This is a common misconception by the average person about commercial kennel operators and groomers. We are in charge of probably the most favorite member of your family and work very hard providing the service that you--the pet owner--has asked of us.

If Jacque or Buffy were so easy to do, grooming wouldn't be a multi-million dollar a year industry. Groomers earn every dollar that they charge to help you correct problems with your pet's coat. You know the one where you haven't brushed in months and you want him back in 30 minutes looking like a "band box"!

Most people don't realize that it takes time to correct problems that have been allowed to go on for months. In most cases, groomers have in the past 10 years starting thinking more about the animal's feelings, rather than the owner's. This is why you see so many animals that have been "cut down" so that the hair can grow back normally. The phrase "learn to brush them or learn to love them short" is now being echoed around the country.

The groomers have come to understand that in the pet's best interest, causing them pain with brush and comb, just to keep the customer happy, is not ethical and does, upon occasion, cause a problem between groomer and client. The animal, on the other hand reaps the benefits of a compassionate groomer and is much more comfortable.

A kennel operator's work is never done! They always take their job home with them. They leave company sitting while they go check on Spot. "He didn't eat his breakfast; I'm taking him a snack, be right back." Thirty minutes later they return; "Susie needed to go out and then so did Sam, sorry, where were we?"

It can be your uncle from California you see only once a year at most, but your "charges" come first. Dinner is generally late for animal care personnel, lunch is eaten on the run and who has time for breakfast? Holidays and summer are the busy times when everyone else is talking about the beach and traveling, the pet care professional is worrying about air-conditioning and space available. In winter, it is: will the heaters act up again this year? How many of our regular clients are going to get angry because we don't have room at the last minute? Does everyone have a Christmas present? [Talking animals here, not the family].

Bed check at eleven o'clock when the temperature is below 35 degress is a trip!

Some clients get upset when you seem distracted while they are telling you about the cute things that happened while they were gone on vacation. "Boy, I wish I had your job, seven hours a day and owning the business must be great. You can do anything you want, anytime."

They don't realize that most kennel operations require many hours of work for the animals in their keeping and that every minute is precious. Small businesses that are labor intensive have a problem finding people who are willing to work. This means the majority of the time the owners are the laborers and that their time is important to the care of the animal in their keeping. Most kennel operations start long before their opening hours and continue long after they are closed. Most professional kennel operators look a little haggard by 11am and down right abused by 5pm, during the busy season. Individuals who are truly animal caretakers will have to issue an apology for being too short with a comment or answer.

Pet care professionals work with a set of rules [more if they are an accredited kennel] that they have to follow. They care that all animals are fed, played with, exercised, cleaned, loved and medicated as necessary. The environment must be comfortable and safe for everyone, humans included. This is not a once-a-day proposition, it is on-going all day long. The hardest thing to get across to laborers, new to the industry, is that once is not enough...if it gets messed up, it gets cleaned up. The quickest way for a person to lose a job at a kennel is to utter the following remark: "I just got it cleaned and he did it again...why do I have to clean it up?" The answer here, in case you hadn't guessed it, is: "Because I said so, it is your job!"

Usually, not for long, which is why most kennel operations are on the lookout for good animal people.