We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tiffany Brown a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tiffany, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

Naming my business was almost as difficult as naming my daughter! You go back and forth about what will be catchy or memorable enough, how long it will be, do you have a reason for the name if someone asks etc. I thought long and hard about what I wanted to choose. A lot of training businesses use K9 in their names. I wanted to avoid that because it is used a lot. I also considered not specifying dog in the name in case I started training with other animals as well. Then I started to think about things around me that made mention of my area, and something that is special to me. My whole life I have lived on the same pond. I have a lot of memories on that pond so it seemed to be a great choice. In the end I am very happy with my business name. Otter Pond Dog Training. It has a nice right to it, right?

Tiffany, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My family had dogs my whole life. Usually more then one. I had always had a love for animals even from a young age. When my parents decided to adopt an Australian Shepherd they searched for a place to do training with him. During the first class we attended I knew I was going to be a trainer. We did so many classes and the instructor even let me teach part of a class at 13 years old. As I continued through high school and I second guessed myself. I knew I wanted to work with animals but wasn’t sure in what capacity. After graduating from the University Of New Hampshire with a degree in Applied Animal Science I started working at my local animal shelter and worked as an Animal Control Officer. During my time there my mind kept going back to being a trainer. I took some time off after having my daughter and I really got to think about where I wanted my future to go. I found myself switching jobs and working at a training facility. While working there I started thinking ahead to the next step in my life. Spending time with my daughter was a priority so going out on my own was the best scenario. I worked hard and earned my certification. Since starting my own business I have had wonderful experiences and am very proud of the reputation I have created. There are not a lot of positive reinforcement trainers in my area, so I have had the unique opportunity to show my community a scientifically proven and more enjoyable way of training. I am so proud of putting myself out there and creating great relationships with clients and other professionals in the industry. I always want to set a good example for my daughter and be present for my family while being able to provide as well.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

While learning more about training and working towards my certification and even prior to it, I was put down a lot by my peers. Telling me I would not succeed as a trainer. I struggled with this and still think about it frequently bug I was not going to give up on my dream so I reached out to a trainer I had met during my time in the field. I took matters into my own hands and began working with him in conjunction with my other training. This trainer was a huge cheerleader for me. He rebuilt my confidence and showed me that I could do it. I started to get people in his classes complimenting me and asking for help outside of class as well as people in my area reaching out to me based off recommendations from other people/clients. It gave me the confidence to continue working towards my goal of owning my own business. This taught me that there will always be someone in the world that wants to put you down, but there are more that will help build you up. I don’t hold any resentment towards anyone that was not my biggest fan and I probably wouldn’t be the trainer I am without having the experiences I did.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I grew up in the community I serve, so I had people reaching out to me once they found out I was training in the area. Also having worked for such a long time at the shelter in the next town over, I was able to make some great connections. Living in a small town people really rely on other people’s opinions and recommendations. Right now I am 95% a word of mouth business. I have worked hard to demonstrate my knowledge and abilities in the community and the areas surrounding.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.otterponddogtraining.com
• Facebook: Otter Pond Dog Training