Man’s best friend enjoys royal touch

It seems people in Bunbury love to pamper their pets with the level of competition for dog grooming businesses burgeoning over the past five years.

According to dog grooming businesses spoken to by the Bunbury Herald, canines are viewed by most pet owners as extensions of their families with treats like outside excursions and ‘‘babysitting’’ regular requests.

Co-owner of D for Dog Shirley Raabe said her dog grooming business was booming, with a waiting list of up to five months for people wanting to pamper their pet.

The business will be employing more people to help it groom, pamper, cut, trim and wash more than 20 canines a day, with that number growing.

‘‘People are very fussy about what their dogs look like, they treat them like babies,’’ Ms Raabe said.

Alpha Pets owner Lisa North agreed, saying while people owned less pets, they spent more on pampering the ones they had.

‘‘They are definitely becoming more part of the family rather than something you keep outside,’’ she said.

One dog groomer said the number of dog grooming businesses in town ballooned eight-fold from when he entered the market four years ago.

According to the Franchise Council of Australia mobile dog grooming businesses are particularly on the rise with the likes of Aussie Pooch Mobile Dog Wash and Grooming, Paws Mobile Dog Wash, South West Pets, Happy Houndz Mobile Dog Wash, and Hound Dog Hairdressing all entering the market in Bunbury in recent years.