The Handsome Hound

I’m not sure how more people weren’t compelled to leave a review after their experience with Handsome Hound. This is not a review for the quality of grooming, rather for the lack of professionalism the owner approaches her customers with. The owner speaks in a manner that is degrading and offensive to her clients. We had been loyal clients for almost 2 years now and to be spoken to in such a manner is appalling to me. We were bluntly told by the owner that they don’t have the time for clients who are not financially equipped to afford their services, as shown through the form of a tip, as we didn’t seem to provide one last time we were there (no questions asked here, just accusatory). From the start, the owner was also adamant about not allowing us to bring our dog every 7 – 8 weeks as we had hoped, rather we must come in every 6 weeks if we wanted to keep our same rate. We were informed that if we waited any longer than 6 weeks, the price would be increased. The owner, while knowledgeable, simply does not make you feel comfortable when dropping off or picking up your pet, as there is always something negative to be said. There’s an appropriate way to make a suggestion or deliver a point, but you will not get this with Diane. This is a small business that clearly does not respect or value their clients.

Took my dog to get groomed here for the first time yesterday. He doesn’t get groomed very often just twice a year. Diane was very helpful and respectful of my wishes and of my dog (he doesn’t like to have his nails clipped). When I picked him up he looked great and she managed to even trim his nails (my previous groomer wouldn’t make the attempt). Overall very happy with how he looks and I will definitely take him again.

Unfortunately, my experience at the Handsome Hound was not as pleasant as the previous poster. Don’t quite understand how a groomer can diagnose a tumor but a vet can’t however glad his dog is better.
Owner also runs a dog sitting service out of her home. She has watched our dog for two of the past three summers and twice he has come home with an ailment or injury.
Upon being returned to us this July, we noticed he was experiencing pain in his hind area. We took him to the vet who concluded the same. To help diagnose the problem, the vet inquired if we recently observed anything that might have caused the injury and requested we also ask anyone, including family, who had been handling him. When we questioned the HH owner, she became defensive, stated that when she watches a dog, she does not keep them in a bubble and lets them act like dogs (was I expecting them to act like anything else?). We then explained that we were following the advise of our vet, in the best interest of our pet and not accusing her of anything. That was followed the next day by a phone call from the owner telling us she no longer wanted our business.
X-​Rays revealed a disc injury, our dog is currently on the mend.
I have been in the customer service business for over forty years and understand that there will sometimes be issues but as a service provider, it is my responsibility to help my customers solve these problems, not give them bigger ones.
We will both be better off without each other.

Been going here for 3+ years now and I cant say enough great things about them. My older Dog loves them and is always in a rush to get in the back room, I also have a new puppy that they are going through the motions with to get him used to being groomed. I have total confidence that my boys are getting the best treatment when I walk out of that door. Now let me tell you a little story. My older dog was acting very quiet and low key, didn’t want to play or anything. I took him to the vet and they said they didn’t see anything wrong and he was just getting older and to relax. I listened because he is the pro right? Well he was also due for a grooming that week and thank God because they caught something the Vet didn’t. He had a tumor growing on his back paw that was causing him pain. We returned him to the Vet and showed them, had it removed sent out for testing and results were Neg. Dr said any longer and it could have turned into something much much worse. I honestly cant thank these people enough. Its not just a wash and cut (btw is always perfect) but they also put the time in and inspect the animals for anything strange, lumps, ticks, bites or that tumor growing. Just to finish the story he is back to running playing and acting like a little pup again.

Excellent groomer! My dog is very nervous by nature and he especially hates grooming. The owner and groomer were great at working with him from the start to help him get more comfortable. We’ve been going there for almost a year now, and he does better each time and looks great. Thanks!