Welcome to the Soul Touched by Dogs Podcast, the show for dog lovers who
see dogs not as toys or tools, but wise souls worth our respect and care.
I'm an Herrmann, and I'm your host.
I talk to poor some humans, people who do great work for dogs and their people.
So come and join us for today's conversation.
Hello and welcome Vrushali.
I'm super happy to have you here.
Likewise.
Thank you for having me.
I really look forward to this conversation.
Before we dive into the depth of it, um, let people know where are you based
and what's your business with dogs?
Excellent.
Thank you.
I am based in India.
I work remotely with career oriented Pet parents who are based in US, uh,
mainly the Pacific, um, time zones and central time zones, as well as Europe.
The reason is, um, very interesting, although we can look into that
once your listeners really want to know and want to connect with me.
So there's a reason behind that, but that's what I, that's what
I am based and that's what I do.
Right.
So what's special about pet parents?
Like what do you do for them?
Okay, so you know how the older we get, the more we ask, what if?
And with pet parents, it's like we have dogs and we love them to bits and you
know, as they age, we start thinking about what if I spent more time?
What if I did things differently?
So what I do is reawaken harmony to allow such pet parents to
bypass the steep cost of regret.
Um, by generating compassion and really spending time with their fur babies.
Oh, so you're not missing out on like, oh, the steep cost of regret.
That's juicy.
That might just turn into the title of this.
So, so what, but like, what would people normally, when they come to you, you
know, like, what are they looking for?
What do they say they want?
I mean, are they, I mean, are people, because I'm feeling
like, is this something that people are like really aware of?
And say, hey, I really need help because I don't know, I think I'm not doing the
best I can or like what would somebody typically say when they come to you?
Great question.
So I have two dogs.
One is a golden retriever girl, uh, who, who's because of her energy level,
uh, she's, um, mistaken for a male dog.
And I have a rehomed rescue adult dog, whose name is Marshall.
And because he's so quiet and he looks very docile.
He's mistaken to be a female.
That's funny.
So I have two dogs and we go out on trips.
We go on walks together.
So when we are out, uh, the most common, um, comments that I get
to hear are, oh, she's got two.
Such cute dogs.
And then pet parents want to know Um, what breed they are, um, if they've,
if I've always had them since a puppy, the other questions I'm asked once
they find out that Marshall is, uh, adopted, he's rehomed, they're like,
oh, how did you go into all of this?
And that's how conversations usually start.
Oh, so now, and if they say, hey, we've just adopted a dog, can you help?
Or, because I'm sort of thinking like the regret is the stuff that
people become aware afterwards.
So,
you know, Absolutely.
Um, so then I just asked them, what is it that they want to know?
Because even with dogs, uh, you know, because you've got different
breeds, you've got dogs with different ages, different genders,
different, uh, backgrounds.
So you kind of know that it's really, you know, it's a very dynamic combination.
Similarly, first I asked them, what is it that they really want?
Do they want help with, you know, Who do they just want somebody to
listen to because even that's really important and then I go from there.
Yeah.
So, for example, they'll ask me what breed is he?
And I'm like, I don't know, and I don't really care.
However, I do know that he's a Catalan Shepherd, um, because I did some research.
So there's a lot of background investigation, a bit of
background research that goes into me as a pet parent.
I'm a total geek about stuff about my dogs.
Um, so when, you know, before getting, um, in touch with you, I listened to so
many of the guests that you had on board.
And they talked about food, they talked about the doggy planet, they talked
about, you know, healing and stuff.
So that is really interesting to me.
And pet parents really come to me with a lot of different questions about even,
um, so both my dogs are, for example, um, animal assisted therapy dogs.
So what or not does that mean?
How does that help?
And then I will tell them that, you know, just having a dog around you
and having humans around who are like, no, just keep your dogs to yourself.
And six months down the line, when we meet back, they'll say, Oh, yeah,
so and so now interacts with my dog.
Just that much of building a relationship without doing anything else but a
wagging tail and those puppy eyes is enough for, you know, humans to
interact, get There's stress levels down and the dog really doesn't speak out
much, but without even, uh, speaking out, they do so much for the humans.
And that's a topic that I can go on and on.
I love that.
That's so true.
I mean, I, I got your book.
No, you sent me your book.
I didn't like, I don't want to make it sound as if I went and bought
it when you actually sent it to me.
I could have bought it.
And, but the, The thing that really struck me was how methodical you
were when you brought in Marshall.
When you brought Marshall home, like that seemed like it's almost like you
took this like a research project.
That is correct.
Yes, absolutely.
Because it all began with, you know, I kind of want Blossom to have a companion,
a doggy companion, and it doesn't have to be, um, someone to mate with, but just
an animal companion, not just the humans.
So that's where my entire research began.
So, and I began with volunteering, um, you know, it's a little, it's, I,
I took the, uh, the roundabout route.
Because it ended up being more satisfying, giving me more insights.
Um, I worked, uh, so my educational qualification is,
uh, in, um, a degree in commerce.
Uh, we call it the Bachelor of Commerce.
So I can be an accountant.
I can work as an accountant.
So I went to a veterinarian here and I said, Hey, do you want somebody
in accounting and operations?
And he was happy to take me on.
So I worked in a veterinary clinic.
So I found out what doctors do, what pet parents come to them with.
And, um, or, you know, I work so different aspects of that.
That's why I'm saying I'm taking the roundabout route to becoming a pet parent.
So I researched about rescues, about shelters, about, and this
whole world about, uh, dogs who.
to be re homed came up and I'm like, okay, so Blossom's
companion is going to be re homed.
I don't want a golden retriever.
I want a different breed.
I don't care what breed it is as long as they can be, you know, kind of trained
to be, you know, not make a mess in the house and not bark unnecessarily.
Otherwise that the house is ruled by the dogs.
They are leash free.
They are cage free, but with a bit of discipline.
So I went about doing a lot of research, and then finally Marshall came home.
He's, I call him my secret Santa because he came on 24th of December.
Absolutely.
And the first, uh, you know, just the first week.
I could see he would find a cozy corner in the room that most of us
were in and he would just sit there and I could feel off him that I like
being a part of a family unit is the feeling I got from him and that was
just so humbling to know that That was something as simple as that was his ask.
And I'm like, okay, you've got a home and let's just work
out all the things together.
So yeah, I'm a bit methodical.
But that's beautiful because I think it's almost like the
opposite of what most people do.
You know, they just bring your dog home and they just like expect the dog to
magically know how everything works.
And what I love about the way You even unpack that in the book.
It's like, you know, it kind of shows why it can actually be challenging
because there are a lot of little things to think about and a lot of steps that
one could kind of overlook, right?
So if you compare how you went about You know, making sure Marshall fits
into the family and what you see is that your clients or other people do.
What's the biggest mistake people make?
Like what's the, what's the, what's the step that most people,
uh, or too many people overlook?
Okay, so I'm smiling as you complete the sentence because I'm so excited to share.
Excuse me for that.
Um, what I see is, you know, how you have those Instagram
or social media memes where.
One picture is when you have a meeting in audio, it's a whole messy face.
And when you have an online meeting on video, it's a well made up face.
That's basically the reality when you get a dog home.
We want to go all in.
And we are correct in our place.
It's just that as a dog, they, and they want to be a part of the family, the way
they want to be a part of the family, the only way they know how is to jump, is to
bark, and is to chew, because that's the senses that they are attuned to the most.
And this gap becomes too big.
It keeps getting bigger.
Unless we sit down, give them space, we take our space and take
it one day at a time and not have them into a well trained, um, a
well behaving person from day zero.
Yes, training starts from day zero.
Yes, good manners start from day zero, not even day one.
I don't even wait.
The second he got into my vehicle was when, uh, his good manners,
you know, instructions began.
I don't like to call it training because I, I say the dogs trained me to become a
better human, not the other way around.
I think so too.
Yeah, totally.
That totally speaks to me too.
Absolutely.
So that is basically it.
So give them space, give them time, give them a lot of love.
And also remember to be disciplined in what you do with them, and you will just
have a really beautiful relationship.
So when you say be disciplined in what you do with them, what does that look like?
Because, you know, discipline is a, I think in the dog training
world can be a bit of a loaded word, you know, because it's,
It's about being clear of how we do things around here, you know,
so how, how do you go about that?
How do you go about teaching your dog?
Like, okay, you know, the suffice of limits or not, or like, I don't want you
to pee in the house or chew up whatever.
Excellent.
Yes, you're, and you're absolutely right.
There are different perspectives to discipline.
Um, and even with my two dogs, their discipline angles are totally different.
Um, but then I take into consideration the breed of the dog, so, you know,
they're just naturally, um, a shepherd or a sheepdog could be an alerting dog.
So his first instinct could be to bark and could be to round up.
So you can't not take that into consideration.
The second thing was that I did experiment with a long leash, um, enclosures.
So he, the, uh, my leashes for both of them are, they begin with 500 meters.
So it's like half a foot, one foot and two feet long leashes that I have.
I don't have shorter leashes than that.
They're always on a harness and not on a collar.
It's just something that, um, I've realized that they like it, so
I would experiment gently, that if, is he, is he food oriented?
Then I found out that no, he really spooks, and food doesn't help.
Comfort helps.
He needs a, he needs a cozy, um, unlit place, and that's
where he's the most comfortable.
He likes being anchored, and how will I anchor him?
I've got a long leash, but it's tethered to his spot.
And he can roam around, but to a certain extent.
And that's, to me, what discipline means is that they have some non negotiables.
So when it's the afternoon or when it's late in the night, even if there
is a disturbance, they will bark as an alert and not go into a barking frenzy.
The reason, the main reason being I live in the heart of the city here.
It's a very urban setting and there are a lot of senior citizens around me and it
really messes up, you know, their night schedule if dogs are barking continuously.
And they've understood that.
And, you know, so that's, uh, one of the non negotiables I have.
The other non negotiable is that you can't chew on a human being.
You've got your toys
and they've got a lot of frozen treats.
Everything other than that is up for negotiation.
Oh, I love that.
Because I think it's all driven.
It's driven by love.
It's to keep them safe.
It's to keep, and you know what I really love about what you
just shared is how you really.
Listen to the dog in front of you, you know, so it's not just like,
here are the rules, it's like, okay, what does this dog need?
What does this dog need?
And I think we can do a lot of good for our dogs if we just follow that one rule.
So like, literally listen to the dog in front of you and experiment, right?
To try stuff out, to see what works, what works best.
I, I just totally love that.
And, um, You know, I really wish, I mean, I want to ask you, where can people
get the, get your book and, um, you know, find out more about you, connect
with you, what are you going to say?
Definitely.
for saying that.
It is, and it feels like a struggle initially.
Uh, think about it like getting to know a new friend.
Uh, when we go to school, uh, as children or as adults, young adults, the, the
college environment, the high school environment is new for us as a person.
So we want to experiment, we want to see who the cool kids are,
who, you know, the quiet ones are, who really want to be friends.
And it takes time for us to make friends, uh, be acquainted with other students.
Uh, so, you know, if we look at that perspective and just take the
whole chunk of that and move it to dog parenting, um, it'll make our
lives more stress free, I would say.
You know, give yourself some grace that every dog is different and you
want to do what's best for them.
So, uh, just go about it a little kindly.
I love that.
So where can people get the book and, you know, connect with you?
So definitely, just for your guests and your listeners, I do have a special
offer, which you will put in the notes, so I'm not going to say it out loud, but
where they can get the book is on Amazon.
Um Two, uh, online sites, which is KOBO, COPO and on Google Books.
And if they go to my website, uh, which is R okay.
Uh, it's a very unique name and I believe your, uh, listeners will remember it.
So I'm gonna say it a little slowly.
, it's, uh, r and blossom.com because Rosa.
And Blossom is my dog's name, and we work together as a team.
That's why it has to be me and my dog, so it's Roshani.
I love that.
And Blossom.
com.
And so now I'm thinking, like, the more dogs you get, then it's
gonna get longer and longer.
Absolutely.
And if they put in forward slash, Adopt hyphen, don't hyphen shop.
So adopt, don't shop, dashes in between.
That's where they can get my e books.
I love that.
Well, thank you so much because I think there's so much, um,
like practical tips, but also I love, I just love the attitude you bring to this.
So like, thank you so much.
This was absolutely delightful and I can't wait to connect with you again.
Thank you for having me.
Bye.
Thanks so much for listening.
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That's A N k E at Soul touched by dogs.com.