By Ofelia Saenz, Staff Writer
While some little girls grew up doing their doll’s hair, Margarita Lizarraga busied herself with her dog’s fur. It’s no wonder her dog Chucky, a spunky little toy poodle, prances about the Wrigley Pet Spaw sporting the only pink canine mohawk on the block.
Wrigley Pet Spaw will celebrate its one-year anniversary Friday, July 1. In the year since she opened the shop, Lizarraga, a pet groomer who has been practicing in Long Beach for more than 12 years, is proud of the friends she and Chucky have made.
“The animals are comfortable, I think, because of the environment and the way we treat them,” Lizarraga said.
Before opening her own pet grooming business, she developed a following by working in various other shops, including five years at Wags to Whiskers at Stearns and Bellflower in Long Beach.
Her own shop resembles a beauty shop as much as it does a pet groomer’s. With its high ceilings and white walls, the space is quaint but airy with lots of natural light flooding the room. As she chats, Lizarraga brushes a mesmerized and sleepy-eyed 9-year-old Saint Bernard mix named Junior.
“He’s a rescue dog,” she said. “The first time he came his owner stayed with him while we worked on him.” It didn’t take long, however, for both the owner and Junior to feel comfortable with Lizarraga and the dog now does great even in the absence of his owner.
For just such occasions, Lizarraga does all grooming out in the open so cautious clients can observe for themselves the interaction between groomers and pets and feel confident about the care their animals are receiving.
Wrigley Pet Spaw specializes in all-natural shampoos and products that help make life easier on both animals and their owners. When a pet arrives, Lizarraga generally inspects the animal and its skin and hair type to determine what products would be best.
One of the more popular services Wrigley Pet Spaw offers is the special shed-less treatment, which helps to reduce shedding in shorthaired dogs and cats from 60 to 80 percent. The shop also offers soft claws for cats, which are described as a humane and painless alternative to having a cat declawed.
Wrigley Pet Spaw is located at 2168 Pacific Avenue in Long Beach. For more information about their treatments or to make an appointment, call (562) 599-4205.
