We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Shayna Preston. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Shayna below.

Shayna, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear from you about what you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry and why it matters.

Ingredients

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi Im Shayna Preston and i got into the pet industry technically in 2020,yes during the pandemic! I had a dog,my best friend, that I started cooking his meals. He was overweight and his skin was dry and ashy. Within weeks to months i noticed a huge change in his weight,coat and poop. He went poop less often and in smaller amounts,his coat was black and shinning and he had lost weight. I continued to cook his food until I had toet him go. I went to culinary school and recieved my associates degree in Culinary Arts in 2011. March 2018 I got a puppy,Paisley and i started making his dog food and dog treats. I wanted to know what was in his food and he would be eating. A yr later We got Grace and 2020 I started my business and its Grace and Paisleys name together,Gracelys Holistic Dog Treats.

The treats I make are organic,holistic,
And minimal ingredients. All the treats but 1 one the website are thin “cookies” and the other 1 is a lil thicker because i use steel cut oat flour. 3 out of the 4 cookies are low glycemic so dogs that have issues with that can easily eat these treats without it effecting their strict diet.

Ive made custom made treats for clients wether its for low glycemic,high protein,lots of allergies to foods,ive made pork dog treats,dog cakes,ice cream sandwiches,ice cream,ive worked with raw animal parts and organs and consulted on light training for their dog and diets.

I make every order to order drom scratch and noone else is doing this. I do this for two reasons..2 is so that the product is always fresh and last longer,2 helps with food cost control and waste. I also use oat flour that I mill myself and most dog treats use wheat flour. I gear most of my treats for low glycemic because they just arent making treats for these kinds of diets and if they do most dogs dont like the flavor.

I want people to know whats in they dogs food and treats as well as what they are also putting into their bodies.
Its very important what goes in cause it does come out. Dogs have a digestive system just like we do and they are supposed to eat and not eat certain things. I want people to ease read ingredients and research what those things are. Are animals are suffering because of the commercial foods they have been given,even the so called best brands are not good. You dont trust me you dont have to read and youll see. Change your dogs diet and see how much more energy they have,youd be surprised.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Word of mouth. All the dog friends i made during the pandemic and social media. Its hard to het likes and most definitely follows. I dont have alot of followers but o get a few a day which adds up.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I just have friends and family that give advice,that pour into me,that wont let me give up or give in. Theres no book i read or person i necessarily look up to thats pushed to to get where I am but God. Pouring into him and learning more about who i am and the things ai want out of life. You have to take everything with a grain of salt meaning everything is kinda minimal. You cant take everyone’s advice or lessons learned,its figuring things out and what to do and not to do next time. You need motivation and resilience,its hard and tryst me ive wanted to say forget it but you gotta keep on keeping on as they say.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://gracelystreats.com/
• Instagram: @gracelysholisticdogtreats
• Facebook: @gracelysholisticdogtreats
• Other: @gracelysholisticdogtreats-tiktok