The ResqRanch | Application Preview
The ResqRanch is seeking government grants to fund the construction of a large barn that will include an indoor arena, educational facilities, and a satellite veterinary clinic. Their ambitious goals include hiring a full-time fundraising coordinator, generating $250,000 annually from sales and donations within two years, and assisting 1,125 people this year through educational programs focused on positive reinforcement (R+) animal training.
The business aims to publish educational materials, such as a book and a series of webinars, while also launching a unique training program that simultaneously involves dogs and horses. They plan to distribute various branded merchandise, conduct a range of community bonding events, and establish classes catering to different audiences.
Dr. Jena Questen, the founder, has a personal and professional background in veterinary medicine and animal training. Her past struggles have motivated her to create a supportive community that utilizes the human-animal bond as a tool for healing and education, especially through positive reinforcement methods.
While they face notable competitors in the horse training industry, The ResqRanch sets itself apart by being the only organization focused on positive reinforcement approaches. With the funding, they aim to enhance their services and ultimately grow into a million-dollar non-profit within three years.
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General Information
Business Registration Number: 814237762
Location: CONIFER, CO, United States
Length of Operation: 1-5
Number of Employees: 1-10 Employees
Annual Gross Income: Less than $100k
Annual Gross Expense: Less than $100k
Open to Loans: YES
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Funding Usage
Our primary goal is to secure the funding to build a large barn, with an indoor arena, an education center, a satellite veterinary clinic, and to achieve our goals: Hire a full time fundraising coordinator to develop events and solicit donors. Within 24 months achieve $250,000 in net sales and donations per year. Work towards a goal of achieving $17,500/month through donations and paid educational events. Within 3 years, through all business ventures, maintain a million dollar a year non-profit. Have a goal to help 1,125 people this year. Helping people gain a better understanding of positive reinforcement animal training (R+), how it impacts the human animal bond, and how they can use their new found knowledge to help rescue/rehome/rehab more animals. This knowledge in turn improves their own mental and physical health. Have a 20% increase in that number year over year. Publish the book, webinar and lecture series “The Horse Training Masterclass, Train Any Animal, to do Anything, even to Love You!” Launch a Canine and Equine training class/camp, as in, a unique program that includes BOTH dogs and horses in the training sessions, a first in the animal training industry. Sell 20,000 digital copies (in webinar or book form) of Dr.Q’s How to Train Any Horse, to do Anything, by Anyone. Develop further on-line programs.
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Business Plan
Achieve Goals and grow through: Start each week by assessing current business financial status, planning and implementing internet presence for the week, and planning the schedule based on the financial picture (weekly meetings with Fundraising Coordinator) Meet Bi-Weekly to assess current financial status, planning and implementing internet presence for the week, content, and planning the schedule based on the financial picture (bi-weekly meetings with Event Coordinator). Give each client, volunteer, class participant more value for their money or time offer (more personal time, etc.) (offer phone consults, training follow ups with phone consult, personalized YouTube training videos) Make at least one cold call each day to build relationships, expand reach, and find contributors. Remain flexible and innovative. For each client interaction create at least 1 additional follow-up ( by hand if necessary until we can justify the expense of software), leave each person with a handout/brochure/rec. plan, etc. to help them in their journey. Create and distribute multiple flyers/handouts. Each with a specific focus point, we have something for everyone. From master classes to kids summer camps). Increase email list and YouTube subscribers Hire an excellent part time employee for 6-10 hours per week,, when $11,000/mo average income over three months hire an employee for 20 hours per week, when $13,000/month income, hire a full time employee Daily utilization of social media: promote websites through ad words, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, blogs, write articles, upload YouTube videos, utilize QR codes, etc. -One YouTube video per day (at least a short)/ Expanded product line and services: develops other programs, in person events, online classes, etc. Inventory and sale of merchandise including: branded clickers coffee mugs notebooks sweatshirts (hoodies) and more products in development including a treat bag, a branded training pointer, and our own line of human and equine apparel and equipment. Variety of classes and programs (family outings, domestic violence survivor's support groups, training bicyclists to be safe around horses, teaching dogs to be safe around horses, etc.). Canine and Equine training events, as in, training both species how to behave around each other for safety. Community bonding events including full moon drum circles, beginner dance classes with horses, beginner music jams with horses, and beginner foreign language groups with horses, to name a few. Join EGALA or similar professional organization and begin to work with licensed therapists to offer horse therapy/bonding experiences. Host community bonding events for women, families and children. Attend events, have a booth and be a speaker at events such as Horse Expo, Evergreen Rodeo Parade, Evergreen Christmas Walk, Halloween horse costume event, Conifer Christmas Parade, and the Denver Easter Parade. Pursue paid lecturing, writing, public speaking on horse behavior, health, and positive reinforcement training. Examples of potential locations include Bel-rea, PIMA, CCD, AVMA, CVMA, Stock Show, Horse Expo, and Colorado State University. Offer in person clinics (haul your horse in) for training sessions. Much more able to affectively offer this with the addition of a large barn with stalls. Offer premium horse board and train packages where the animals are trained daily using only positive reinforcement methods, and their caregivers are given assignments and weekly required coaching sessions. It would only take approximately three of these high end clients to pay for the entire new barn addition to the property. Offer large animal veterinary services on a basis consistent with the hiring of adequate personnel. There is a serious shortage of veterinary personnel in the US today, and no other veterinary hospital provides care for large animals for a 30 mile radius. Evergreen Colorado is an excellent location for such a facility with easy access on and off the major interstate I-70, including the ability to have signage right on the interstate since a third of the property backs up to the highway. Jena Questen, from a poor family and with no help, graduated as a veterinarian in 2001. In 2005 she became a certified veterinary acupuncturist, and started her own housecall practice. In 2006 she married and had 2 children. A costly divorce shortly thereafter left her and the children homeless for the next 7 years. During these years she heavily studied business and furthered her own education in fish medicine, quickly becoming a world wide authority and speaker, and in 2020 was elected president of the World Aquatic Veterinary Medical Association. In 2016 she worked at Aspen Park Vet Hospital, and realized the current owner, in practice for over 50 years and needing to retire, did not have an exit plan. She agreed to purchase in 2017 primarily to preserve his legacy and save the jobs of the staff so the business did not close its doors. Through the help of the SBA Emerging Leaders program she completed in 2021, and the SBA Disaster Assistance loan which kept payroll covered during the pandemic, she has steadily grown the business year by year with relatively the same amount of staff from $650,000/year in sales to over 1 million in 2021. The ResqRanch is the personal vision and legacy of Dr. Questen. In addition to the previous achievements, she is also a certified Professional Animal Trainer and has additional training and expertise in animal behavior and training. Through her own personal journey, she deeply appreciates how sometimes when life is at its darkest times, animals can really help with a person’s mental health and ability to cope. She has a passion for sharing her knowledge and life journey with others, to help empower them to have hope, learn the best way to achieve a magical bond with animals, and to improve their emotional and physical health. She accomplishes this through the well documented science of positive reinforcement (or R+) animal behavior and training, the scientifically proven fastest, easiest, and most effective way to train animals. And more importantly, is the key to the human animal bond which is really the key, because sometimes rescuing animals, rescues us.
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Self Identified Competition
Our top competitors in the horse training world are Pat Parelli, Clinton Anderson, and John Lyons. All of them are well known and quite successful. However none of them teach positive reinforcement training, which is accepted world wide as the evidence based standard for professional animal training. What makes us different is easy, we are the only positive reinforcement centered animal sanctuary, horse training and education center. We follow the accepted principles of professional animal training embraced throughout accredited animal parks, zoos, veterinary behaviorists, and marine mammal parks around the world.
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