Complaint Review: Bow-Wow Wheels Mobile Pet Grooming - Pelzer South Carolina

Ms. J or person reading this report, I am a pet stylist and I known Patty Martin for a while. She is the most professional groomer I know and she is the only groomer in SC whom I will trust my dogs if I will be unable to groom them myself. Accidents happen but if this injury was caused by Patty she would have told you about it as she told you about clipper nick. The wound on the picture is huge but appears to be healing. It this injury happened during the grooming it would have bleed all over the place and I want to assure you that where is no magical way to stop bleeding from the wound of this size in the grooming shop. Unfortunately, I have witnessed bad cuts in the shop I used to work at. I don't know where and how it happened but it is not a fresh cut! For those who are interested who Patty Martin is: Patty, is a Certified Petcare Dermatech Specialist, by International Society of Canine Cosmetologists registered member of the National Dog Groomers Association of America and is a certified Pet First Aid/Pet CPR Instructor with the American Red Cross. Patty is capable of handling special needs and elderly pets due to her commitment to advanced education and Certifications in many areas of Pet Care. Patty has also presented advanced Pet Grooming and Styling seminars to large audiences of fellow Pet Stylists at the Atlanta Pet Fair, Chicago All-American Grooming Show and the US Pet Pro Classic. She is a popular speaker and has been invited back year after year to share her vast knowledge of Pet Care and love of pets. For those who are still unsure about her please veryfy all of information above with organizations listed and see how many groomers with similar credentials you can find in your area. If you can not trust your pet to Patty you should not trust anybody else.

I have used Patty's service for many many years for several of my pets; I still use her to this day and have an appointment scheduled for later this week. I used her when she worked for others and followed her when she went into business for herself even though she was far too ethical to solicit my business as she started her own business. I find it laughable that a person of Patty's moral character would ever NOT tell someone that she had injured their pet no matter how slight the injury was. Period. I have come to know her through the years and know how distressed this false report must make her. I have the utmost respect for her as a person and as a groomer and I have not found any one that I would trust more to care for my pets. Patty is very knowledgable and always provides wonderful service. She also cares for an elderly parent at home and cares deeply about the pets trusted to her from what I've seen. Ms. J, I urge you to rethink this. To those of you who would consider NOT using her service I highly recommend her and commend her for her charitable works and work ethics. You won't find anyone any more qualified to care for your pet than Patty. She is very good at what she does and is a true pet/animal lover. Lastly, I feel that this report should be removed because it IS defamitory to this deeply caring individual. I highly doubt the validity of the claims laid forth here by Ms. Johnson and I feel that she was just looking for a scapegoat and chose Patty. Such a shame to try to defame such a wonderful, caring person.

Susannah, I'm glad you mentioned the age of the dog. I'd noticed the tooth problem too. Plus I noticed the way she is sitting with her forelegs sort of braced against the body, a posture many older, weaker dogs adopt. That said, it looks like she is well brushed in that picture. Perhaps her owner really has learned from her mistake. As for the wound, some points I'd like to share: I can picture that V-shaped wound like that being caused by scissors but I have a problem with that. First, the area was matted. Underarms are notorious for that. It would have been shaved off, which wouldn't have left the same kind of mark if nicked. If scissors were required to loosen up the matt they would have been held perpendicular to the skin so you'd slice the matt like you would slice bread. It would have been very hard, if not impossible, to make a cut like that. They would have had to be held flat against the skin. There's no way someone would have done that in such an area as under the arm. Or to remove matts at all. It would be too dangerous. Even as a beginner, I would have never done that for fear of having just such a thing happen. I can't imagine someone as experienced as Patti apparently is doing this. The other point I'd like to make is that when Patti mentioned the small wound that did accidentally happen. Where was the dog at the time? When Patti was finished with the grooming, did she just open up the door of the van and the dog just ran about untouched until that evening? No, I suspect Patti held the dog in her arms until she handed her over to Tressa, who probably held her a while longer. Being a tiny dog, with a wound under her arm, she would have yelped or at least, acted uncomfortable when being transferred over. Yet, she didn't. Only when the husband picked her up that evening did she let it be known she was hurt. My conclusion can only be that Patti did not cause it. Tressa says that she did not know that matting was bad for the dog, yet she calls her her baby. Would she let a human baby get like that? I suspect not. I have no doubt Tressa deeply loves her dog and feels she is devoted to her but her ignorance on her duty to keep her well groomed is saddening. Matts pull the skin tight and can cause irritation. If there is a burr or some object in there, it could rub against the skin, causing a wound that the owner may not notice until it swells and abcesses. Then it's an expensive trip to the vet when a little care and preventative maintenence could have stopped that from happening at all. Tressa, I hope you and your dog have many happy hours in her twilight years but please remember that you are ultimately responsible for her overall health. That includes brushing her regularly.

You know, this is really sad and the main reason I got out of grooming after 12 years of servitude. This pet owner should be ashamed of herself! Sadly,most pet owners are not intelligent enough to listen to the advice of their groomers. We know MORe about the nature of pet hair than any vet could ever dream and WEARING A SWEATER CAUSES HAIR TO MAT TO THE SKIN! This cases bruising and pulling. The hair becomes so tightly matted to the skin that often there is no way to avoid nipping skin under the arms elbows) the back of the hock, behind the ears, and between the legs. A dog of this breed(poodle or maltese or mix)is ESPECIALLY prone to this type of problem. Not to mention that the picture shows the dog has missing teeth, a sure sign of old age and possible dementia. Yes, dogs get senile too! Tressia, take off the sweater. You are not helping your dog. Schedule regular groomings for you animal for between 4-6 weeks and comb your dog in between grooms. I am sure that you were not aware that YOU were the cause of this accident. regular groomings with assure that the coat can be saved (not sheared like a sheep!) and will not require a sweater to keep her warm. She looks so precious and deserves to be your #1 priority! You have the dog every day. A groomer only sees the dog for a couple of hours and has the burden of correcting the dmamges caused by neglect. I am sure you love your dog enough to see that her particualr needs due to her hair type be be kept up. Keep your chin up Patty! You've got more patience than I do. Kudos to you for grooming this dog without having Tressia sign a waiver! You're a saint!

This will be my last posting as this has turned into a she said/she said matter. Mary thanks for your professional comments. I think there comes a point when one must agree to disagree. While I was here, I don't recall seeing you, I know what happened. I wish nothing but the best to all concerned in the future. God bless you all.

... seems like you're busted on this one!

As a groomer, I find it impossible to believe that this cut occurred during the groom.

I also find it impossible to believe that Patty didn't tell you to schedule your grooms more frequently. NO groomer would say it's "OK" to groom a poodle (who wears a sweater, no less) every three months. Nope. Didn't happen.

Without using "groomer lingo", I offer the following:

When shaving down a matted pet, a very short blade is used. The teeth are very close together on these blades, and a cut like the one in the picture you posted would be nearly impossible to be caused using this blade. And ABSOLUTELY impossible by a groomer of Patty's caliber.

I agree with the other poster - it looks some type of puncture wound. In any event, had it happened during the groom, there'd be BLOOD, BLOOD, BLOOD!

In any event, going forward, I hope you become a more responsible pet owner and have your pet groomed more frequently. NO groomer likes to shave down matted, neglected dogs!

Patty - I am in awe of your recording keeping practices. Mind if I steal a few ideas? : )

I have included a photo of my little one in this report. I think anyone can see that she IS NOT "neglected" as stated in the response from Bow-Wow. I would never do anything to hurt her. If I have learned one thing from this matter it is that I will brush her everyday to make sure her grooming sessions are not uncomfortable for her. Thank you Patti, and best of luck to you in the future.

Photo should be posted in a day or two..

Ms. Johnson, I was really trying not to get into a peeing contest with you over this. I have copies of all your cancelled checks, I have my appointment books, computer logs and your message-the ONLY message you left me-saved on my computer in a phone tools program. This program prints the voice message out from the computer; I also have the time and date stamped print-out. My voice mail goes directly to my computer so I have a copy of ALL messages that I keep in a file by month and year-even sales solicitations and "cold call" solicitations. I groomed your pet on 9/28/04 and of this I am quite possitive. As a matter of fact I left for Dallas, TX to teach at a pet grooming trade show at 4:15 PM 9/28/04 and drove most of the night before stopping at the Motel 6 in Jackson, MS. I have a fist full of receipts for gas, food and motel stays that will more than prove what I'm saying is true.

I did suggest to you several times that Tasha needed more frequent grooming appointments and you always always always countered with she was "cold from not having any hair" and that YOU didn't feel she needed more frequent professional visits and that you also didn't want to spend the money on her care because she "always wears a sweater because she stays so cold when she's groomed." As a matter of fact, my 2003 records indicate that you cancelled one of Tasha's grooming appointments at the door when I arrived because you felt that she didn't need groomed at that time. I am sorry that Tasha was hurt; however, I DID NOT CAUSE THE INJURY YOU SO SLANDEROUSLY ACCUSE ME OF!!

Our next appointment was for the date I stated above-Monday 12/20/04. On Saturday 12/4/04 I was volunteering at the Greenville Co. Humane Society Charity Yard Sale and could not and WOULD NOT have made a grooming appointment for your pet or any other on that day. Additionally I do not work on Saturdays during the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas because too many people are busy with family activities and holiday shopping.

As I stated before, had I caused such an injury to your pet I would have advised you and insisted on proper veterinary care at the time of the injury. I did advise you of the slight scratch I did cause, that didn't even bleed might I add, and I feel that I did follow my professional duties by advising you of the injury I did cause however accidentally. That your pet was injured post-grooming in some other way is in no way my fault.

#1. I based the date of the grooming by the cancelled check I wrote to Bow-Wow dated 9/30/04 & I just pulled it again to recheck the date. As BW does not accept & I never wrote a post-dated check to BW I would say that the date is correct. If I'm wrong the check was wrong. The injury was found on the day of the grooming, not several days later. That would also explain the date on the photo. I did not as stated assure her that it was not her fault. I did assure here that I felt it was an accident & that I felt sure had she been aware of it she would have pointed it out to me the same as she did the other injury.

#2. I began calling on the day of the grooming & left messages with BW & emailed photos of the injury to the BW web site link for info. I got a call from BW several days later & she said she had been in CO at some type of show. I told her at that time that I had emailed photos of the injury and she said she had no access to her email but that if medical attention was need to seek it & she would pay for it.

#3.On the date of the next appt. (BW states 12/04/04) I WAS NOT CALLED by BW to tell me that the van was frozen. I waited here for her to arrive and when she didn't show up I called her. That's when she stated that she thought I cancelled the appt. & it was just as well because of the problems with the van & she would call me later. Oddly enough with an answering machine on the house phone & voice mail on the cell phone she was unable to reach me. Also, I find it odd that I sent another email to BW asking why I was never contacted after that phone call & never got any reply. Only after that did I do this filing and again oddly enough BW was QUICK to respond to it.

#4. It was never suggested to me that the grooming be done more often. It was never mentioned that there was a matting problem in this area until after the last visit when I was called by her in answer to my messages. I never told her that I wanted the grooming done on that schedule to save money. BW set the appts. & gave me a card with them listed on it, I didn't know I needed to question how often the grooming was being done. If it had been better for my pet to do it more often I would have gladly agreed. I would be the first to admit I don't do brushing everyday but I hardly think it's to the point where it could be called neglect but everyone is entitled to their opinion.

#5. As to why I was willing to keep the next appt. I too know that accidents happen, even those we may not be aware of. I was happy with BW's knowledge of pets in general & was happy with the fact that it was a mobile grooming service. The service to that point had been great. I even gave their business card to a lady I work with. I just didn't understand how everything was handled after the final visit. The fact that BW didn't show for the last appt. and never returned my call is still a mystery to me.

#6. This pet is a member of my family and not "just a dog". Not that it makes any difference in this matter, she is rather small however she actually weighs 4.3 lbs. not 1 1/2 lbs as stated. She tends to be on the cold side thus the sweater, but it is not worn year round as stated either.

#7. As for the salon that was called & questioned about slandering her name: The only thing that was ever said was her name (one word), I hardly think that could be called slander as no other comments were ever made & I never said they were.

#8. Thank you to all of you who voiced your opinion. This posting was not done to "slander" Bow-Wow. It was done soley becasue I didn't understand their business practices that occured after the last grooming. I was more that willing to continue doing business with Bow-Wow as long as there were no other problems but for whatever reason was never contacted.

D,

I'm sure that most people will agree that this dog is not just a "pet", but also a member of the family. Your comments on this report were totally uncalled for, and down right insensitive.

Now, I'm not saying that this is a valid report, and after the response by Patty and another groomer, there are too many inconsistencies here to determine who is telling the truth.

Tressia says the grooming appt was on 9/30/04, and Patty says it was 9/27/04. I tend to believe Patty, as she would have records of grooming appointments. It seems to me Tressia is going by the date stamp on her photograph. Tressia says they noticed the cut later that night. Who is telling the truth?

If indeed 3 days had passed between the grooming and the discovery of the cut, then it is almost guaranteed the injury did not occur during grooming. A 3-day old cut would not look fresh like in that picture. Plus, the dog would have surely yelped or shown signs of paid immediately after injury, not 3 days later.

Tressia says she took her dog to her vet (not another groomer) for her next grooming. Did the vet look at the wound? Or better yet, did Tressia take her dog to the vet in September? If so, what did the vet say? The V-shape of the wound does not seem consistant with a cut that could be made by clippers. It seems more like some type of puncture wound, and a small one at that as the picture seems to be very close up.

I'm leaning more towards the groomer on this one.

To "It's Only A Dog"...people like you don't get it. Some of us actually do care about our canine companions. I would not let someone harm my four footed children any more than I would let someone harm my human child.

I do, however, question why the original poster would contact the same people to groom her dog again after the photo that I see. No way would I have allowed them to touch my canine friend a second time.

To "It's Only A Dog"...people like you don't get it. Some of us actually do care about our canine companions. I would not let someone harm my four footed children any more than I would let someone harm my human child.

I do, however, question why the original poster would contact the same people to groom her dog again after the photo that I see. No way would I have allowed them to touch my canine friend a second time.

To "It's Only A Dog"...people like you don't get it. Some of us actually do care about our canine companions. I would not let someone harm my four footed children any more than I would let someone harm my human child.

I do, however, question why the original poster would contact the same people to groom her dog again after the photo that I see. No way would I have allowed them to touch my canine friend a second time.

To "It's Only A Dog"...people like you don't get it. Some of us actually do care about our canine companions. I would not let someone harm my four footed children any more than I would let someone harm my human child.

I do, however, question why the original poster would contact the same people to groom her dog again after the photo that I see. No way would I have allowed them to touch my canine friend a second time.

It is a DOG !!!!! NOT a baby girl! A PET! Nothing more.

I am a groomer (also mobile), and have some comments regarding this report.

Accidents can/do happen during a pet's grooming. We work with very sharp equipment, and many dogs are NOT easy to groom.

I can say that "Teacup Toy Poodles" (I won't even get started on the "Teacup" thing...)" are NOT easy to groom! They are very small and very fragile.

I give Patty kudos for pointing out the fact that the dog sat on the clippers and rec'd a small nick on its tail. I'm sure if the dog were to receive a HUGE CUT during grooming, she would have pointed it out to you, too... and I would think there would be blood on the dog, no?

Can you post the pics here? I'd be curious to see this huge cut.

It seems odd to me that you didn't seek immediate care for your pet! Instead waiting until she "didn't show up" for the next groom.

I also question the remark that was supposedly made by the "ladies" at the salon. This would be highly unprofessional on their part.

That being said, I offer the following:

Poodles need to be groomed more often than every THREE MONTHS. It's a shame that your dog must be shaved down every groom. That's neglect on your part. Many groomers would refuse a "maintence plan" like that! I'm sure Patty did it for the dog's comfort.

If you check Patty's credentials (on her website), you will find that she is a professional, highly trained, well known and experienced groomer and lecturer in the field of pet grooming.

I've attended her seminars and have seen her groom!

You should be HONORED that Patty would groom your matted poodle at all! She certainly has the ability to "pick and choose" her customers and likely groomed your dog because she felt sorry for the dog!

Please get your pet on a more frequent grooming schedule! Do it for your precious pet!

Ms. Johnson owns a Teacup Toy Poodle, a rather small pet at about a pound and a half, which she keeps bundled in a pet sweater year-round. I groomed her pet on 9/28/04; her previous grooming appointments were 6/15/04, 3/24/04 and 11/03. I have only seen the pet a very few times.

When I arrived for our appointment on 9/28/04 Ms. Johnson informed me that her pet had been ill and at the vet's the previous week whereupon I offered to return at a later date to complete the grooming. Ms. Johnson requested that I continue with the appointment as she felt her pet was well enough to be groomed.

Poodles of any variety need regular and frequent professional grooming and frequent at home brushing or mats and tangles will form on the body, legs and ears of the pet because they are always growing hair. Ms. Johnson had previously informed me that she didn't feel her pet needed more frequent grooming and, as you can see by the appointment schedule above, I honored her request. Her pet was always matted in certain areas due to constantly wearing a sweater and she always requested a complete shave-off to save money by not having her pet groomed as frequently as it should have been in my professional opinion.

On the day in question her pet was, as usual, matted and I, as usual, shaved her off. Her pet did sit on the clippers as I was clipping her tail and a small scratch occured but other than that the appointment was uneventful and no other injuries occured. I pointed the minor injury out to Ms. Johnson and told her that if she felt the injury should require professional treatment to please seek it from her vet and either have them call me for billing information or let me know the charges and I would be more than willing to pay them.

Several days later, on 9/30/04, Ms. Johnson called me and told me that her husband had picked up the pet that evening and she yelped. Her husband is a large man with large hands and her pet also has access to the outdoors. (The pet is very small and very low to the ground.) She said she looked at her belly and saw a wound under her elbow in an area that frequently mats between professional grooming appointments.

I again advised her to take her pet to the vet for treatment and offered to pay for the injury even though I felt sure I had NOT caused the injury. This injury occured several days after the grooming appointment according to Ms. Johnson's phone conversation with me. She assured me that she felt that this wasn't my fault and that she felt she could take care of the injury herself. I asked her who her vet was and I called them myself since she showed no interest in doing so herself. They were advised of the situation and assured me that they would let me know if Ms. Johnson brought her pet in for treatment. She did not take her pet to the vet for treatment for the either the small scratch I accidentally caused on her tail or the wound on her belly which, according to Ms. Johnson, occured several days later.

Our next appointment was for 7:30 AM 12/20/04. That morning I awoke to a hard freeze (it was 9o here) and found that the pumps in my van and well both had frozen. With no way to get water for the van I called Ms. Johnson and advised her of the situation. After looking at my van I found that the water pump in my fresh water holding tank had frozen and burst and needed to be replaced after I defrosted the small amount of water in the holding tank. I again called Ms. Johnson to advise her of the situation and asked if I could call her later to groom her pet as I expected this situation to take most of the day to rectify.

After repairing my van I called the number I had, an out-of-area cell phone number, and I was unable to reach her at either that number or her home number. After trying for several days to get in touch with Ms. Johnson and not being successful I simply gave up trying to get in touch with her. To date she has never offered to show me photos of any injury. I have, to date, not received any other communication from Ms. Johnson regarding this situation until today and the ripoff report.

I spoke with the grooming salon she used for her pet's last grooming and they assured me that they have no idea what she's talking about and that they never slandered my name in any form or fashion. Since I know one of the people that work there I feel that I have been told the true facts of the matter.

When working with live animals and sharp tools accidents can occur. However, I do not feel in this instance I was responsible for any injury other than the slight scratch I pointned out to Ms. Johnson on the day it occured. As a matter of fact Ms. Johnson complimented me on the fact that I was honest with her and pointed out that she felt that if I had caused the other injury I would have told her of it at that time as well. I do not feel that I caused this injury in any way. If I had caused a serious injury to her pet I would have advised Ms. Johnson and insisted on proper veterinary care at the time of injury.

There is always a slight risk of injury when working with a pet that is matted. Additionally, matted pets can be injured when trying to remove the neglected coat. This situation is not caused by the groomer but by the owner and the owner's own neglect of their pet by failing to provide proper at-home grooming or more frequent professional visits. This type of neglect can and will cause injury to the pet when the groomer tries to provide relief to the pet by removing the matting. Pets do not become matted overnight but through weeks and months of OWNER neglect. Afterall, we groomers only see the pet every 4-6 weeks; or as in this case every 3-4 months. Please feel free to contact me for further clarification or if I can be of further assistance.