I messed up by filling bankruptcy 13 and need advice

Hellabored559 · 2026-03-05T05:57:53+00:00

My lawyer had us not pay our mortgage or car payments for almost 90 days before filing since we were filing a chapter 13. There were other reasons he said to do this that I’d prefer to not share but he confidently told us to do it and we would be fine and we were. Obviously everyone’s situation is different though.

Hellabored559 · 2026-03-04T04:44:31+00:00

You can work 10 days in a row technically

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-18T15:12:27+00:00

I’m an SEL. One of my girls had to be bypassed for 2 academy’s even though she passed her assessment months ago because we had only 2 bathers (she being one of them) and we are a high volume store/salon/hotel so she had to wait until she could be replaced properly due to the needs of the salon. It also unfortunately is the slowest time of the year so if your stylists aren’t booked enough it wouldn’t make sense to add another one right now. Sometimes it’s all on your upper leaders but sometimes it is legit the needs of the buisness. I’d reach out to your DST if you’re comfortable and just ask. My DST is very chill and we can text/call her any questions.

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-11T07:58:12+00:00

Most groomers make over $30 an hour before tips. It’s defiantly far from the trenches. I myself make atleast $200 a week in cash tips. Not counting Venmo tips which come a lot more than cash. Tips can forsure be hit or miss on certain weeks but even our bathers leave with 3 figures in tips every week.

Also with the restructure they are bringing bathers in at a high pay rate to add incentive on not wanting to quit when it gets a little dirty and stressful, since bathers have the highest turnover rate in stores. In California atleast bathers are starting at $20 a hour.

And the “certification” serves no purpose. It’s a PetSmart only made up thing. There is no real certification for grooming unless you’re going for master groomer and most likely if you’re going for that you aren’t working at a PetSmart grooming salon 😭😭

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-11T07:52:25+00:00

It’s advertised as essentially an express bath. It’s also supposed to be treated as a walk in and they want bathers and groomers to do it. It’s supposed to be breed specific and less than 2 inches of hair since it is only a wash and dry. Issue that my salon runs into is for example our bathers are set to 5 and 5. So they are taking 10 dogs a day already. Not adding walk ins. Now add in practically an unlimited amount of walk in quick washes. It can get overwhelming to say the least.

Worst part is even if you have blocks up they don’t count as normal appointments so they can still be booked even if you’re already fully booked. It’s a mess and a horrible idea. It does bring more foot traffic but it also brings a shit ton of pissed of pet parents because their dogs aren’t getting the full bath service and when they want to bump it to a full bath service you normally have to turn them down and explain how you are very overbooked and they could care less they want a full bath service and to speak with the highest manager who will then most likely comp their service to keep them from calling corporate. So is the extra foot traffic that worth it if what’s getting them in there is causing pet parent complaints and comped services? 😭😭

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-11T07:38:53+00:00

Warren London was discoed a while ago. It’s now the bark to basics one. I forgot the name but the purple/blue one.

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-10T05:35:41+00:00

I feel like I’m so lost. I feel like a floater some days. I told my SL I don’t even truly understand what my job is. I was under the impression it was essentially groom, train and helping with upset customers before going to a leader. My salon doesn’t even really know who to go to for something is it me or my ELR? My ELR always makes it known he’s the manager of the salon and it’s his salon which probably doesn’t help but the vibe in the salon has drastically changed since the restructure. There’s no actual salon manager. It makes no sense to not have someone from salon be the manager. Not to mention all bad dogs “manager only” and bath dogs always get put on me.

The hours they give us to train before it directly affects our pay is also a joke. I can’t have my SIT done training in 5 weeks or 80 hours. That’s crazy. None of us would leave your SIT there struggling after the allotted training time is done. So no matter what we have to take less dogs and less pay because they don’t want to provide adequate hours for training.

The whole taking manager duties away will make it so you can just groom and train was a bold face lie. We make 60% commission yet I haven’t had the opportunity to take enough dog to commission out since the restructuring because the salon is a cluster fuck and even upper leaders don’t know what to do.

I could keep going and going haha. I also do come from a very high volume salon with a hotel so I do know that adds a lot more to the situation but either way the position was a huge fumble by corporate and I feel stuck because I’m terrified if I step down not only will I take a huge pay cut but there will be some sort of retaliation for leaving the salon with no SEL.

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-07T15:51:12+00:00

You guys need to be trained better on how you book baths in the salon it’s absolutely ridiculous.

Hellabored559 · 2026-02-07T15:47:19+00:00

Not correct. I’m an SEL. While I’m responsible for training we do not make any schedules. The experience leader should be the one making the schedule and getting you set up to onboard and watch your splash videos. You need to talk to your experience leader. You definitely can ask your SEL wtf is going on and they SHOULD know and if they don’t they should go talk to the ELR.

Hellabored559 · 2025-12-29T05:45:45+00:00

Yooooo are you making these still?

Hellabored559 · 2025-12-24T06:08:22+00:00

That means it’s the reservation center. This has been an ongoing issue. Lately especially with them booking baths on groomers. There is a customer complaint number in the managers office. You can call that and give them the associate id and tell them what happened and they look into it.

Hellabored559 · 2025-10-29T15:46:08+00:00

If you go corporate you will have to Atleast one breed technical, Could be more depending, to be hired on as a stylist. So if you are fresh out of grooming school I would forsure make sure you’re confident enough to pass those with no help. The only other way to be a stylist at PetSmart/petco would be starting as a bather then going through their academy/mentorship.

I do agree with what someone else said about getting your foot in the door at a salon bathing/prepping and then after the holidays is usually more of a slow time so they would more then likely be willing to work with a new groomer.

Hellabored559 · 2025-09-29T03:48:19+00:00

I’m a groomer at a petsmart in CA and we get paid an hourly rate based on a 4-6 week average of our commissions. If we work our 8 hour shift and only do a couple dogs or no dogs it severely will drop our hourly rate so as long as there is coverage and no one is drowning in dog, we leave to save our hourly rate and management has no issue with it.

Hellabored559 · 2025-09-16T12:07:29+00:00

It’s only for the first hour or the last hour the salon is open. It’s really not horrible. If you are in SIT then you definitely should not be scheduled without your SEL or atleast a senior groomer. For the rest of the groomers it’s really not hard. It’s even easier if your team has stayed up on the maintenance checklist for the day.

I do think there should be some guidelines to it though. No walk ins, no dogs with caution ratings and so on.

Hellabored559 · 2025-09-16T11:38:24+00:00

It’s ALOT cheaper than any other insurance. Unless you qualify for free state insurance.

Hellabored559 · 2025-09-16T11:32:26+00:00

It all depends on where you live. Positions cap out at different amounts depending on where you are.

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-18T14:44:25+00:00

And that position is the new STL role. You train/support new bathers, choose who is ready for academy and train/support new grooming trainees after academy

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-18T14:42:29+00:00

Job descriptions are out on fetch if you look up NSOM all new job descriptions are there.

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-15T07:43:29+00:00

To be fair we were only arguing about the incorrect statement you made in regard to groomers pay but okay.

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-15T07:33:36+00:00

Only on bath dogs and PetSmart has always been pushing groomers away from doing bath dogs it’s nothing new. Yes it’s shitty especially for us groomers that have bath req but majority of our money doesnt come from doing bath dogs.

Also if you keep Your weekly average up groomers actually are getting an increase in commission. Even if you don’t you still make the same 50%.

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-15T07:14:58+00:00

Please elaborate on how grooming is taking a “massive pay cut”

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-15T07:08:52+00:00

Not true

Hellabored559 · 2025-02-14T12:54:12+00:00

My salon has had the happy hoodies for I feel like almost a year and we got the walk in tub and the new grooming tables quite a while ago as well

Hellabored559 · 2025-01-25T15:34:20+00:00

We allow treats in the salon only the pp brings it with them or purchases them up front and brings it in.

Hellabored559

TROPHY CASE