Today we’d like to introduce you to Ingrid Johnson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Ingrid. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
As a lifelong animal advocate, I had always dreamed of a career helping animals, but initially took a different path and went to art school. I did well in school but felt unfulfilled. I rescued a cat, Zinnia and took her to my feline exclusive veterinarian at the time and was offered a job. The timing coincided with my college graduation so you can imagine my parents’ delight! The rest is history, I never looked back. Zinnia became our fifth cat at the time (and we had one dog then too), as you might have guessed the family also grew with this career change.
While I loved veterinary medicine, I always had more of an interest in why cats do the things they do versus why does that organ system function this way, so I focused on behavior. In addition to being a veterinary technician, feline groomer and office manager, I managed our clinic cats that were up for adoption (there were about 45-60 at all times). Client education became my primary focus to help ensure these cats were properly cared for once they were adopted.
I gradually became more and more involved in cat behavior. I attended many veterinary continuing education conferences to further my knowledge, but being saturated in cats all day (and dogs – I am not a speciesist!) you learn a thing or two from observation and of course out of sheer necessity! My passion for feline behavior grew as did my realization that there were very few qualified professionals out there helping cats. I obtained my certification from the IAABC (the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants) and I started Fundamentally Feline, my own cat behavior consulting business and in no time at all, I was beyond booked with clients. Fundamentally Feline (FF) morphed into much more than just behavior consulting. Before we knew it, my husband, Jake and I were making our own line of products to fill a gap in the market where cat’s needs were just not being met. We make 100% sisal scratching products including scratching posts, pads, ramps and even a balance beam for agility training! Yes, cats are quite trainable, we even have a few who ride a skateboard! Jake also designs and installs hand-made, custom built vertical space which is especially helpful for urban living and small spaces. You can check out his handiwork at the Java Cats cat cafe, Furkids and of course view all of the private home installations on our website. I also make my own line of feline foraging toys (a.k.a. food puzzles) and offer a litter box cutting service to help people have the best and biggest litter boxes for their cats.
For the last few years, I have been lecturing at veterinary conferences on a variety of topics including environmental enrichment, litter box maximization, medicating tips and techniques and feline foraging toys, etc. In fact, I was fortunate enough to participate in a paper that was published in the Fall of 2016 in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery (JFMS) entitled, “Food puzzles for cats: feeding for physical and emotional wellbeing”. So far, it is the most widely cited and downloaded article in the history of the journal! Allowing cats the enrichment of working for their food is likely my most passionate topic within the realm of feline behavior. To complement this paper a colleague and I created a website called foodpuzzlesforcats.com. Additionally, our home has been featured on TV (Animal Planet’s Cats 101 show), online and in magazines for the feline-friendly accommodations we have created.
I am also a co-director of Paw Project-Georgia, The Paw Project is an organization working towards ending the cruel practice of declawing cats. Declawing is amputation. It is arguably the most painful procedure in veterinary medicine, illegal in 32 other countries, even punishable by loss of veterinary license in some, yet we Americans, find more value in our area rugs that we do in preserving the integrity and majestic beauty of the cat’s physical and emotional well-being. I proudly work for Paws Whiskers and Claws, the Feline Hospital, one of the VERY FEW practices in this state that refuses to perform this barbaric procedure. This is also one of the reasons we make scratching posts, the commercial market is saturated with terrible scratching products that do not meet a cat’s needs, which results in cats getting declawed because their owners think they have no alternative. I am here to tell you I have not one piece of scratched up furniture even with double digits of cats!
I currently share my home with my husband Jake, a rescued Great Pyrenees Dog, Sebastian and six amazing cats. Thus far, we have welcomed 26 cats and five dogs to cross our threshold into their forever home and haven’t bought a single one of them. Please don’t shop, ADOPT until there are none being killed in shelters!
Has it been a smooth road?
Oh, of course, there have been struggles. One of the first being managing double digits of sick old senior pets and working at the vet practice while growing my own business! But I think one of the biggest challenges is simply awareness and education. The myth that cats are sneaky, spiteful and do things intentionally to tick off their humans is a huge hurdle to overcome. I am striving to help humans better understand their cats and help them more effectively meet their overall environmental needs. Successfully doing this will result in fewer behavior problems and fewer cats being surrendered to shelters.
It is unrealistic to take the cat, one of the very best predators on this planet, virtually unchanged since the beginning of time (because cats came perfectly) and think we can lock them in our homes and think that staring out the window for 20 years is somehow engaging and stimulating enough. It’s NOT!
Boredom, frustration and environmental stress are the biggest reasons cats have behavior problems. Educating pet parents to see their home through their cat’s eyes, encouraging them to be open to change and implementing that change is still a daily struggle in my profession.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Fundamentally Feline – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I offer both in-home (local to Atlanta) and phone consultations (nationwide) for clients that are experiencing behavior challenges with their cats. Environmental modification and enrichment is my specialty within the realm of cat behavior. I utilize my creativity and design background to aesthetically meet the cat’s needs in a home the humans can still be proud of! There is no reason for one’s home to look crazy. At the same time having the cat’s litter box, food and water in the basement next to the furnace are not acceptable either.
I think my name is starting to become synonymous with foraging toys or food puzzles and that is just fantastic! I have been preaching about feeding this way for over a decade and it is finally starting to take off!! I think my clients would say that I am most known for my no-nonsense approach. I am here to be an advocate for your cat, not “yes” the human to death. As the old saying goes, if nothing changes, nothing is going to change. I would not recommend hiring me if you are not willing to truly strive to make your life better for your cat!
I think I am most proud of how far our company has come. We never thought we would be as busy as we are and it is absolutely heartwarming to see the positive changes we make in cat’s lives with ALL of the services we offer. They are all important and each aspect addresses a different need. It is great to see we are making a difference!
I think the niche that sets me apart from other consultants is all of the years I have also worked in veterinary medicine. While I am not a vet, I have a vast knowledge of how medical and behavioral problems go hand in hand. Cats are the “masters of disguise” and often do not make it obvious to their human caregivers that there is a medical problem. With cats, any change in routine or behavior is often a sign of a medical issue. My medical background allows me to be a better detective and enables me to address the cat’s needs from both a medical and behavioral standpoint simultaneously. I am able to educate, get the client’s veterinarian involved if needed and can then move forward with an effective behavior modification plan.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love the diversity and growth that Atlanta has to offer. I think I am very fortunate to have started such a business in this thriving metropolitan area.
TRAFFIC! I have been commuting over 25 miles each way to my veterinary job since 1999. To add insult to injury, I have a house call business. What was I thinking? I schedule times as “ish” because I really never know if I can make it there on time and I just tell clients to bear with me I’ll do my best! I’d like a helicopter.
Pricing:
- In-home behavior consultations are $250
- Phone consultations (reserved for long distance clients only as house calls are ideal) $160
- 100% sisal scratching posts $75, Scooped scratching posts $135
- Custom built vertical space estimates are $75 and then the cost of the install is dependent on the number of pieces chosen in the custom design.
Contact Info:
- Website: FundamentallyFeline.com
- Email: Ingrid@FundamentallyFeline.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundamentallyfeline/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FundamentallyFeline/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/FundmntlyFeline
- Other: http://foodpuzzlesforcats.com/
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
