The Laundro-Mutt grooming up Washington’s canines

Like most kids, Alyssa Whittemore grew up wanting to work with animals. However, after trying her hand at vet tech school, she felt she was more suited to be a groomer and has opened her own business, The Laundro-Mutt, in Washington to start her career.

'Growing up I had a lot of animals, my mom was always getting me little animals like hamsters. I've always just liked them since I was a kid,” she said.

That passion lead her to Kirkwood to pursue the veterinarian technician program, but after taking a closer look at the math, science and biology required she decided it was not the right fit.

'Then I found out the grooming program was only a year program and I thought I should try that and see if I like it before I really dig deep in the vet program,” she said. 'So I did that, and I loved it.”

The program focused on not only teaching grooming tips and processes, but how to run a businesses also, she said. The yearlong course was almost like a job itself as there was a technical course that taught hands on grooming twice a week and was four hours long as well as class everyday, five days a week.

Because the class is only a year long, the program got started with the hands on side immediately, she said. The instructor brought in real animals for them to work on, which was nerve wracking Whittemore said.

They learned the basics first, cleaning ears, trimming nails and giving baths, then worked their way up to hair cutting. After graduating from the program, she was a sales manager at Petsmart and spent time in their grooming center to learn more.

After leaving that job, she went to Petco to become the salon leader then moved onto another small salon where she did independent contracting work as a groomer. After being there a year, she decided she liked the independence of owning her shop and branched out on her own.

Originally from New Hampshire, Whittemore moved with her family to Iowa after high school. The community has been supportive so far, she said, as word-of-mouth spreads about her services.

Deciding to open her own place was a scary decision, she said, but once she would encourage people to try. She said the hardest part was not knowing how to do everything from a corporate standpoint, but has a great support system from her family that has helped her master it.

The best part of owning the business, she said, is being able to make it her own and decorate it herself. Being right in town is also a perk, she said, because she is glad to be able to provide affordable, convenient care for animals in the area.

'It is just the biggest sense of pride you could ever feel in that way,” she said of owning her own place. 'Just having it be your own ... the feeling is just really incredible.”

In addition to dogs, Whittemore also offers grooming services for cats. Providing for animals is her passion, she said, and there's no better place to do it than in Washington.

'I love what I do,” she said.

The Laundro-Mutt is located at 1414 E. Washington Street in Washington. Appointments can be made at 319-460-0701 and more information can be found on Facebook at The LaundroMutt-Grooming w/ Alyssa.