Happy tails to you ... A new salon offers DIY bathing for dog clients

SALISBURY — Sick of trying to lure your dog into the tub for a shampoo? Tired of never quite getting all the yick out of the drain afterward? Fed up with Fido escaping your grasp and heading for the living room for a good post-bath shake?

If so, head over to Ultimate Dog Spa and Boutique on Academy Street (near LaBonne’s grocery store) and wash your pet in one of the rental tubs there. Or drop the animal off for a full-service wash, haircut, manicure and/or deshedding.

Jennifer and Chris Tompkins have been in the dog grooming business for a while — Chris with the Doggone Clean mobile  truck you may have seen around the area. His wife, Jennifer, and Amanda Hohman are 12-year veterans of the Sand Road Animal Hospital.

They own 11 dogs between them.

Chris emphasized that Ultimate Dog is a complete service, for any sort of breed. “And they keep coming up with new ones,� he added with a laugh.

The shop uses all-natural, environmentally friendly shampoos and soaps.

“No chemical flea dips here,� he promised.

Ultimate Dog also carries nutritious and filler-free dog foods. Chris urges dog owners to try a raw diet for their animals, and foods with a wide variety of proteins, including rabbit, salmon, duck.

Yak, even.

Tompkins explained that dogs can develop allergies when fed the same proteins over and over.

There are also dyes, byproducts and fillers in standard dog food, and the stuff is often so processed that much of the nutritional value is gone by the time the chow hits the bowl.

And with the improved diet (and the investment in the higher-priced food), Tompkins said that dogs will experience fewer ear and skin infections andstomach problems, and weight management will be easier.

“It’s going back to the heritage of the wolves.�

And, ultimately, owners will save on veterinary bills.

“Groomers are the first source for catching infections and hot spots,� he said.

The store also sells dog treats, toys and every sort of leash known to dogkind.

Hours are Tuesday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Sunday 8 a.m. to noon (no grooming on Sundays). The self-serve dog wash is $25; there is no set price for washing and grooming services (it depends on the dog). Call 860-435-8353 for more information.