BY SKYLER, DEB & TIM SMITH
END OF THE TRAIL ~ Last week I left you amidst a personal crisis. In composing my article on the Hair and the Hound pet grooming salon I was forced to admit my guilt in becoming too attached to animals other than my own dog, Sophie.
When I arrived home, Sophie could see the guilt in my eyes. I had no choice but to admit I’d been unfaithful. Recognizing my sin, I sought religious counsel to obtain forgiveness. The good Lord has blessed me with the strength to carry on and subsequently I am back this week to finish the tale of my visit to the pet grooming salon.
HISTORY OF THE BUSINESS ~ As owner Dianne Dooley tells me, she started her animal grooming business more than 30 years ago. Her original location was on upper Monroe Avenue in the city. After a decade in downtown she makes her move to the “burbs” in 1997. She already has a local connection because she lives only a few miles from the hamlet and she is friends with Dr. Stuart Gluckman of the Mendon Animal Hospital. It is during 1997 that the new animal hospital building is completed and Dr. Gluckman moves his operations one door down on Mill Road.
During this process he contacts Dianne to let her know that his old building (her current building) would be available, and not only is it a nice space, the two of them, as next door neighbors, would obviously enjoy a mutually symbiotic relationship. Later when Mendon Pet Supply goes in across the street it completes what Dianne refers to as the “Mendon Animal Triangle”.
SALON MOTTO ~ One thing that catches my eye is the posting of the Hair and the Hound salon motto inside the building. It reads, “Making the pet look and feel wonderful is very rewarding and seeing the owner’s delight is what we strive for every day!”
HUMOROUS AND BIZARRE ~ I’ll start off this section by sharing with you another of the humorous plaques I observe at the salon. This one summarizes a dog’s philosophy on life. “How to handle stress as a dog: If you can’t eat it or play with it, then pee on it and walk away”.
Unusual animals . . . I ask Dianne, “What is the most unusual animal you ever groomed?” She says that she has clipped the nails on birds, and has given the full shampoo and grooming treatment to rabbits and guinea pigs.
Most unusual hair style . . . she once had a client request a full mohawk for his golden retriever. The mohawk ran all the way down the dog’s back and she used styling gel to keep the fur erect.
Most bizarre overall story . . . for those of you who enjoy my stories when I spice them up with a little sex, this one’s for you. One of her clients was planning to breed two angora rabbits. Hoping to enhance the odds of romantic success in the breeding process, she had Dianne groom the rabbits and they dressed both bunnies in wedding garb. For the romantics in my audience please be assured that the rabbits did what rabbits are known for doing. Baby bunnies abounded.
