About this episode

Ryan Cartlidge and Jason Light discuss building sustainable and resilient careers in animal training.

In this perspective-shifting conversation, Ryan Cartlidge is joined by Jason Light — director at PACT Dogs Limited in the UK, sustainability consultant through Green Robin Consulting, and a chartered environmentalist with over 20 years of senior leadership experience, including serving as Head of Sustainability for an NHS Foundation Trust. Bringing a rare strategic lens to the animal training profession, Jason challenges us to think about "sustainability" as something far bigger than environmental impact alone — and instead, as the foundation for building ethical, resilient, welfare-first careers that actually last. Together, Ryan and Jason explore what it means to create truly sustainable dog training businesses and professional communities, including financial resilience, mental wellbeing, and long-term professional longevity. Jason shares how his work through PACT (the Professional Association of Canine Trainers) and the Animal Behaviour and Training Council (ABTC) is helping raise professional standards in the UK through assessed membership, structured training pathways, and clear role-based benchmarks — while still encouraging collaboration over competition across the wider…

People in this episode

Host: Ryan Cartlidge

Guest: Jason Light

Topics covered

• sustainability in animal training
• values-driven business design
• professional longevity
• mental wellbeing
• community support
• burnout and compassion fatigue

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: PACT Dogs Limited, Green Robin Consulting, NHS Foundation Trust, Professional Association of Canine Trainers, Animal Behaviour and Training Council

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