This place went ABOVE and BEYOND to help us out in a pinch.
The evening prior to our visit, our dog (boxer/mastiff mix) got sprayed by a skunk while we were on vacation visiting family in Chicago. We used a peroxide solution on her that evening, but the stench remained. While driving back to the cities I called over a dozen pet stores and grooming salons trying to find a place that 1.) sold a de-skunking shampoo and 2.) had a self-wash station or a grooming appointment that day. Since it was a Sunday, most places closed late afternoon and shut down their wash stations an hour before closing. The woman at the phone at PE told me they closed at 6 pm, and allowed the last wash of the day to start no later than 4:45 so that they could properly sanitize and close down the groom room starting at 5.
Once we realized we weren't going to be able to make it back in time due to traffic, I called a few more places in Wisconsin along 94 but there were none that had the services we needed. Out of options, we decided to stop at PE anyway and purchase the special shampoo and attempt to wash our 70 lb. dog in our driveway with our hose to avoid getting the skunk smell in our house. We arrived just a few minutes before 5 pm and I begged the employee behind the desk to allow us to use the Groom Room even though it was past the time we were told.
The MOST AMAZING employee ever, AMBER, agreed to let us groom our dog, Roxy, as long as we were out by 5:10 so that they could sanitize. She grabbed the special shampoo off the shelf and proceeded to help me with every step of the process from giving me extra advice about how best to remove the skunk stench, to calming and talking to Roxy, to standing beside me and scrubbing MY DOG along with me! After I had rinsed her off, Amber came back and gave her a whiff and said "Aww, poor girl, you're still a little stinky. Let's give it one more try!" (even though it was already 5:15). Again, she helped calm and scrub Roxy and even went and got some Dawn soap to help de-grease the skunk oil.
I don't want to condone showing up late and guilting the staff to let you use their facilities; however, I cannot say enough about how friendly, positive, patient, understanding, and professional the staff at PE was yesterday (especially Amber). We created extra work for her at the end of the day on a weekend and she never narrowed her eyes or let on that she was even slightly annoyed. She was even so knowledgeable that she correctly identified both mixed breeds in our other dog that we had along! (I know that's not really pertinent to the story, but seriously, NOBODY can tell that Frida is half Boston Terrier - well done, Amber!)
On top of our unique experience, the Groom Room is clean and easy to access for tall people and big dogs! They provide the rubber aprons, shampoo, tub harness, and towels for a very reasonable price. Skunked or not, we will definitely bring Roxy back here for a basic bath - so much more convenient than trying to rig something up in our shower.
Thank you, Pet Evolution, for coming to the rescue and exceeding our expectations! read more