I never planned on becoming a dog groomer… but apparently the dogs had other plans.

 

I originally wanted to be a veterinarian until I realized I would spend my days crying over sick and injured animals. Then I went to school to become a fire medic, quickly learned that wasn’t my calling either, and somehow ended up bathing dogs in 2014 during one of the lowest points in my life. Turns out, dogs are pretty good at fixing people too.

 

By 2016, I was grooming full time, and in 2017, I took the “this might be crazy but let’s do it anyway” route and started my own business. Back then it was just me, a dream, and probably an unhealthy amount of caffeine. In 2019, my best friend and I opened our storefront salon where we groomed a whopping six dogs a day. Fast forward to now, and In the Ruff has grown into four grooming suites, four dog groomers, one cat groomer, and roughly 40 dogs a day keeping us busy, covered in hair, and questioning our life choices during doodle season.

 

One’s thing that has always stayed the same is how we believe dogs should be treated. I came from a traditional kennel-style salon and saw so many anxious, stressed-out dogs that hated grooming day. Dogs would come in nervous, sit in kennels for hours, get pulled out for “the scary stuff,” and go right back in. That never sat right with me. So I built In the Ruff to feel different.

 

Here, dogs get to socialize if they want to, relax, make friends, roam safely, and actually enjoy coming to see us. We take our time, we build relationships, and we treat every dog like they’re our own spoiled family member. Grooming shouldn’t feel like punishment — it should feel like a spa day with a little chaos and a lot of love.

 

My staff, clients, and their pets have truly become family to me. I love getting to know our customers, hearing about their lives, and watching their pets run through our doors excited to see us. There’s honestly nothing better than earning the trust of both the dogs and the humans attached to them.

 

Even if we do occasionally send them home looking better than their owners.