Leash. — Local services in Asheville

I never leave reviews like this but feel like I should because something has changed with this business. I have taken my dog to be groomed at Leash many times and everything was fine, the owner was happy to engage with me about my dog, and I felt good about building up a positive association with the groomer. This past time I waited an additional month for my dog to be groomed to accommodate the availability of the owner, I thought this was fine and would be worth it because she knows my dog and I trusted her, but when I showed up I was told that someone I had never met before would be grooming my dog that day. I was not comfortable with the last-minute change but the person seemed knowledgeable and we had a nice consult so I thought it would be fine. Unfortunately, when I picked my dog up he was terrified. He was the most fearful I have ever seen him before and he stayed that way for days. This new groomer told me that they had 3 people restrain him for the groom. His behavior over the following week was abnormal for him as he is typically a very friendly, confident dog. I have done professional training with him and he is well socialized. Even though he was been scared of the groomer/vet in the past due to a negative experience during COVID it has always been manageable and he bounces back to his happy self at pickup. Since we had this experience at Leash my dog has been extremely fearful of any environment that reminds him of the groomer. We just went to a local pet shop where he is usually pleased to visit and gets treats from the staff but this time he was shaking with fear with his tail tucked between his legs I assume because he thought I was going to leave him there. This is specific to environments that remind him of the groomer because he is happy to visit coffee shops/book shops without fear. I do not know what they did to him this past time at Leash but I would not risk leaving your dog there. After he still wasn’t acting normal a day or two after his last groom, I called the shop and asked to speak with the owner, I was told the person I was speaking to was the manager and they could help me, when I said I would like to speak to the owner the person on the phone sighed loudly and said okay fine she will call you. The next day, when the owner finally called me, our conversation was vague and dismissive. I was told that I can always request she groom my dog and I explained that I did that and was my dog was still given to a stranger. She then told me that several dogs who typically do fine at the groomer really struggled that day and it probably had something to do with the full moon. Again, I have had positive experiences with this business in the past but somehow this last visit has caused my dog long-term trauma. I know that groomers are very busy and I have always tried my best to be a laid-back customer, I do not have strong opinions about what the haircut should look like, I just want my dog to be comfortable and safe. Whatever happened that day should not have happened to him. They should’ve called me to come pick him up rather than using the type of force used to restrain him, etc. I will not leave my dog with these...

I would like to leave a positive review for Christina Meeks at Leash dog grooming, because she does a good job grooming dogs, but I can’t because dealing with her as a business owner is a complete nightmare.

She is moody and rude and complains incessantly about the animals, her business and her employees, three of whom up and quit in a single week.

She never lets you know when your dog will be ready, but demands that you appear within 20 minutes of her texting or you will be reprimanded.

Christina is often out sick, and cancels with no notice. On one occasion, she had my dog for an entire day and didn’t complete his grooming so we had to return the following day.

Christina will manufacture issues with the condition of my dog and then charge me more (+50%!)

There are lots of good groomers in Asheville. I’m filing Christina and Leash in the “Life’s too short” category....

We have a 70lb Aussie and a 15 lb doodle, both young dogs. They LOVE going to Leash - hands down best in Asheville. Christina and her team are incredible. Everyone who works there is responsible and friendly, and we can tell they're true dog people. The dogs are watched at daycare, crated or separated when needed, and get no shortage of love & attention. There's always a good little crowd of daycare dogs, but never too many (maybe 1 or 2 dogs per staff member in the room). Even though sizes are mixed, they're closely monitored while they play so we don't worry about our little guy. The facility is big, open, and most importantly, CLEAN. Our dogs actually smell good when we pick them up from hours of daycare - how is that possible? Now that we've found Leash, we finally feel confident dropping our dogs off at daycare while we work....