Meet the Dog Lover behind 'The Pawlor'

Animals have always been around my life, but growing up we were never really allowed to have our own. We did have a puppy for a short time when I was six, a German Shepherd named Boots, but unfortunately he had to be rehomed. Even though he wasn't in my life for very long, he left a pretty permanent impression on six-year-old me. From there, my love for dogs only got worse... or better, depending on how you look at it. 😂 I spent countless hours watching videos of working police K9s, obedience training, people bringing home new puppies, and basically anything else involving dogs. Around age 10, I became friends with a girl named Kristen who was just as dog obsessed as I was. Since neither of us could have dogs of our own, we pretty much just borrowed everyone else's. We trained our neighbor's yellow Lab, Molly, built makeshift agility courses out of whatever random stuff we could find, and even offered dog walking and homemade dog treats around the neighborhood. We'd spend entire days barefoot, running around with everyone else's dogs because, well... we still couldn't have our own. Looking back now, it's pretty obvious the dog thing was never a phase. It was basically the foundation for everything that came after. My first actual job working hands-on with animals came in 2018 at a dog and cat boarding facility by the name of PawSpa. That was where I really started learning how to care for animals with different personalities, ages, temperaments, and needs. I bathed dogs there, but I wasn't allowed to hand-dry them or do any actual grooming. And as someone who had never even owned a dog of my own, professional grooming was still a completely foreign world to me.

I didn't get my first dog until I moved out at 20, and you BET that puppies were basically one of the very first things I started looking for.. and so came Wesson. Wesson has been by my side through basically every stage of my adult life. When I met my husband, Josh, Wesson was still young and had only ever known life as an only dog. To this day, he is the biggest momma's boy and is almost always somewhere right beside me; he loves Salt & Vinegar chips, he's super independent, loves his naps, and likes to be the fun police in my house. I always say he is his mother's son, lol! He is without a doubt my soul dog. As Josh and I built our life together, our little family kept growing. We adopted Stark, our Rottweiler mix the day we knew we were moving out into our own home, followed shortly after by Kilo, our Husky mix, and eventually an orange tabby named Mango.

Unfortunately, loving animals as deeply as we do also means eventually experiencing the worst part of having them. We unexpectedly lost Mango at only a year old in 2022, and in May of 2025, we lost Kilo as well. Those losses changed me in ways that are hard to put into words. Losing an animal really is losing a member of your family and a piece of your heart. They leave behind a space that never completely fills back in. I was in physical pain both times mourning them. I found Mango myself and its something I'll never forget. He had a UTI, his vet said he was safe to go home with meds (he was SO stressed out staying overnight he kept ripping his IVs out, they felt he would be MUCH more comfortable at home). He quite literally passed that same night. I think it was time, and he just waited until he could see his mom and dad again. I would collapse in my own tears and fall to the ground after going into the bathroom I had found him forever sleeping. Honest, I was so, so glad to move out of that house. Kilo, my heart dog. My hardest puppy and my most well-behaved adult. It still kills me thinking of him, thinking if he had shown symptoms sooner maybe we could have saved him, removed the kidney tumor and prevent disease spreading. These animals grab us with everything they have and rip our hearts and souls out when they leave this world... but it makes me feel better knowing I'll see them again someday.

Along the way, we welcomed Lyric, my German Shepherd, and after losing Kilo, we eventually rescued Ino (pronounced E-no), our Husky/German Shepherd mix. Today, our house is home to four dogs, five cats, a gecko, a snake, and a group of fish. So... there's never a shortage of fur, paws, scales, or chaos around here!!

Rewinding a little bit, 2019 was really the year that changed the direction of my entire life. After bathing at a salon for about a year, I was given the opportunity to be trained as a dog groomer by an incredible mentor. At the time, I had absolutely no idea just how much that opportunity would end up changing my life. Grooming gave me the ability to move out on my own. It gave me some of my closest lifelong friendships. It gave me relationships with clients and their dogs that I still treasure years later. It became more than just a job or career. It was where this lifelong obsession with dogs finally turned into something I could actually build my life around. And, somehow, grooming even led me to Josh. When I really think about it, every part of the life I have now can be traced back in some way to that one opportunity. I'll forever be grateful to the woman who took a chance on me and started all of this... even if I DID miss my very first interview seven years ago. Oops... (she forgave me and we laugh now).

These days, I'm incredibly grateful for the life we've built and all the animals I get to share it with. Home is definitely where I'm happiest, usually with at least two dogs and some cats either on or next to me. Seriously.. sometimes the cats love to lay on my face, I am their personal bed I guess? Every single animal in this house has their own little piece of my heart. Even the snake... who I am still not entirely comfortable with. Sorry, Pinto.

Outside of grooming, a huge part of my life right now is training and working with Lyric. I LOVE talking about dog sports, conformation shows, and encouraging people to get out there and try things with their dogs, even if they have absolutely no idea what they're doing when they start. Lyric is currently a prospect for bite work, and we're working toward her first breed-specific working title, the BH. In simple terms, the BH (Begleithundprüfung) is a temperament and obedience test developed in Germany. Before German Shepherds, and many other working breeds, can move on to advanced working titles like IGP, they first have to pass their BH. It tests things like obedience, stability, control, and how trustworthy and manageable the dog is in a public environment. We're hoping to trial for ours in October! In the meantime, we'll keep dabbling in other sports, training, and conformation along the way.

Dogs have somehow managed to weave themselves into almost every part of my life, from the little girl running barefoot around Pennsylvania with everyone else's dogs, to the groomer, dog-sport nerd, and crazy animal lady I am now. Turns out six-year-old me might have been onto something. ❤️

Wish Lyric and I luck in October!