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NYC Groomer ‘The Dogfather of Harlem’ Helps Cash-Strapped Pet Owners Through the Pandemic

He’ll soon take his efforts on the road for an eight-day tour.

Published

7 months ago

June 14, 2020

PETS+ Staff

A groomer in New York City found a creative way to help pets whose owners have taken a hit from the coronavirus pandemic.

Brian Taylor, owner of Harlem Doggie Day Spa, started a “pup relief fund,” CNN reports. Loyal clients have purchased gift cards to support the business and help others care for their pets. So far, Taylor has raised $2,000 and helped a dozen pet owners.

“Every month I’ve been giving two or three clients free grooming services,” said Taylor, who goes by the nickname “Dogfather of Harlem.” “In many cases the pets’ fur is severely matted because they’re well overdue for grooming.

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💚Thank you for booking a pup grooming service. I am doing my best to fit as many client as I can. Keep in mind we are working with limited staff and I love to take my time and groom your pup the right way. I am currently working 7 days a week and working off hours to rebuild my business. Please be patient and understanding during these difficult time. 💚🙏🏿 Please Note -All our appointments request are book online. In order to get an approval for grooming service please upload current vaccine records which includes updated Rabies, Distemper and Bordetella without these vaccine we can not groom your pup. 🎊Use Link in Bio to register or book a pup grooming 🎊
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A post shared by Harlem Doggie Day Spa – HDDS (@harlemdoggiedayspa) on May 30, 2020 at 4:04am PDT

Grooming has been a saving grace for Harlem Doggie Day Spa during the COVID-19 pandemic. The business provides daycare, boarding and walking, but had to put those services on hold when the state of New York forced non-essential businesses to temporarily close, CNN reports.

In July he plans to take his grooming efforts on the road, lending a hand to pet owners across the U.S. He’ll do an eight-day tour in his grooming van.

“Hopefully, in every city we can give away free products and teach people to reduce matting,” he told CNN.

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Hello HDDS Family, Due to the recent events overwhelming this nation I’ve received an outpouring of support from my clients and people all over the country wanting to support a black owned business or pay it forward to less fortunate pet parents. With these donations I created the Pandemic Pup Relief Fund(Covid -19 Pet Grooming Relief Fund) offering free grooming services to Pet Parents who have been fiscally impacted during this time. So far we have raised $2,000 and have been able to help countless pups! For the past 5 years, I’ve had a particular dream to one day use my mobile van to road trip across the USA offering pet grooming services to those in need. I believe that right now is the perfect time to launch this program!! I’ve decided to expand the Pandemic Pup Relief (Covid -19 Pet Grooming Relief Fund ) to help folks around the country. Most importantly, I want to use this opportunity to partner with and promote Black Owned Pet Business or Grooming companies. To do so, we would offer this free grooming service to the clients or community members that you choose. We would cross market on our social platforms. Additionally, we would collect high quality content to shop to the press in hopes of getting more buzz around the initiative and highlighting all that we as black owned dog groomers are doing to support our communities during this time. We will embark on an 8-city tour, on July 13-30, starting in NYC and ending in LA, see route attached. We are planning to stop in the 8 locations outlined but are open to route changes or additions depending upon interest and logistics. The hope is to completely fund this program through a GoFund me page. We can’t work through and finalize all those details until we have a better understanding of your interests and confirm the route details. To that end, if you are interested in participating DM. I’m also open to any ideas or suggestions for this program. Thanks.

A post shared by Harlem Doggie Day Spa – HDDS (@harlemdoggiedayspa) on Jun 3, 2020 at 5:45pm PDT

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PETS+ Staff

Since launching in 2017, PETS+ has won 16 major international journalism awards for its publication and website. Contact PETS+'s editors at editor@petsplusmag.com.