Latest / The Rosanne Callens Podcast / E08: A Lifetime With Dogs: Tina Pedersen’s Journey to Opening Soul Puppy Woodland
Transcript
- Rosanne Callens: Have you ever had a dream that felt a little bigger than your comfort zone? Maybe it's walking across Europe on the Camino, a historic pilgrimage route across Spain that people travel on foot for reflection, challenge, and growth. Or maybe it's opening up your own business because you believe that your community needs something that doesn't even exist yet. Those kinds of dreams take and they take resilience sometimes they grow out of the hardest chapters of our lives. ⁓ And episode is one of those dreams. My guest today is Tina Pederson the founder of Soul Puppy, ⁓ a dog daycare and enrichment center right here in Woodland, California that was created with one simple idea in mind. Our dogs deserve soulful connection, play and care while we're out leading our busy lives. And I actually have the honor of knowing Tina personally because she trained my dog and honestly she trained me. And through that experience, I saw firsthand how deeply Tina understands dogs and the that love them. But Tina's story goes even beyond dogs and business. ⁓ Tina Pedersen: Thank Rosanne Callens: She's faced major life challenges, including breaking her back and also losing loved ones along the way. And she still found the strength to walk the Camino with her son and create something meaningful for our community. today we're talking about dogs, resilience, big dreams, and what it looks like to ⁓ love into something that serves others. ⁓ with no further ado, Tina, welcome to the podcast. ⁓ Tina Pedersen: Well, hello, Rosanne Thank you so much for having me on. Rosanne Callens: Tina, tell us a little bit about you. And also, you always been a dog person? Tina Pedersen: The simple answer to that is absolutely 100%. I'm an animal person. I love all animals. And I had the benefit of growing up on a ranch and being around horses and livestock and small critters of all kinds. And I fell in love with them and I fell in love with the lifestyle and I have built my life around them. Rosanne Callens: was there a moment in your life where you realized dogs were just going to a big part of your purpose? Tina Pedersen: Well, in 1996, I had a very dear friend who encouraged me because she would always come to me for advice with regard to dog behavior. And she said, I think you need to start offering classes. And I said, haven't the faintest clue what to do or how to even start. And somehow I found a way and filled up the classes and that started this now 30 year journey. in 2013, ⁓ became aware I was feeling what the dogs were feeling. So if the dog I was working with was having a hackle response, ⁓ I started having a response in my own body. And I thought to myself, you know what, I can use this. And I can make something of it. And it changed forever the trajectory of my business and how I've worked with animals and how I've worked with people ever since. And so I can say that day, was the changing point for how started to go with the business and started to form the idea of Soul Puppy back then Rosanne Callens: So ⁓ you heard, Tina works with the humans ⁓ their dogs. ⁓ I've seen Tina out and about on walks. I've been, when we were training my dog ⁓ she would hand out business cards because people would come running up to her and they would say, please, ⁓ please, I need card. I need your information. ⁓ So I've seen her throughout the years as well go through this journey. Well, Tina, many people love dogs like their family, but then Monday morning comes and they're walking out the door to work thinking, ⁓ my dog's going to be home alone all day. And maybe they even buy little video cameras like I've done. But what do you see happening to dogs when they spend most of their days alone? Tina Pedersen: Well, a lot of times have ⁓ a dog or adopted a dog and they the slightest clue what that dog was originally bred for. ⁓ And you have a dog that was bred for a specific job, ⁓ they're to find themselves employment. And you are probably not going to like the job they choose for themselves because usually it involves obsessive barking, digging holes or chewing up your furniture. any of those behaviors are not welcome in most households. So I thought to myself, you know what? I can entertain these dogs in my own space and make it enriched and actually give them some training while they're here and send them home exhausted. Rosanne Callens: And I can attest are exhausted. They are exhausted. are signs that a dog might be bored or lonely just not getting enough stimulation? Tina Pedersen: you Well, the number one thing is obsessive barking, but ⁓ even may manifest itself ⁓ weird, undefined where you take them out and things that they used to enjoy, they've now developed an anxiety to it. And it's because they're not getting out and getting regularly exposed to it. ⁓ And they're also not being shown how to ⁓ get that fear and that anxiety. Rosanne Callens: a lot of people say my dog has a yard, so they're fine. But is that actually true? Tina Pedersen: no, the biggest yard in the whole wide world ⁓ or may not keep your dog entertained if dog isn't a self-starter. I find that dogs that get left alone a lot tend to develop what we would call behavior issues, shadow chasing, light chasing, hole digging, obsessive barking, those kinds of things. Those are the kinds of things that they're going to spend time doing by themselves. when they've got activities are exercising their mind as well as their body, then they're not going to be getting into trouble. They're going to be doing things that are appropriate. They're going to learn. They're going to expand their mind. They're going to socialize. They're going to be around other people, other dogs. ⁓ great for them. It's great for us. It's great for them. ⁓ Rosanne Callens: I want to say this. ⁓ My dog doesn't really love being super social and everything. And even if I said, I have a yard, so my dog is fine. The benefit that my dog gets by going to Soul Puppy ⁓ is he learns even socialization. He gets to have his doggy friends and he gets play and he doesn't, he's not really a playful dog. per se, but he, brings it out in the dogs. And I think that's what helps him get exhausted too. Cause he's just doing something he doesn't normally get to do. So I love that. I love that. Tina Pedersen: Yeah. Yeah, it's stretching his mind a little bit, playing with his anxiety and kind of pushing his boundaries a little bit, to coin a human phrase. none of the dogs that come here ⁓ are forced to interact with other If we've got dogs that are ⁓ a little bit more anxious around dogs, we've got zones that we can put them in. We have indoor and outdoor space ⁓ and then ⁓ we have ⁓ retractable fence Rosanne Callens: Yeah. Exactly. Tina Pedersen: that makes it so that we can create areas for the dogs who maybe don't want that high energy play. Rosanne Callens: Wow, well, speaking of emotional needs, what do you wish that every dog owner understood about their dog's emotional needs? ⁓ Tina Pedersen: Well, I can tell you that when I left to go walk the Camino and I was gone for five weeks, my dogs ⁓ my absence. they sat around the house, they didn't get a whole lot of exercise, even though I had hired somebody to come and walk them They were bored, they were They did some inappropriate barking and my dogs ⁓ who are typically with me work 90 % of the time, they're not backyard barkers, but boy, they went into the backyard and they raised the roof. ⁓ Rosanne Callens: What inspired you to open up Soul Puppy in Woodland? Tina Pedersen: Well, I had never had my own space. I had always used somebody else's space to run my group classes. And I always had to do the driving to go to everybody's house. And I see the benefit of that as a trainer. But I also see the benefit of having my own space and having people come to me. And I get to create this magical environment, which I can turn it into anything I want. I get to play with dogs all day long. on. And so having my own space and creating Soul Puppy allows me to not only do the group classes, not only do the one-on-one stuff, but to also entertain the dogs during the day and keep them busy so that they are not at home destroying your house or feeling lonely or getting treated all day long and not getting the appropriate exercise, both mental and physical exercise that is going to keep them fit and fighting lean. Rosanne Callens: makes Soul Puppy just different from traditional, I'll call it doggy daycare. What makes it different, Tina? Tina Pedersen: The dog day cares that I have been to, because we went to several and visited them while we were in the process of opening the business. majority of them, ⁓ had some activities, ⁓ ⁓ was mostly just dogs turned out into a large play area that were supervised. And that's all well and good. And some dogs ⁓ fit fine into that business model. But our business model is a little bit different they're going to have a schedule. we actually have a book that has a schedule of the activities that we do every day with the dogs. So for instance, they come in and they'll have an hour and a half of playtime. And that's when the dogs are all being dropped off. And then, we're going to leash everybody up and we're going to go on what we call hood walks, their neighborhood walks. Ultimately, once we get up and running full tilt, we'll also be offering adventure walks, which are where we go and we pick the dogs up and we take them out to the country and they get to run off leash. anytime dogs are around other dogs, it is ⁓ so for their brains because it reminds them that they are a dog. ⁓ And many of our dogs, there are babies. We love them. We talk to them. We cuddle them. We coddle them. ⁓ We them to get away with murder. And we say, ⁓ he's just spoiled. Well, wouldn't you like it better if your dog didn't have to get away with murder, but in fact knew some rules, boundaries and limitations and came home and was happy to see you, but wasn't bugging you. Hey, let's go for a walk. Hey, let's play fetch. Hey, let's go in the backyard and run around for about three hours while I burn off all of this energy I've been storing up all day long. Rosanne Callens: Tina, was going to ask you that, what happens just emotionally for them when they get to socialize and play all day? What do you see emotionally for our dogs? Tina Pedersen: the thing I think is just communication and communication as we know as a communicative species ourselves ⁓ gets lost with the dogs and as human beings we're not picking up on the cues and the signs and signals that they're sending ⁓ and also forget how to read the signs and signals that other are communicating with them ⁓ and so when get to go and be in that social setting not only are they their body and exercising their minds ⁓ but they're also relearning I like to coin the phrase canine-ese they get to speak dog and they learn those subtle cues and the body turns and the ear turns and the tightening of the mouth or the grimace or the showing of the teeth or the low rumble growl or a play bow. You know, there's all kinds of conversations that are going on with dogs and they happen rapid fire as human beings. We tend to miss them, but the dogs it's important for them to learn them so that when they go to a social setting, say you go to your family's house for Thanksgiving and everybody brings their dog. If you have one dog there that doesn't understand those social cues, they could cause a fight. And then everybody's going to be stressed out and feelings are going to be hurt. This is going to help alleviate that problem. Rosanne Callens: canine-ese . I love it. Tina, I know you've recently opened, but what have dog shared with you that has surprised them since their dog started coming to soul puppy? Tina Pedersen: Well, one, that they get along, that they walk into this yard and there's 10 dogs of different sizes running around, all doing different activities and nobody's fighting and arguing. We will allow verbal conversations between dogs, but we don't allow physical interactions. So no teeth. But some communication is absolutely acceptable and important for the dogs. The thing is just exactly how exhausted their dog was going to be when they came home from work. ⁓ Rosanne Callens: I sent Tina quite a few pictures of my dog just ⁓ laid out. Okay, so what do you want dog owners to feel when pick up their dog at the end of the day, Tina Tina Pedersen: we want your dog to come and have their best day ever, every day. when ⁓ the owners come and they pick dog I want them to feel happy and relieved that they didn't leave their dog home ⁓ unattended and unaccompanied, that their dog got to here, they got to do some fun things, ⁓ they got to maybe learn some things, they to practice some basic obedience behaviors. ⁓ and they learn those important, all important social skills while they're here. Rosanne Callens: I love it. Tina, story is incredibly inspiring. I know we could actually have like 18 podcast episodes on a lot of things, but I want to talk about this. You broke your back and you still walked the Camino with your son. What you decide to take on something that challenging? Tina Pedersen: my sister turned me on to the movie The Way, And just fell in love with concept of and walking. And ⁓ while I was out doing these pack walks, I developed decided love for walking and hiking. ⁓ And... just had it in my mind, I want to do this. I want to prove to myself that this body that has been through so much difficulty throughout my life can in fact carry me up over the mountains and down the road and take this 500 mile pilgrimage. And of course in 2020, the year that I turned 50, I decided I was going to go. And then they shut the whole world down that year. So I didn't get to go. and life rolls on and my son came of age and graduated from high school and expressed an interest because he had started going out on the hikes with me and had kind of fallen in love with it also and I thought you know what 2025 is our year I'll be 55 it's my double nickel year it's his graduation year it's an amazing gift I can give to him and some very very special time that we can spend together. So we decided, all right, we're going to do this. And then October of 2024, I was out walking and was looking for a missing collar and decided to scurry down into Cache Creek and slipped and fell and suffered a compression fracture in my spine. And everybody told me, you're never going to make it. You're not going to do it. And my little Capricorn self said, you just watch me. You just watch me. So in September of 2025, my son and I left for Spain and began our pilgrimage. Rosanne Callens: can I just go back to you saying that people said you're never going to make it and then you just, your whole face even lit up and you were like, just watch me. And I'm going to just say to all the people watching or listening, there's something so powerful, right? About someone or something telling you, ⁓ no, can't do that. Right? we have our own determination and resolve, which I know Tina has that in spades, ⁓ but man, when someone tells you Tina Pedersen: watch me. Rosanne Callens: No, no, Yeah, that's huge. Tina Pedersen: You can't do it. A little oppositional defiance. Rosanne Callens: Tina, was there a moment during the journey that you felt like you might not be able to finish? ⁓ Tina Pedersen: had gone probably about miles. of the Camino and I started suffering ⁓ a lot of pain in one of my knees and I had trained so hard and had exercised so long to strengthen every part of my body and just never even expected that my knee would give me any difficulty and it stopped me dead in my tracks and said you're not going to walk down any more hills. It wasn't up that was a problem, it was down. and I went through the stages of grief rapid fire. I raged, I cried, I bargained, and then I finally decided okay we're going to take off our pilgrim hat and put on our tourist ⁓ and we're just going to go have some fun. So we did. Rosanne Callens: you had the dream, went there, you were doing it fresh off of recovering from a broken back, I might add, right? Compression fracture. And ⁓ I love that you just pivoted it wasn't a failure ⁓ at all, when our first vision of it is we wanted do... you know, X amount or we wanted it to be this, but then you got there and the beauty of it, And your son saying, mom, go travel and, enjoy these experiences There's so much beauty in that. Right. Tina. Yeah. ⁓ Tina Pedersen: Yeah, yeah. well, and this is what they say about the Camino. You don't get the Camino you want, you get the Camino you need. recent events in my life have caused me to look back, and we all know that hindsight is 20-20. And as disappointed as I might have been at the time at not finishing the 500 miles of Camino, still had an amazing trip and I got to come back and be home in time for my dad's ⁓ birthday party, which I was going to be out of the country for. ⁓ as it turns out, we just lost him a couple of weeks ago. ⁓ now I'm incredibly, incredibly grateful that I was there for that ⁓ birthday party and that I got to celebrate that event with him. Rosanne Callens: there's another beautiful lining of Tina. we love ⁓ our parents and our parents love us and our parents are always here, but it's very Tina, I'm going to just say this. I know when you were on the Camino and you were probably in a lot of pain and you were with your son and trying to make it magical, but I know you were also in the process of opening Soul So when you opened up Soul Puppy, did it feel like more than opening up a business for you? walk me through that, Tina. Tina Pedersen: You know, I look back on it now and I remember coming home after the very first day and I was utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally. I was just exhausted. And the first person I wanted to call on the phone was my dad. And of course I couldn't do that because he had passed the week before. And I remember feeling I didn't reach the finish line, I reached the starting line. and I was able to cross it. that was an incredibly powerful realization for me ⁓ We are on a journey. We are not here to reach a destination. We're here to walk the road and whatever that road looks like and everybody has a different road and everybody has different challenges. And for me it was, okay, you're going to open this business at the same time that you're preparing to go walk 500 miles and at the same time that your father is passing away. Sure. Doesn't everybody go through that? Well, maybe not, but the options that you have are curl up in a ball and pull the green grass over the top of you or get up and take one more step. And that's what I find myself doing every day is just getting up and taking that one more step. ⁓ Rosanne Callens: Tina, I love how you said you don't reach the finish line, you reach the starting line and that you were able to go over it. What do you think ⁓ dogs understand about life that sometimes us humans forget? Tina Pedersen: that we have to let the small stuff go. Don't sweat the stuff you don't have control over. One of my favorite memes that I have, and it's just a little drawing of like a little Scottie dog, and he's on the lawn and he's kicking some grass back, and it says, take life like your dog does. If you don't like something, kick some grass over that shit and move on. And that's what you have to do sometimes. you have to recognize this is not going to get solved today. I'm going to set that aside and I'm going to achieve something that is doable today. Rosanne Callens: So when someone drops off their dog at Soul Puppy, what do you hope the dog feels as soon as they come through that gate? ⁓ Tina Pedersen: Dogs that came in that were maybe a little reticent or a little a little anxious or fearful, they're coming in and they're like, we're here, we're here. I'm here. ⁓ My friends are here. I get play. Where's my favorite toy? What's my favorite activity? And we're still we're adding new activities all the time. It's not going to be the same thing every day, day in, day out. We're going to have different activities. ⁓ And I'm looking forward to the warm weather, which is is creeping up on us really fast this year, we're going to have fun as of our offerings here. We only are allowed 20 and 25 dogs max, but by we're going to put horse trough out there and fill it up with water. We're going to have splash pads. going to have misters. We're going to have hose fun. saying to themselves, this is my space, this is my and those humans, they're the best. ⁓ Rosanne Callens: I know they're going to feel that Tina. last question. all your experience walking dogs and whether they're in the pack walk, or they're on leashed walk, in the city limits. What's your joy right there? Tina Pedersen: thing that I enjoy about walking in town, especially in Woodland, California, we have so many beautiful old Victorian neighborhoods, but I've always enjoyed, and I think the dogs enjoy it too, just walking by people's homes, seeing their yard, smelling the things, getting to stop and we it p-mail And you know, maybe they hit reply all and and leave a message in reply. also just getting out with a group of dogs. cements their friendships ⁓ and creates camaraderie. What I see in pack dogs that are off leash ⁓ is ⁓ unadulterated joie de vie. They so ⁓ They're so joyful. They literally celebrate with joyous voices. Sometimes it gets a little raucous. by the time we get back to the car and on the pack walks, I guarantee that they're going to get a 40 minute walk. We usually go somewhere between ⁓ hour, an hour and 15 minutes. ⁓ I guarantee you 40, but I give you way more. because enjoying just as much as they And I love taking the pictures of them and sharing the pictures and the videos with the owners who then feel like they get to take part in their dog's adventures. Rosanne Callens: Tina, thank you so much for sharing your story today. I've really enjoyed having you on here. Tina Pedersen: It's been my unadulterated pleasure. Rosanne Callens: love this P-mail. I'm going to remember that ⁓ And reply ⁓ So everyone, what I loved about this conversation is it reminds us of two important things. First, our dogs are not just pets, they're our companions. They bring joy and loyalty and connections in our life in a really special ⁓ And second, some of the most meaningful things that we create Tina Pedersen: and reply all. Rosanne Callens: come after we walk through some of the hardest moments of our lives. Soul Puppy is not just a dog daycare. It's a place where dogs can socialize, learn and grow while us humans out living our busy lives. And in many ways, I just want to say, Our investment in our dogs, giving them connections, stimulation, and a place where they can truly thrive, that's priceless, right? And for anyone who's listening, who's ever had a dream that's felt a little scary or out of reach, Tina's story is once again, a reminder that resilience and purpose really do go hand in hand. So If you're a dog owner in Woodland, California, and you wanna learn more about Soul Puppy, We'll include a link in the show notes so that you could check it out. And if you're listening and maybe you don't have a dog anymore or your life situation is different, or I wanted to give a gift to someone that really had it all. And I thought, you know what? I am going to follow the link in the show notes and make a donation in someone's name in honor of a special dog. And I'm sure if you did a donation, if you wanted to. Tina would find a fabulous way to use it ⁓ Tina, thank you again for being here and for ⁓ creating something so special ⁓ for dogs, I love having on here because you are one of the most ambitious people I know. You're intelligent. You're a hard worker. ⁓ And you just want this world to be a better place. So go out and be amazing ⁓ and give soul puppy a out to follow them and like them. we would love to see a from you out to us we're real people and we'll get back to you, right? Tina. ⁓ ⁓ Tina Pedersen: Yes, ma'am. Yep, the kind of people that fall down on our face, get back up and dust the dirt off and then start smiling again. Rosanne Callens: Amen to that. All right, everyone. Bye bye. We'll talk to you later. Bye, Tina. Thank you. Tina Pedersen: Thanks so