There’s a new van in town! The driver is Kate Stone, a licensed and certified professional dog groomer and the owner of Kate’s K-9 Grooming, LLC. Her mobile business is based out of Mead but serves clients in Berthoud.

Photo by Sue Arnott – Kate Stone alongside her dog-grooming van.

Stone began her trade working for a national pet store. The store sent her to a dog-grooming academy in Castle Rock where she earned a certificate and later managed the store’s grooming salon. After 15 years of perfecting her craft, she decided to launch her own business. It was early 2020. She found a fixed location in the coming-soon Mead Town Centre that was under construction. Not long after that, her husband lost his job in the pandemic. Construction delays affected the Town Centre’s development. Uncertainty rarely puts food on the table, so Stone took a more definite route. “I decided to do a mobile business. I knew the Covid market could sustain it. I figured it was now or never.”  She figured right.

She purchased a used and fully-loaded dog-grooming van complete with heating, cooling, insulation and a hydraulic lift for safe floor-to-bath transfers and Kate’s K-9 Grooming LLC was off! Her first stop was a pet event where she gave free “peticures” and found her first clients. Word-of-mouth did such an efficient job of advertising, she now has a waiting list.

“I never say I’m not taking new clients,” she was quick to say. “Just last month four of my clients moved from the area. Things can change quickly in this business. When they do, I go to my wait list and work from there first.”

A life-long dog-lover who is active with Mile High Canine Rescue, Stone loves what she does. As anyone who works with animals knows, they can be unpredictable. Some dogs may exhibit behavioral issues. They may not like shampooing. They may snap if pushed beyond their comfort level. Stone understands. She takes her time. “Animals need patience. They need understanding. Dogs do not act out of malice,” she explains. “They act out of fear.” But she does not.

“I’m one of few in the area who does large breeds,” Stone said. “There’s no breed I won’t take.” She shares stories of Troutman, a 200-pound mastiff that recently passed and broke her heart to a pint-sized Yorkshire terrier that nipped her—the only time she’s been bit—and made her smile. “Some dogs need the extra snuggles or treats. If they show any fear, I go slow.”  The quiet, gentle treatment and the ease of a home-visit makes for a less stressful grooming event for dogs and their owners.

Stone once specialized in Bedlington terriers—those lamb-like pups—but many of her current clients have doodles of some sort. “Doodles need daily brushing. I see a lot of matted doodles. While they may shed less, they still have a lot of hair.” For those that shed more…Labs, are you listening?…Stone offers a shed-less treatment along with other services. The length of a home visit depends on the size and breed. Small dogs typically take one hour, larger dogs can take up to three. A complete list of services, pricing and policies is on her website.

To learn more about Kate’s K-9 Grooming LLC and to claim a spot on her waiting list, go to https://www.katesk9grooming.com/