Tyler: I wasn't a trainer yet, but we had had this, like, Christmas decoration that bells on the back door, and then she started ringing them to go outside. And we're like, okay. We're, yep, we're rolling with this. We're we're gonna keep 
[00:31:15] Intro: going. It's awesome. And he'll even, He'll ring the bells when he wants to go out. Our neighbor has 2 dogs, and one of them is, like, his best friend in the world. Mhmm. 
[00:31:24] Intro: And so he'll ring the bells when he would just wants to go see if she's out To go play. 
[00:31:28] Intro: You know? And they, it's kinda cute. There's, like, a little divot in between our yards under the fence, and both of Some will lay down and put their heads in there, nose to nose, just so they can, like, see each other and be with each other. So my neighbor, at some point, we're actually gonna do it. We've talked about it several times, and he's like, I'm ready to move forward with it, but we're gonna build a gate between our yards so that we can just open the gate and then Let the dogs kinda friggly go between both yards because we both have he's probably got, like, a little over a quarter acre property, and I have a half acre property. 
[00:31:59] Intro: Even though we're in a subdivision, I've got a little bit more land. And, so it's like, dude, let them dogs run back there. Let them have fun. It's awesome. And he has to burn energy because he is extremely hyper.

00:32:09 Training Dogs at Any Age with Taryn Tyler of Teacher Turned Trainer

[00:32:09] Taryn Tyler: Yeah. Yep. 
[00:32:11] Intro: I definitely agree with you. Every dog needs some training. What about have you ever had anyone who feels like, okay. I've waited too long, and now it's too late. Like, I've I've thought about that with Loki. 
[00:32:22] Intro: You know? I'm like Mhmm. Man, I mean, I know he's a border collie. I know he's smart, but now that he's almost 2 years old. Have I waited too long, or is any time a good time to start? 
[00:32:31] Taryn Tyler: Any time is a good time to start. I've had my the ages of my clients have ranged from I mean, I'll start as early as I tell families when they're getting new puppies that they should give themselves about a month to just build a relationship with the dog and just get They just need to get used to their routines of, like, when's bathroom time, when's food time, thing when's nap time, stuff like that. And then I'll come in, and we can start doing the basics and stuff. But, I mean, I'll start as early as 10 to 12 week old puppies, and then my, oldest graduate was a 9 year old chihuahua mix. 
[00:33:02] Taryn Tyler: So there's really no and he needed it wasn't just basics. Like, he was kind of he was kinda yappy, and he him and his brother, he had a 4 year old, French bulldog brother, And they would rush the door, and not let anybody come in the house. And so we taught them, like, a stay command, a place command. I taught them quiet so their mom would look at them and go like this, and they would stop barking. So, I mean, it's honestly, it's never too late. 
[00:33:26] Taryn Tyler: Like, if you have an issue that you want corrected or you need help figuring it out, even if they are old as as old as 7, 8, 9, whatever, their dogs are so intelligent, way beyond what we even realized, they're gonna pick up anything. I mean, Sinclair is you know, he's 6. He's kinda getting into the older age. And, I mean, I still he's my guinea pig for wanting to try new things because he's so incredibly intelligent that he just He picks it up so quick. Like, there's yeah. 
[00:33:54] Taryn Tyler: You could do from puppyhood to to old age. Just, you know, Get them the help that you want them to have for sure. 
[00:34:03] Intro: Do you think there's any any dog that's too far gone? Like, are you The Cesar Milan of, you know, dog whisperer. Like, you can work with any dog, or do you think you know, like, Max, when we had him, should I have gone and invested in some training to Try and get him better, or do you think there is a point where dogs are just too far gone with what they've gone through?

00:34:25 When is it time to rehome a dog?

[00:34:25] Taryn Tyler: I I think it I think it's a case by case situation. Like, I think for your case, it sounds like it just it was not a good fit for your anymore and especially in your situation when, like and I don't know if you had you know, you had kids around at the time. 
[00:34:38] Intro: Little babies. 
[00:34:39] Taryn Tyler: It's yeah. So when you have youngs like that that you need, that has to be your main focus. That's what you need to protect. And if a dog is not suitable for that situation anymore, then, yeah, it's probably not the best situation for you. Is it is this dog too far gone to where They're not going to improve the behaviors you're seeing? 
[00:34:58] Taryn Tyler: No. But it's probably not the best situation for you anymore. Like, we talk about that like, that with Sinclair. I mean, he He you'll hear me talk about him a lot just between the 3 of them the 3 of my dogs. I love them equally. 
[00:35:11] Taryn Tyler: I don't have human children. I my dogs are my kids at this husband, we were we had a our first dog together was a black lab, and he unfortunately passed away at 16 months old. Asleep in his kennel. And so it was like that was the first time we'd ever had a big, you know, loss like that. And I found Sinclair a few months later, and it was love at first sight. 
[00:35:50] Taryn Tyler: And I didn't what Mikey was gonna say. I was gonna bring this out home. And it's one of those things where, like, looking back on it now, like, Sinclair was meant to be with us because we truly believe that if he was with anybody else, he he would not be at the successful point he is now Because he does have a bite history. He does have a reactive protective side, and you have to definitely be able to handle that. So if it's not right for your family, then, you know, you find the training help. 
[00:36:22] Taryn Tyler: If you've exhausted all other options, then, No. I don't think the dog's too far gone, but it's probably too far gone for your situation. 
[00:36:30] Taryn Tyler: And you can bring in a trainer and help. I have a dog that I'm working with right now that I've I oh my gosh. I love her. I even brought her to my house for a full day. I sent my dogs to day care, and I did, like, a day train program with her. 
[00:36:41] Taryn Tyler: And I brought her to my house, and we did 8 hours of training. And we put that in place because at that time, her family was was considering rehoming her because it was every Every alternative, every modification that we put in place for her was not showing a difference. And it was just they had 3 kids. It's they're both working. The dad was is going through a surgery. 
[00:37:05] Taryn Tyler: Like, they it was it was a lot for them. And so We are still working together now. They we've got her part of it was medication. She need an anxiety medication. And once we were able to get her on the right and kinda get her her brain to slow down and be able to actually process what we're trying to teach her. 
[00:37:25] Taryn Tyler: It made a huge difference, and now she's to thrive in the home. So it's just you gotta, like, you gotta find every option that you want to. If you wanna put in that effort, then you figure out what you need to do. But then if you've exhausted all of those options and even a trainer is like, I don't think this is the best situation, then you have to do what's best for your family and for the dog and just Mutual decision of just trying to figure out what's next.

00:37:47 Understanding the Future of Technology in Pet Training

[00:37:47] Intro: That's fair. It's just it's so hard. I know some people don't care. Some people aren't the same as others. Like, I'm an empath. 
[00:37:55] Intro: You're obviously a dog lover, you know, so you are going to feel a lot different about someone getting rid of a dog than Yeah. Even I would feel, even though I don't like it. 
[00:38:05] Taryn Tyler: Not get to that Yeah. That too for sure. 
[00:38:08] Intro: you you always, like, have that second guess. You know? And and we were in a very different position back then. I mean, this was years years ago, but, it it's reassuring to hear that sometimes things are just not fit for your situation, but I would say the overarching important thing here, the message out of that is talk to a trainer. They're the professionals. 
[00:38:28] Intro: They're the ones who are trained to do this type of stuff. So, you know, figure out what is best. And I mean, of course, yeah, 100%. Whatever is best for my family and my kids is gonna happen regardless of what the cost is to the animal. I love animals, but, Ultimately, animals are not greater than my children. 
[00:38:45] Intro: Like, that's just 
[00:38:46] Taryn Tyler: Yeah. Absolutely. 
[00:38:47] Intro: Yeah. And I don't have a Jamie here, you know, like Joe Rogan does. So I had to go do my own research while we were talking, but there's this really cool Netflix show. If you haven't seen it, it's called the future of, and they have a dog like communication episode. So what do you think the the differences are gonna be with AI, with technology, and these changes? 
[00:39:09] Intro: Like, you know, already we've got the Furbo camera. My dog took about 2.3 seconds to learn that when that dog squeak toy sound comes out of the camera, a treat follows it. You know, what do you think technology is gonna do in this space both for pet owners and for pets? Because this show starts talking about how, like, maybe these Cameras that are in the homes are actually gonna be able to interpret what your dog is saying. Right? 
[00:39:33] Intro: Because you you talk to dogs. Like, You don't speak out of your mouth, and they understand everything, and and you understand what their barks mean. But when you do speak out of your mouth, sometimes they understand what you mean. When you use certain body language, they understand what you mean. You know, you're communicating with animals. 
[00:39:50] Intro: So do you think that tech is gonna, like, further that ability to actually, like, have a not a conversation with your dog, but understand even more than we ever thought.

00:40:00 Technology's Role in Communication and Monitoring

[00:40:00] Taryn Tyler: I think it's already coming to that point because they even have those. I was again, I was just talking about this with my husband of, like, I wanted to try it on our dogs, but they even have those the buttons, you know, the the buttons that dogs will hit. And, You know, it tells them when they wanna go outside and when they want food and stuff. Like, I mean, they're it's already kind of, like it's already heading in that direction. Now do I think I don't know if you've ever seen I'm a big Disney fan. 
[00:40:22] Taryn Tyler: I don't know if you've ever seen Up. Oh, yeah. The dogs the dogs, you know, they Have the callers that, like, make them have the human voices and they talk. Now are we ever gonna get to something like that? I that's farther than my brain can comprehend, but, I mean, technology is definitely gonna play a part, especially if we're already at the at the, the stage where we have the buttons for dogs, and they can, like, Literally communicate somehow in a human voice. 
[00:40:47] Taryn Tyler: But, I mean, even on another side of it, some of our good friends just had their baby, like, last week, and they were telling us that There are new cribs and crib mattresses that will track, like, their sleeping patterns. 
[00:41:00] Taryn Tyler: And if there's a Fever and, you know, all of these crazy things that they didn't even have, you know, 10, 20 years ago. 
[00:41:06] Intro: My buddy has one. 
[00:41:08] Taryn Tyler: It's It's crazy to me. Even, there's a there's a sock or something too that they wear that, like, kind of 
[00:41:15] Intro: Pulse Ox Monitor. Pulse rate. Yeah. He can he can log in and see. He can be like, yeah. 
[00:41:20] Intro: Owen's breathing at 22 times a minute or, you know, like, all these crazy things, which To me so I am a firefighter and a paramedic as well. And, being a paramedic gives you an inherent, like, fear of things happening to your own family. So I'm, like, one of those insane parents that I have my routine at night. And then especially when they were younger, I used to all the time just like I after I put them to bed, go downstairs, do my thing, and then I'd have to go back stairs, open the door, listen to them breathe. 
[00:41:51] Intro: we had a baby monitor, grab that baby monitor and watch and then listen for them breathing because I just had to check and make sure they were breathing. And You can make fun of it all you want, but I diagnosed 2 of my children with sleep apnea, went to the ENT, and then the ENT diagnosed them, you know, the the actual of apnea. She had abnormally large, tonsils and adenoids. So it's like, yeah. I'm I'm that psychotic person that I love those types of tech.

00:41:55 Using Technology to Communicate with Animals

[00:41:51] Intro: we had a baby monitor, grab that baby monitor and watch and then listen for them breathing because I just had to check and make sure they were breathing. And You can make fun of it all you want, but I diagnosed 2 of my children with sleep apnea, went to the ENT, and then the ENT diagnosed them, you know, the the actual of apnea. She had abnormally large, tonsils and adenoids. So it's like, yeah. I'm I'm that psychotic person that I love those types of tech. 
[00:42:28] Intro: The thing about it is we can only understand that I had this conversation with somebody the other day, like the Jetsons. Everybody's like, well, the Jessens was a miss. Right? Or you have the other side that's like, they hit it spot on, and and I'll tell you why they hit it spot on It's because they only understood when that show was made technology to what they had available at the time, just like us right now. We couldn't imagine 6, 7 years ago That this learning capable AI was gonna be able to hear what you say and then dream up new things for you to do, say how to act or email to send or whatever the case may be by analyzing everything that was going on. 
[00:43:04] Intro: We couldn't imagine that would be an occurrence that could happen. And same thing with the Jetsons. Right? They talked about Zoom calls on the Jetsons. It was just this old big tube TV where you could go to your doctor's office, you know, telemedicine. 
[00:43:17] Intro: They had these little transportation devices where your kid could go to school in that transportation device that ran under everything or attend school on a TV, and it's like Pandemic showed us that, yes, kids can go to school without having to be there. Like, it was spot on for the tech that they had in that day, and I think we're probably in that same Era where it's like, maybe the dog collar would work because with AI, it could have some type of learning tool built into it where it senses the dog's pulse rate, breathing rate, you know, its reaction to what it's doing, how it's moving, the Bark, the tone of that bark, all these different things, and be able to formulate, an educated guess on what the dog is wanting to say. So instead of clicking one button In getting one word, a sentence is formed. You know? Right. 
[00:44:02] Intro: Maybe a 3 or 4 word choppy sentence like a 4 year old or a 5 year old would mutter, but I I definitely think technology is gonna have a huge impact on the market, and I'm pretty excited for that. So getting more into your stuff specifically, What would you say is good prep for me to figure out and know if you're gonna be a good fit for me and my animal? You know, kinda how do I get Started, like, just walk me through what you want someone right now listening who's in your area and can hire you to kinda think through in their mind so that they would be well prepared when they call you.

00:44:37 Teacher Turned Trainer: Finding the Right Dog Trainer

[00:44:37] Taryn Tyler: Definitely, the first step is is finding a trainer that follows practices that you would wanna use. So like you said, with your German shepherd and he came back wearing a shock collar, and That was not something you were necessarily, excited about. So my practice is is I'm I'm certified as a positive reinforcement trainer. So I like to say that instead of consequences, we use redirection. So the farthest type of tool that I will use in regards to, Callers and things like that is I will use I've used it on a few clients of, like, a beep it's a beep caller. 
[00:45:10] Taryn Tyler: There's no vibration. There's no shock. It's literally just like A beep that's like a tap on the shoulder of, hey. I'm across the yard, but I'm asking you to listen to me. That's as far as I go. 
[00:45:19] Taryn Tyler: Everything else is base it's reward based. It's A lot of paying attention and patience of trying to, like you said, understand the body language And realize that they're not listening because they don't want to. They're not listening because they don't understand. They don't know what I'm expecting them to do. So I would say your first step is definitely finding a trainer, that fits the needs that you would want to see. 
[00:45:45] Taryn Tyler: I've worked with quite a few families with kids, and they've said, you know, well, I am, like, a positive reinforcement parent, so why wouldn't I do that with my dogs as well? So they appreciate the practices that I use, and then also trying to figure out, like, your schedule and what works best for your setup. And that's why I love that my offer is private in home trainings because, one, It takes the stress off of you to have to go somewhere and find a trainer and take them to a facility. I come to you so that I work your schedule. And then also the behaviors that you're seeing are happening in your home. 
[00:46:22] Taryn Tyler: So why not train them in your home and Have them work in the environment that's causing them problems because if I mean, dogs are such black and white creatures that even if I teach them a skill and then it's Time for the owners to try it, and the dog regresses a few steps. It's because they didn't understand that change of me teaching it to them and then the owner taking over. And so they're just you know, they can be so finicky like that with their routines and their environment and stuff. So pulling them out of their environment and taking them to a facility might not do as much help for them than training them in home where you see those behaviors happening. So it's really all about just finding what works best for your family, price range, Availability, things like that. 
[00:47:03] Taryn Tyler: It's just it's finding what is what works best for you. 
[00:47:08] Intro: Definitely. I mean, I think, Like I said, if if, if I would have thought ahead of time to find someone like you available for that, then I would be a lot further along than I am right now, but you've definitely inspired me to get some more training for Loki because, you know, I've seen some behaviors with him too. Some of that, like, protective aggression where, we are positive reinforcement parents, but we are also every now and then a little bit of negative reinforcement, parents. I will I will put a hand across your butt if you ain't listening to me. But even if it's because I I can't tell you the last time that I truly, like, put a kid over my knee and spank to them.

00:47:46 Affordable Dog Training with Taryn Tyler

[00:47:46] Intro: You know? It's usually just a little pop. Like, hey. Get your attention type thing. But even if it is just that little pop, even if it's playing, Loki will jump up. 
[00:47:55] Intro: And he doesn't bite, but he's nipping and letting you know, like, hey. I don't like that. Stop. You know? So there's definitely some things I think we need to work on there. 
[00:48:02] Intro: So I think we're gonna have to talk after the show about maybe Kicking off your online training a little early even if I help you with that because I I'm gonna need it. I'm gonna need it, and he needs it More importantly, and I think most of our listeners at home, even if they don't realize that their dogs need it too. So Yeah. I know budget can be an issue for people. And I'm sure that, obviously, you I'm sure you don't have a set price that's for everybody. 
[00:48:26] Intro: I'm sure that it's situational dependent how far the drive is, how many trainings you're doing, or, you know, all of these things. But on average, is this something where I need to have $500 saved up, $1500 or $5,000 to work with you specifically, but also just for training in general. 
[00:48:43] Taryn Tyler: Training in general is a is a Broader spectrum for sure. Because when I I I just went through, a price change after finishing my I started this business in November of 2022. So hitting my year mark and then at the end of 2023 is I, you know, decided to go ahead and and do a little bit of a price increase. So for training On a spectrum completely. I mean, you hit it on the head of, like, it could be anywhere from 500 to 2,000. 
[00:49:11] Taryn Tyler: You know? It depends on what kind of trainer, what kind of program. For me specifically, my most expensive package is less than 700, and that is an 8 session package. So that's a lot of training that you can get done in those 8 sessions, whether it's once a week, twice a week, if it needs to be spread out than that. But I for me, Specifically, I offer individual sessions, and then I have a 4 session, 6 session, and 8 session package. 
[00:49:40] Taryn Tyler: And how I have it set up is that I'm I do a consultation, and then I show them my pricing, but they put down just The flat deposit, and then they can kinda decide from there. You know, if we get to the 4 sessions and they're like, we're great. We're you know, we wanna take a little bit of a break, Then that's the program they graduate from. Or if they need, you know, we wanna go ahead and add those 2 sessions on or we wanna do the full 8, they have opportunities to figure out what works best for them. But for me, I would I try to stay on the more affordable side, for my My area and my network. 
[00:50:15] Taryn Tyler: So like I said, for me, my max is I wanna say it's, like, 6:40, And that's where the full 8 sessions that you can I mean, an 8 sessions goes a long way? So it's it's a lot more if you find the right trainer, you're not gonna have to, You know, take out a loan to do dog training. It can be very affordable and something that's very manageable. I like to offer, I offer payment plans. I offer, first responders discounts.

00:50:41 Teacher Turned Trainer: Helping People and Their Dogs

[00:50:41] Taryn Tyler: So I have somebody that they have a a a firefighter and a nurse in the home. So they got a 15% discount because they, you know, do so much for the community. I plan on doing something in the month of May because since coming from a teacher background and, You know, that's where a lot of my heart still lies that, you know, maybe we're gonna do some kind of teacher discount or some kind of promotion, something like that for sure. 
[00:51:04] Intro: Gotcha. And and the training that I'm getting from you, is that something I can use? Like, I know AKC, I think, has some, Like, you know, basic obedience training, like, almost certificates that you go through. Is that something I can use for you if I go into more advanced training like search and rescue or something crazy, or is yours mainly just for personal enjoyment of your dog and for your dog? 
[00:51:30] Taryn Tyler: Mine's personal enjoyment because especially to be able to take it to the next levels of, like, emotional support, service, things like that. You have to have a special certification. And at that time at this time, I don't have that certification. So mine's definitely for just Personal use and what works best for your life and your family, but I range from basic obedience to leash training to reactivity. One of my she holds a very special place in her in my heart. 
[00:51:56] Taryn Tyler: Her name is Betty. We did the first time I met her for we did it in the driveway, and she would not let me within 5 feet of her and her mom because she was so protective of her owner. And she didn't I was a stranger. I was a threat. She didn't want me anywhere around. 
[00:52:12] Taryn Tyler: So that was our consultation, and I became Personally invested in it because I looked at her, and she was like the female version of Sinclair. So not only did I have a professional standpoint that I could bring to the to the table, I was personally invested, so I was like, this is my dog. I I've been I know where the owner is coming from with this situation. I wanna be able to help them. I want them to grow their relationship.

00:52:14 Teacher Turned Trainer: A Personal Approach to Dog Training

[00:52:12] Taryn Tyler: So that was our consultation, and I became Personally invested in it because I looked at her, and she was like the female version of Sinclair. So not only did I have a professional standpoint that I could bring to the to the table, I was personally invested, so I was like, this is my dog. I I've been I know where the owner is coming from with this situation. I wanna be able to help them. I want them to grow their relationship. 
[00:52:34] Taryn Tyler: So we started we did it backwards. And instead of starting in the home, we went to parks, and we did outside sessions and field trips to where I wasn't coming into We I took a video, and I was sitting on the I was sitting on the ottoman trying to get my camera out because, you know, everything that I do is teacher themed. So we I I have a valedictorian package. I have a straight a's package, an honor roll package. They graduate. 
[00:53:05] Taryn Tyler: I bring my my graduation cap and the bandana, and they get, certification. Like, they get a, graduation certificate. That is amazing. So I'm trying to, like, get all of that prepared, and all of a sudden, Betty jumps up and she puts her head right here on my shoulder, and she started, like, kissing my face. 
[00:53:21] Taryn Tyler: So that just shows you in that 8 sessions, she hated my guts the first time she met me because I was a Scary scary stranger. And then now it's to the point where the owner has even told me, I offered a I have a nice camera that I'll do the The graduation photos with and stuff. So around the holidays, I offered a photo package where they could buy a photo package, and I came and took family photos for their Christmas cards. And so she signed up for 1. And so she said when she was getting Betty ready, she was like, do you wanna see Taryn? 
[00:53:50] Taryn Tyler: Is Taryn coming over? And she knew who Taryn was, and she got excited. And so it's just god. I it's I'm definitely a personal going back to the question, I'm I'm a personal Personal growth trainer. But even just for that, we can make a lot of changes, and we can show a lot of progress in your dog.

00:54:09 Teacher Turned Trainer: Incorporating Dogs into Weddings

[00:54:09] Intro: Oh, yeah. I mean and and that was not to degrade, you know, what you do at all. I mean, it has its place. I just know there are people out there who they wanna look at more advanced training. You know? 
[00:54:21] Intro: And and I think regardless, you you gotta start somewhere, and this is a good start. You know? Because I'll tell you, like, Max, I thought I thought I was gonna be, like, one of the most badass, like, dog owners in the world. I was like, German Shepherd. He's gonna be amazing. 
[00:54:35] Intro: I'm gonna train him for search and rescue, you know, all this stuff, and then he just didn't have the temperament for it. He was just too much of a spaz, and he was, you know, just too hyperactive, which not to say you couldn't have trained him. Right? If I could have brought him to you, maybe I woulda had a better look at how he would have done in that training and maybe a whole different trajectory for his life and our life with him. You know? 
[00:54:55] Intro: So I think it's it's very important to get this type of training regardless of what you wanna do after it. And I heard you say yet, so I'm just assuming that the Sky could be the limit here, and you never know what you're gonna be offering in the next 1, 2, 3 years. I mean, you said you've been doing this a year now. So, we gotta give the company Time to grow, and who who knows what's what to what is to come. That's for sure. 
[00:55:18] Taryn Tyler: My one of my favorite things I have increased because, I I mean, I'm a I'm a I'm a very type a person. I'm a very motivated person. I do not like to sit around and, like, do nothing. Like, even with this, this is my you know, I started this business on my own, but it's not even my only business. This is part of my job, and then I also, I'm a creative director at a winery in the area as Well, so I split my time, you know, doing all these different, like, passion projects. 
[00:55:42] Taryn Tyler: But one thing that I've done specifically for my training business is not only do I offer, dog training and things like that, but I also do weddings. So I'm you can hire me as, like, a pet handler for your wedding. So I have different packages that people can buy. And, basically, the goal is if you want your dog incorporated in your wedding day at all, hire me and let me take care of it. So I I had, I had a the most recent wedding that I did was in November, and it was 3 dogs. 
[00:56:11] Taryn Tyler: 2 of them had graduated my program anyways, and then they, like, they found me. I did one of the trade shows and had a booth for my wedding, for my wedding business. And they found me through that, hired me for training, and and had me do the wedding. But I so they hired me for and it was a 6 hour day. I pick the dogs up from the house. 
[00:56:30] Taryn Tyler: I go to the wedding. We did them in photos. We, I took my mom as my secondhand because I needed there's 3 dogs. I can't do 3 dogs on my own. We walked the dogs down the aisle like they were the ring bearers, but it was, like, it was such a joy for the the couple That they were able to have their dogs in this special day because the dogs mean so me so much to them, but they didn't have to worry about it. 
[00:56:52] Taryn Tyler: They hired me to take care of that. So that's one of, like, One of the newest additions to my business is that I'm branching out and doing the other side, but I have already have I did 3 weddings in 2023. I already have my first one booked for February. That's gonna be 2 little Yorkies that I'll be traveling to and and getting them in the wedding photos and stuff. So that's another fun aspect of my business that's just it's it's a blast.

00:57:16 Teacher Turned Trainer: Monetizing a love for animals

[00:57:16] Intro: Yeah. I didn't even think about all the other ways that You could monetize and have fun doing different things. Like, that's that's insane that, you know, a whole basically different business, like, a whole different Yeah. Way to to make money and make a living. So that that's amazing. 
[00:57:32] Intro: I'm going to Force myself to stop asking you questions. I have, like, 30 more, and we just probably don't have time for that today. So 
[00:57:40] Intro: I'm gonna stop myself out of respect for your time and our listeners' time because I'm sure they're like an hour long episode. What the hell? But, obviously, as you could tell 
[00:57:50] Taryn Tyler: all day long. I was 
[00:57:51] Intro: gonna say, like, I'm passionate about this. I didn't even know that I was gonna be that passionate about it whenever we started, and then I can tell you are as well, and I appreciate that. But real quick. Where can we are you on YouTube or anything like that? Can I learn from you? 
[00:58:05] Intro: Like, are you making any content, TikTok, anything yet? And then just how do I connect with you and get in touch, especially if I'm a listener and I'm like, you know what? I kinda wanna hire her to take care of my dogs.

00:58:24 Teacher Turned Trainer: Taryn Tyler Shares Her Journey from Educator to Dog Trainer

[00:58:24] Taryn Tyler: But I am on I'm on Facebook and Instagram. If you look up teacher turned trainer, it's turned, like, past tense, ed. You can find me on both Facebook and Instagram. And then really any the easiest starting point to find me is teacher turned trainer dot com. I have my bio. 
[00:58:40] Taryn Tyler: I have all of my pricing, and then I have links to my social media through there. So that's where I'm doing the content. I do a lot of I take videos, I, of all of my clients and all of the fun things we're doing with that. I have a fun series that I call, it's called will Glenda eat it? Because my great dane is literally the pickiest eater I've ever met. 
[00:58:59] Taryn Tyler: And so we find a lot of human foods that are dog friendly, and we try to see if At one at least once a month, we try to see if she'll eat it, and most of the time, she doesn't. So it's really fun to see whether she will or not. So I try to bring a variety in my content of not just dog training, but other just, like, really any type of dog needs, field trip, like, what it looks like to take your dog on a field trip. I make my own homemade treats that I offer to my clients, so I have a you know, the recipe for that up and all over. But, yes, If you just look up teacher turned trainer on Facebook, Instagram, or you go to teacher turned trainer.com, that's the easiest place to find me. 
[00:59:35] Intro: And we'll have all those links in the show notes, of course, like we do for every episode. So if you're wanting to check out what she has going online, all you have to do is head over to our show notes, which should be right below where you're listening right now, And click that link, and it'll take you to whichever way you wanna connect with her for sure. I lied. I'm gonna I'm gonna bring one more thing up just because you triggered something in my head when you said Linda is so picky. So our Oh, yeah. 
[00:59:58] Intro: I would assume chicken livers are good for dogs. Right? 
[01:00:03] Taryn Tyler: Yes. I I 
[01:00:04] Intro: don't see why not. Right? 
[01:00:07] Taryn Tyler: I was I don't have I don't have necessarily, like, actual, 
[01:00:10] Intro: Data on that? Alright. Well Data on that. So so we'll table that, and we'll look it up, and we'll see. But I thought I mean, my Loki is like a vacuum cleaner sometimes. 
[01:00:20] Intro: Right? It doesn't even if you don't want him to eat it, sometimes it's gonna get eaten. 
[01:00:23] Taryn Tyler: We call Sinclair the trash can. Yeah. Just I mean, he'll Yeah. Just I mean, he'll take anything. 
[01:00:27] Intro: Everything. And so I was like chicken liver, you know, as I'm getting ready to smoke this chicken, beer butt chicken, and I'm like, He's gonna love this. So I just plop it on my ceramic tile, and he comes over and probably pulled a Glenda move and, like, sniffs it And then immediately kinda wrinkles his nose, like, what are you trying to do to me? And then walks away. And now I had to wipe up chicken liver off my floor. 
[01:00:52] Intro: So Yeah. I feel that pain. I can only imagine how many times you were like, she's gonna love it, and you throw it down, and then it's just crapped on. 
[01:01:00] Taryn Tyler: I mean, we've tried to you know, we I've I've tried I've done a variety of things because coming from having Sinclair First who will literally eat anything, like, even he jumped up on my counter And ate chocolate on Christmas Eve, which resulted in a 10:30 emergency vet appointment for him and I on Christmas Eve this I mean, he will eat everything, and we we have to you know, we're we're we're training that. We've put in some new, some new tricks, since Christmas Eve for that. But, I mean, for Glenda, we've tried I've tried watermelon, strawberries, apples, vegetables, fruit everything. Literally, the only episode that has been successful was pumpkin. She liked pureed pumpkin. 
[01:01:38] Taryn Tyler: That was the only thing I've been able to get her to try from Our series. But Wow. For anyone that's wondering, I did just Google it, and it says dogs can eat chicken lever. It's one of the best meat sources that they can eat. 
[01:01:49] Intro: That's what I figured. I mean Mhmm. I'm not an expert on it, so I definitely don't wanna speak out of turn. That's why I always ask. But yeah. 
[01:01:56] Intro: Get it. 
[01:01:57] Taryn Tyler: Lowering calories high in protein. 
[01:01:59] Intro: Nice. I mean, sounds like I should be eating chicken liver, but I just can't do it. I cannot bring myself to do it. So 
[01:02:05] Taryn Tyler: Not quite. 
[01:02:06] Intro: Well, that's it. I'm not gonna take up any more of your time or our listeners' Time listeners, we thank you as always for tuning in for another episode of small business origins. It's been an a great conversation, awesome entrepreneur, some really cool things going on. I really hope that you'll check her out and, see if she's a good fit for you. And then who knows? 
[01:02:24] Intro: Maybe we will have something launched Pretty soon where we can get her online at least some training videos you can buy or something. I mean, we gotta have something because I need it. It's a selfish ask here, but That's how it is. Taryn, you've been an absolute delight. Thank you so much for being on the show. 
[01:02:38] Intro: It was great to meet you today. I can't thank you enough for being here. 
[01:02:42] Taryn Tyler: Thank you for having me. This was awesome. Thank you so much. 
[01:02:44] Intro: Absolutely. Listeners, we'll see you on the next one. And as always, stay beefy, my friends. 
[01:02:52] John Kelley: Thanks for listening to another episode of Small Business Origins. I love an origin story. If you like what you just heard, leave us a review. Subscribe and share with a friend. Guys, check this out. 
[01:03:03] John Kelley: They're gonna love it. You're gonna love it.