The Person Behind The Barn
A lifelong animal lover, horse girl at heart, and your guide to doing animal care the right way.
MY STORY
I've Been an Animal Person My Whole Life
I grew up around dogs and cats since the day I was born but it really all started when I was about nine years old — the moment I got on that cute little pony named Charlie, something clicked. I spent a lot of my childhood in the saddle, competed at some local hunter shows and learned what it meant to truly care for an animal that depended on me completely.
Then life happened. I traded the barn for other chapters, discovered a whole new world of animal care through dog agility, and fell completely in love with the sport alongside my childhood dog Jake. And then Marley came into my life when I was 21 — my heart dog, my constant companion, and the one who truly shaped the way I think about the human-animal bond.
At 24 I turned that passion into a business. For eight years I ran a dog walking operation that grew entirely by reputation — at my busiest I was managing packs of up to eight dogs at a time, building trust with families who handed me the keys to their homes and the care of their most loved companions. That chapter taught me more about animal behavior, client relationships, and what genuine professional care looks like than anything else ever could.
Eventually I found my way back to my roots — back to my hometown, back to open land, and back to a much wider world of animal care. Working with farm animals brought a whole new dimension to what I thought I already knew, and somewhere in the middle of all of it something became very clear to me: there are a lot of animals out there and not nearly enough people who know how to care for them well.
The industry is growing fast. People are bringing animals into their lives in bigger numbers than ever before — dogs, horses, farm animals — and the gap between enthusiasm and knowledge is real. I started Barn and Beyond because I believe every animal deserves someone who knows what they're doing, and the best way I can make that happen isn't to do it all myself — it's to share everything I know so more people can show up for their animals the right way.
Almost fifteen years after my last ride I also found my way back to horses. Today I share my life with my husband and our animals, Marley and Sunny, and those two remind me every single day why this work matters.
THE BARN FAMILY
The Animals Who Share My Life
Marley
My 13 year old Australian Shepherd. My heart dog. The one who changed everything. Marley came into my life when I was 21 and showed me what it really means to be an animal's person.
Sunny
My 9 year old thoroughbred mare and the reason I found my way back to horses. She's taught me more about patience and partnership than anything else in my life.
THE MISSION
Why I Built This
Barn and Beyond exists because the animal care industry is growing faster than the knowledge base supporting it. More people are bringing dogs, horses and farm animals into their lives than ever before — and too many of them are left figuring it out alone, overwhelmed by conflicting advice or let down by people who weren't as qualified as they claimed to be.
I spent over a decade in the trenches — walking dogs professionally, caring for farm animals, getting back in the saddle after fifteen years away — and what I kept seeing was the same gap over and over again. A shortage of honest, practical, high quality guidance from people with real experience.
There are more animals out there than I could ever personally care for. So instead of trying, I'm doing something bigger — building a place where dog owners, horse people, and anyone who takes animal care seriously can find the knowledge they need to do right by the animals in their lives.
Because every animal deserves someone who truly knows what they're doing. And that person could be you.