K-9 KUTZ WITH JESSIE

When I was asked as a child, "what do you want to be when you grow up?" I often responded with "a dog."  Thats correct.....a dog. I spent many days crawling around the house in silence, scratching my head with my foot, even licking water out of a bowl on the floor. I spent a lot of time with my best friend, his name was Odie. Odie was the BEST kind of friend, he followed me everywhere, he didnt argue or yell, he was a fantastic listener, he was great at finding me when i'd hide on him, he was the best at cuddling with me, he would even turn his body into my pillow!  Odie was our family dog, he was a lab/collie X, whom i just couldnt wait to go home to anytime i was away from him. Haveing spent countless amount of time with him taught me a lot about dog behaviour. Although Odie was a very well behaved dog, I was able to pick up on his body language if he wasn't feeling well, if he was anxious, if he was playful, if he was scared. I truley believe Odie was in my life at that point in time to teach me the things I know about dogs today!

  Obviously becoming "a dog" when I grew up was not realistic, I had decided when I was older that becoming a veterinarian would be ideal! Unfortuatley the more I looked into it the more I realized that I simply could not afford the years of schooling that veterinary medicine would take. Not only that but i really only wanted to work with dogs!  It was at the end of highschool when my neighbor had come over for a visit and told me she signed up for "Grooming school", here in the city. Why had I not thought of that?? Actually I never even realized grooming existed at that time. I decided I wanted to take that coarse with her! So here i was, just finished highschool, working a full-time job, and going to grooming school!  I LOVED IT!

   Fortunately for me, grooming came so naturally. My connection with dogs was so easy, so effortless, so natural. When I had completed the course I knew this was going to be a career for me.

   I was hired on as a groomer at a pet store that I had previously worked at before. I worked alongside another groomer who had been grooming for years, and I was lucky to have learned so much from her! She really taught me so much and helped me with everything. That store was bought out by a "big name" pet store and the grooming salon went through many changes. Changes that I nor my clients weren't very fond of.

   The grooming salon quickly became very chaotic,  very loud. There were more groomers and each groomer was to take in multiple dogs at a time. There were dogs sitting in cages barking frantically, there were blowdryers going all day, there were people coming in and out. Dogs who would run in to see me before would now stop in their tracks, they would be dragged into the store in a panic mess!  This was absolutely heartbreaking for me to watch, for me to experience.  I came into this job with the love for dogs, I wanted to comminicate with them in a positive way and make them feel good! Something needed to be done or I was done with this career!

   I had decided it was time for me to attempt opening a home salon. Would I be successful? What was I able to do that made me different from other salons? Why would people want to chose me over others? I knew right away that I would only take in one dog at a time! No background noise, no waiting in cages, very short stay times. At that time I had NO idea what I was in for.  With simple internet ads, and word of mouth, I started gaining more and more clients. People told me how appreciative they were that their dog was the only one here when it was being groomed, how less stressed their dog was when it got home!  I could of made a lot more money had I have done "block scheduling" like the pet store had done, but it wasnt about the money to me! It was about keeping the dogs calm, building their trust, creating a relationship with the dog that I would continue to have for the rest of its life. It wasnt about quantity it was about quality!

    As the years have gone by I have done nothing but grow my business! I have kept the same clients that I started with in that little basement of my little house 10 years ago! I have added a tremendous amount of new clients, from different cities, some people travelling a great distance to bring their dogs to me. I have built those relationships I wanted with dogs and their owners! People are putting their "babies" in my hands and I need to show them I appreciate their trust!

  At my salon your dog gets the attention it needs and deserves. I will tackle all type of behaviour because every dog has a soft spot in its heart and every dog will find trust in me.

  Its crazy to go back and think how my childhood bestfriend created this pattern for my life to follow. I truley believe everything happens for a reason and that I am exactly where I'm suppose to be!

   K-9 Kutz is not just a grooming salon, its where trust is built, friendships are created and memories are made!    :)