We’re all about family here at Good Dog, so when one of our nearest and dearest makes a big career move, we like to celebrate it and spread the news. This year, one of our veteran front-desk staffers graduated from Carmel’s Animal Arts Academy and became the newest addition to our grooming team.

Veronique Brown — known around here as “V” — joined Good Dog in November 2009 and has worked the front desk since January 2010. V is fantastic with animals, but last year she decided to combine her love of dogs with her artistic side and enrolled in the academy, Indiana’s only state-accredited school for grooming. After lots of studying and training, she passed her courses with flying colors and started grooming part-time at Good Dog.

V quickly took to the trade and is now a full-timer. Considering the fantastic display of canines we see every day, she has already sharpened her skills on some intricate and unusual breeds, including Barrett the giant schnauzer (above). Her happiest moments are when a dog owner is pleased with her work, but she also loves seeing dogs in the bathtub – there’s something about a wet soapy pup that makes her smile.

The job did throw her a few surprises at first … one being the level of physical activity involved in each groom, another being the massive amount of trust required from the dogs (something V holds very dear). It’s not surprising when you consider the tools and noises involved in even the simplest haircut, so her goal is to build long-term relationships with her clients – that way, each time they visit, they become more and more comfortable with the process.

At home, V is the proud momma of Simba the pom and Nala the dach-pom mix, and wife to Kevin. Dogs have always been a permanent fixture in her life – one of her very first memories was being “kissed” by her family’s giant German Shepherd in her home country of Belgium. Like everyone else at Good Dog, she can’t imagine her life without dogs. She’s incredibly thankful she found the perfect career, and equally thankful for her trainers at the academy: certified master groomer Barb Ellery, her son Kevin Stewart and his wife, Kristie.

We’re so very proud of V’s newfound talent and feel lucky to have her as part of our family. You can take a look at some of her work below. And if you ever have any questions about grooming, feel free to call talk to any of our groomers the next time you’re in for a visit. Or you can call us at 317.255.2525 and we’ll do our best to chat with you about the fine art of dog grooming!