Home>Community Category>My Story: Tyson DeFrance’s Incredible Journey into the Pet IndustryTyson DeFrance is the warehouse manager for Boss Dog Brand, the California-based pet brand that creates a wide assortment of dog and cat products with probiotics and other beneficial ingredients, including frozen yogurt for pets and raw goat milk.
Pet Age recently spoke with DeFrance to learn more about how he joined the Oregon National Guard and worked in a variety of jobs before finding a home in the pet care community.
What was a memorable experience for you as a member of the National Guard?
That would be one of the last raids in Baghdad on my first deployment. It was 2004, and my first year-long deployment was coming to an end. We [Oregon National Guard] were attached to a Marine unit south of Baghdad in an area called Mahmudiyah. This is where we spent the last 45 days, living in and around buildings that had collapsed from the initial invasion. We were setting ourselves up to conduct a large-scale raid on the local village as they were suspected to be stockpiling a cache of weapons. In preparation for this raid, one night while conducting patrols in black out – meaning we were driving with no white lights, only infrared lights with night vision goggles. We stopped along a road, and we discreetly let two sniper teams out at opposite ends of this village. These snipers sat, crawled and observed the activity within the village for what I recall being four days leading up to the actual raid. The morning of the raid, we all grouped up around 0300 and set the stage. We had units set up around the village, and the objective was to rush the village moments before sunrise. When given the green light to go, the adrenaline kicked in. I recall driving to my assigned area and, just before bringing my Humvee to a stop, I threw the e-brake on and jumped out while we were still rolling. I was set to clear three buildings with one other man while we left the gunner in the Humvee to provide cover. While we were clearing our three buildings, the other buildings in the village were being simultaneously cleared. At this point, I was experiencing a full-on out-of-body experience. I could see myself moving from what felt like a camera above and behind me just like you would see in a video game. We ended up recovering tons of ammunition. We successfully detonated the arms cache, and it left a massive crater in the ground.
How would you describe being a go-go dancer in 2010 in Portland, Oregon?
After leaving the military service, while living in Portland, Oregon, I was still chasing adventure and adrenaline. I found myself looking for employment outside the typical 9 to 5. There was no way I was ready for a “regular” job. I was still young and in “party mode.” I had friends, both men and women, who were making decent money and having fun by go-go dancing. I did this for a little less than a year, as the money was lucrative, but I lost interest. It’s ha
Gio. Gen 9th, 2025
