DONATION ONLY/FREE GROOMING DAY "Canines Against Cancer" Saturday, Oct 17 8:30am to 2pm. Please come and support this fun event. We will be DuAnn, Greta, and Montee offering bathing, grooming, nail trimming, teeth scaling, and dog and cat massage. Hot dogs for the humans and toys for the dogs and cats will be given away. Pampurred Pets (the pet store business in the front of the building that is not moving) will be offering raffle tickets for one cord of wood, a bake sale, free treats, and possible Alpaca's on site to pet and admire. Every dollar generated from this day goes to Cancer Community Services to help the local community with transportation costs during chemotherapy. Last year, this fundraiser helped pay for 30 cancer patients with gas costs to get treatments:):) We are proud to live and work in this great community and this is how we CAN give back! Call Pooch Parlor Ponderay or Pampurred Pets for more information.
Appointments and walk-ins are welcome!

GOOD-BYE TO A POOCH PARLOR ICON, Montee Chambers. Montee, an 11 year old, 106 lb Standard Poodle went to the Rainbow Bridge Oct 3, due to spinal deterioration. He was able to spend his last week Skyping with loved ones, dining on McDonald's hamburgers, snuggling his humans, and enjoying his domain from the back of the car. He will be sorely missed. His younger brother will be arriving this week from Sacramento (thank you Claire!). Bennelli, "Benni" for short, is a red standard poodle puppy, is anxiously awaited by Montee's humans and dog siblings, turning sad tears of goodbye into happy smiles of hello. In honor of Monty, the Perfection Tire story is reprinted below.

Student grooming discounts! Please ask for one of our students for up to 50% discount on grooming! Students, Anita from the Ukraine, Elena from Romania, and Anna from Bainbridge Island are available to groom your dog. All three are preparing for a professional career in pet grooming.

Scheduling appointments: Appointments can be made online at www.thepoochparlor.net or by text at our business landline 208-255-2699.

SANTA PICTURES AT POOCH: DECEMBER 5, SATURDAY, DONATIONS ONLY TO BENEFIT HOSPICE AND THE LOCAL ANIMAL SHELTERS. 10AM TO 1:30 PM.

Pooch Portal Drive-Thru Window: Pooch Parlor has a doggie drive thru window for the convenience of our smaller dog's owners. Use our drive thru window anytime, but especially if there are reasons to stay in your car:)

Fall and Winter Hours: Monday thru Friday 8:30 - 3:30
Saturday: 8:30 am to 1pm
We are always available earlier and later by appointment

Self-Service: Self-service bathing stations are available up to one hour before we close Monday through Saturday. Pets must be on leashes. Costs for self-service is weight dependent, from $10 to $25 per dog. Children 12 and older are welcome to help parents in the bathing area.
Children under 12 will be given espresso and a kitten to take home.:)

Nail trimming: nail trims are welcome as walk-ins on a first come first served basis. Nail trims cost $5 to 20 dollars per dog, with an average cost of $10/dog. Owners are encouraged (but not required) to stay for emotional support of the dog during nail trims.

BIKING RIDING WITH DOGS IS A GREAT FALL SPORT
Riding a bike with your special four-legged friend (under 20 pounds) puts new enjoyment in getting some outdoor exercise. Owners and dogs alike will both be looking forward to this special activity after one or two exposures. Looking forward to calorie-spending activities is NO EASY TASK! This activity is perfect for spring and fall temperatures.

Riding a bike equipped with a basket, a baby blanket for padding and warm, Doggles, and an extra small leash with clip will create a fun, safe, and productive environment for exercising owners and their canine children weighing less than twenty pounds.

Baskets can be found by local artisans like the one pictured here, bought at the Sandpoint Farmers Market, handmade by Sharon Gunter, www.sharon'sbasketry.com. The basket has 3 square holes at the top to firmly secure the basket to bicycles with velcro (very easy to adjust). The basket is also lined (but not padded), and comes complete with an adjustable clip to clip to your dogs collar or harness. A small baby blanket, towel, or dog sweater at the bottom of the basket makes for a cozy, soft, warm ride.

Doggles for the dog are a great addition for riders that ride any faster than a meandering pace. This author was able to persuade her schnauzer into wearing Doggles after going on two 15 minute fast bike rides. As long as the bike is moving, the dog's are happy to have the protection. Putting the protective eyeware on the dog directly after 15 minutes of unprotected doggie eye riding and then riding again immediately allows the dog to choose protection. The second time the Doggles were put on the dog, there was NO protest. Dogs wearing Doggles need to have the proper size to fit the eye sockets. Doggles are available at your local pet store, groomer, and online. Doggle-wearing dogs also need to have their own fur out of their eyes (which is a little tricky with eyebrowed dogs!) while wearing the Doggles. All bikes should have a bell or horn for safety. Riders that bike at night should also have a bright light attached to the bike or to their forehead for safety.

With a little touch of patience with your dog, preparation (buy the correct size basket), and proper accessories (protection bells, harness, and blankets), owners and smaller dogs can be enjoying the great outdoors while exercising on bicycles as long as weather permits.

Copyrights 2015 All Rights Reserved DuAnn Chambers

Rest in Peace Monty Chambers, You will forever be Loved
Are poodles really as smart as people say?

This is a true story. Many thanks to the guys at Perfection Tire for the constant supply of dog cookies, great service, and even greater dog common sense in a time of crisis.

Montee is our 100 pound, 9 year old standard poodle.
He has never run away or left our yard (which is not fenced) in the nine years that he has lived with us. He enjoys bird watching, swimming and eating McDonalds hamburgers as his favorite pastimes. One can often find him lounging in the back of the car, his head and front legs perched neatly under the open hatchback, which is parked outside of the Pooch Parlor on most weekdays. He has been helpful over the years to socialize and welcome dogs and humans of all sizes and ages.

Montee has extremely specific ideas about what is and is NOT appropriate for social behavior in people and in dogs. One busy day this summer, Montee was feeling a bit overcome by the activity of the Pooch Parlor, and as is his custom, he put himself into the bathroom for some privacy and quiet. On this particular day, Millie, a longtime customer, and a sweet Bichon Frise, followed Montee into the bathroom before he could shut the door behind him (as was customary). Although Millie had the best of intentions in sharing the bathroom with Montee, he was flabbergasted at her rude bathroom manners. There was a loud disagreement between the two of them, followed by concerned staff that ran to open the bathroom door. Montee emerged with worried annoyance. Millie emerged confused and shaken.

Ally grabbed Montee’s collar and brusquely led him out the front door, chastising him all the while for unnecessary and unacceptable social dog behavior.

“Bully behavior is not tolerated by anyone here, any time and you should be completely ashamed of yourself, Montee!” she rebuked him repeatedly. “Now you stay outside and think about how mean you were to poor Millie!”

I went to check on Miss Millie and make sure she was unhurt. Thirty minutes went by and then Ally came to me and said, “Montee left! He’s not anywhere to be found! I told him to get lost and he did!” I didn’t believe her. In all the 9 years that Montee had been my dog, he never one time had left me, for any reason, in any environment. I went outside to call my dog back. I called and called, and Ally was right!

I looked frantically in the woods, around the building; I asked the business owners if they had seen Montee, I looked suspiciously in the cars that were parked in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Did someone steal my precious poodle? What would I tell my husband? A long strand of worried thoughts marched through my head. Where oh where could Monty be? I couldn’t believe it, he was really gone!!!

And then it came to me! If I were a supremely intelligent and sulking standard poodle with tendencies towards self-righteousness, where would I be? I would want to be in the back of my car where I was sure to find solace and privacy! And where was my car? It was at Perfection Tire, about a half a mile away on the highway, where Monty and I had left it that morning and walked to work!! It would be completely out of character for Monte to take the long walk through the Wal-Mart parking lot alone and end his journey on Highway 95 where my car was, but it was worth checking on.

I quickly called over to Perfection Tire and worriedly asked Heath, “Heath, I lost my poodle, Montee, Did he happen to show up over there? He got in big trouble and I am hoping he went looking for my car.” Heath laughed and replied, “Yes, he’s here all right. He’s been patiently waiting in the waiting room with the rest of our customers while we finished up the oil change on your car. Since he hasn’t whipped out a credit card yet to pay the bill, we figured he wanted in your car, and that’s where he is right this minute.”

I just laughed in amazement. Never in a million years would I have thought that Monty would take the long and potentially hazardous walk by himself back to his car, patiently wait in the waiting room, until achieving his ultimate goal – sulking in peace in his own private car space. “I’ll be right there to get him,” I said. “Poodles really are as smart as people say,” I thought to myself.

Copyright 2013 DuAnn Chambers.
Rest in peace Montee Chambers 8-6-04 – 10-3-15

The Pooch Parlor is a place for pets and their people that want a clean, safe, professional and family environment for grooming, where professionalism and customer service are held to the highest possible standard.

We offer the following services:

text appointments via phone
email appointments via the website
doggie drive thru window for dogs under 20 lbs.
full service grooming for all breeds of dogs and cats by state-certified groomers
student grooming discounts
offer ‘no-kennel’ grooming by request
owner stay grooming by request
self-service bathing stations
walk-in appointments
teeth scaling and/or teeth brushing
* nail trimming and dremeling (filing) on a walk-in basis anal gland expressing
bird nails and wing trimming
retail grooming tools
doggie day care
owner grooming training by request
doggie and family portraits (free)

Pooch Parlor Groomers/Staff. Every groomer has undergone rigorous training to attain their certification at the state level. The training includes more than instruction about the technical aspects of grooming and scissoring, it includes strict codes of conduct and tight guidelines for ethical treatments of pets and their owners, safety practices, and cleaning standards. This certification is something we are most proud of, as the grooming industry is not regulated by any one entity, and only 5 percent of all groomers spend the time and money to train under any qualified guidelines. All employees are drug-tested and undergo criminal background checks.

The Pooch Parlor Pet Groomer Academy, is the only grooming school licensed and bonded through the Board of Education, in the State of Idaho. We offer training to students that come from all over the world to acquire certification. We offer reduced student grooming rates for those customers that want to help groomers-in-training.

We also have a camera handy and LOVE to take pictures of our staff, students, customers, and their dogs. There is no charge for family portrait and we email it to you, just ask. Pictures of your 4 legged kids are really important, since our time with them is never long enough during our lives.

The Pooch Parlor in Ponderay is owned and operated by DuAnn Chambers and her husband Mike. Mike is not a groomer, he is a remodeling specialist, with Git ‘er Done Construction LLC., and helps out in the grooming shop with all repairs and upgrades. Mike and DuAnn have been married 22 years. They share the love of dogs, owning a mini schnauzer, 6 year old ‘Grouchy Greta’, a Standard Poodle, Montee, 11 years old. In our spare time, we scuba dive, paddleboard, travel, and remodel old homes. We thank all of you our friends and customers for making it possible for us to LOVE what we do! Thank you!

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To provide a clean, safe, fun, family environment for dogs and their humans, where integrity, customer service and professionalism are held to the highest possible standard.