Avalyn's Paw Spa — Attraction in Taos

This will be a hard review to write. On 8/31 we dropped our two small dogs off for their first groom at this salon. As we don't live in the area, we were relieved to see such good reviews posted on Yelp and Google. I will cut to the chase...the salon was hectic when we dropped our kids off at 10:00. Big dogs roaming everywhere and a staffing issue had created an unforeseen back-up in grooming. We totally understand these things happen and left them around 10:00 to be picked up at 2:00ish. When we picked them up (a bit late, more like 3:00) the salon was quieter and our dogs were in their kennel. The grooming (by Cyril) itself was fine. Honestly just a few missed hairs is nothing. I would have been fine with the whole experience except for what I witnessed. As we were paying for our grooming appointment, I watched a staff member named Mariah sitting on a rolling stool in the hallway using a furminator brush on a medium sized white male dog. She was using it so aggressively that the dog was crying out, and as I would expect, trying to nip at her hands. Those brushes can really hurt if not used properly and she was ripping that dogs hair out. Instead of taking a break and treating the dog more kindly when he was obviously uncomfortable, she slapped the dog in the face three different times, then put a lead muzzle around his mouth and jerked his head up so hard the dog cried out. She spoke so aggressively and showed no patience or kindness to that animal and I have to tell you I was shocked and pissed. As soon as Mariah noticed me watching her, she tried to act like she was being more patient but it wasn't genuine. When I told the owner what I witnessed and that I was so concerned she could have done something similar to our dogs, she stated that "Mariah was a good employee and she would talk to her and watch her more closely as that was unacceptable".

We will not be back and if you're the dog parent to a medium white long haired dog that was being groomed on 8/31/17 around 3:00 in the afternoon, I would be calling to find out what exactly happened to your dog. It...

We had a wonderful experience here! I’m picky about where I take my dogs since they are huge (84 lbs and 70 lbs) and my largest is double-coated and very nervous around noise and new experiences. Niche also had a bad experience years ago and we haven’t been to a groomer since.

In any case, we decided to give this place a try because we heard Cyril was patient with dogs that are not comfortable. It turns out my smaller and more feisty dog rolled in a dead skunk, so that pushed us to make an appointment! She took both of them together. I explained that Niche was nervous. Cyril realized how much my dogs like being around one another and just let them hang out loose all day. When I came to pick them up...WOW. I wish we would have done this earlier! Niche was a little stressed, but bright-eyed, happy, and smelled amazing! And Minnow was no longer skunked and was soft as can be. Cyril told me she was patient with Niche and let her air dry for a long time as she was scared of the dryer. Minnow seemed to like the whole experience but she also likes rolling in dead stuff so that’s a hard comparison to make.

We will certainly be going back. Cyril was so good with my two fur kids and they looked, smelled, and felt incredible! On top of it all, this was the LEAST STRESSED I’ve seen Niche after picking her up from some place we’ve left her (boarding, vet office, etc.). That just speaks volumes to an owner with a very large, sensitive, and thick-furred dog that is more like a cat than anything. I’m sure Minnow would gladly walk back in,...

My first experience at Avalyn's was just this week on 6/15. My lhasa apso/mini poodle was in bad need of a grooming. I live 40 mins south of this place but I was desperate and read nothing but great reviews so I took a chance. Cyril worked hard at getting me an appointment sooner rather than later that worked for both of our schedules. On grooming day she was so sweet and reassuring, making sure I knew that I was leaving my baby in good hands. I couldn't be happier with the results. Moonita looked and smelled great and she was actually happy! She's usually a little grumpy after a grooming. Cyril not only has A+ grooming skills but she is so kind and delivers awesome customer service. She made sure to let me know how it went and gave detail as to all that she did. She even sent us off with refrigerated water bottles due to the super hot day. It's clear Cyril wants nothing but the best for her customers. She is kind, loving, respectful, and genuinely cares. I've found our groomer, the drive...