In the beginning....

For the first blog I wanted to touch on who I am, and why I choose to groom dogs. My name is Rebecca Reckling. I have always had a variety of animals around me. Growing up on a dairy farm, we had about every farm animal at one point, along with a variety of house pets. Dogs, cats, guinea pigs, birds, iguanas and the list goes on. Life just didn't seem right without some kind of animal living with me and needing care. And so began my passion for animals.

I continued my passion for animals at College of the Ozarks and majored in Animal Science and Agribusiness. Upon graduating I worked at several dairy farm positions however, life took another path. With the low milk prices and high prices of feed along with a drought at that time, the dairy farming industry was no longer an option for me. So I went looking for my next passion. My pets!

I've always had pets and those that needed haircuts. We usually shaved all our dogs "naked" not having the money to pay a groomer and the dog still needing to be kept clean. However, Skiba was the first that really needed some major TLC in the hair department. And during this time going out to pet events and such was becoming something of interest to me. Skiba couldn't be going looking like a "ragga muffin". Still not having the funds for grooming I began my journey of what to do with this hair. I had fought with his hair trying to make him look pretty when in reality it just wasn't. At which point I had an epiphany. Dog grooming!

Skiba's first groom from me with no grooming school or experience

After schooling and experience but always learning more

I applied at Petsmart, and was offered to be hired on as a bather. However,I had also applied as a zoo keeper. Thinking I was going to get the zoo keeping position I turned down the job at Petsmart. Stupid! Time went by and I found work with Family Services which has done me very well. However, the grooming bug kept picking at me. With a marriage on the way and Justin being in the military I needed something that would easily travel. So I enrolled in Animal Behavior College.

During this time of schooling I was married and Justin (husband) was relocated to Fort Bliss Tx/ El Paso Tx. After completing my book work I moved to El Paso Tx where I completed my externship in Socorro Tx. I graduated with honors and was hired on at the salon where I completed my externship. After a bit I decided to go to Petco and worked there until we were told that Justin was to be honorably discharged from service.

Working in a family shop and then at Petco and volunteering my time with a master groomer I learned a lot about what works for me and what I think is the best for the dogs I am seeing including my own. So when we got word that Justin was done in the military and we are going home I decided a home based salon was the best fit.

My travel buddy for grooming trade shows.

So all said and done, Skiba was my first reason for grooming and continues to help me better my education and skill set throughout my journey.