Grooming salon called out for using cable tie to muzzle dog
A pet groomer has apologised and announced she is closing down her business after she was called out for using cable ties to muzzle dogs.
Dog owner Lim Zhiyi took to Facebook on June 29 to warn others of her experience at First Class Pets at Jalan Jurong Kechil.
She had arrived earlier to pick up her Japanese Spitz named Mochi up when she saw a horrifying sight.
"I saw my dog's muzzle tied up by something that looked like a cable tie," she said.
Salon owner Kimberly Khoo reportedly admitted to using a cable tie after probing by Ms Lim.
Ms Lim shared that the cable tie left a deep mark on her dog's muzzle area, indicating how tight and uncomfortable it was.
She said Ms Khoo explained that her dog had a high tendency to bite and had to be muzzled.
While Ms Lim understood, she took issue with the fact that a proper muzzle was not used and that she was not informed of such a practice until she started asking questions.
That was when Ms Khoo reportedly showed her a video of cable ties used on other dogs.
She also allegedly told Ms Lim that she had tried many types of muzzles and found cable ties worked best for First Class Pets.
"Aren't professional groomers supposed to have relevant skills to handle pets properly and do what is best for the pets instead of what is best for themselves?" asked Ms Lim.
She added that if any pet owners had been informed of such practices beforehand, she doubts they would have been comfortable with their pets getting tied up with cable ties.
On June 30, Ms Khoo responded to the incident in the Dogs Singapore Facebook group.
She apologised and said she had "many regrets" about the choices she made as the owner of First Class Pets. She admitted she could have better handled the conversation with Ms Lim.
Ms Khoo clarified that the groomer who used the cable was not her and she found out cable ties being used only after being questioned by Ms Lim.
"My groomer did explain to me that the cable tie was not a regular one, it has a quick release and the dog could still pant," she wrote.
She added that she reprimanded the groomer and told him not to use such methods. If a dog was too aggressive, he should have notified the owner that he could not groom it.
Ms Khoo said her second mistake was when she tried to explain how a quick-release cable tie works by showing Ms Lim a video of a pomeranian named Teddy.
"It was also my fault to blabber an explanation during our conversation to protect the groomer," she said.
It is not standard practice to use cable ties and she said First Class Pets uses regular muzzles on aggressive dogs.
She also took the blame for not completing the grooming herself and allowing her groomer to complete the final trim while she attended to another dog.
Ms Khoo explained that she just wanted to share her side of the story and understood that the salon was at fault for "making very bad decisions".
She ended her post by saying she would take full responsibility for the incident by shutting down First Class Pets "to work on ourselves to be better and do better".
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