Yorkies!

I grew up with Yorkshire Terriers, so these are one of my favorite breeds of dogs!  This is Macy, my mom's dog.  She is the mother of my dog, Daisy. She came all the way from Worland, WY for her grooming with me.  We call this her "winter look" because her hair is growing out for the cold weather.

 This is my dog, Daisy.  She used to stand for 2 hours while I would clip her hair with a pair of scissors (before I became a groomer), but now she doesn't even want to sit for 20 minutes so I can professionally clip her in my shop (even though she has done great with other professional groomers)!  I think it's kind of like what they say about kids being better for others than they are for their own parents: dogs are better for other groomers than they are for their own owners to groom them!  I have found now that it is better to get her up on the table for just a few minutes here and there, so it seems like she's always a bit shaggy either in the face or on the legs, because she gets so stressed out if I try to do both in the same sitting!

This foxy lady is Jamima!  She came from Buffalo for her grooming.  Her owner told me that this rescue girl only has 2 teeth left, so she is constantly licking her face, therefore making a mess of the hair around her snout.  The owner requested that I cut the hair as close as possible around her nose and face.  I'll be honest, this scared me a bit, because I didn't want to make Jamima look bad.  But her owner assured me that looks weren't the issue, she just didn't want the hair getting gross from the licking.  I have to admit, when all was said and done, I had nothing to worry about.  Miss Jamima looked darling!  Shaved face and all!  I think it kind of gave her a fox-like look.

Daisy puts the "Spring" in Springer Spaniel!

This is Daisy.  She was so fun to groom!  She sat like a pro during the whole grooming process.  However, when her owner came to pick her up, she was so excited to show off her new look, we couldn't get her to sit still for any pictures!  Notice her mohawk?  It was a little longer when she came to me, but they requested I only trim it, not shave it, because it reminded him of his childhood dog.  I thought it was a sweet look on her!

Here's the only close-up I could capture of that pretty face!  I am friends with her owner, and whenever I come to their house, Daisy freaks out!  I think she might be the only dog who wants to come back to the groomer.  Most of them act like they are being tortured!  But she is welcome anytime!  Her personality made this a really fun job!

How it began...

 Kya: My very first paying customer!  That was an exciting day!  It was also the day I fell in love with Corgis!

 Sequoia:  He's one of my favorites!  He's so cute, he even made my husband want a poodle!

In September of 2011, my husband and I went under contract to purchase a house in lovely Sheridan, Wyoming.  The house we were getting had a heated shop behind it that we had no use for (except for extra storage).  So my mom had the brilliant idea that, since I love animals, I should become a pet groomer and groom out of that shop.  Janean Goncalves, a groomer in Worland, said she would train me to do what she does.  And she is AMAZING at what she does!  After my first day of training, I was hooked!  When my training was complete, I bought all my supplies and started practicing and learning on my friends' pets.  My first dog that I groomed, Max, took me 4 hours!  And he still looked a little scruffy when I got done!  But he was patient with me, and so was his owner.
I officially opened my shop in October after the sale of the house was final.  My first "real" customer was the sister of someone I had known in Worland.  Because of her and her sister, I never gave up hope that the shop would get up and going and eventually succeed.  Their continued business and trust in me with their pets has meant so much to me.
I had the opportunity to groom Max again last week, and when I finished grooming him (which took much less than 4 hours), his owner complimented me on how much I had improved.  It meant a lot to hear praises from a friend who has seen my work from the beginning to where I am now!
Thank you, Mom and Janean, for giving me the best job EVER!