Dawn Glode (left) with her daughter Kacey Daley (right) and Brandi at Dawn’s Dawgs grooming shop.
Story and photos by Carol Vogel
Dawn Glode is an animal advocate as well as a successful business owner. The multiple roles she plays in the Dolgeville area are essential to the welfare of our furry friends and the community. Even with all her responsibilities, she was happy to chat with me about her business and her lifelong dedication to animal health and welfare.
Dawn’s Dawgs
Dawn is the owner of Dawn’s Dawgs, a dog grooming shop in Dolgeville that has been open since 2011. When asked how she got started in dog grooming, she explained, “I fell in love with the shih tzu breed and ended up with four of my own.”
Her first dog, Molly, had crate issues and would not be crated because she would have terrible anxiety. “I would take to her to the grooming shop and make the earliest appointment I could get so that she could get right out. She would be dropped off at 7 a.m., and I wouldn’t hear from them until 1 p.m. and they would tell me, ‘Nope, she’s not ready yet,’ and that bothered me. So, I said I am going to become a dog groomer, and I am not doing that. Dogs are not going to be crated.”
“I love animals so much, so 20 years ago, I went to grooming school in Rochester. I went to the Rochester Institute of Dog Grooming. It was a five-month course, 40 hours a week, and I learned how to groom all breeds. I was a construction worker at the time, so I started out only doing it part-time. I started doing it full time as my business, as my main source of income, in January 2011.”
Her daughter, Kacey Daley, recently joined her in the business this past June. Kacey has five years of grooming experience working at Pet Smart and grew up learning from her mom. “She came to work for me because I couldn’t keep up with demand. We’re such a good team. The wait is only a week or two instead of months!” Dawn said. “She offered me the opportunity, and the timing was perfect!” Kacey added.
Opening a business in her home on Faville Avenue in Dolgeville gave her the opportunity to create the grooming shop she wanted.
“We are not like a traditional grooming shop. Most Groomers will take in a bunch of dogs at once, and they’ll have them there for a long period of time. We take dogs in by appointment. Small dogs take an hour. Larger breeds can take two hours. They start the process without being caged or crated. We try to time it so we are finishing up just as their owner arrives to pick them up. We don’t let other people’s dogs intermingle with each other. We just feel like that is a risky thing because you don’t know a dog’s temperaments or if a dog has a health issue.”
Cleaning between clients is of the utmost importance, and her scheduling approach accommodates proper disinfecting to ensure a safe environment for all her clients. She does have crates if they need to accommodate an early drop-off or a late pickup, but that does not happen often, and the dogs are never crated for long. Having a home-based business gives them the flexibility to adjust when needed.
It is obvious that Dawn is an animal person, and when I asked her what her favorite part of her job was, she smiled. “Getting to be with the dogs. I have five dogs of my own, plus seven cats. I love animals! I get to love on them for a little bit, so I get to have all sorts of different breeds of dogs as mine, but then they’re like grandkids, and they go home with their parents,” she laughed.
Brandi, Dawn’s grand-pup, shakes hands with her mom, Kacey.
Dog Control Officer
Dawn is also the Dog Control Officer (DCO) for The Village of Dolgeville and the Town of Manheim. As the DCO, she is not always popular with pet owners, as she is tasked with enforcing local and state laws. “Sometimes I won’t get a call for weeks, and then all of all-of-a-sudden – I think it’s when there’s a full moon! – I will get a call about all these strays or loose dogs or people missing their dogs.” It’s not an easy job, but it’s an important one in the community. “I feel like I am an asset to the community because I am trying to help the animals,” adds Dawn.
Dawn is well-suited for the position as her knowledge and experience with animal behavior is an integral skill set to have. Operating her grooming business in town, she also knows many dog owners and their pups, so she feels connected to the community she serves. Local and state laws exist to protect the welfare of the animals in our communities, and Dawn takes her job very seriously.
Top 5 Tips for Being a Responsible Dog Guardian:
- License your pet annually per state law, which requires updating rabies vaccination every three years.
- Know the leash law in your town or village and follow it. You can be ticketed for an unleashed dog.
- Pick up after your dog. You can be ticketed. Many homes have cameras now to prove a nuisance.
- Excessive dog barking can be ticketed.
- Provide proper shelter, food, fresh water, and adequate exercise every day.
Animal Welfare Advocate
Dawn has helped many local rescue groups in the area, and her advocacy is not limited to dogs. She has worked with the Herkimer Humane Society, grooming dogs and fostering pets for adoption throughout the years. She is a very active member of the Dolgeville Forward C.A.T. Project that serves Dolgeville and the surrounding areas.
Dawn takes care of clinic scheduling, setting up appointments for spay/neuter and vaccinations, and helps trap and transport for the Trap Neuter Release program (TNR). She also fosters cats and kittens, who are then adopted out through the C.A.T. Project.
“This summer, I have had about 30 kittens here myself, but other members have also fostered, and we have had about 60 kittens this summer alone, which is a lot,” Dawn comments. “If we have the funding and the opportunity that we can help other communities out, we will do it!”
The C.A.T. project has helped 650 cats since 2018 because of kind-hearted and dedicated volunteers like Dawn.
Setting a ‘Pawsitive’ Example
As I wrapped up the interview, a grooming client arrived. Dawn Glode greeted the pups like they were her own. It was apparent that she cares deeply for all animals and is an asset to the Dolgeville area. I was reminded of a quote from Mahatma Gandhi: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
Dawn’s Dawgs is located at 45 E Faville Ave, Dolgeville. They are accepting new clients and typically scheduling within a week or so. Please call 315-429-8614 to make an appointment. You can also follow them on Facebook – www.facebook.com/DawnsDawgs/