New pet service offers in-home grooming

To help busy pet owners keep their dogs looking great, Bath, Brush 'n Bear Hugs offers a pet grooming service that comes to the home. Making two trips to the groomer can be eliminated with one visit from Bath, Brush 'n Bear Hugs, a new local mobile dog grooming service with a self-con- tained grooming salon on wheels.

This service, which operates in Oak Park, Agoura Hills, Old Agoura, Westlake Village and Thousand Oaks, allows pets to be pampered without the stress of being around other animals in an unfamiliar environment. Pets are

never kept in a crate, nor sur- rounded by other animals, but are one-on-one with the groomer.

Bath, Brush 'n Bear Hugs was started in February by Marlene Bracken. Her grooming van is a 2006 model equipped with a large stainless steel sink, hot water, air conditioning, heating and a gen- erator, so that the groomer doesn't have to utilize the client's electric- ity. Shampoos and conditioners are all natural or organic. All in- struments and the inside working area are consistently cleaned and sterilized.

Bracken feels that first and foremost pets should feel special and given the opportunity to feel relaxed and content while being groomed.

"I have seen too many dogs ei- ther entering the salon or in the midst of being groomed looking fearful and nervous. There is ab- solutely no reason a dog should feel any sense of displeasure or anxiety when he is with his groomer," said Bracken. ". . . if your dog is approached with ten- derness, a caring attitude and feels loved, the rest just falls into place."

Bracken volunteers at the Agoura Hills Animal Shelter, where she donates the use of her grooming van and supplies to groom dogs that are awaiting adoption.

For more information about Bath, Brush 'n Bear Hugs mobile dog grooming services, as well as overnight sitting for all types of pets, or to schedule an appoint- ment, call (818) 889-5244 or (818) 631-3990 (cell).