If a dog is mistreated or neglected, he has plenty of reason not to trust humans. Charlie, a Pomeranian/Yorkie mix, had every reason to be wary, as he'd been neglected by his first owner, and then injured by a well-meaning groomer when his new mom took him to have his many mats shaved off. Rosa, a groomer in our Lafayette, Indiana, store understood how Charlie must be feeling about groomers in general and put in a lot of extra effort to make him comfortable. Charlie's mom wrote:
I have a Pomeranian/Yorkie mix
that we rescued from a neighbor who was no longer caring for him. Charlie was
very matted and underweight (just 2.8 lbs) when we got him. His teeth are all
rotted, and he will require surgery to remove them all once he puts on some
weight.
I had taken him to another
big-chain groomer here in Lafayette, and had a rough experience. They shaved
Charlie, as I requested, because he was so extremely matted, but in the process
they cut-off one of his rear dew claws. They took him to the emergency vet and
got it all taken care of. Clearly, this was a fairly nerve-wracking experience
for my family. This was the first thing we'd done for Charlie, and he came out
worse than when he went in. You can only imagine how frightening this was for
Charlie!
Fast-forward to about 6-weeks later, Charlie's hair was starting to grow out
pretty well and I decided that he needed grooming again. After calling around
to some independent groomers, I elected to give Pet Supplies Plus grooming a chance.
I am so thankful that I did! Rosa took care of Charlie! I spoke with Rosa at length about toy breeds. We have
only ever owned big-dogs and little ones like Charlie are a very different
experience. Rosa
welcomed me to
stay while she groomed Charlie, and let me know that she would only do as much as
Charlie would let her because she wanted him to comfortable with the
experience and grow to trust her. I told her that I would walk around the
store so that my nervousness wouldn't interrupt.
I watched from between the
aisles, trying to be sure Charlie didn't see me and become more anxious. I was truly amazed at the
patience and gentleness that Rosa showed with Charlie. She did a fantastic job!
She is wonderful!!
Charlie
came out looking
great. She was able to trim him so much better than his previous experience.
I know that it is because Charlie could see that she really cared and was working with him,
not on him.
I am so grateful for the care and compassion Rosa showed!
I got one of her cards and told her that she had to keep her job for the
next 6 or 7 years, until Charlie is no longer with us. Rosa is
the only one I
will trust with Charlie.