Hey groomers and bathers,

I am looking for some feedback on the true #1 issue in salon currently.

Is it black mold? No AC? Not enough space?

Name your #1 concern. Share the post!

OR up vote a concern and share the post!

Remember:

The last thing Corporate wants is us talking about our issues, so let's do just that to show them we know our rights.

Everyone deserves better working conditions.

Wow. Things kicked off on March 21, 2026 and here I am trying to do another union push for the entire corporation.

I need some support from active union members. I'm not stupid for doing this, right?

If AJ Ross (CBS) is pushing for stricter regulations for grooming salons, it's worth my time to post about how the grooming tables being overcrowded is a violation of General Duty Clause 5a1, right? Her push is called "Kobe's Law." I am trying to ensure she sees the Union movement. Any tips for getting legislators involved?

Most importantly, I need some help getting my coworkers to rally behind the union push. They all have complaints. What is the best way to get that momentum going?

Wow. I thought the grooming salon situation was bad.

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But, no, this is bad. Petsmart... are we trusting Creekside to change?

Trigger warning: Animal cruelty (euthanasia methods)

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3.153(a)(1)(i)

Primary enclosures.

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Approximately 25% of the breeding cages (primary enclosures) had sharp points associated with water access. Water access is via nipple waterers that is shared by two cages. To allow access to both cages the wire mesh dividing the cages is cut next to the water nipple. The cut wire results in a sharp point that could injury the bird.

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Enclosures with sharp points can result in injury to the animals

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The facility must remove the sharp points from the enclosures which could injure the birds.

To be corrected by May 21, 2026.

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3.153(a)(2)

Primary enclosures.

A primary enclosure for fledgling birds housing an approximate 50 birds had insufficient perching space.

The enclosure had two perches, measuring approximately 10 and 18 inches. The licensee stated that some perches had been removed because the birds chewed on them. A lack of perching puts strain on the bird’s feet and legs. Birds that rest by perching must be provided with a sufficient number of perches to comfortably hold all the birds in the primary enclosure at the same time, including birds that are ranked low in a dominance hierarchy.

To be corrected by May 12, 2026.

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3.158(a)(1)

Cleaning, sanitization, housekeeping, and pest control.

Unsanitary conditions were observed in and around budgie cages and on water lines, characterized by heavy accumulation of droppings, feather dust, seed hulls, and old food. Perches and bars are covered in caked-on waste, and cage floors contain feces-covered broken and intact eggs along with significant piles of dried and fresh feces. Such accumulation is detrimental to budgie health. Excreta and food waste must be removed from the primary enclosures and from under and around primary enclosures as often as necessary to prevent excessive accumulation of feces and food waste, to prevent soiling of the birds contained in the primary enclosure, and to reduce disease hazards, insects, pests, and odors.

To be corrected by May 19, 2026.

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3.158(b)(1)

Cleaning, sanitization, housekeeping, and pest control.

Facility personnel stated that they do not sanitize the cages the birds are housed in. Not sanitizing cages can pose a significant health risk to the birds. Primary enclosures and food and water receptacles for birds must be sanitized as often as necessary to prevent accumulation of dirt, debris, food waste, excreta, and other disease hazards.

To be corrected by May 19, 2026

I think they are still technically on the stance that I did not need to involve the police. They would have handled it!

They did a great job handling it. Truly.

Except telling me I didn't need to go to the police. Saying I need to be "more forgiving," give people "second chances" and "investigate" why people do things. (Wow. What do you think Pet Trainers do for their jobs??)

Let's be clear:

There are no internal policies that can actually protect me from forgery. But the police can! So I don't regret it for one moment.

Hey everyone,

I am so pissed off at Corporate that I am taking them on directly. Not my store. The entire fucking Corporation.

Not gonna lie, this was gonna happen sooner or later, but I am not a groomer and need yall to tell me what is going on.

At my store, working conditions that need to change are:

• Trainers integrated into salon (make it easier to obtain help so you don't ... kill a dog?)
• More work space, less tables; no overcrowding to increase profit
• Reduce the number of dogs they need to take on to be considered "good" at their jobs

The best way to get anything fixed will be to unionize, regardless of what Corporate claims in their "Pro Associate" policy. We have not been -- and never were -- able to create an appropriate work environment without a union involved. You showed me that in my conversations with you.

Go fuck yourself, Corporate!

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If you feel up for a union push:

What are some working conditions at your store's salon that you would like to see change?

I had a deeply disturbing experience with the grooming department. My young, healthy dog, who has been to two other PetSmarts regularly for grooming experienced a seizure (has never had one before), a cut on his face, and a ripped off toenail after his grooming visit and was rushed to the emergency room.

PetSmart has been cagey with information, stories are not lining up, no one actively reached out to me after the incident. The district manager, Brett, has been condescending and sketchy with the information he is sharing, completely downplaying the experience. The vet report states my dog had a hypoxic event from the way he was leashed and they believe this is what caused his seizure.

I am absolutely disgusted by each person who I have spoken with here. No empathy or care from a team of people who work with pets regularly - I will never go back and am hoping corporate can help with the situation.

What would you do in this situation outside of working with corporate and leaving a bad review?

(Credit to u/Feel-A-Great-Relief for creating this list. I wanted to share it as its own post to help boost feedback.)

Working list of enforceable union demands. Reply with suggestions.

Note: Document still work in progress, subject to revisions

This list was formed after speaking with dozens of petsmart workers. I would love to hear your feedback! Message 

STORE ASSOCIATES DEMANDS:

• $17.50 minimum wage, higher in areas with higher cost of living
• Annual 5%, inflation adjusted, raises
• Minimum guarantee of 25 hours per week for part time workers
• Affordable health, vision, & dental insurance for workers working 20 hours per week for past 3 months
• Any job promotions MUST include pay raise commensurate with additional responsibilities
• Paid lunch breaks
• Minimum of 6 associates on the floor (cashiers included) per shift
• 12 weeks parental leave
• Flea treatment free or heavily discount for employees to prevent employees bringing fleas to work (Employees more likely to foster stray animals
• Associates CANNOT be reprimanded for following store policy, despite customer complaints at associates following policy (Ex: Sale refusal)
• Fully stocked PPE for associate’s duties and easy to said PPE (PPE examples: gloves, eye protection, aprons, masks, ect)

CASHIERS DEMANDS:

• Minimum of 2 cashiers per shift to handle long lines of customers (TIRED OF BEING ONLY CASHIER ON FLOOR—TOO MUCH TO DO!)
• Chairs!
• Can take 15s & lunch

PETCARE DEMANDS:

• Minimum of 2 pet care workers per shift to properly care for store animals
• 1 hour overlap between shifts to ensure proper handoff of petcare responsibilities
• Species appropriate habitats for pets sold
• Better equipment for pet care
• Higher standard of animal care for animal breeder vendors
• Petcare workers CANNOT be expected to do vet tech work as substitute for ACTUAL vet care
• Higher pay commensurate with the additional pet receiving duties & increased technical work of pet care workers
• Longer and more complete training for pet care workers
• All managers MUST be trained on how to safely medicate animals and how ISO works.

STORE DEMANDS:

• Higher budget for building maintenance
• Clean source of drinking water for employees
• Store repairs must be timely and permanent (No more temporary patches that continuously fail). Work orders (excluding emergencies) must be completed in 7-14 business days
• Supply shortages notifications instead of not sending any product at all. Many eastern stores are dealing with a cleaning chemical shortage

PET HOTEL DEMANDS:

• Overnight pet hotel staff MUST be reinstated to ensure pet safety

DOG TRAINERS DEMANDS:

• 50% commission on classes sold, which is industry standard & commensurate with work load
• Higher budget for training supplies to ensure trainers no longer must purchase own supplies
• More administrative time for contacting PPs, filing paperwork, & selling classes
• Additional time for studying material and creating lesson plans
• Clearly defined path for bringing demo dog to work

SALON DEMANDS:

• Pass holiday & weekend surcharge onto salon workers rather than corporate keeping it
• Higher pay
• Better equipment
• Workers no longer expected buy consumables, like cologne
• Reimbursed for past salon purchases
• No longer pay for repair & maintenance of equipment
• Stools
• Having one dedicated bather/groomer per shift who isn’t booked and can handle walk-ins
• Reinstatement of the salon manager position
• Groomers required to take legally mandated breaks. Management no longer pressures them to work through breaks
• No more overbooking/double booking on the groomers
• Groomers GET commission
• If PP demands refund, still give the groomer base level/hourly and not remove what they earned entirely.
• Requiring pet parents to put in a credit card to have their dog groomed. Currently if the PP doesn’t pay the stylist doesn’t get paid.
• Ease of refusal for dogs
• Remove where it says extra brushing fee for doodles and go ahead and establish that in the price, PP’s frequently complain about that.
• Proper education (such as pamphlets) for PP’s on their dog’s coat types and how to care for it + how to desensitize their puppy to certain tools/sounds

CURBSIDE, STORE PICKUP ORDERS, & SHIP FROM STORE DEMANDS:

• Create dedicate position to handle large volume of curbside, store pickup, and ship from store orders

ALWK (Associate Lead With Keys) DEMANDS

• Same protection as other managers

CEL, ASL, & MIL DEMANDS:

• Upcoming restructure CANNOT demote or let go any current CELs, ASLs, or MILs
• Any replacement positions must pay equal to, or greater than, current positions
• Compliance with 15 minute breaks for managers, no more skipping breaks
• Job responsibilities must be dispersed evenly between managers

HR DEMANDS:

• All HR investigations must be completed within a timely manner

CALL CENTER DEMANDS:

• Outside, third-party consultants MUST be brought in to address rampant sexual harassment & other abuses by management
• $17.50 minimum wage
• Annual 5%, inflation adjusted, raises
• Affordable health, vision, & dental for workers working 20 hours per week for past 3 months
• Any job promotions MUST include pay raise commensurate with additional responsibilities
• Proper training on new systems and tools and/or following promotion
• 12 weeks parental leave