Dog Days

     For the past few weeks I have had the pleasure of working as a dog bather at Petsmart, or, to use the fancy term, I’ve been a “salon associate”.  I have to say, out of all of the jobs I’ve had, the role of dog bather is the one I’ve fallen into most easily.  I came into my current position with previous customer service experience and dog bathing experience, so all I had to do was learn the specific services we offer and the priorities within the system, and voila!  I find myself in a happy little niche. 

   Its also fantastic that my co-workers are so cheery.  There’s always chatter and laughter and helpfulness and good times.  I get my girl time, which I’ve been desperately needing since I left Shannon and Speed Scrabble back in Alamogordo, and before that my friends back east.  The dogs are usually splendid.  We get the bouncy fluffballs, the nervous shiverers, the massive shedders, the angry nippers, the frisky wigglers, the adoring kissers.     

   Sometimes I laugh at my dogs.  The ones who sail through the salon doors acting as if I’m their new best friend are the same dogs who find themselves dripping in the bathtub, their former fluff rendered into a sad sopping mess, gazing at me pitifully and cursing my sudden betrayal from under a mound of suds.  The velocity dryer also lends some amusement to my day.  The velocity dryer can be loud and strong and makes some dogs nervous, but others will lean into the airflow, allowing me to direct the jet of air into the dog’s lips, causing an amusing cheek-flapping effect that I cannot watch with a straight face.   

   My uniform, as usual, is out of the ordinary.  I wear whatever tank top I want because its covered by the salon (blast I can’t think of the word…poncho…smock!).  I wear black running pants that dry quickly, and water shoes for breathability.  There is no good footwear for a dog bather.  Boots will fill with water.  Sneakers just get soppy and stinky.  Water shoes at least breathe somewhat.  So I’m dressed all in black, but there’s nothing particularly cool about the look.  I shouldn’t complain, after all, what work uniforms don’t look a little goofy when you’ve left the workplace?   

   Not every day is all fun and games.  A schnauzer came in the other day covered in three varieties of ticks.  Parasites are never fun to deal with.  Some customers are impossible to please.  It’s a fantastic system though, because if a customer is giving me trouble, I can just refer them to a groomer.  If they give the groomer trouble, they can just be referred to a manager.  Its lovely to never be cornered or alone when problems arise in the workplace.   

   One thing that surprised me is my change in perspective since I’ve worked here.  I harbored a small fear that I would have to put on a façade to deal with the dog owners, who obviously would be shallow, frivolous people for spending hard-earned money on something as goofy as having someone else bathe, brush, and/or trim up their dog.  Unnecessary spending at its worst.  Ultimately I still personally want to end up with a low-maintenance breed when the time comes, but I have come to appreciate that people bring in their dogs for improvement.  Part of the reason for that is that its so easy for me to take pride in my work here.  Its so far from dreary, in fact its incredibly satisfying to receive a grungy shedding beast with overgrown toenails, and hand it back to its owner all soft, shiny, and shed-free.  Dog owners (or, as we say ‘’Pet Parents”) are excited to bring their dogs to us, and are usually delighted with the improvements.  We fawn over their dogs and tell them how wonderful and handsome they are, and they eat it up.   

   There’s lots of love in Petsmart, and so many upsides.  I don’t have to work to the point of exhaustion and then collapse into bed at the end of the day.  I don’t have to wander to the edge of the property and break frozen water buckets in freezing temperatures.  I don’t have to live with my coworkers or offer to super-size something that shouldn’t have been ordered in the first place.  I don’t have a long commute (10 minute drive, woohoo!).  I don’t have to sit at a desk and war with my conscience over whether or not I should smuggle a book in because there’s absolutely nothing for me to do.  I don’t have to try to help people accessorize or update their look when in reality fashion all but bores me to death.  I suppose there are downsides too.  I do miss the fulfillment of training horses.  Okay, maybe that’s the only downside, the dogs aren’t horses.  But really, its great fun to go into work and play with dogs all day.  In keeping with the great Dogs Vs. Cats Debate, however, I still like coming home to a cat at the end of the day.