Episodios

  • The Power of Niche Expertise and Client-Focused Strategies with Hannah Antrobus aka The Spaniel Guru

    The Power of Niche Expertise and Client-Focused Strategies with Hannah Antrobus aka The Spaniel Guru
    May 20 2025
    DESCRIPTION In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Hannah Antrobus aka The Spaniel Guru. She helps Spaniel owners to better understand and love their dogs. Hannah explains how she ended up niching down and focusing on one breed helped to grow her business. She provides some great tips to help you to build your brand, overcome imposter syndrome, ensure you charge enough, build rapport with clients and successfully collaborate with other dog professionals. KEY TAKEAWAYS People like authenticity. Sharing your lows as well as highs enables you to really connect with others.You will be trolled. Be ready for it and don´t take it too personally. In Hannah´s case it actually helped her to rank.Don´t be afraid to charge enough to earn well and enjoy a good standard of living. Other professionals are not afraid to do that, nor should dog trainers be.People who are always questioning what you are doing will in the end pull you down.Help your clients understand the positive impact your training will have, so they can see the value.Charging appropriately creates more freedom and enables you to develop a better business and service.Stop thinking of dog training as a charity service. It is a career. Not giving everything away does not mean you don´t care.Always start your day positively, it frames how you feel and impacts how well the rest of your day goes.Life happens. Even when you are successful you will still face challenges and experience some slow periods.Being adaptable is an invaluable skill.Just do what you do well and stop worrying about things that are not your responsibility.Niching helps you focus your efforts.Niching down makes it easier to build a strong brand.Don’t be afraid to reach out to other professionals and collaborate.Invest where appropriate.Get face to face with clients to build rapport. You can still do this using Zoom. BEST MOMENTS “There was a little bit of trusting my own intuition.” “If you drop that guard, you build rapport with them.” “We need to know when to learn and invest, but also not feel we have to absorb and be able to do everything.” “Progression doesn´t equal perfection.” “It´s getting comfortable with sometimes being uncomfortable.” “That time and energy you're spending on worrying about that person is time and energy you're not spending doing the things that you love.” “Keep doing you.” “Try not to overthink it.” “You are really client led.” EPISODE RESOURCES https://thespanielguru.com https://www.instagram.com/thespanielguru SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    1 h y 4 m
  • How Proper Strategies Enable You to Choose the Right Tactics so You Stop Wasting Energy and Grow

    How Proper Strategies Enable You to Choose the Right Tactics so You Stop Wasting Energy and Grow
    May 15 2025
    In this episode, Jo & Vicky sit down to discuss all things strategy. They explain what a proper business strategy looks like, how to break that down into steps, choose the right tactics to achieve each step and implement them successfully. Jo & Vicky discuss the most common errors that business owners make when working out their strategies and share highly effective ways to make sure you do not make the same mistakes. KEY TAKEAWAYS Your strategy is where you want your business to be. Tactics are how you get there.Without a strategy your chances of succeeding are low.Be realistic about your strategy. If you want to achieve £10k a month, how many £35 sessions do you need to sell, can you really do that? If not, review your strategy.When you are sure of what you want to achieve, you choose the right tactics, so that you don´t waste time doing things that won´t work.Thinking only about the next step makes it more likely you will head in the wrong direction.When you run a workshop, work out what the next step for those clients could be and set them up to take it with you. That way you retain them.You have to take consistent action and be persistent.Be realistic about the effectiveness of each tactic e.g. Using social media for marketing is a good tactic, but because of the algorithm if you post only once you won´t get clients.Don´t give up too soon on a tactic that is working for others. Try it, analyse it, then tweak things.As you do things, ask yourself why am I doing this? This helps you double check that you are doing things that fit in with your strategy.Don’t use a tactic just because others are doing it. Double check that it is a good fit for you.Continue to learn but be wary of getting distracted from the path you have chosen.Constantly review, reevaluate and tweak your business strategies and tactics.Your strategy and tactics depend in part on what stage your business is at. BEST MOMENTS “There´s so many different ways to look at strategy.” “Some people blur strategy with tactics.” “You have to take action.” “We're forever tweaking our strategy.” “With a brain dump, you can just see all your ideas.” “You are constantly reassessing and re-evaluating all of the different tactics.” “With strategy mindset is linked to every single piece of it… It’s like connective tissue.” EPISODE RESOURCES hello@caninebusinessacademy.com SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/
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    1 h y 1 m
  • Niche Down to Scale Up to 6-figures with Michael Shikashio

    Niche Down to Scale Up to 6-figures with Michael Shikashio
    May 6 2025
    DESCRIPTION In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Michael Shikashio whose main focus for the past decade has been helping dogs that have a history of aggression. Michael trains other trainers to do the same, which has enabled him to reach and transform the lives of even more dogs and their guardians. Jo, Vicky and Michael discuss why he chose this niche and how doing so has benefited him, his clients and the profitability of his business. Michael explains how he built trust, authority and connections and quickly reached the point where other trainers were trusting him to train them. KEY TAKEAWAYS Focusing on a niche grows your authority, makes it easy to articulate what you offer, and results in more sales.Identifying a hole in the market and filling it is a win-win.Teaching others is a great way to help them and make your business far more profitable.Podcasts, conferences, workshops and writing articles for others builds trust and authority. Using social media helps but personal connection is far more powerful.There are education platforms that already have email lists of people who will be interested in taking your course, so start there.Build your brand with integrity.You will attract criticism/haters, don´t take it personally. Letting the negativity in limits your ability to love what you do and help your clients.Building a business is complex and can feel overwhelming. Break it down by asking yourself what´s the next step and focusing on taking it.Hire people to do your accounts etc asap. Look at it as an investment. Your time and passion are what you need to really grow your business. Don´t say yes to things until you are sure it will grow your business. How to evaluate this is explained in the episode.Initially you have to hustle and give more than you get back. But don´t do it long-term. It is not effective or sustainable.Automate everything you can, including in your personal life.Use processes to rinse and repeat what works.Keep things simple. Get one stream of income working before setting up another one.Be consistent. BEST MOMENTS “Spend the time to earn people´s trust, start by doing small things, little gigs .” “You might not want to do your flagship course on your own platform .” “Once you get your first hater, you know you’ve made it.” “We are not in the business of dogs; we are actually in the business of people.” “Always evaluate not only money investment, but also the time and effort investment.” “Bend, flex and pivot, but always come back to your strategy.” “Focus on one thing at a time.” EPISODE RESOURCES https://aggressivedog.com https://www.dogtrainersconnection.com SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.
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    1 h y 24 m
  • Deepening Spiritual Connections with your Dog, and Your Business

    Deepening Spiritual Connections with your Dog, and Your Business
    Apr 29 2025

    In this episode, Jo & Vicky are joined by Dr. Isla Fishburn a canine wellness intuitive,
    canine functional character advisor, shamanic practitioner and channeller of animal
    consciousness and spirit consciousness. Since childhood, she has connected with
    animals on a spiritual level and now helps others to do the same. This deepens the
    relationship they have with their animals or the ones that they train or care for.
    When you do soul work with an animal you benefit too. It enables you to recognise
    your feelings, explore why you have them and address the negative feelings that are
    holding you back.
    KEY TAKEAWAYS
    • We need to support our dogs emotionally, physically, spiritually and connect
    them to nature.
    • Dogs are very much individuals, and when you connect with them through soul
    work you fully understand what each dog needs.
    • When you work with dogs on a spiritual level, you engage more with your own
    feelings and do the soul work you need.
    • Most business owners who are struggling are held back by limiting beliefs that
    can be addressed and neutralised through soul work.
    • When you feel (sense a charge) something, pause and explore that feeling,
    understand why you feel that way.
    • If you keep giving yourself a hard time, you are going to also do that to your
    animals. Stop beating yourself up.
    • Dogs live in the moment, which is one of the reasons they are so joyful.
    • Connecting deeply and profoundly with the dogs and people you help makes
    you a far better trainer or dog carer.
    • Everyone has both an internal and external purpose.
    • Dogs are the epitome of unconditional love; they help us to learn to also love
    ourselves unconditionally.
    • Only being happy when your dog does something you like is very controlling.
    • Everything is interconnected, what you feel and think unconsciously impacts
    everyone and everything around us.
    • Be curious about what others believe and why.

    BEST MOMENTS
    “I work with dogs, but I am not a dog trainer .”
    “I believe that everything is connected to us, and everything is speaking to us.”
    “They bring us back into our hearts, where we can start to feel again and heal.”
    “Animals represent the authentic side of us.”

    “It literally is like Pac Man chasing you for the rest of your life .”
    “Be curious.”
    “When we create a business, it is our consciousness that is attached to it.”
    “The longest journey you will ever go on is the distance from your head to your heart.”
    GUEST RESOURCES
    https://kachinacanine.com
    https://www.facebook.com/kachinacanine
    https://www.instagram.com/kachina_canine_wellness
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8hsAKAco_te9k5AL2t-ZQQ

    SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS
    https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness
    https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness

    Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com
    Community Facebook Group:
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/
    Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-
    Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705
    ABOUT THE HOSTS
    Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry.
    Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for
    rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a
    whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university
    degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a
    lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.
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    1 h y 17 m
  • Leveraging joint ventures to grow and improve your dog business

    Leveraging joint ventures to grow and improve your dog business
    Apr 22 2025
    DESCRIPTION This episode is brought to you by J&V on the subject of JV…. Today, Jo & Vicky discuss Joint Ventures (JVs). They explain how joint business ventures work and why they are a virtually untapped way to earn extra income. Over the years, Jo & Vicky have used several different types of JVs. In fact, it is one of the main reasons they have grown so fast. They explain how taking advantage of win-win situations by collaborating with other dog businesses and others opens up new markets for you. Using real world examples, Jo & Vicky explain how taking this approach enables you to make more money faster, helps you to keep things fresh, learn, spot trends and provide additional support for your customers at no extra cost. KEY TAKEAWAYS JV stands for Joint Venture – a collaboration that benefits all of the businesses involved.Collaborating with other businesses improves your reach and enables you to serve your clients better.Don´t view other local dog businesses as competitors. See them as potential business partners.Many business owners unintentionally participate in joint ventures. But actively seeking them out is by far the best way to benefit.Promoting products you believe in and securing a discount for what you buy for your business or dogs, is a simple example of a JV.Being able to recommend another dog business e.g. A reliable groomer to your audience or customers is very positive for all 3 parties. Even if they work differently from you, still consider partnering up with other dog businesses. The chances are they are serving a slightly different customer base from you.Collaborating with other dog businesses is a great way to learn new ways of doing things and spot trends early.Working with other businesses in your area is an effective way to build your reputation and brand.Think outside the box, not all collaborations have to be with dog businesses. You could partner with a park based food stand to attract a group of dog owners to experience a free agility session or just a meetup you attend. BEST MOMENTS “Look to collaborate with other businesses that will align and support what it is you are trying to achieve.” “JVS should always be a win-win.” “We actively invite people into our group to speak that are our direct competitors.” “It´s about nurturing those relationships, building the trust.” “Your JV stuff doesn't always have to be a pet product.” “So much can be said for just going and having a chat with someone.” “You're going to help people off the back of the money thing.” “Ultimately, you can make it a win-win, if you understand one another.” SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.
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    44 m
  • From hustle to passive – The truth about creating a passive income in the dog industry

    From hustle to passive – The truth about creating a passive income in the dog industry
    Apr 15 2025
    DESCRIPTION In this episode, Jo & Vicky sit down to talk about creating passive income from your dog business. They share some of the ways they have done this and explain why in most cases the income they are generating is actually semi-passive rather than being 100% hands off. But as you will see when you listen to this episode, there is still a lot you can do to maximise the amount you earn for the hours you put into your business. KEY TAKEAWAYS Regardless of whether you are creating an in-person service, or a remote or online course, focus on solving the problem for your customers. Most passive income streams are not as passive as you expect them to be.If you write a book or worksheets, you´ve got to continually promote them.Converting an audience into buyers is hard; even if they are highly engaged and motivated, only about 1 in 100 will buy, and only after you have taken the time to persuade them.Courses can generate passive income, but they are rarely 100% hands off.Business to business courses are generally more profitable than business to consumer courses, but they are still not passive. People expect some level of support.The best way to generate income, including semi-passive, is to truly understand your customer´s pain points and provide a solution that works.Doing your market research ensures that there is enough demand. Jo & Vicky share several great ways to do this.If you find a good market, go for it, get your product or service out there asap, don´t worry about it being perfect right out of the gate.Don´t try to copy what other far more mature dog businesses are doing.Putting together a decent launch programme is time consuming, but essential.Adding value to your one-on-one course can work e.g. Providing access to reminder lessons or a more detailed explanation of something you teach.Game-based, easy to consume, bite sized training is currently selling well. BEST MOMENTS “Everyone likes a bit of passive income.” “I actually feel like passive income, or semi-passive income, however you want to look at it, is harder work than just getting out there and doing the thing.” “One person out of 100 is likely to buy, and that´s the reality.” “If you are going in from scratch wanting to build that passive side of it, the work involved isn’t going to feel passive.” “You need a big audience to make the evergreen side work.” “Gamification is a big thing this year, alongside your personal brand.” “You still get an income, you still get to absorb and help as many people as possible through the business, not through you burning out.” SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.
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    41 m
  • Sales Pages That Sell - Attract Clients Through Laser-Focused Messaging – with Adam Ashburn

    Sales Pages That Sell - Attract Clients Through Laser-Focused Messaging – with Adam Ashburn
    Apr 8 2025
    DESCRIPTION For this episode, you get to benefit from one of the pod classes that the members of the Canine Business Academy have access to. This is an in-depth discussion with Adam Ashburn, the co-founder of Test Tube Marketing. They help businesses to generate more sales. Adam explains how to layout your sales pages and write content that holds the attention of the customers you want; make it clear you understand their pain points and can be relied upon to solve their problem. His surprisingly simple 17 step sales page checklist, which can be implemented gradually, is sure to significantly boost your sales. To get access to more pod classes, go to https://www.caninebusinessacademy.com/the-membership and sign up for a 7-day free trial. Once you know the academy is a good fit for you, the cost is just £27 +VAT per month and you can cancel at any point. KEY TAKEAWAYS A sales page is very different from other types of webpages.Talk directly to the type of customer you are there to help. Focus on what you can do for them. Stop talking about yourself, your years of experience, etc. It switches people off. You don´t need to constantly justify yourself. Use testimonials and case studies to do that.Don´t over complicate things. Just demonstrate that you understand the problem, know how to resolve it and can be trusted to help.Some people read every word; others skim read. Adam explains how to engage both types of readers.Avoid jargon so Joe Public can understand.The more generic your sales page is, the less impactful it will be. To avoid this, create detailed customer avatars.Outline your promise, be clear who it is for, what problems you are promising to solve and how your fulfilling that improves your customers´ future life.Think about how the person you are speaking to feels now, and how you want them to feel after you´ve helped them.Anticipate and address objections. Create a sales page for each service. Tempt people onto your mailing list so you can convert them into customers later. BEST MOMENTS “As soon as you start talking about you, then, you are switching people off.” “It is impactful because people feel you are talking to them directly.” “Showing not telling is best.” “As a consumer …. I just want to know what you can do for me and what I need to do next.” “A good sales page makes the price less important.” “Simple is smart, complicated is stupid.” “The simpler the language is, the simpler it is to navigate, the better results you'll get.” EPISODE RESOURCES Access the free 17P´s Sales Page Checklist - https://www.instagram.com/testtubemarketing https://hemingwayapp.com SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.
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    57 m
  • Scaling Past 6 Figures

    Scaling Past 6 Figures
    Apr 1 2025
    Taking a business to the point where it turns over £100k is a big achievement. But there is no need to stop there, with the right approach you can earn a lot more than that. In this episode, Jo & Vicky explain how. They cover, changing up your strategy, pushing past the VAT threshold, why you shouldn't be afraid of paying more tax, when to take on employees, building assets separately so that you can sell them on, and making a lot of extra money from your knowledge. KEY TAKEAWAYS The strategy that got you to a turnover of £100k per annum is not the same one you will need to use to earn even more next year.When it comes to strategy, you need to know what to implement at the right time for the stage your business is at.If your goal is to earn £50k to £100k niching down and providing one, maybe two products, is the right strategy.Don’t fall into the trap of creating a business that has a huge turnover but has such high overheads that you still cannot take out a decent income for yourself. Many owners of big training centres have this issue.Don´t let the idea of paying more tax when you grow beyond a certain point hold you back. But do fully factor it into your pricing.Pushing past the VAT threshold is not easy, but necessary. Otherwise, your business will be forever held back.Regularly reviewing where you are and where you want to go ensures you are always striving for the right things.Keep your accounts up to date and do the analysis.Every time you put out an ad or post, track how well it works.If a marketing method is working, double down on it. Don´t be afraid of spending money on advertising that provides good ROI.There’s a lot of profit potential wrapped up in your brand and expertise. Continually nurture them so you can use them to generate more income over the long term, e.g. Sell coaching or a book.Create other related assets that you could potentially sell off at a later date. Jo & Vicky share several examples.Be careful about employing people. A lot of businesses do this too soon. BEST MOMENTS “As soon as you start pushing past that 100k mark, that's when the strategy needs to change.” “You have to reassess as you start to grow.” “So many businesses purposely cap their earnings so they don't go over that VAT.” “Start building up a bank of assets.” “You need to have multiple sources of income.” “They all supplement and support one another, whilst being a standalone product in their own right.” “It´s all about knowing who you are as a business.” “Really look at the data. Look at what your customers are saying.” “Get all of the knowledge that's in your head down onto something.” SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ Let´s Talk Dog Business Strategy Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lets-Talk-Dog-Business-Strategy/dp/1068791705 ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.
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    49 m
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