KE
Kiara Escoffie
Jul 24, 2026
*This is my personal experience*
My husband and I took our 95lb male Bernese Mountain Dog mix (Koda) in at 11:00AM on July 23rd. The groomer was running late with a previous client, which I understand sometimes appointments run longer than expected but I’m sure Koda sat there waiting his turn. We spoke with the groomer and requested specific services (deshedding, dematting, shaving the belly/sanitary area, trimming paws, legs, and tail) and explicitly noted matting on his back end and belly. We requested prior updates before any extra shaving took place. Hours later (2:37PM), an employee called and repeatedly misgendered Koda as "her" (that goes to show how much they pay attention to their clients). She was incredibly rude and spoke to us with such a horrible attitude. She said they had been working on Koda for HOURS they’d spent WAY TOO MUCH TIME on him already (3hrs, at most, is way too long for a breed and dog his size? 🤨). The employee basically accused us of neglect, claiming she knows for a fact that Koda strictly lives outside in 100° weather because “she” was full of foxtails & ”her” coat was so severely damaged, well beyond repair. We DO NOT neglect our dogs. I just paid close to $7,000 to have one undergo eye surgery and over $5,000 to have my other dog undergo surgery to have masses removed. They’ve both had a long recovery, it hasn’t been easy on any of us, especially with having our first baby. Unfortunately, grooming Koda wasn’t at the top of our list until now. They are NOT outside dogs, they DO go outside to use the bathroom, we go on walks OUTSIDE.
The rude employee issued an ultimatum: we either pay a significantly higher, unspecified amount “well above” the initial $150 we were told OR they completely shave Koda. My husband calmly told that woman not to proceed because we do NOT want Koda shaved completely and we do not want to pay an unspecified “significantly higher amount”. She was adamant we only had those two options. He picked him up within 5-10 minutes. We were charged $170.
Even though we said NO to shaving, Koda's back was shaved without authorization or consent. I’m sure that employee took it upon herself to start when we hung up with her but couldn’t finish because my husband got there very very fast. The requested trims for his legs, paws, and tail area were left incomplete. If that person would have approached the situation differently, kindly, maybe with a “Hey Koda needs a break from grooming, keep up with brushing at home and bring him back in a few days and we’ll finish the job on our end.” OR “Hey what do you think about spot shaving some areas?” I wouldn’t mind discussing other options and paying for those services.
I’ved worked for the government for 11 years so I know laws, rules & regulations fairly well. For everyone out there. Know your rights! ***Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act (UCSPA)*** violations:
1. Charging Unagreed - Upon Fees
Utah Code § 13-11-4(2)(r):
It is a deceptive act to charge a consumer for a transaction or a portion of a transaction that has not previously been agreed to by the consumer.
2. Performing Unauthorized Services
Utah Code § 13-11-4(2)(r) & Utah Admin. R152-11:
Suppliers cannot perform paid services or alterations that exceed the initial agreement without obtaining express customer authorization.
*VIOLATION: They shaved Koda’s back!
3. Misrepresenting Provided Services
Utah Code § 13-11-4(2)(e):
It is deceptive to represent that a service has been supplied in accordance with a previous representation when it has not.
*VIOLATION: They charged full pricing while failing to provide all the initial requested services (trimming paws, legs, and tail).
Pictures of my “neglected dog with severely damaged coat that needs to be shaved”. I brushed out most of the mats they left on him. I do appreciate the good work they did, I know it’s not easy but horrible customer service, accusing me of being a bad owner and demanding to shave my dog is not the way to go.