FBI Agent & Studly Client Reveals…

“How Dog Ownership Has Helped Me With My Undercover Job!”

When I was thinking about getting out of Corporate America, I was lucky to have friends I could talk with. Two of these friends, Peter and Nina, provided a listening board and great feedback. I really appreciate both of them for this. Plus, they live super interesting lives. Peter flies helicopters and Nina goes undercover.

Enjoy this interview and please let me know what you think of it.

Me: Tell me a little about yourself.

Nina: My name is Nina Epton and I live in Oceanside, CA with my husband, Peter and my stepdog, Duncan (Peter got Duncan while in a previous relationship, but I love him like he’s my own). I was born in Hawaii, graduated from UC Davis and had the opportunity to live in the SF Bay Area, Okinawa, Japan, and Montgomery, Alabama before moving to Oceanside. I enjoy hiking, biking, swimming, rock climbing, yoga and lazy Sundays, reading the paper in the sun.

Me: How did you decide to apply to the FBI?

Nina: I was never one of those kids who always knew what they wanted to do when they grew up. In fact, for a long time I didn’t think I had what it takes to work for the FBI. But as I gained more life experience and discipline with regards to physical fitness, I explored a career in the Bureau a little more closely. I like that they investigate a whole range of criminal activity and that there are so many different career path opportunities. You can work in forensics, violent crimes, counterintelligence, financial crimes, cyber crime…the list is endless. As an Agent, you apply analytical as well as people skills to your job and every day is so different and challenging. And ultimately, I wanted to work for the FBI because I want to catch “the bad guys.”

Me: Tell me about your internship.

Nina: I had the opportunity to intern at FBI Headquarters over the summer. It was an amazing experience! I worked in their Criminal Division and met employees from a variety of different units. I had the chance to check out the Academy as well as several field offices and really get a good understanding of what the organization does and what it demands from its employees.

Me: Any secret investigations you can talk about?

Nina: Due to the sensitive nature of investigations, I can neither confirm nor deny any knowledge of top secret operations.

Me: Have you always been a dog lover/owner?

Nina: When I was little, our family had a little Terrier, Chibi. Oy. He was little, but he was mean and he particularly didn’t like small children. However that didn’t dissuade me from being a big fan of dogs. Being an owner is a lot of work–you have to find someone to take care of the pooch when you go on vacation, make sure you take it to the vet regularly (oof! vet bills ), provide it with structure and discipline, make sure it gets enough food, water, exercise and belly scratches–but I absolutely love it. I couldn’t imagine not having Duncan around, even though he tracks dirt into the house every opportunity he gets.

Me: They say dog ownership adds 7 years to life. Has Duncan had this effect on

you?

Nina: Duncan is awesome. I could write a very long list of all of his great qualities, but if I had to boil it down to one thing, Duncan is a great companion. Having a frustrating day? He’ll go for a run with me, play fetch, lounge around on the couch, or just leave me alone with my thoughts, all with equal amounts of enthusiasm. He’s great on road trips and a good buddy for the beach. He gets me out and talking with the neighbors. He seems so joyful that it makes it so much easier to forget any of the bad things I saw or experienced during the day.

Me: Anything else you’d like to add?

Nina: Duncan loves Wes, Gen, and Elliot at the Studly Pooch. I appreciate how caring they are and that they put up with all of my Duncan stories. I had been to several different groomers and was never fully satisfied with the work they did–they gave Duncan the wrong haircut and he seemed so miserable and reluctant to “go in back” with them. I have only had positive experiences at the Studly Pooch and love all the little extras like the photos, newsletters, and dog-ownership tips.

END

Thanks for reading and send your comments to: wes@thestudlypooch.com.

If you have any pet related person you’d like me to interview, please let me know.