Annual Price Increase
Every year on January 31st, our system is set to automatically increase pricing across the board by 4%. This allows Doggie Dolittle, as a small business, to follow the increases in inflation and to continue our ethics model as an employer, paying employees a livable wage. As a small business owner, I feel everyone deserves the right to afford the necessities to live a basic life and provide for their family.
Safety First
All dogs/cats must be on a leash or in a carrier when dropped off and will need to leave our facility in the same manner. Please be respectful of other dogs/cats and pet parents in our salon and boutique. We recommend your companion have a securely fastened collar (only 2 fingers should fit between collar and pet’s neck) or harness.
Deposits
New and non-regular clients are required to put up a deposit equaling 50% of the base price of estimated groom to schedule an appointment. This deposit is ONLY REFUNDABLE with a minimum of 24hr notice to cancel. (Minus the CC fee of 3.95%) It is NON-REFUNDABLE if we have to turn your dog away for being in heat, aggressive, coat neglected and matted beyond our capabilities to groom, or your are more than 15 minutes late for your appointment. The amount of the deposit will be deducted from your final cost of services of first appointment scheduled during check-out. No-Shows automatically forfeit all deposits.
"Business" before Beauty!
Please allow time for your pet to do its business prior to entering the salon for a scheduled appointment. Be courteous and clean up pet waste, we provide waste bags and a disposal receptacle outside to the left of our entrance.
Arrivals
In order to ensure that your pet benefits from his/her grooming experience, we ask that you arrive 10-15 minutes prior to the scheduled appointment. This will allow time to meet with your groomer to discuss details and any changes. Please understand that your pet feeds off of the energy you give off and will react badly to your anxiety or negative energy. So not a good idea to rush out the door 5 minutes to your scheduled appointment.
Pick-up Notification & Late Pick-up Fee
A staff member will call/text you when your dog is done. Sometimes you will get a 15–20-minute heads up. On-time pick-up is required since we have limited space and do not offer daycare services. Dogs are required to be picked up within ONE hour of being notified of completion Please call if you cannot come within that hour. Failure to not pick up within the hour, will result in a fee of $5 a pet per ½ hour starting the first minute after the first hour and should your pet soil their kennel and need to be bathed again, you will be charged for that bath. WE CLOSE at 5pm. Dogs not picked up by 5pm will incur a $1 per minute late fee starting at 5:01pm
Late Policy
If a customer is more than 15 minutes late for a scheduled appointment, it will be considered a No Show and the appointment will be canceled (please refer to No Show Policy). If a customer is within the 15 minutes of the appointment, it is up to the groomer’s discretion on whether they will have time to groom the pet. If the groomer does decide to take a pet late, there will be a late fee added on to the grooming price. There also will not be a guaranteed pickup time for the late pet. *
Pricing
Our pricing is set up by the breed of the dog and is a base price. Depending on your companions size, demeanor, coat condition, time lapse between last time being groomed and if assistance by a second person is needed during grooming there could be additional fees. Dogs that go more than 8 weeks between appointments usually require more time and can be on the higher end of estimated price.A price range and approximate length of appointment can be discussed at drop off when meeting with the groomer.
Contagious Pets
For the safety of our other clients, NEVER bring a pet that has any type of contagious skin issue, disease, fungus or worms. If we identify any problems that we feel could be a threat we will ask that you pick up your pet immediately. You must pay for any portion of the grooming that has been completed.
Health or Medical Issues
Grooming can sometimes reveal a concealed medical condition or aggravate an existing one. This might happen while grooming or afterward. Please notify us of any current or previous problems so that we can keep an eye out for them. This will also allow our staff to take proper precautionary measures, set limits and assign proper resources to ensure your pets needs will be catered to while in our care. When you check the box here, the pet’s owner will bear all medical fees for veterinarian care.
Please inform our staff about any medical diagnoses and health issues concerning all pets undergoing grooming or receiving care at our facility.
Accidents
Although accidents are extremely rare when working with animals, they do occur. Grooming equipment is sharp, and while we employ extra caution and care in all cases, cuts, nicks, scratches, quickening of nails, and other issues are conceivable. When an animal is wiggling or moving around, this is most likely to happen.The safety and comfort of your pet is our first priority. In the unlikely event that an accident occurs, you will be alerted. If we believe the situation is critical and the owner is unavailable, we will seek immediate veterinary care for your pet at the nearest veterinarian clinic.
Senior Pets
Please understand that not every senior pet qualifies for grooming and as always please check with your veterinarian prior to scheduling. We reserve the right to turn any pet away that we feel is unsafe to groom and it will be at groomer/managers discretion. If your senior pet is in our care and needs immediate medical attention we will transport the pet to Animal Emergency & Referral Center of York 1640 S. Queen Street and the client will be responsible for payment directly to the Animal Emergency Center for their services
Authorization for Veterinarian Care in Case of a Medical Emergency
In the event of a medical emergency while your pet is in our care, this release grants us full authority to seek medical attention from the Animal Emergency & Referral Center of York 1640 S. Queen Street or nearest veterinarian clinic and allows us to transport pets in company/staff vehicle.
Vaccinations
It is strongly advised that all pets be up to date on all vaccinations, Bordetella (Kennel Cough), Canine Influenza, and Rabies vaccinations are required to schedule grooming services including walk-in services. **Cats must have had the rabies vaccine at a minimum of 2 weeks before their appointment. Dogs must have had the rabies vaccine at minimum 24-48 hours before their appointment. **We must see Rabies documentation other than the tags. Rabies tags do not contain the pet names or dates given. If you do not have the rabies vaccination documentation in your possession, you can call your veterinarian’s office and have them email it directly to frontdesk@ddyork.com. Please accept my sincere gratitude for your patience.
Ticks & Fleas
We make every effort to be a flea-free environment. If your pet has fleas, you will be charged between $20-$40 for a flea bath add-on service (depending on the size of the dog). We also utilize a safe and effective oral pill called Capstar that will be given at first sighing of fleas. Capstar will exterminate any live fleas or eggs found on your dog within 20 minutes. The additional fee for Capstar is $12.00.
Refusal of Services for Dangerous or Aggressive Animals
At any time, we reserve the right to refuse any service. We reserve the right to refuse grooming services, suspend grooming services, or cancel grooming services at any time before, during, or after grooming, and the client will be charged a grooming fee if your pet is too agitated or becomes unsafe to groom (for what was done up until that point).
Muzzles are Used
Muzzling your pet is very harmless, and it protects both the pet and the groomer. Muzzling a scared animal can sometimes even calm it down, allowing the grooming process to continue. If your pet continues to be harmful, We reserve the right to terminate grooming services at any time and charge a service fee. We don’t muzzle unless your pet specifically requests it. Other techniques of calming your pet are explored first, and muzzling is only used as a last resort. Dogs who require muzzling or additional employees to manage will be charged at a higher fee than usual. This is due to the fact that grooming aggressive or frightened dogs takes significantly longer.
Interruptions During Grooming Services
It is requested that you do not interrupt the groomer during grooming services for the safety of the animals being groomed as well as the professional pet groomer. Every attempt will be taken to groom your pet as safely as possible, but continuing to work on an eager pet can be dangerous. Please do not return to the shop or mobile grooming van until you have gotten a phone call from us informing you that your pet is ready. Also please remember we use sharp tools so you should never knock on a window as sudden moves are very dangerous for your pet and our employees. Please contact us if you have any questions after dropping off.
Matted Coats
Animals with matted coats need special attention. Mats in an animal’s coat can become so tight that they harm and tear the skin, providing a breeding ground for parasite infestations. By de-matting, we will not cause your pet any major or unnecessary stress. Mats can be tough to remove and may require shaving the pet. Due to skin growths trapped in the mats, removing a densely matted coat might result in nicks, cuts, or abrasions. Heavy matting can also trap moisture and urine near the pet’s skin, causing mold, fungus, or bacteria to grow and cause skin irritations that were not present previous to brushing. Itching, skin redness, self-inflicted irritations or abrasions, and hair failure are all possible side effects of mat removal techniques. Pets may also experience short behavioral changes in some situations. Grooming visits should be scheduled every 4-8 weeks for the best defense. By checking the box here, you realize that your pet may need to be shaved to remove matting and that you understand the risks involved. This method will incur an additional fee because it is time-intensive and causes additional wear and tear on grooming equipment.
(Low Shed Treatment) Furminator
Every dog sheds throughout the year, though some shed more than others. Then there’s the twice-yearly “blow out,” which can be excruciating for certain dogs. Our low-shed treatment employs a number of tools and solutions, depending on what works best for each dog’s coat—the Furminator tool, for example, is ineffective on all coat types. We can only brush our dogs for so long before the skin becomes itchy and we have to stop. A once-a-month bath and low-shed/Furminator is sufficient for most dogs most of the time. However, for some dogs and at certain seasons of the year, this is insufficient to notice a noticeable change. We offer (and suggest) one extra “brush only”
***session within 7-10 days of the first appointment as a scheduled à la carte service for ($35-$55 depending on the coat and size of dog)
Cancellations/No Shows
Cancellations/No ShowsOur scheduling system sends confirmation and reminder texts or emails for every appointment the day the appointment is made and the day before to remind you of your appointment (please confirm that we have the correct number and/ or email on file). If you will be late for your appointment, please let us know as soon as possible. All cancellations or reschedules require at least a 24-hour notice to provide us time to fill the spot with a customer from our waiting list. Grooming appointments will be held for 15 minutes after the stated drop-off time. Appointments more than 15 minutes late may be canceled due to high demand. A fee in the amount of 50% of the missed appointment to include all services agreed to when making the appointment will be charged for the **FIRST No-Show and/or the **First appointment canceled with less than 24 hours’ notice. **Second No-Show of an appointment and/or the **Second appointment canceled with less than 24 hours notice will be charged 100% for the missed appointment, and all appointments going forward will need to be Pre-Paid at the time of scheduling. Any appointments going forward under the Pre-Paid rule will lose 100% of the pre-paid funds for any No-Show of appointments and/or late cancellations with less than 24 hours notice. We expect payment of these fees on the same day as the missed appointment, and they will be automatically charged to the credit card on file in our system.
Inclement Weather
The staff at Doggie Dolittle will do our best to give all clients at least a 2 hour notice if their appointments need to be rescheduled due to inclement weather. If you know that you cannot make it to your appointment please call the shop as soon as possible. Our normal 24 hour cancellation policy does not apply when there is inclement weather. Please also understand that some of the groomers are not local and may feel unsafe to drive the distance to the shop therefore we will ask that your appointment be rescheduled. Please always check our Facebook page for updates on weather and closings.
Satisfaction
Your satisfaction is extremely important to us. If you are dissatisfied with your groom for any reason, please contact us within 48 hours and we will organize a time for you to return for a free adjustment at the next available time.
Payment
We accept Cash, Check, Debit, Amex, Visa, MasterCard and Discover as forms of payment. Please be aware that we require a credit card to be kept on file within our secure database. This is for situations that may arise and someone else is picking up your pet and/or if an appointment is missed due to a No-Show or late cancellation. This will allow us to automatically charge the card on file to prevent any lapse in payments from the current days totals. All Returned checks will endure fees as allowed by state laws. Client will be responsible to pay all applicable fees, any amount owed to business as well as any legal and/or court costs that may be required to collect on owed funds. Payment is expected at time of service. Gratuity/Tips are always appreciated.
Gift Cards
Gift cards cannot be redeemed for cash and are non-refundable. The value of a gift card will not be replaced if lost, stolen, destroyed, altered or used without your permission.
Photographs
By signing this release form, you give us permission to photograph your pet for use in customer files, as well as for the company’s website and Facebook page.
