Our co-founder and CEO, Keith Miller was just featured on the Ascent Podcast with Joe Burgess. He talks about his past career, the history of Bubbly Paws dog and where he sees it going. Click Here to listen.
KARE 11 - Hurricane Harvey Efforts
Keith Miller (co-owner) from Bubbly Paws and Pampered Pooch Playground was on KARE 11 News talking about the dogs that Good karma Animal Rescue brought back from Texas after Hurricane Harvey. Click here to see the available dogs.
KARE 11 - Cabin Tips For Your Pooch
We recently stopped into KARE 11 to share some great cabin tips for your pooch, and we brought an awesome dog up for adoption from SecondHand Hounds.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE SEGMENT.
Summer is cabin time for many Minnesotans, and if you’re taking your dog to the family retreat, safety is important.
Bubbly Paws co-owner Keith Miller shares five great tips to help keep your best friend healthy and happy:
1. Protect dog from bugs with
2. Bring life jacket for your dog
3. Provide water and shade
4. Make sure your pet has an ID tag
5. Bring first aid kit
Bubbly Paws is a self-service dog wash and growing salon with three locations in the Twin Cities.
Friday’s segment featured an American pit bull terrier named Mercedes. He needs a loving forever home.
Mercedes is available for adoption now through Secondhand Hounds.
WCCO TV
WCCO TV in Minneapolis stopped out to our Saint Louis Park store to check out the political poop bags we sell.
Jingle Dogs / St Louis Park Magazine
Jingle Dogs: Holiday Tips for Your Pooch
Bright lights, shiny decorations and lots of company can be stressful for your dog. Here are some tips to help make the holidays more joyful for both of you.
+If you’re leaving your dog behind, make boarding or doggy hotel reservations well in advance. If your facility offers doggy daycare, bring your pet a few times before your trip so he can get accustomed, and leave a few items that will remind him of home.
+Plan ahead for grooming; most shops fill up quickly before the holidays.
+Place candles out of tail’s reach!
+Make sure Fido has his own retreat if he’s easily overwhelmed by company.
+Place tinsel out of the reach of your dog and tape wires and cords down so she doesn’t get tangled in them.
+Keep your pooch away from wrapping paper and string, which can create blockages if swallowed.
+Avoid holly and poinsettia plants, which can be toxic to dogs if eaten.
—Keith Miller is the co-owner of Bubbly Paws Dog Wash and Pampered Pooch Playground in St. Louis Park.
QuickBooks Video Shoot
IMG_0604
I am so excited to announce that Intuit QuickBooks has selected Bubbly Paws dog wash and dog grooming as a small business to feature on their "Own It Everyday" small business video series. These videos will appear on their Facebook and other social media channels. Yesterday a film crew from LA come to our Saint Paul location to shoot our segments. We had so much fun filming with them and we even came up with a new "jingle" that you will start hearing on Bubbly Paws Radio (you know the station we play when you are bathing your pooch). We don't know when the videos will be released yet, but watch our Facebook page to be the first to know. The film crew was in Minneapolis for the past few days and also recorded segments at two other Minneapolis businesses, The Beez Kneez and Sociable Cider Works!
Have a great weekend!
Keith
Fedex Office Promo
This past December a video production team from Fedex Office stopped out to our Saint Louis Park dog wash to find out more about how we work and how FedEx Office has helped us become one of the premier dog washes in the country! We had so much fun shooting this video. One quick side note, the woman that was working at the FedEx Office store in the video is a not only a FedEx Office team member, but a real life Bubbly Paws customer! How cool is that?? Click Here to read more or watch the video below!
Paws on Grand / FOX 9
Todd Walker from FOX 9 stopped out to our Saint Paul dog wash to promote Paws on Grand.
Flexi Leash Dangers
Flexi Leash law in Minneapolis
Every now and then we have a customer ask "Why don't you carry Flexi or retractable leashes at Bubbly Paws?". We don't carry these types of leashes for many reasons; one of which is that I have seen too many injuries and incidents related to these types of leashes.
If you do use a Flexi Leash, please make sure to lock the leash at about 3 feet long when stopping into Bubbly Paws or other businesses to make sure your dog is easily controlled. Most cities including Minneapolis, Edina, Saint Paul, and Bloomington all have regulations saying the leash can't be longer than 6 feet. Just because your dog is friendly to other dogs and loves to run up and greet them, does not all dogs enjoy dogs running up to them. Always ask dog owners first before the dog runs up. Also, be very careful of getting burned by the Flexi Leash, I have a leash burn on my leg from a dog that was running into our doggy daycare on an unlocked leash. If you are looking for some great alternatives to flexi leashes, we have some great selections at Bubbly Paws. Do a quick image search on Google for "Flexi Leash Injury" and you will see the possible harm that can come to humans and dogs from these leashes. Below is a great article from the Dogginton Post about the Dangers of Flexi Leashes and how to use them responsibly.
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Flexi Leash Dangers
One of the most popular devices used to restrain dogs when taking them out for a walk is the retractable leash. Many owners, however, wonder if such a leash is appropriate or even safe to use. Well, the answer generally depends on a person’s reason for using the device. While there are several ways to utilize the retractable leash properly, it is important to remember that they also pose some danger to you and your dog if not used correctly.
Before using a retractable leash, make certain you’ve got one that’s strong enough to handle your dog. Dogs that have a tendency to bolt or take off running after perceived prey should never be restrained with a retractable leash. Aside from those dangers, there are other things to keep in mind when using one of these popular leashes.
What You Need to Watch Out For
· Prickling leash burns. Retractable leashes, especially the thin string variety, can very easily cause leash burns. This could happen when you let your pooch race past you with the retractable line zipped up across your bare skin. Unwarranted injuries, however, can be prevented if you try the flat, tape style retractable leash. · Entanglement or strangulation. Not only can retractable leashes burn us, they can also get twisted around a dog’s neck or legs. Worse, if your pooch panics and jerks the moment they get hog-tied; it could cause the leash to pull even tighter. Although you can loosen the cords that have wrapped around his neck, the situation could quickly become life-threatening. · Fatal accidents. There are times when our dogs dart away all of a sudden, and with a retractable leash on him, your dog might dart even farther, faster. Nevertheless, it’s the reeling that’s a serious issue here. It is possible that Fido may spot a squirrel or anything interesting across the street, and suddenly take off after it. If you’re not alert enough, his abrupt behavior and an un-sturdy retractable leash could put him smack on the road, right in front of a speeding car.
Other Things You Would Never Want to Happen
· The leash drops. Because these leashes rarely have a wrist strap and are sometimes heavy and bulky, dropping them is a regular occurrence. What’s worse, if you drop the handle, the lack of tension can send the heavy handle hurdling toward your dog. Not only could the heavy leash handle smack your dog in the head, if your dog is spooked by the leash handle zipping deafeningly toward him, he may take off running. · The cord is grabbed. If you grab the cord/tape while it is being pulled from the handle, you might suffer from immediate injury like cuts and burns. · The cord wraps around you. Poor handling can also cause the cord/tape to twist around you or someone else’s fingers resulting in deep wounds, or worse, amputation. · The collar breaks or comes off your dog. The moment this occurs, the leash could retract at top speed while the other end of the line whips around at the same full momentum leading to serious injuries to face, teeth, and eyes.
WCCO-TV at Bubbly Paws
WCCO-TV stopped out to Bubbly Paws Dog Wash and Dog Spa to talk about the self-service dog wash business. 5am Segment
6am Segment
What You Learn On Vacation
Marley Bear is one of the many dogs we got to meet while on vacation!
The past few days, Trycia and I were on vacation enjoying some warm weather and taking a few days to de-stress. I love going away because I feel it really gives me time to get away from both of our businesses, but also lets me focus more on how to improve what we are already doing and re-focus on things that we can improve on. I guess some of your best work can be done on the beach, drinking a cocktail while using an iPad (can you tell it is hard for me to disconnect). Anyway.... Many of our customers know how much we try to have our employees provide an amazing experience each time someone walks through the door.... Well, for once we were on the other side of it. Trycia wrote a Tripadvisor review of the hotel we were staying at, which was a very honest review. She gave the hotel 4 out of 5 stars and mentioned that not all of the hotel staff we extra friendly, but just were going through the motions of their job (nothing bad, nothing good, they were just there). She posted this review the day before we left. Our last morning at the hotel, 3 members of management (at different times) came up to us to make sure everything was ok. They mentioned they saw the review and wanted to know how they could improve. Each person we talked to really did care about the review, and they were not just going through the motions to make us happy. They comped our lunch and just wanted to make sure we left with a smile on our face, which we were already going to do before they talked to us! This was a great lesson in customer service for us, and made us think about how we would handle the same situation of we were running the hotel. All this being said, we had a great vacation, and would recommend this hotel to friends even before they reacted to the review we wrote.
I mention all of this because we always want to go above what is expected at Bubbly Paws, and 99% of the time we do! If there is ever an issue, please feel free to reach out to myself, or Lill (our general manager). We always want everyone to be happy when they leave (including the dogs). This blog post is not me asking people to go on Yelp, Facebook or Foursquare to write a review (Personal note, I am not a fan of review sites, and always take the reviews with a grain of salt, we can go into more detail about that another time), but let us know how we can make things better!
Have a great day, and we are so excited to be back in the snow!
Winter Dog Safety Tips
Twin Cities Live stopped out to Bubbly Paws Dog wash in Saint Paul to get some tips on how to keep your pooch safe this holiday season!
Saint Paul Dog Wash
We are so excited to finally be open at our Saint Paul location on Grand Avenue. For the longest time, Trycia and myself were looking for a great spot in Saint Paul, and we found it at the end of April! Construction started May 1st and finished last week. We have tried to bring many of the things people love at the Saint Louis Park location and incorporate them into the new dog wash! We have the same waist high tubs, professional equipment, locally made shampoo and our drying room. One thing that we wanted to remain the same was our level of customer service. All of our new staff have been trained at the Saint Louis Park location and are ready to help spoil your pooch! In addition we have Bri, who was doing some grooming with us the past 4 months, who will now be our full time dog groomer in Saint Paul! We are so excited that this store is open and can't wait for everyone to check it out! Yesterday was our first day with the Saint Paul dog wash being open and it was a huge success! We had so many people stop in to check it out and we even did a few baths! Our new space is at 949 Grand Ave, just a few blocks away from Anthropology and LuluLemon (shocking how everyone knows exactly where these stores are, and all those stores are dog friendly). A big thanks to Lill, our general manager of both locations, she has spent lots of time working hard to make sure everything works just right!
Thanks again for all of your support as we grow our small family business!
Keith
St Louis Park Magazine
We were proud to be chosen for the cover of the St Louis Park Magazine - Pet edition. Below you can read the article that featured Pampered Pooch Playground and Bubbly Paws.
Pampered Pooch Playground Owners: Trycia and Keith Miller Services: Dog day care, boarding
The tale:
Trycia and Keith Miller launched their dog day-care center five years ago. They initially opened it for their beloved Bernese mountain dog named Roxy. Today the Millers manage about 95 dogs per day at the Pampered Pooch Playground. They have three separate rooms for canine frolicking, including 11,000 square feet of climate-controlled indoor space and a 3,500-square-foot outdoor area. There are also luxury suites for the extremely pampered pooch.
“Minnesota is unregulated for doggie day care, so it’s a point of concern for dog owners,” Keith Miller says. “Someone could rent any old garage and put 60 dogs in it.” The Millers do everything they can to alleviate worry. Pampered Pooch is the first dog day care in the country to have iPhone, Android and Blackberry apps so owners can watch their pups at play, day and night. There are 11 live webcams streaming from the three playrooms and regular Facebook posts and tweets. The outside play area is made with recycled sports turf, which is ecologically appropriate and, unlike gravel or Astroturf, easy to clean.
“The St. Louis Park pet business network is really supportive,” Keith Miller says. “If someone had a fire or got sick, they could bring their dogs to us or I would go work at their place to help out.” Miller stays current on developments in the doggie care world and is a fan of the “busman’s holiday”: Whenever he travels, he stops by other pet care facilities to take notes on what they’re doing right and what he would like to avoid in his own establishment. “There’s a real difference in big-city day cares,” he notes, adding many have a less than fragrant smell. 7020 Walker St.; 952.922.8183; pamperedpoochplayground.com
Bubbly Paws
Owners: Trycia and Keith Miller Services: Self-serve or full-service dog washing, grooming Hangers-on: Roxy the Bernese mountain dog
The tale:
Bubbly Paws is the Millers’ laidback little brother to their high-maintenance big baby, the Pampered Pooch Playground. The Millers opened Bubbly Paws two years ago, mainly as place to wash their own Roxy, a 100-pound Bernese whose bulk and thick hair demand an elaborate bathing process. They nabbed a light and airy space in the busy Excelsior/Grand complex and outfitted it with five elevated step-in tubs with shower hoses, a grooming room and a drying room. Customers can bathe their dogs themselves or pay a bit more for a house shampoo.
The Millers are dedicated to the St. Louis Park community and even use a locally made shampoo, which is actually a reformulated horse shampoo. “I like it because it doesn’t smell fake or overpowering,” Keith says. “I mean, I’m a guy, so I couldn’t care less about smelling like flowers.” Nevertheless Bubbly Paws’ grooming services offer plenty of bling for their canine clients, including toenail polish and in one unusual case, a pink polka-dot dye job.
The couple loves the tight-knit animal owning community in St. Louis Park. “People know each others’ dog’s names. Everyone goes to the Dakota dog park and people recognize each other [from the dog park],” Keith Miller says. “I’ve seen love connections happen here. Seriously, if you were a single guy, why wouldn’t you get a dog?” Miller dreams about opening a pet rental business for hopeful single guys hanging around the dog park. In the meantime, “we just have fun here,” he says. “C’mon, it’s a dog wash!” Each month Bubbly Paws gives back to support a different pet rescue organization, donating $5 from each bath, and hosting creatively awesome occasions like doggie yoga and doggie happy hour. 3730 Grand Way; 952.657.5300; bubblypaws.com
Pet Friendly SLP
We also provided St Louis Park Magazine a list of some of the pet friendly businesses in St Louis Park:
Primp Hosts fundraisers for a local pet rescue 1628 West End Blvd.; 952.303.3791; primpyourself.com
Lululemon Stop in with your dog and get a treat 1639 West End Blvd.; 763.545.9069; lululemon.com
McCoy’s Public House Dogs can hang out and get treats on the patio 3801 Grand Way; 952.224.9494; mccoyspublichouse.com
Yum! Free house-made doggie treats 4000 Minnetonka Blvd.; 952.922.4000; yumkitchen.com
The Four Firkins Browse the local beer selection with your discerning pooch 5630 W. 36th St.; 952.938.2847; thefourfirkins.com
Galaxy Drive-In Bring your pooch while you enjoy a superb burger 3712 Quebec Ave S.;952.277.7777; galaxy-drivein.com
Frattallone's Ace Hardware Great nosing around for dog and man (or woman) 5025 Excelsior Blvd.; 952.456.6630; frattallones.com
Filament Lighting This business provided the lighting for Bubbly Paws 5007 Excelsior Blvd.; 952.926.5007; filamentlighting.com
Fun at the dog wash
One of my favorite parts about owning Bubbly Paws Dog Wash is working at the dog wash. Trycia and I are NOT the type of small business owners that sit in an office all day and crunch number, we prefer to be active at the store and interact with everyone. This past week you might have seen us around more because one of our employees was on vacation and we picked up some of the shifts that were open. Today we had our Spring Saletacular and wow, we were really busy with bath and nail trims! I always love meeting someone that has never been to our dog wash before because they are shocked at how clean and well run everything is! This was the theme of the day!!
A big shout out to Jessica, one of our awesome groomers that worked hard doing lots of nail trims today!
Hope everyone had a great weekend and we will see you at the dog wash!
Keith
Twin Cities Dancing With the Celebrities
One of the benefits of being a small, locally owned business is that we can help support our friends and customers when they are involved in something cool. So here goes... Our good friend and professional fitness model, Lori Harder, has been featured on Fox News, ESPN, Oxygen Magazine and others is part of the Twin Cities Dancing With The Celebrities on Saturday, February 22nd. Lori also brings her dog Waffles to Bubbly Paws to get groomed and to our other business, Pampered Pooch Playground for doggy daycare. Rumor has it, Lori has some killer dance moves! To learn more about Lori or to buy tickets, click here. If you go, you will also see Trycia and myself there cheering her on. Oh, and make sure to check out the silent auction items, there is a pretty sweet package from a really cool dog wash :)
Have a good night!
Keith
The dogs of LA
Trycia and I were in LA this weekend for a mini-winter getaway with some friends of ours! We always knew that LA was dog friendly, but we decided to do a photo montage to prove it! On the top left you will see Waffles who has been groomed at Bubbly Paws before her parents moved to LA. Her parents are good friends of our and we decided to go see how Waffles has adjusted to life in Hollywood and she LOVES it! She even learned how to wear her rockstar sun glasses!!
While we were there we did check out a few dog washes, and have some new ideas..
We are now back in the cold and snow and are happy to be back ;)
Have a good night!
Keith
Helping out the French!
About a year ago we received an email from a man in France that wanted to open a self service dog wash that was much like ours. I quickly emailed him back and helped him out. We became Facebook friends and every now and then when he had a question about something we did, he would message me. Fast forward to yesterday around 2pm... Trycia and I were shopping for snacks for our Packers/Vikings game party (I am very happy with the outcome!) and received a message on Facebook saying they just opened their dog wash in France. He sent me the link to their facebook page and it looks wonderful! They did such a great job and I really hope we can go visit it someday! If you want to check it out you can see the Ouaf Store's Facebook page by clicking here. I can't understand much of what is on the page, but the dogs sure are cute!! It's pretty cool to think that we are all connected around the world through social media!
Have a good night!
Keith
Working on the 1st
One of the hardest things about the dog wash is always making sure it looks brand new! We take great pride in our business and always want to make sure it is as bright, clean and amazing as it was 2 years ago when we first opened! Sometimes this means doing projects after hours or on holidays when the dog wash is empty! We have a great handyman, but sometimes I like to do the work myself. Today Trycia and I put in about 4 hours of work to make sure everything continues to look new. I really hate when you walk into some places and you can tell that they have been around for a long time. While we worked, Roxy and Waffles (our friends dog that we are dog sitting) had fun watching. Roxy did get covered in some paint when she rubbed against one of the freshly painted tubs... OOPS! Waffles also thought all the bones that we have by the checkout were for her ;)
Hope everyone had a great new years.
Keith
Holiday Party Fun
Last night we had the Pampered Pooch Playground and Bubbly Paws staff holiday party. It is fun to get both businesses together, but it is always hard to find a time that works for almost everyone. I am not a fan of boring parties, so we always try to do something fun and exciting. This year we let all of our staff vote on what party they wanted, and the Skaties Eighties party won. So we went down the street to the St Louis Park Roller Garden for some great 80's music and skating. Many of our employees even got into the party by dressing up. After an hour of skating and playing games we headed over to McCoy's Public House which is right across the street from Bubbly Paws at Excelsior and Grand. We had the hole party room, complete with 80's pop music for dinner and drinks. A big thanks to Brent and his staff at McCoy's for all their hard work last night because everyone had a great time! If you were wondering, yes I got dressed up! I was sporting the Tiffany Amber Thiessen shirt... We looked and Saved By The Bell started in 1989, so I was safe with it!
All of our staff always work so hard everyday and this is the least we can do to show them that we appreciate all of the love and care they put into the job everyday. It really is hard to find great employees and we have a bunch of them!! Awwwww... Group Hug!! Before the night was over, the Bubbly Paws staff had to take a picture of the fun they had... Click Here to see it.
Have a great night!
Keith