By Myles Ma
A big part of grooming a dog is getting it to relax. Debbie Morgan, the owner of Pristine Pooch, seems to have no problem with that.
Many dogs react like people going to the dentist when it’s time for grooming, but Morgan said the low-stress environment of her office, located just through her kitchen door in her home, and her calm personality, help dogs relax.
“My goal is to eliminate enough of the stress where your dog is going to walk through the door the second visit without being dragged,” she said.
Her touch with dogs has made her popular with owners of “difficult” or special needs dogs, she said. One owner brought her a dog that had been kicked out of other grooming places for biting.
Morgan said that because of the calming nature of her office, and her own demeanor, she was able to pick the dog right up.
“The dog didn’t try and bite me, and it’s been coming in ever since,” she said.
At appointments, Morgan clips nails, cleans ears, gives haircuts and gives baths, among other services. She offers customers a free consultation, in which owners can bring their dogs to explore Morgan’s office while they discuss pricing and needs.
Morgan staggers her appointments — so that the dogs aren’t confined to the office for too long — grooming six to eight dogs a day.
Morgan and her family moved to her house at 6 Vanderveer Drive in Lawrence about two years ago. The area where her office is located was a doctor’s office before she moved in.
She had worked with dogs since she was 13, was a licensed groomer by the time she turned 17 and was already saving money to open her own grooming shop, which she did at 23. But four years ago, she broke both her ankles in an accident, which forced her to close Debbie’s Pampered Pets, her grooming business in Ewing. However, her husband, and meeting her neighbors’ dogs, persuaded her to get back into the business.
Dogs are a life-long passion for Morgan. At 13, she applied for a job at the Grooming Boutique, located in Ewing, at a building owned by her father.
The owners allowed her to do some of the grunt work around the shop, and while at first she didn’t do much grooming, she learned how to handle dogs.
And while she said she enjoyed the bustle of her busy shop at that age, now that she is 42, she prefers the pace of her current business.
Regardless, the pace has picked up — since opening in March 2009, Morgan said her clientele has tripled. She has hired another employee to help out.
“This has grown into a fantastic little tiny low-stress environment for pets,” Morgan said.
Pristine Pooch by Debbie is open Tuesday through Saturday. Groomings are by appointment only. Call (609) 896-4840 for more information.
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