Building a Life Around Dogs: Katie Ast’s Journey from Kennels to Just Dog People

On this week’s episode of The Best of Johnston County Podcast, our guest is the owner of Just Dog People, Katie Ast. We talked to her about how you make a career of working with dogs and animals.

When you’re not a veterinarian, we talk about her and her mom building and starting the Bone Voyage Pet Resort here at 40 42, before she sold it in 2015. And her decision to start just dog people with her husband. We talk about all the different services that they offered, just dog people from nail clipping to harness fitting and also.

A self-serve dog wash and a dog wash, well, they’ll wash your dog for you. So if you love dogs as much as I do, I think you will love this conversation we had with the owner of my favorite dog store. Just Dog People, Katie Ast.

Welcome to another episode of Best of Johnston County, brought to you by Breeden Law Office. Our host, Jonathan Breeden, an experienced family lawyer with a deep connection to the community, is ready to take you on a journey through the area that he has called home for over 20 years. Whether it’s a deep dive into the love locals have for the county or unraveling the complexities of family law, Best of Johnston County presents an authentic slice of this unique community.

Hello and welcome to another edition of The Best of Johnston County Podcast.

I’m your host, Jonathan Breeden. And on today’s episode we have the owner of Just Dog People, Katie Ast, and she’s here to talk a little bit about how she got into dogs as a business and a career. Her moving to Johnston County. They’re opening a Bone Voyage, the pet sitting place boarding place that’s still open today and why she decided to start just dog people around nine years ago and what is now by far my favorite pet store and probably yours too.

But before we get to that, I want to like ask you to like, follow, subscribe to this podcast wherever you’re seeing, whether it be on Apple, Spotify. YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn or Instagram so that you’ll be made aware of future episodes of The Best of Johnston County Podcast. The Best of Johnston County Podcast comes out every single Monday and now has for about 18 months, and so we’ve had tons and tons of guests, so go back and listen to some of our previous guests and all the ones we’ve got coming up in the future.

I think if you love Johnston County as much as I do, this is the podcast for you. Welcome, Katie.

Thank you, Jonathan. I’m really excited to be here.

I know we were just talking about, the first time I met you was at the brown graving ribbon cutting for Bone Voyage. And I think that may have been 2004.

So 2004 is when we first opened, and then we had a groundbreaking ceremony with the dogs about six years later when we did a big remodel. Okay.

And that’s when we met.

Okay. That’s when we met 2010. Okay. All right. Well that was I remember that and I took a tour. I didn’t have a dog at the time, but that was kind of neat. So anyway, tell the people a little bit about who you are and what you do.

So I’m probably your unusual dog person that found her passion as a young girl and was able to follow it all the way through my life and center, my career and my life around dogs.

So I call myself a lifer in the industry, and I can remember being really small and every dog I saw I had to pet and love on. And. It was so special to me. The one that I grew up with is a really adorable golden retriever named Annie. And Annie was my best friend, as I’m sure most people’s dogs are their best friends.

And my parents, I think, always knew I was gonna go into something dog because I was the child that wanted to pet and not babysit, and I never had real children. And when I became an adult, I realized the furry type is what I was best at. But I’m also a blood fainter, so I knew I couldn’t go into veterinary practice.

Yeah, and it’s kind of hard to know in this industry where you can go to do dog if you don’t grow up wanting to be a veterinarian. And a lot of the kids that come and work for us at just dog people think I’m gonna be a vet tech, or I’m gonna go into be a veterinarian. And we’re able to show them, there’s a lot of ways in this industry that you can work with people and their dogs and have a meaningful career.

That’s really rewarding.

Well, that’s exciting. So I think you grew up in Florida.

I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia.

Atlanta. Okay.

Atlanta.

Atlanta, okay.

And so my first job in the pet industry that was professional was back in Atlanta. I ended up going to Appalachian State University, was gonna get a degree in communication in advertising.

I graduated, I’m not gonna age myself, but I graduated in 2001 and my career was obsolete in advertising because social media came out and we didn’t learn that before. Before I graduate and I don’t really understand the internet and I knew that working in an office probably wasn’t my thing. So my parents set up an internship for me with a dog training company in Atlanta.

After I graduated App State, I went and worked for Comprehensive Pet Therapy and Mark Spivak taught me. Everything I know about dog behavior and dog language and doggy communication and how to work with people, and that’s kind of where I launched myself into my professional career was training dogs.

Now, when I was a younger girl, my first job was in a boarding kennel. So I learned at 15 years old how to board dogs and husbandry for dogs and things like that. And in college I had demonstrated pet food and PetSmarts. So from 15 up, everything I dabbled in touched. Dogs in one way, shape, or form. And after working in Atlanta for three years, training dogs, my mother and I decided to open a boarding kennel up here in North Carolina.

So I relocated. And we did a mother daughter kennel, which has now owned by another mo mother daughter group Cindy and Taylor Ellis. So it was really neat when we sold that to them. But, it was incredibly rewarding working with my mom. I have so many fun stories of things that happened with her and I in that job.

’cause dog was new to her. But that’s where everything really started in Johnston County and I owned and operated bone voyage for 12 years. Then sold that and took a year off just to enjoy life and got a little mini taste of retirement.

Right.

And got really,

so you sold Bone Boyage in 2016?

I’m sorry. I sold it in 2015.

In 2015, okay.

2015 and took a year off.

Okay.

And then in 2016 Jason and I opened Just Dog People. And that was born honestly, probably out of a couple different reasons. One, we had multiple shelters. We had five dogs, and I was bathing them on my hands and knees in our bathtub for a year after having a kennel with an elevated tub and able to easily bathe the dogs.

So as a person that worked in the industry, I realized there’s an easier way to do this, that moms and dads. Living as one for one year. That could be easier. So we started researching self, self-serve dog washes. That’s where the self-serve dog wash came for just dog people because it was either convert the garage or we’re building a dog wash because this is for the birds.

I’m not on doing this anymore. And one of our shelties had been having a lot of allergies and health conditions and we had her on a special prescription diet thinking she had food allergies. It turns out she didn’t. She had really poor gut health and an allergy to dust mites.

Which isn’t something food is going to fix. So we ended up healing her through better Nutrition. We built her immune system and we did better Gut health building with her that helped her fight her allergies with the dust mites, and it changed her life so dramatically. That it really inspired us to focus on how can people live better lives with their dogs.

And it’s through nutrition, it’s through training, it’s through education, learning, like what kind of things are out there to help you live a better life with your dog. It’s been out of all the different things like boarding and training and doggy daycare, a self-serve, dog wash, grooming, and running a retail store.

Touching all those spots in the industry. I think product recommendation is probably one of my favorite. Because there’s so many cool things out there that we don’t even know can improve our lives with our dogs.

Well, that’s, that’s interesting. And you’ve got, I mean, the story didn’t start and it started as big as it is now.

So,

or did you end up taking over the space beside you?

We took over the space beside the space beside us to start a training company.

Okay.

Because we were doing dog training classes in just dog people. But over time. We continued to purchase more items and the room got more and more crowded and there was less room to do training classes and we feel that there is a big need for that in this area.

So we, when the eye doctor moved out, we were able to take that suite and that is a 2000 square foot training facility where we do special events. We have a really neat naughtier, nice Santa event where Jason is the Grinch and Santa Claus is one of our favorite clients. And you get to choose if your dog’s going to see the Grinch, ’cause he wasn’t really nice this year or if you would like your dog to see Santa Claus.

So we love that space because it’s honestly a playroom for the five shelties when we’re not teaching classes and having special events and we have cameras that we can actually see them running and playing on the agility equipment. But I think one of the most rewarding things about my life is I get to live my life with my dogs.

And built my life around my dogs. So they go to work every day. They play in a dog broom every day and they can go to the store and steal all the treats that they want. And all the shrinkage comes from our dogs.

The shrinkage.

That’s what I tell the accountant. Tell Yeah.

You tell the accountant that the things that don’t add up,

that blame it on the shelties,

Right. The shelties. It wasn’t the shoplifters. That’s right. It was the shelties eating the treats.

That’s right.

Oh my goodness. That’s hilarious. So let’s talk about some of the things. So, so this store, I mean, literally has everything that your dog could ever want. It has dog food, it has dog treats, it has dog toys, it has a dog wash.

It has nail clippings for dogs. Get your dogs. I mean, like, I mean, just everything. Yeah. I mean, and so when you started, were you gonna provide all those services or did you just keep adding services as you saw a need?

We continued to add when we first started Just Dog People, it was the dog wash and we actually did full scale grooming.

One thing that we decided after a couple years of doing that is we didn’t wanna continue to do full scale grooming with haircuts. There is a way for us to change that program into just bathing. Grooming is very subjective as a doodle owner, I’m sure you know this, right? We talked about the apocalypse of doodles that are coming and oodles of doodles in the world.

But we like to do bathing because it’s something that we specialize in and it’s something that we train our staff to do. They are tipped and commissioned on bass that they do. So it’s a way that they can learn to earn more in their paycheck through hard work and acquiring new skills and kind of almost controlling, you know, their salary and what they can make based on the opportunities that they take advantage of.

One service that we added that I think has been extremely beneficial is we created a harness section, and it’s a harness fitting section. Because if you think about it, all owners can pretty much fit a collar. It’s one buckle. One adjustment. You’ve got it snug. It’s good. Harnesses can go from one adjustment to seven Adjustments.

I’ve seen them come on upside down inside, out around the wrong part of the dog. And harnesses are really functional. You have to fit the right shape dog in the right shape harness for the right owner for what function that they need. And that’s something that’s hard to discern on your own, especially if you’re not thoroughly versed in harnesses.

So we created a really neat section where we custom measure each dog’s girth. We show the owners all the options and harnesses and try to find what function and what activities are gonna be using this for. And then it’s kind of like an old school shoe store. You get to try different things on. They get to test them out around the store.

They can pick from a myriad of colors and it, we can settle their needs better by being hands-on with that service than if they were just walking in trying to buy a harness. And it end up being ill-fitting which can lead to losing a dog. So it’s a big safety thing to make sure that all of your equipment fits appropriately

Well, that’s true.

And you can go there and you could either your staff will wash the dog or you can wash your own dog.

That’s right.

Right.

And it’s full service and self service.

Do I need a reservation? Because, I mean, I’ve been there and there’s been like 10 dogs waiting to get a bath. Or is it just first come, first serve? I mean,

That’s a good question. It’s first come, first serve. We are technologically advanced. We have a restaurant paging system where as people come in and request different services, if we tend to have any kind of lines or any kind of weights, everybody’s in line and has a paging system where they can shop with their buzzer.

They can go outside with their dog, they can sit and wait in their car. Typically, we have longer lines just on the weekends and around holidays. We can tell a holiday’s coming and grandma’s coming based on how many nail trims we’re doing. ’cause everybody gets a nail trim for grandma and grandpa comb, which we understand.

That is probably our most highly needed service in this area. We joke sometimes and say there’s a bat signal that went out in the sky and every dog in Johnston County is coming to get nails cut today.

Oh, that’s funny.

But we do cut nails. We do grind nails. Our self-serve dog wash is first come first serve as well.

They are put in an order and given pagers if for any reason we do have any lines, and we’re very customer focused. We like to make sure everybody understands how our dog wash works. There’s several fun packages they can pick from. My favorite package is a new bath that we started offering, and it’s called the seasonal dog.

What’s great about this one is the shampoo changes based on the season. So right now it’s the Coconutty Buddy package and it’s a coconut papaya shampoo conditioner. One that comes with a hula girl bandana and a tropical cookie that’s out of our gourmet case. So I think that one’s fun because you get to dress the dog up when it’s done and you get a cookie for their troubles.

You should always bribe your dog after you do something terrible. Like give them a bath. A lot of the people when they come in with their dogs, it’s funny, you can tell dogs who come often get drug to the dog wash, they’re not exactly happy to be going over there. Right? And then we have some customers whose dogs are so excited to get in there.

They’ll literally leap. Make it into the tub themselves without even having to be put in by their owner. But our stations are neat. They’re all elevated. They all have ramps for access for the dogs, tethers to keep the dogs in the tub safely. Every tub comes with a little caddy that has a couple towels use of a blow dryer, your shampoo, products, brushes, ear cleaner, cotton ball and perfume.

That’s in all of our packages, and we clean our tubs ourself, which we think is extremely important. And I think that actually comes back from kennel base. For me, everything should be disinfected in between all dogs and some dog washes. It’s more of a clean as you go. Clean yourself. Situation. But for us, because we don’t want any cross-contamination of any types of diseases or parasites, we clean everything and make sure that it’s in tip top shape for the next dog.

Well, that’s cool.

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So what are some interesting things you’ve seen in dog washes?

Are you ready for this? I,

I’m ready. I, I’ve I, can’t even imagine what you’re about to say.

All right. I’m gonna tell you my favorite one first.

Okay.

First rule of thumb. Clothing is not optional in the dog wash. I would just like everybody to know that.

Okay. And aprons when tied around your back, don’t hide your backside. So we did have a customer at one point bathe in a thong in the dog wash with her apron tied on. That was the most shocking. Another time we had a mother that decided the dog and the child should get bathed at the same time.

So we had a naked child and a dog in the tub both getting washed in dog shampoo. That was a shocker. And most recently I met a really interesting couple that brought in an animal. In a dog kennel and we have cameras so we can see everything going on. And I thought, well that’s interesting.

That must be a really small dog or a cat going into the dog wash, which is unusual.

It’s typically bigger dogs. ’cause a lot of people with small dogs bathe ’em in the sink. So I walked out to see it’s a possum. Oh my goodness. So there is a possum in the dog wash getting a bath, and it was a domesticated possum. Oh my goodness. It was a nice, so that was a shocker. And maybe my last story is one of my favorite patrons that comes to the dog wash.

He comes with his two dog brothers. He’s a full-size potbelly pig in his name is Bacon. Oh goodness. And bacon gets. In the tub, just like his brothers and gets his bath.

So you have a pig wash as well as a dog wash? Pig wash. A possum wash, right?

Oh man, that’s awesome.

And we’ve been asked about other animals and we do not do fancy birds.

We have been asked to do chicken before and that’s a hard no.

Oh my goodness.

I can’t imagine what the dogs would think of that.

Oh my goodness. Well, let’s talk about the last few minutes we’ve got here. What are some of the common mistakes pet owners make that you’ve been in the dog business a long time, you wish they would not make, like, just sort of educate the public, like common mistakes you see?

You got it. I would like to maybe touch on a few different subjects. I think One common mistake that people make in boarding is they don’t expose their dog to those conditions before they leave to go out of town. So one thing I would recommend is before anybody went and boarded their dog at any of the facilities, is take a tour and then set up a day of daycare where your dog can almost do a preview.

They can see the facility, meet the people, start to acclimate to a new environment and desensitize to something that might be stressful. So I think that’s really important if you’re getting ready to board your dog or you have an upcoming trip. I used to always recommend that when I was running Bone Voyage.

As far as Just Dog People, I think one thing that people don’t think about a lot is leash management in a public place, you never know if the dogs around you have been exposed to environments like that before. What their history is, how comfortable they are with being petted on top of the head or approached by strangers.

Flexi leads are probably something when you’re out and about in public, just shouldn’t be used, in my opinion. You have a lot less control over a dog, 20 feet away from you than one that’s right next to you and you’re your dog’s advocate. It’s your job to keep them safe and watch for possible things that are unsafe for them.

So I think leash management went out and about, is something that I wish people were just more aware of. Nutrition is a big one. As far as nutrition, I think more research is needed to be done by the owners. Don’t just take what your breeder or your rescue or even your veterinarian just tells you you should do.

Again, you’re your dog’s advocate. There’s a lot of great information out there, and nutrition has come a long way. Fresh, in my opinion, is one of the best ways to go. Even if you feed a kibble diet, add something fresh, because diversity is key. The more diversity, the more healthy your gut is, the healthier your gut is, the more well you are.

It’s just like people. Right. So if we’re eating well, we should want our dogs to eat well too, because there’s only one thing I would ever change about dogs. They just don’t live long enough. But we know longevity is directly connected to nutrition.

Well, that’s same thing with the humans too. That’s right.

Rights. I mean, they’re animals just like we are. Right. So anyway. Well, the last question we ask everybody well first thing is how, where is Just Dog People located? How can they get in touch with y’all?

Okay, great question. Just Dog People is located at 40, 42. If everybody knows where the crazy new roundabout is at 40 and 42 we’re right over there behind Food Lion.

There was recently a laundry matt opened across the street from us and we’re really hoping if anybody interested in opening a car wash is watching this podcast, because we would love to do wash your dog, clean your clothes, and have your car washed at the same time, right up here at 42.

So if anybody wants new business idea, there you go.

Right. Well, of course now it’s not 42 anymore. It’s. 36 Veterans Parkway.

Oh my gosh. That Parkway,

they changed the name. I know they changed the name. They just changed the name. So it’s Veterans Parkway slash 36, but it’s always gonna be 40, 42. To me, I’ve been here 25 years.

You’ve been here 21 years where it’s always gonna be 40 42. And we had the owner of Salon 42 on this podcast a couple weeks ago. Go back and listen to her podcast. She did a great job. And she’s not changing the name. It’s gonna still be Salon 42 right next to Clubhouse and Farm Bureau Insurance also behind the food line.

So anyway. Well, well that’s great. And you have a website.

We do. It’s, we’re actually currently rebuilding our website and we’re really excited about that. And it’s JustDogPeople.com. Our website’s gonna have a lot more interaction than our previous one and links for people to, who are interested in maybe working for us to check out and links for different services and products that we offer in the area.

Do you sell products on the website?

We don’t because again, being a customer service focused company, we wanna actually make relationships with people. We’re not online shoppers. I know that’s very easy for people to do and why wouldn’t you? And I do it myself. But when it comes to your dog and when it comes to your family member, we would like to have more of a personal connection to make sure we’re recommending exactly what you and your pet may need.

Alright. And what are the hours?

So Monday through Saturday, we’re open 10 to 7, and Sunday’s 12 to 6.

Alright. Seven days a week.

Seven days a week.

Which is good. Which is great. We go, gotta go visit. Gotta always go there. And then the last question we ask everybody on this podcast, what do you love most about Johnston County?

The community. What I love the most about Johnston County are the people. And I think being here as long as I have, it’s been a lot of these families I’ve been able to grow with. Through generations of dogs, and that’s really special to me. So people who come to Johnston County, they don’t seem to leave. I had a lady who was pregnant with a dog in a group class that I had at Bone Voyage and I taught a group class in 2020 over here at Just dog People to the child who was in her belly at Bone Voyage with his dog.

So I think relationships, that’s my favorite thing. Having people stay around and being able to grow with them and their family and their children, and all the generations of their dog. It’s just extremely rewarding.

Well, and and I agree with you, and almost everybody says it’s the people. The people of Johnston County truly are the best.

So anyway, so if you have a dog and you have any questions about your dog, or you need dog food or place to give your dog a bath, go buy Just Dog People. I absolutely love that place. I go there, they get more of my money than I can even imagine because my daughter goes in there with Iron Doodle and she just buys stuff and I don’t even know why she’s buying it, but she says we need it and I just buy it.

So I’m just one of those dads. So anyway, we’d like to to like to thank Katie from Just Dog People being our guest. As we mentioned earlier, please like, follow, subscribe to this podcast wherever you’re seeing it, so that you’ll be aware of future episodes of the Best Johns County podcast. Leave us a five star review down below.

Will help us with our visibility moving forward. Until next time, I’m your host, Jonathan Breeden.

That’s the end of today’s episode of Best of Johnston County, a show brought to you by the trusted team at Breeden Law Office. We thank you for joining us today and we look forward to sharing more interesting facets of this community next week. Every story, every viewpoint adds another thread to the rich tapestry of Johnston County.

If the legal aspects highlighted raised some questions, help is just around the corner at www. breedenfirm. com.