'I look at them as furry children'

MOSES LAKE - Patty Jardine never got tired of dog hair, she says with a laugh.

"When the customer comes and picks up their dog and the dog is happy, and the owner's happy, that made my day," she said. "Each day was its own pleasure, its own blessing."

Jardine is retiring and closing her business, Patty's Pet Boutique, after 25 years. The boutique's doors close March 29.

"There will be no more boarding, no more doggy day care after that day," she said.

A Moses Lake native, Jardine conducted business out of her own garage as the boutique beginning in 1988. She moved into the business' current location, at 4734 Stratford Road, about three years ago.

"It actually started with work experience out of high school," she said. "Then I went to work on the coast with Pets Unlimited for about four years, then came back home to open my own shop. And that's what I did, out of my garage. And it's bloomed ever since, kept me very busy."

Jardine made the decision to retire because of health issues and the desire to spend more time with her children.

She plans to remain in Moses Lake. She is also a director for Animal Outreach, and she hopes to spend more time with those endeavors, as well as be out in the community for adoption fairs.

"It's basically health issues, because grooming takes a lot out of you," she said. "People don't realize, understand how much is really involved with grooming. When you've been doing it for that long, it takes a bit of a toll on your body. So it's time to retire, enjoy my family and take a couple of trips I haven't done with my children yet."

Jardine has three children: Crystal, 17, Robin, 11 and Jesse, 10.

Jardine advises her customers talk to other groomers in town and make sure they communicate their preferences. Her philosophy was to always groom an animal the way the owner would like it, she said.

"I'm going to miss them, because a lot of these dogs I have groomed since they were eight, nine weeks old," she said. "When they start passing away at 15, 16 years old, it really hits you. You've groomed them for that long."

Jardine offered an apology to those customers for any inconvenience her retirement has caused with regard to boarding issues.

"It wasn't an overnight decision," she said.

She sends a big "thank you" to the community for its support through the years.

"Without their support, it would never have been," she said. "I've had some wonderful people with the consistency of bringing their dog in every six weeks. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have had my business. It's just a big, big thank you and a blessing to have such wonderful clients and furry friends, because we've got every shape and size. Cats, too."

Cats are trickier to groom than others, Jardine said, and she also found it occasionally difficult to explain to a client grooming would take more than a half hour if they sat all winter without.

"It's not just you shave it, throw it in the bathtub and dry it," she said. "There's the beforehand: Make sure the nails are done, the ears are clean and getting all the mats out before the bath, a particular cut or a groom. And then bathing the dog with specialty shampoos - sometimes the dog has bad skin or they've got fleas. And then dried, some dogs can't handle bigger dryers, so we hand-dried all our dogs, then brush them all out, and then do an additional clipping. There were several stages to get that dog to look its best."

Jardine specialized in geriatric dogs or dogs who were missing body parts.

"Because they need to be as pretty as the others," she said.

Spending time with individual dogs through the day care service is something Jardine believes she will miss the most.

"I'd sit on the floor, we'd play ball and we'd toss a ball outside," she said. "They have such different personalities, and everything, but it's a real close toss-up between the people and the dogs. I'm going to miss it all, I really am, but my health and my family is outweighing it all."

The boutique employs six people.

After 25 years, Jardine has a lot of fond memories of the business.

"Of course, meeting different people and their personalities with their dogs, and seeing people so concerned about (their pets)," she said. "I look at them as furry children. That's how I always wanted to treat them. I would say a lot of it is being able to help these people, give suggestions on making their dogs healthier and happier. I could put the whole 25 years and say it was all good."