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The Fresh Patch Podcast - Where Good Pets Get It.
Welcome to the Fresh Patch Podcast where we talk about everything, from dog training, to potty talk. It's time to save your rugs, and get REAL! Fresh Patch has been featured on Shark Tank, Oprah and the Today Show. We're here to discuss why every pet owner should have real grass and the benefits that come with it. So sit back, relax, grab some treats and cuddle your furry friend, you won't want to miss an episode!
The Fresh Patch Podcast - Where Good Pets Get It.
How To Build Real World Skills With Your Dog
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Your dog can be “well behaved” without fear, force, or hours of drilling, and today’s guest proves it. We’re joined by Nicole Ellis, a celebrity dog trainer and pet lifestyle expert in Los Angeles, along with Rossi, to unpack what positive reinforcement actually looks like when you need results in real life, not just in your living room.
We talk about how Nicole got her start with a shelter dog who grew into a confident partner for service work, therapy work, and production sets, and why that kind of transformation is often about clarity and consistency more than “fixing” a dog. Nicole also shares what it takes to keep learning in the dog training world, including certifications like CPDT and training through Karen Pryor Academy, plus why continued education matters as the science of behavior evolves.
Then we dig into one of the most useful ideas we’ve heard for stressed-out pets: Fear Free care. Nicole explains how Fear Free vets and groomers reduce anxiety with smarter environments, better handling, and consent-based training that can make exams safer and calmer for everyone. If your dog hates the vet, this part is for you.
We also get practical about potty routines and why Nicole has relied on Fresh Patch real grass for years, from puppy training and senior dog convenience to protecting rental yards and making hotel stays and Vegas travel way easier. Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with a fellow dog parent, and leave a review so more listeners can find us.
Thanks for listening to the Fresh Patch podcast brought to you by Fresh Patch. We hope you enjoyed the show. Give us a like or a follow, or shop all of our real grass supplies at freshpatch.com. Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Youtube, Reddit
Welcome And Meet Nicole And Rossi
SPEAKER_03You may know Fresh Patch from Shark Tank, Oprah, or the Today Show. This is the Fresh Patch Podcast, where good pets get it. Sit back, put your paws up, and enjoy the show. Welcome everybody to the Fresh Patch Podcast. I'm your host, Drew, with my amazing co-host, Mr. Gabe, on my right. And we have a very lovely guest today and a furry friend as well. So if you wouldn't mind introducing yourself to the viewers.
SPEAKER_04Hi, I'm Nicole Ellis, and this is Rossi.
SPEAKER_03Hey, Nicole Rossi. Rossi is so adorable. Oh my gosh. So well behaved. So well behaved. Look at that. Oh yeah. I love it. That's so cute. That's so great. Well, thanks for joining us on the Fresh Patch Podcast. We're really really excited to get to know you, hear about you, maybe a little bit of Rossi too. And yeah, just dive into some questions and yeah, just have a fun episode. So uh before we really get started, though, I want to let everyone know that is listening or watching. Hit that subscribe button if you're watching on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify Podcast, wherever you listen to your podcast, hit that subscribe, like, comment, follow at Fresh Patch on all social media, check out freshpatch.com, and then give Nicole a follow as well if you wouldn't mind shouting out your social media, and we'll have that.
SPEAKER_04It is Tails with Nicole, Tail Like a Dog Tail, T-A-I-L-S with Nicole N-I-C-O-L-E.
SPEAKER_03There we go. So give her a follow, engage, like, comment on her stuff as well, and let's get
Nicole’s Training Philosophy And Work
SPEAKER_03into it. Um, I'm gonna start us off with some questions and Perfect. We'll we'll get to it. So, for those of you who don't know you, tell us about yourself and the work you do.
SPEAKER_04Um, absolutely. So I'm Nicole. I'm a celebrity dog trainer and pet lifestyle expert in Los Angeles, California. And I work with everyone from everyday dog pet parents to high-profile clients, the celebrities, music artists, etc. And my goal is really to help them better understand their dogs and build real life practical skills. So my focus is all positive reinforcement training. So making sure dogs can thrive, not just at home, but in our world and our lives. So whether that's going to be on set with us, hiking at a cafe, navigating daily life where our pets can be included in that. I also have a book on working dogs coffee table book called Working Like a Dog, and have a few others in progress at the moment. And then I also do online training videos and stuff like that on my blog and social media, just so everybody can get an opportunity to work with their dog. No matter where you live, my goal is let's do more with our pets.
SPEAKER_03Amazing. Yeah, that's wow. You got your hands full. You're doing a lot. Oh man, author, trainer. Wow, that's awesome.
SPEAKER_00That's really cool. And it kind of like fits into like what we do here at Fresh Patch, you know, like trying to help people um spend more time with their dogs and you know, give their dogs an opportunity to use the use the bathroom and when they when they leave the house.
SPEAKER_04It's really hand in hand. Um, I also do train animals for movie production work. So Ross C here does photo shoots, commercials, nice, um, videos, and I have some other animals as well, but he's the one joining us right now.
SPEAKER_03Nice, that's cool. We might have to hire uh one day.
SPEAKER_04Uh we always need dog models around here and he has a pretend pee on cue, so he can actually pretend to pee. Nothing comes out, but perfect graph.
SPEAKER_03Gosh, that's all we need. Yeah, seriously.
SPEAKER_04He does love to pee outdoors. He actually wears like a little thing on his harness that says I love peeing outdoors. So the graph patch is never a problem.
SPEAKER_03That's that's awesome. Amazing. Yeah, we're gonna need that. Uh might need it on a regular basis, but that's so great. I mean, even at the beginning, the little little wave. He's very well trained. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04He's a very good boy. That's awesome.
SPEAKER_00Awesome,
How A Shelter Dog Started It
SPEAKER_00cool. So, how did you first get into dog training? Like, was this always the plan for you, or did life just kind of like take you there?
SPEAKER_04So, no, not at all. Like a lot of people, I just love dogs. I love animals, and I always have as a kid. I was an only child, and the dogs were my family. So I wanted to rank by animals. And that curiosity is I was got my own dog. She's walking around somewhere now. She's 18. Um, I adopted her from a shelter and gone into training with her. And um, she became from like a scared shelter dog that wasn't sure of the world to a dog that ended up doing tons of production work. She did service dog work. We traveled the US together. And so that curiosity turned into learning, practicing, and then before I knew it, helping others. And it became a career. And I was like, oh my gosh, if I could have this much fun with my dog, imagine if I can help other people achieve this, also. And it was such a difference of like, oh, I have a dog and I take him for a walk and he's my pet dog, to like, this is my family member. And I can't wait to take her on vacation, and I can't wait to do these things that became really core memories for me. And other friends of mine were like, oh my god, I want to do that with my dog. And I was like, this is incredible. If we can help other people create that bond, which I mean, animals are amazing, and they also do so much for us mentally as well. So I think it's a really amazing partnership.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, totally. Yeah, no, that's that's awesome. I mean, um, having a dog that's like, you know, well trained and everything is like so important. It can really like enhance the bond that you have with your animal.
SPEAKER_04So it's uh absolutely and at that time I was like living by myself, and instead of sitting in my apartment by myself, I had this best friend. And I mean, I'm now married, and like my dogs are still very, very much involved in my life. And like, I think as a kid, my dogs had a different relationship with me, but they still were family members, and I think that's so important and really shaped me. And I mean, I wanted to hang out with my dogs more than anyone else, so here we are.
SPEAKER_03Right? That's awesome. That's cool. Yeah, it's always great. I mean, I most people do consider their dog family, which is the correct approach, you know what I mean? They're not just the a toy or you know, just something, you know, just something that's gonna be there, like you know, they're they're loving, they're caring, we gotta give them the same support.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so you take care of them, and they take care of you, exactly.
SPEAKER_03Yep, exactly. Cool. So I feel like you might have answered this a little bit in that, but what was your first experience working with the dog where you thought this is what I want to do?
SPEAKER_04Um, so yeah, touching that briefly, I'd say it was seeing a real behavior change click. So when my dog Maggie went from like misunderstood, not confident, to a successful dog that was shooting national television commercials, and I was like, I grew up modeling and acting in Los Angeles, and I was like full circle moment for me. I'm on set, but I'm now behind the scenes. And I was like seeing that transformation was just so inspiring to me. And then as I helped others, I could see that not only in the dog, but the owners as well, because I think it really can show how powerful training can be and it affects everybody. And that's when I was like, this is what I want to do. I want to spend my days doing this and living my five-year-old dream out, which graduating college, I did not even like go to school for dog training at the time. And I was like, had this different career path, but thank God for adopting my shelter dog who kind of made things work out as they should be. But I think seeing that massive change and knowing I could potentially help others get that, like, and if we can do that with a shelter dog, imagine how many shelter dogs are just misunderstood or need help, and we can help them find their right place in a home is incredible.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, definitely. That's that's amazing. I feel like you I'm looking down at my questions, you're just going right into our next question and stuff. But that is so perfect. But yeah, no, thanks for that. That's that's good to know.
SPEAKER_00And so, yeah, that kind of like Drew said, kind of leads into our next question. But like, do you did you ever have any sort of formal training or are you mostly like self-taught from the beginning?
Certifications And Continued Learning
SPEAKER_04So this is a great question, and I think it's not often the dog training industry is often misunderstood as well. So I started learning as much as I could, hands-on. Um, and then from there I pursued formal education and certifications to deepen my knowledge. My senior dog's like somewhere behind me, actually.
SPEAKER_03Um, best appearance, maybe I guess.
SPEAKER_04Oh no, she's like, well, like she's she's 18 now. So crazy.
SPEAKER_03What kind of dog is it?
SPEAKER_04Um, she's a shelter dog. Here she comes.
SPEAKER_03Oh wow, there she is. She's like making a flight appearance.
SPEAKER_04She's like, what's going on here? She's like, just here for the cookies. So um that combination, I think, of real world experience and then structured education really has helped me on how I train today. So I am certified through the certification CPDT, which is certification of professional dog trainers. I'm also trained through KPA, which is the Karen Pryor Association. I'm trained through Fear Free, I have fear-free certification, which if you don't know Fear Free, that's a whole different conversation. It's amazing for people to know about. But that's a lot of practical stuff. And then some of those organizations do a little bit of hands-on as well. So it's a mixture. But through that and just learning hands-on, I think it's a nice combination. Now there are dog trainers out there with no certifications. So I'm not gonna say you need one with certifications because I think somebody's work stands for them. Like if you are looking to learn agility and there's an agility pro out there, yeah, do they need to be a certified dog trainer? Probably not. Like their skills speak for themselves. Um, so but for me, I do have a combination of that, like formal education, certifications. And then what's great about those is that we have CEUs that we have to keep up. So we have to have continued education throughout the year. Yeah. So our education to keep those titles and all these fancy letters after my name that no one understands basically means that I have to keep learning, which is great because I am always learning and I want to always learn. I think I have a lot to learn still. Yeah. So I think that's kind of a fun thing about learning the certification stuff.
SPEAKER_00Definitely, yeah. And it's so interesting too, because like I feel like dog training has changed so much over the last, let's say, 20 years. Like it's it's like a completely brand new thing. So um, yeah, it's it's really cool that you like, you know, that you're uh you're required to kind of like keep learning in order to like um continue using the certification.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, which is awesome. I think that's great. And I mean, studies are always changing, I'm always learning. I think we all should be. And if there's a day where we don't want to learn anymore, maybe we shouldn't we should be done. We're checked out at that point. So I love learning more. I love learning from other people in my field, and I think how lucky to be surrounded by people that love animals.
SPEAKER_03Totally. Definitely, definitely. And then I wanted to go back on what you said actually. Here she goes. There she goes.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, she's 18. Oh, uses her fresh patch more than any other dog in our household, probably.
SPEAKER_03That's right. You hear that, viewers? Get yourself a fresh patch. You got an 18-year-old dog, fresh patch.com. We got you covered.
SPEAKER_00Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_03Sweet. I I wanted to go back to what you said, and
Fear Free Training And Vet Visits
SPEAKER_03we were we're familiar with those two, um, Karen Pryor and then the other one. But the what was the third one you said?
SPEAKER_04So the third one's called Fear Free, and it was started by Marty Becker, and they're saying is they're taking the pet out of petrified. And so there's fear-free trainers, there's fear-free groomers, there's fear-free veterinarians. And I go to myself to a fear-free veterinarian, and I think it's changing the way we care for our animals. And so a lot of it is not forcing our animals really, they're like teaching them to get used to things, consent to things. Like my dog, I can do injections and he stays still and he knows he's getting an injection. I don't have to pin him down. We're not causing fear. And when an animal is stressed, it affects their blood work, it affects so many things that can affect their overall health, especially when we're trying to diagnose something. So, for example, a fear-free vet usually has treats. They have toys because play should be initiated in these situations. It shouldn't just be a scary thing. Um, my veterinarian doesn't even have um exam tables. All our exams are done on the floor. So dogs often don't like being at pie. It's scary. Well, how often are they ever put on a table besides at the vet? So um, shout out to my vet, Dr. Dewey at Treehouse. But like she comes in room and she sits on the floor and it's fun. My dog's running around playing with toys and treats, and it's a better experience for everyone. It's less stressful on the people working in that profession, which is already a very stressful profession.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Um and if they do have exam tables, I know there's another one in Sherman Oaks, they have yoga mats on there. So the dog's not slipping, they're not creating enough scary sounds. There's no fluorescent lights, so they don't have that buzzing sound. Often you get a bandana with pheromones on it, or there's pheromones in the room, which can help calm and relax animals. So there's certifications for trainers, for veterinarians, and for groomers. And sometimes these visits are often longer. We spend a lot of time setting our pets up for success. But I love that we can make the overall experience, maybe a little bit more work in the beginning, better overall for them. And I think that's huge. Like at our event, when our dogs get vaccinations, they're leaking a leaky mat of peanut butter. Like awesome. They have that positive association. And that's positive world, is what I try to do in all my dog training. So I love learning about it and seeing how we can do things. So, like, I my dog has things like a chin rest where I can like do behaviors like checking his hair, his eyes, his ears without moving, and we can do things without restraint and less bites, less stressed out animals. Yeah, I think it's a win-win for everybody. So if you don't know it, go on fear free, and you can look it up either by facility or just by people, and you can find some people, some dog, some veterinarians like register themselves and not their facility. So I say to look for both. But and same with dog trainers, I think there's just it's a wealth of people out there. So it's great.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, definitely. Wow. Thank you for that insight. Yeah, I've never heard of that, or I feel like I've maybe vaguely, but um, you know, fear-free just in general. That is a very good approach. Yeah, especially on the veterinarian side, like everything you just explained is it makes so much sense, you know. So yeah, uh, but we've yeah, it's like it's finally changing.
SPEAKER_04We've done vet practices the same way for so many years, and how incredible that we're now uh changing that and we can do better.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. Most definitely.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, what were you gonna say?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I was just gonna say, like, it's it's uh such a bummer, you know, to see how taking the dog to the vet or doing like some of these things that you have to do can cause them such stress. So the fact that we're um there's this fear-free thing that's like helping mitigate that kind of stuff, like is is a really, really cool thing. Yeah, so cool.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, so any viewers, listeners, if you're listening and you have those issues, you know, and you've been looking for a solution, there are options. There are options. So thank you, thank you for that. That's that's really cool. Learning something new every day. That's what we get on these podcasts. We're always learning something new. Yeah. Cool.
Building A Career Through Results
SPEAKER_03So what was the moment your career really started to take off with all of this?
SPEAKER_04Um it's a funny question because I'm I wouldn't say there's an exact moment. Um obviously, once I dog started working with TV and film, like that helped do more TV and film stuff. They had the experience. We had met friends, we met people to refer us. Um, once I started combining training with media and education online, that obviously opens the door to larger audiences, more opportunities there. And then I think a lot of it's just like word of mouth, and that kind of helps grow everybody. And we're in Los Angeles and we all kind of sort of know each other.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_04So um, I wouldn't say there's one exact moment, and I think I I'm not in one straight line in my career. I've like kind of dabble in five different things, and I think each of those has different turning points. Um, for example, I did an Amazon TV show called The Pack, where we trained animals to do all sorts dogs, not animals, but dogs to do all sorts of fun, crazy adventures with their own nurse. And I'd say that opened up different opportunities, but different opportunities than I'm getting with my day-to-day clients, for example.
SPEAKER_00Gotcha. Awesome, awesome, cool. Yeah, that's really interesting. So, how how did you go from like training dogs to working more with like high profile clients and becoming like a well-known trainer?
SPEAKER_04Um, so I'd say a lot of it came down to results. We like what we see with our dogs, their training, and relationships. When you help one person and their dog succeed, it really can be life-changing and they tell others. And over time that builds trust. And in Los Angeles, especially, word travels fast and people know each other. And just like we might ask someone what their favorite restaurant is, we trust our friends' opinions. And so when someone sees their dog is well trained and they can go to a cafe now with their dog and their dogs, not lunging at other dogs, they're like, okay, I think I could use that help too. Who did you use? Because I want similar results, or I want XYZ. Could they help with this? So I think just having that circle of people is amazing. And I'm think dealing with and working with families that are in that high-caliber acting, um, singers, etc., is a bit different in dog training. We are training them to work with a household that has a very large staff, usually. We're teaching dogs to get potty trained in a very, very large house. So it's different than someone with me who has a normal size house, for example, or in an apartment building. So there are a little bit differences and nuances. And once we I think I kind of carved a niche in that, in that I understand that world. I understand from working with them now. Like, how can we make this work? How can we help the Chihuahua find his way to actually use the restroom in this like mega mansion? And there's definitely ways, and I think everybody has their little niche. There's things that is not my specialty, and I don't take those on. And I'll laugh, happily refer those out to people that do excel at that. So I think that's been a big help is the understanding and having results. And then people people gratefully are very happy.
SPEAKER_00So yeah, it seems to be. That's really cool. I mean, I feel like anything in life, connections is is so are so important, you know.
SPEAKER_04Um you never know. And it's like not always even like the celebrity or the artists themselves, but it could be like the house manager or the chef that refers that, or somebody needs a dog rumor. I know a dog rumor I can refer that caters to that clientele and knows how to communicate and work with those schedules and that house staff. So you can make your own community, and
Training For High Profile Households
SPEAKER_04I think that's really special, especially in a big city like LA, where it's kind of actually hard to make friends and meet people. So finding people you trust is really important.
SPEAKER_00What a like a unique kind of like snapshot into like how you know high profile people like have pets and like have specific needs. Like you doesn't, these are things that like you know, at least I had never really thought about before, but it's really and like a big part of my training is setting up the dog to succeed in that family.
SPEAKER_04So, for example, I have horses, my dogs need to get used to horses. The average person's dog does not need to get used to horses. So how can we set those dogs up for success? So, for example, like some of my puppies, I'll bring them to my friend Sarah, who's a dog photographer in Los Angeles, she's amazing, and we'll do a photo shoot and I'll get them used to flashes, I'll get them used to lights because most likely they're gonna be on a set, they're gonna be on a set with flashes, and while the dog's probably not gonna be the one taking getting the photos taken, it's gonna be their pet parent. It's a nice way to get that early desensitization to these experiences, and that's kind of like how can I set them up for this life that they're gonna lead?
SPEAKER_00Totally. Yeah, that's awesome.
SPEAKER_03That's so cool. Yeah, and what you said about like the mansions too. Like, I've never even thought of it like a tiny chihuahua in a giant house. Like, what that dog gonna do? Like, could have a fight.
SPEAKER_04And then they come to my house and they're like, Where's the other wing? Yeah, right, exactly.
SPEAKER_03There's no other wing. I'm sorry. Oh, that's funny. That's so good. Cool. Um, was there a specific opportunity or dog that changed everything for you uh when it comes to all your training and endeavors?
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Um, I'd say there's different dogs that have changed different things for me. Obviously, my childhood dogs kind of got me obsessed and like loving animals. Maggie that you met, she and I did therapy work for a long time. I traveled across the US basically volunteering, and we volunteered in Vanderbilt in Nashville. I flew to Vegas to volunteer with her. And I'd say that really opened my eyes to the difference dogs can make for people outside their home. Um, and what a difference and like touching of people and showing what's possible. And then obviously training my own dogs has shown me what's possible, and training is done thoughtfully and consistency, consistently, sorry. And like when you're consistent, it makes a big difference. And everybody's like, you must train your dog for hours a day. And I'm like, no, I do like five minutes, like three times a week, but I'm consistent throughout the day. Yeah, my dogs eat like they know where to sit down and eat, they can't jump on me. Like, and that consistency, that's not my training time. Thank you. It's like someone's getting bored. Like, when do I get a cookie? So um, I think it's been various dogs that opened my eyes to various things and then seeing various things. Like when I was shooting my book, Working Like a Dog, I got the experience to work with police dogs, shit dogs, cancer detecting dogs, like bed bug detection dogs. So we photographed this wide range of dogs. It's just photos of these dogs, but it's showing you that like not every working dog is a Labrador, and seeing their powerful noses, and really like I got to see blood donor dogs that you see, Davis, that are donating blood. That's things we don't even think about. And I think seeing those dogs opened my eyes up even more to like how big this pet industry is and what a difference. Dogs can make just besides being a family pet, like actually doing cool, incredible things out there. Not that you're not doing cool things, Rossi.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's so cool. Yeah, consistency is key, of course. You know, I we hear that from a lot of other trainers and just you know, pet parents in general. They're like, How did you train someone? Like, how'd you train your dog so well? And you must have taken hours. It's like, no, I just keep keep a program pretty much. Yeah, consistency, and you're gonna be able to do that.
SPEAKER_04Consistency, and like I think a big part of my training is too is I'll do a lot of training outside the home too. So, like I asked for sit everywhere.
Consistency And Scent Work In Real Life
SPEAKER_04Like, you should be able to sit in a supermarket. I don't take a supermarket, but like, you know, anywhere you go, you should be able to do it. Um, a fun story is my lost my phone in a hike in Joshua Tree's is totally off topic. Um, this is like god, like 10 years ago. And my Maggie, who's a service dog at the time, she was sent trained to my odor. And we I couldn't find my phone, lost it on a hike, good times. I went back the next day and I asked her to find my odor, and we just walked and walked in a mile in, she found my phone for me based on my odor. And I never trained it for a real life scenario, I trained it to do AKC competitions, which to be honest, we weren't very good at.
SPEAKER_03So but she proved herself there.
SPEAKER_04But she proved herself there, and it was kind of this real world scenario where I was like, this was never expected how I meant to use this, but like we've practiced it all over the place. So yeah, here we are actually executing it in a way I never imagined.
SPEAKER_03That's so cool. I mean, it's almost cooler than just doing the the events like that, right?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, we didn't need any ribbons after that.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, right.
SPEAKER_00It's like well, I know that I am constantly losing stuff, so maybe I should like uh have you train my dog for that. That'd probably be a huge help for me. Very helpful.
SPEAKER_03You don't have to get too into it, but like oh that just is so fascinating. Before we go to the next question, it's fascinating. Like odor, like, how do you you just give them kind of everything of yours to sniff all the time? I gotta get to get how that'll work, you know what I mean? Like, here's my here's my phone, here's my purse. I don't know, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, um, so he she was trained on like birch, annie, some clove first, and then I trained her on like handler odor, which is my odor, which was like basically a sock or some small item, a cotton ball, even that smelled like me. And then I would take her through our like sense exercises of like sniffing random boxes. And when she sniffed that one, I like clicked, remarked, rewarded it. Yeah, and she learned when I find this, good things happen. I get delicious treats, and from there we expanded it, expanded it, and then I was able to narrow it down to like smaller amounts of smell, and their noses are so powerful, it puts us to shame.
SPEAKER_03So yeah, no, it definitely puts us to shame.
SPEAKER_00That is fascinating. Um, so um,
Global Pet Expo Fresh Patch Story
SPEAKER_00kind of a funny random thing that happened, but um, we heard that you actually ran into our founders at the Global Pet Expo um recently. So uh run us through that. How did how did that happen?
SPEAKER_04Um, yeah, kind of random, funny story, but this is like the small world stuff.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Um, so I was at Global Pet Expo, for those of you that don't know, it is a marketplace basically, or it's a conference trade show of everything in the pet product world. So it's where our pet co, our Chewy's, or even our small boutique stores are shopping for what they're gonna sell in their store. And it's everything from the lighting and fish tanks basically to the toys your cat's gonna play with and dog food galore. And so there's a Florida one, and there's a one in Vegas for West Coast called Superzoo. And I was there with my friend's company, um Blue Nine Pet Products that makes a dog training platform I love, my favorite harness, amazing company. And I was joking with them that like when I go to Super Zoo, I bring a grass patch. And um he was like, Oh, who is it? And I was like, Oh, it's Fresh Patch. And he's like, Oh, I know those people. And I was like, Oh, funny, small world. We're out in Florida. Okay. So then, like, two days later, we're at this conference, and these two people stopped. I was just happened to be at their booth. I wasn't there the whole conference, just happened to stop by. And these two people stopped by and they asked to see the owner. And they're like, Oh, he's not here, he'll be back soon. And then I saw, like, I think I saw their badge or something, and I was like, Hold on, are you the two from Fresh Patch? And they're like, Yeah, and I was like, I have all these photos in my grass patch.
SPEAKER_01That's great.
SPEAKER_04But I was, I'm sure, absolutely crazy. So then owner Dave came back, and all of a sudden he's like, Oh, you guys met. And I was like, Oh my god, I'm telling them how much I love their grass patch. Random conversation, but I was very excited because it is something I've used for a very long time, and I was like, I want to hear all about it and how you guys started. And I thought they were from Los Angeles, they were not, so then I learned all about that, and they were absolutely lovely, and I had such a great time connecting with them, but it was so random because we were just at the right place meeting the right people at the right time.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's crazy. So, and such a big event, too. Like, yeah, such a oh, it's huge.
SPEAKER_04Oh my gosh, that's uh I think Super Zoo's even bigger, but it's so much walking. He was like, I have to bring him a stroller because he's like passed out by day two, like sniffing and playing with everybody's toys.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's yeah, I've heard Super Zoo is a lot bigger. We're trying to trying to get involved there this year, too. So I don't know if you're if you're gonna be there as well this year. We'll be there. We'll see you there, hopefully. But I'd love it. Right behind me here is the the Shark Tank pictures. I don't know if he checked all about that and stuff, but yeah, that's so cool that you met them.
SPEAKER_04Like, you know, he just filmed for Shark Tank for um Swift Paws. That's a fast hat system where they chase a loom around. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Oh, is that the the um yeah on the rope, right? The one that kind of goes in a square. Yeah, you got it. Yeah, that one's cool. That one's cool.
SPEAKER_04Shark Tank family. I mean, I'm not like involved at all with that, but he just loves the toy.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. I love it. I love it. Cool. Well that's awesome. Yeah, so glad you got to meet them and stuff. And I know we're have other conversations outside of the filming, but um we'll get to that later.
SPEAKER_01So fun.
SPEAKER_03Um, so it goes right into our next question.
Fresh Patch Use Cases And Travel Tips
SPEAKER_03Lovely. We know you're a longtime customer of Fresh Patch. Tell us the benefits it's been for you as a dog mom and a trader.
SPEAKER_04Um, so I was super excited to do this because it's like actually not a product I've used for like a day. It's something I've used for actually years, and it's been a game changer in so many situations. I probably use it in more situations than the average person. Um, so we used to have a house in Altadena, and from there we had decomposed granite. We didn't have grass. So that's when I first started ordering it, is I had puppies over and I was like, I need to teach these dogs to go on grass because I don't have a grassyard. So I ordered a fresh patch for that because the houses I go to, it's real grass and there are yards, it's not astroturf. And I was like, perfect, easy to toss it out when it's dead and gone and not clean anymore. And I love that. So I started getting it for puppies, and then my own dogs started using it, and they're like, This is awesome. I was like, okay. So I kept getting it because my dogs seem to like to go on it, and I was like, Great, less dog urine smell in my yard. Love it.
SPEAKER_01Classic.
SPEAKER_04Um, and then we moved after the wildfire. So thank you so much.
SPEAKER_03That was amazing.
SPEAKER_04Um, and we're at a rental house, and like a weekend the dogs are killing the yard and the grass. And of course, I'm like, we don't own this house. Like, this is awful. So got a grass patch and I put it straight outside the door, and it's great because this one doesn't like to go in the rain. So when it's raining, he can go right there and pee. He's not walking through the grass. We're not killing our grass now. Yep. Um, all the clients' dogs love it. And for my senior dog, she doesn't have to walk far. Um, and then I'd say when traveling, I bring it to hotels, which I think I thought at first was a little bit crazy, but after I did it, I was like, oh, this is a game changer.
SPEAKER_01Yep.
SPEAKER_04So um it's done multiple Vegas trips for me. Um, it's done other road trips with me, and I'd say Vegas is the biggest one I really bring it to because those are massive hotels, and it's not easy to like rush your dog downstairs, which I did do for many years, and then instead I just got this. And so if I don't have a balcony, I literally just put it in the shower or like in the bathroom.
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_04And in the morning, he goes right there in peace, and it's great. I still take him for a walk, he's very, very well taken care of. But like it is so nice. And if someone has too many treats at Super Zoo and has an upset stomach, I'm like, grass patch is right here. Yep. I also think it's extremely useful for like apartment living, extreme weather days. I'm in California, so we do not get snow here. But like I've seen everybody's photos on the East Coast, and I'm always like, just get grass patch, like solve the problem right now.
SPEAKER_03Exactly, yeah, 100%. And the opposite, too. Like you're saying in Vegas in the summer, oh yeah, 100 110 plus out there, you know, you're not taking your dogs out on on the pavement and stuff. Yeah. You know, mid-afternoon, you're you got the patch right for yourself, you know, right in the in the bathroom.
SPEAKER_04And it's easy to travel with. Yeah. So and I think from a training standpoint, it gives dogs a clear, consistent place to go, which that makes everything easier. And it's easy to transition from that to a yard or anywhere else. That's like no training on my part. I was like, put outside, and the dogs went pee on it. It's like, yeah, awesome, easy peasy for the average pet owner as well. It's like, might have to sit there and like work on this forever. Like they want to go on it. Um, a funny story is one year I brought one that wasn't grass, it was like wood chips or something, and I was like kind of excited to give this a try. And I put it in the bathroom and my dogs went to sleep on it, they wouldn't be on it.
SPEAKER_01There you go.
SPEAKER_04I learned my lessons. So they were like, We we've never this is nice and coffee. I was like, okay, we're not gonna use that anymore. Yeah, um, but yeah, I think it's such a game changer, and especially for apartment living, especially puppies, puppies need to go pee a lot. So I have a few clients that use it directly on their patios now, and it's like, or dogs that excited pee when someone comes over. I'm like, we can go right out there immediately and pee out there. So I think it's not a one use case scenario. So, especially in my case, I've used it for so many different reasons and game changer, and I just shows up at my house. So nice. But I've had so many people are like, You have a yard, why do you have this? And I'm like, well, my yard's not dying now, it's not my yard.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, exactly. Yeah, we're not ruining the actual grass, you know. Dog's still happy, knows where to go, like it's perfect.
SPEAKER_04It's easy, and like I get like the medium size, I think, but even like I have big dogs that will stand outside of it and pee and make it on that, and like I've had it's perfect, yeah. They can't, yeah.
SPEAKER_03They know how to aim, you know. The good ones know how to aim, you know, right? They that's so cool. I love all the scenarios you have experienced it with, you know, not just recommending that it could be good for these scenarios.
SPEAKER_04Oh no, it's like I'm going many years solid of like consistent every two weeks. I think I get one now. So that's a staple in our house.
SPEAKER_03And that that's a huge one we've been trying to, you know, because everyone's all like, oh, I don't have a puppy or not, have a balcony. And it's like it's okay, like there's so many different scenarios. You travel, get it in the car, pit stops in the hotel, wherever you need it, you know, rain, whatever it is.
SPEAKER_04So um yeah, when I do the traveling, I don't do the one that gets shipped on my like routine schedule. Kind of I leave for the house, and then the one that traveling, I order it to arrive like two days before I leave, just in case it's late or something. And then I just keep the lid on it, off we go, and like get there and open up, and it's perfect. And it's just funny checking into the hotel, and I have like this big thing of grass on my suitcase.
SPEAKER_03I know anything. We're working to get some more hotel sponsorships, you know, to partner with us and uh the first time I was like, you know, what is room service gonna think of this?
SPEAKER_04Like, this is just so crazy. And then I got back and they like left me some dog poop bags, and I was like, Oh, they didn't think it was that crazy.
SPEAKER_00So nice, that's so cool. Yeah, yeah. Maybe like you were saying, like Vegas hotels, because it is like by the time you get outside of those hotels, it's like a normal walk, like with your dogs, and like half the year, it's like a million degrees, let's be honest. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Seems like there would be some alignment there, yeah, definitely.
SPEAKER_03And how did you first originally hear about Fresh Patch? Did you just was it just like a Google search or did it?
SPEAKER_04I honestly don't know. It's been so many years.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04I know you guys are all over LA, like at Pet Events now and all sorts of stuff. So, like if it was nowadays, I could have like easily given you an answer. I feel like I must have just Googled it. Yeah, and in the past, I before that I used the fake Ashoturf one. Yeah, but then it's like you have to host it off, and it was like it was nasty, but so gross.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah, and so gross.
SPEAKER_04That's not a best case scenario for a lot of the dogs I'm working with. Like, yeah, I don't have grass, I need grass to go on, so let's figure this out. Like my dogs, if they didn't go on grass, it wouldn't be fine. But then they were like, Oh, this is great. I was like, Okay, I guess I'm gonna keep a trigger for this, and here we are, years later.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, exactly. And like what you said before, too, like you tried the wood chips and stuff, and we know who that is. Great idea, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Like, no hate at all.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, it just wouldn't go off. Yeah, it's just they'd rather lay on it and sleep on it. But real grass, they're gonna potty. Oh by the real grass, right? Come on, it's amazing.
SPEAKER_04And it's so easy, so um I love it.
SPEAKER_03Awesome. That is oh, there you go. He approves two. He approves two.
SPEAKER_04He approves, you approve, yeah. Thank you.
SPEAKER_03Big dog is yeah. Sweet. Well, those are all our questions for you today. Amazing.
SPEAKER_04It's super fun, you guys.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, you are so knowledgeable and really, like I said, we always learn something new on these podcasts. Definitely learn something new today that hopefully the viewers, you learn something new as well to take into your lives and stuff. But thank you so much for taking the time.
SPEAKER_04And hopefully inspire some more people to do a little bit more with their dogs, right? Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03Awesome.
Wrap Up And Where To Follow
SPEAKER_03So, for all the viewers and listeners, one more time, hit that subscribe button if you're watching on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify Podcast, follow at Fresh Patch on all socials. Check out freshpatch.com for all your real grass potty needs, treats, poop eggs, we got you covered. Follow at Tales with Nicole on social media as well. Engage with her stuff. Like, hit her up if you need some training, if you have any more questions, and um, I'm sure she'll be happy to help. And yeah, well, thank you again, Nicole.
SPEAKER_04Thank you guys so much.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, and everybody else, we will see you on the next episode of the Fresh Patch Podcast. Bye bye. Bye. Thanks for listening to the Fresh Patch Podcast, where good pets get it. We hope you enjoyed the show. Give us a like or a follow and shop all real grass supplies at freshpatch.com.
