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

Stephanie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?

I am very happy as a business owner. I love scheduling sessions having a flexible schedule. However, I sometimes find myself wondering if it would be easier to have a regular job. I get overwhelmed with doing every aspect of my business alone: marketing, social media posts, accounting, blog writing, scheduling, and doing my sessions. It really tough some days and regular jobs look to be so simple and stable. That thought usually leaves as I am so very happy to meet my clients and their fur babies. The animals make my job worth it.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I grew up with horses, dogs, cats and various other animals. Growing up, I rode horses and competed in Western Pleasure shows, barrel races, pole bending and trail/obstacle competitions. I have always had a passion for animals and their care. When my first horse passed of unknown causes, I told myself I would help other animals and to prevent the loss I felt that day. So, I attended the University of Florida for my Animal Science Specializing in Equines Degree. There, I learned about acupuncture and other health related modalities for animals. When I did my internship as a trail guide in Colorado, I knew I needed to find a way to help horses and animals again. I searched how to be an acupuncturist for horses, and found a school that offered acupressure certifications. This is it! This was what I wanted to do. Acupressure is preventative care and would allow me to achieve what my younger self desired. I completed the course for equine acupressure and became certified, then nationally certified. I moved to North Carolina and started my small business. I then expanded my business with red light therapy for horses and small animals. The certification for this modality would help me expand from just preventative to also complementary care. I went back to Colorado for the hands on training to become certified in canine acupressure. I now am nationally certified in both! Having these services allow me to help the animals feel their best and prevent injury. This is my passion and I love it!! Seeing the animals respond to their sessions always puts a smile on my face. It is so rewarding to see the animals loving their sessions.

It has been a bumpy road. From navigating the social media road to get my name out there, to trying to advertise via print articles, sponsorships, and more. In the equine industry, most services are word of mouth. If someone likes you, they would share with their friends. But how do I show people what I do if they have never heard of me? Or if they have never tried holistic services such as acupressure or red light therapy? This is still one of the toughest obstacles I am still working to get over. Since my small animals receive their sessions in home, COVID put a damper on the business. When no one was willing to have strangers in their home, what do you do? I partnered with a local pet store to offer sessions inside! This allowed both myself and the client a way to still have sessions for their pets. Being creative and learning from trial and error has been a roller coaster for my business and I certainly wish it was easier. But if it was easy, everyone would do it. I love calling myself a small business owner. I find strength in myself to say, “hey you own this, you got this, you are amazing for reaching for your goals on your own.”

Poll to Pastern offers holistic services for horses, dogs and cats (if they so please). Acupressure is the same thing as acupuncture, but does not use needles. The best way to prove to you that this “weird” method works is to think back on when you had a headache. Did you pinch the area between your tear ducts and nose to relieve the pain? Or did you massage your temples? Well, that my friend is the power of acupressure! Using specific points on the body to relieve a pain or stressor. This is what acupressure does, but it benefits more than just pain: allergies, tummy upsets, arthritis, anxiety, strengthening tendons/ligaments, supporting the bodily functions, and more! The best part? It is preventative!! Giving regular sessions for your animal helps support the immune system to PREVENT these conditions from happening in the first place! Can you say less vet visits? Yes!

Red light therapy is the use of light energy to power the cells in the body. We are giving the cells the energy they need to perform their best and their quickest. The mitochondria usually is the “powerhouse” of the cell but when the cells absorb the light energy, the mitochondria can take a little break. Providing light energy allows the cells to recover quicker, heal faster, and even provides natural pain relief because it helps the body release the endorphins!! Its a cool way to help your animals recover quicker from injury, surgery, and even exercise. It even helps with arthritis relief because it also increases collagen production. The benefits of red light therapy is vast! Any animal (even humans) can benefit from a little light therapy. Worried it hurts? Nope! Our systems use LED lights with the perfect wavelength for a pain free and heat free experience. Our sessions also pair acupressure points to boost the benefits of the light. This is called photopuncture. Using light as the “needle” instead of actually being invasive.

I also rent out red light therapy devices for between sessions or at home use after surgery. Our therapy pads can be used on the targeted area to provide the best healing results. Red light can be used for sore muscles, injury, hair loss, arthritis, inflammation, infections and more. We offer daily, weekly, monthly rentals.

Want to learn acupressure? We even teach classes for the pups and clinics for the horses! You will learn the basics of acupressure, the benefits of the points, how to find the points, techniques of touching the points, how much pressure, and what to look for when providing an acupressure to your animal. This will be followed up with a demonstration of the location of these points. We usually teach specific topics (allergies, anxiety, whole body, colic) and teach the points that benefit that topic.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I’m sure most business owners had to pivot during Covid. I could no longer provide services in-home for pet parents. While I stopped my in-home sessions, I began my red light pad rental program. Dog/horse parents could rent the red light pad to use at home on their own animals.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I suppose starting a small business you must always be resilient. You have to be able to take a fall and get back up. To market my business, I attend vendor events in my area. Sounds great right? Well, most of the time, it’s just me. I pack up my truck, drive to the location, take everything out, carry it to my designated spot, set up everything from tent to table, spend hours talking to people, then break it all down, pack it up, and go home to unload. It is a LOT of work. Sometimes I wonder why I do it to myself, but I find that this business is my passion. This is what I love and I will keep spreading the word as much as I can. I will keep going to events and spreading the word!

Contact Info:

• Website: polltopastern.com
• Instagram: @poll2pastern
• Facebook: @polltopastern
• Twitter: @poll2pastern
• Youtube: @polltopastern2432