Carol (her alias) and I met at the park, not my neighborhood park, but the one to the east of me. She drove up behind me. She looked exactly like her picture: a pretty young woman, corn-rowed hair wrapped stylishly in a colorful head wrap. I checked out her car interior and noticed the car seat. That’s right she said she was a single mother. And then, I handed her the most precious item I own. I followed her in my car as she drove the two blocks to her shop, so new to her that there wasn’t even signage outside. But just as she said, it was right next to the local fire station. Today, a handful of firemen stood outside, next to the fire truck. I watched as Carol wrapped my property in her arms and swiftly walked into the furthest door to the left of the green building. Carol closed the door and inside with her was my most special possession, my pup, Fiona.

Carol, a dog groomer, reached out to me a few days before after I had reached out to her several weeks before. Fiona was way overdue for a grooming. In fact, when the stay-at-home order went into place and all non-essential businesses were ordered to close down, 303 Pet Salon, our long-time groomer, shut down immediately. I texted Nichole, our groomer, and asked her to come to my house, noting she could groom Fiona in the back yard. “I’ll wash her inside and hand her off to you, “  I said. No go.

It’s not that I care about having a white poofy pup. It’s just that Fiona mattes. All over. And as much as I brush, she still mattes. And then Fiona starts gnawing at the spots that she is matting. And that’s what was happening. Now, I don’t encourage people to disobey the rules, but heck, Hobby Lobby was staying open, considering itself essential, so why not my dog groomer? Couldn’t they stretch it?

Besides the matting, I was worried about the hair growing between her nails, her waxy, ears, her nails scratching my paper-thin skinned-legs, and the need to express her anal glands, as evidenced by her daily butt walk. I called around. Mobile units were shutting down. I thought I was set with Rover.com but they cancelled. I found some names on nextdoorneighbor.com (including Carol’s), called and pleaded my case, but was turned down. I called Fiona’s vet. No grooming services. I called Alameda East hospital. Yes, they would trim nails but it would be considered an emergency visit and cost $120. Oh. My. Goodness.

So, I gave Fiona a Trazadone (her prescription, not mine), and trimmed….the hair above her paws, the hair behind her legs where she mattes so much. When I realized I almost cut her bone I was so horrified I gave my drowsy dog an extra string cheese treat and vowed not to put scissors near her body again. And I sent Nichole a text.

And then Carol called back. They are extending the stay-at-home order until April 30, she said. She had been emailing and calling both the mayor’s office and the Governor’s office arguing that dog grooming is essential, with no success. She agreed to groom Fiona. But under her conditions. I agreed. I was a little nervous handing over my sweetie, but my gut told me Carol was a caring groomer who understood dogs…and their owners. And she’s won me over as a new customer.

On our walk last night and then this morning, people noticed. “Where did you get Fiona groomed?” they asked. My lips are sealed.