Bell Township woman will come to your house to groom, pamper your pet
A new dog and cat mobile grooming service offers pet pampering from the comfort of your home.
Shampoodles Mobile Grooming, based in Bell Township, opened in April and provides full-service grooming options that include doggie facials.
You heard that right — doggie facials.
“I make my own homemade and natural doggie facial with blueberries, oatmeal and strawberries,” said owner Ray Posney. “I offer this facial to my new dog clients.”
Posney, 21, is working on building a steady clientele and said the feedback from her customers has been positive and clients love the personalized service.
Appointments are available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.
“Any dog that hates going on a car ride, dogs that can’t be around other dogs — this is great for them because I provide a one-on-one service, so I come to you,” Posney said. “Dogs who have high anxiety benefit, too.”
Shampoodles doesn’t work with aggressive dogs, though.
“I love dogs, but I have regard for my own safety,” Posney said.
Client Anita Luehl, visiting her sister in Bell Township from Florida, recently booked grooming services for her dog, Chloe, and cat, Artemis.
“This is quite convenient and my pets were more comfortable with this — even here visiting at my sister’s home,” Luehl said. “This is an extra perk to our vacation.”
Posney suffers from what she describes as depression and anxiety. Starting her own mobile grooming business has helped her.
“I used to have crippling anxiety attacks and depression that kept me from leaving the house,” Posney said. “Between my medicine and dog/cat grooming business, I went from having five or six big panic attacks everyday to having maybe one every other week or so.”
Posney, 21, began Shampoodles after honing her skills grooming her own dog, working at a brick-and-mortar animal grooming salon and completing online pet grooming courses.
Services include de-shedding, haircuts, bathing, full grooms, nail trims, ear cleaning and more.
Posney’s future goal involves buying a mobile grooming vehicle. For now, she uses the client’s home tub or shower to bathe dogs.
Grooming sessions range from 15 minutes to almost three hours, depending on the client’s requested services.
Shampoodles serves Westmoreland, Allegheny, Armstrong and Indiana counties.
A $5 transportation fee is charged with each visit and 58 cents per mile for any distance more than 15 miles from her house in Bell Township.
Grooming cats can present its own sets of challenges. But Posney lives among 11 cats and says she has had good success handling her feline clients.
She recently had to shave two cats. And, during a reporter’s visit, Posney “went all cat whisperer” on Artemis, holding her calmly, speaking to her sweetly while trimming her nails.
“The cats really let you know when the grooming is done,” Posney said with a chuckle. “I try not to restrain them too much and let the cat dictate how the grooming session goes.
“My biggest request with cats is for matted fur and it’s difficult to brush out. I shave them down.”
Prices range from $10 for nail trims and filing to $110 for a full-sized grooming experience that lasts more than two hours.
“I give clients a quote first,” Posney said. Cash and credit cards are accepted.
A complete cat grooming service is $68.90, including taxes and travel fees.
Posney said this new business venture is therapeutic for her.
“It’s more like a hobby than a job,” she said.
Here’s how to contact Posney
Shampoodles Mobile Grooming
724-473-5788
Find on Facebook
Joyce Hanz is a native of Charleston, S.C. and is a features reporter covering the Pittsburgh region. She majored in media arts and graduated from the University of South Carolina. She can be reached at jhanz@triblive.com
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.