Texas pet grooming salons report rash of break-ins

by Gerald D. Moreno BEAUTY

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A string of break-ins at pet grooming salons over the past few weeks has some local business owners banding together.

KXAN spoke to owners who have shared surveillance videos of at least seven break-ins at their facilities between the end of June and the end of July.

So far, owners have confirmed the following break-ins, all occurring in the overnight hours. All but two have records with Austin Police Department online:

  • June 27: Mod Mutt Salon
  • July 2: Rainbow Paws Pet Salon
  • July 4: As the Fur Flies
  • July 11: Sniff Grooming Studio
  • July 23: Hair O’ the Dog Pet Salon
  • July 26: Barkin’ Creek Dog Kitchen & Bath- Zilker
  • July 29: Barkin’ Creek Dog Kitchen & Bath- South Lamar

“It’s sad,” said Eliana Thormann, who owns Mod Mutt Salon, which was broken into on June 27. “It’s not just the cash register that’s taken. It’s the emotional, you know, like how violated you feel.”

“You provide that business just to other people, you know, all the dog lovers, and then someone just take[s] advantage of you,” Thormann said.

She also owns Sniff Grooming Studio, which she said was broken into on July 11.

She said they didn’t have a lot of cash — about $600 total from both locations, but are also out a couple thousand dollars to pay for repairs out-of-pocket, since their deductible would’ve been higher.

“The whole ordeal, you know, rescheduling clients, vacuuming all the glass, you know, shattered on the ground. The dogs can’t walk through it safely,” Thormann said.

She said they hadn’t fully recovered from the pandemic at Sniff, and had decided to slowly shut that location down. But the break-in sped up their timeline.

“We just decided to close the shop

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