Grooming By Em

TOP NOTCH customer service. You can’t get better service than this place.

I get my cat’s fur cut at Grooming By Em, and they do a fantastic job with everything. Emily, the owner, gives my wife and I’s cat a trim in the summertime to reduce hairballs and make him more comfortable.
My cat has never been harmed in any way during his cuts, as Emily and her staff exercise great care in making sure my cat is treated well during his brief stay.
Not only do they do great work, they actually care about your furry friend. The prices are extremely reasonable. I have been a customer since 2012 and highly recommend this facility.

This place continues to provide a rewarding experience year after year. The staff is informative and helpful; they’ll call me promptly if there are any questions or concerns. My dog is always nice and clean, and happy when leaving and runs to go inside when we arrive. Em and her staff return calls and provide suggestions for grooming. Prices are reasonable and affordable; happy I found this place.

Great experience!
It was my first time taking my dog here and I’m always a little skeptical about the treatment of groomers, especially where there is de-​matting involved. But, the service here was excellent! The staff was very patient with me, made sure that my dog was treated with care and attention. No evidence of being cut or shaved too close to cause irritation.
Also, they offer little treats/​goodies for your pet at no cost. Most of the time my dog NEVER wants the ‘free treats’ offered at pet stores/​groomers/​vets but, the treats at Grooming by Em must have been extra special and good because she DEVOURED the ‘free treats’.
Overall, my dog seems happy… not distressed and because of that, I’m satisfied and will definitely be back again!

This is a place I do not recommend if your dog is not used to being in a crate. I had an appointment at 9:30 am. My dog was crated the entire time and ignored. Even after I gave them specific instructions to monitor her since she is not used to being crated. I also asked they call me right after her bath so that she wouldn’t need to be crated. At 11:00 am I called about her status and they had not bathed her yet. (Appointments are useless there) I never received a call from them I show up at 1:30 pm to pick her up and the receptionist took her sweet time in getting my dog. My dog was dehydrated and had banged her nosed so hard in the cages that it peeled her skin off her nose. Please adhere. I’ve had such a bad experience.

They did the Best job on my Pomeranian boy! A prior groomer had shaved him down to the skin without my permission, and Em’s staff was able to get his fur to grow back beautifully after just a few monthly appointments and some salmon oil added to his daily diet. His fur now looks amazing! I highly recommend this groomer! She is very knowledgeable. I found them via Unilocal!Prices are average. The outside of the facility is nothing fancy but they do a great job. It’s hard to find someone you trust to groom a dog with a lot of fur and undercoat.

I really loved this place but after my last two grooming appts I WILL be going elsewhere. Ive searched long and hard for good groomers and I’m sad I’ll have to continue my search. I have been a regular and was very pleased 5 star review but my second to last grooming appt left my dog with a red irritation on her neck. I normally examine her after her grooming just to make sure she’s okay. We ended up at the vet because after having her anal glands expressed she was scooting violently on any surface… The vet informed me she has some irritation from the clippers which results in red bumps on her neck… My poor baby. I applied cortisone cream and because I really did like this place I said I’d give it one last shot…
Well my last visit was yesterday 6÷27÷15 and let me tell you I was told as soon as I arrived she may be getting an ear infection because of the smell well after examining her ear I found 2 cuts (small) where she had bleeding and was cut my shears I’m assuming… I WILL NOT BE RETURNING. And it’s sad because I had to change my 5 star to a 1 star… I didn’t call to tell them because to me there’s nothing they can say or do at this point… I’ve applied medication and gave her lots off TLC…
Also I would’ve like to have received a call about the potential ear infection as soon as they where made aware so I could’ve called the vet but by the time I picked her up most vets where closed. Because I had a later appt time than normal and I live about 30 minutes from Grooming By EM. You can bring your dog just examine them before you leave the building…

I used the Unilocal deal and brought my 9yo ragdoll here for a summer shave. She still feels a little «nakey» but overall she seems pleased with her new do’. It took about 3.5 hours and they called me 30min before she was done (to allow adequate time for me to travel to pick her up). The assistant referred to her as «the cat» which made me feel like dogs are the primary clientele. Then he asked me how old she was (which was strange because it said so on the forms I filled out). He said «yeah she has limited mobility in her back legs». What could this mean? She is super agile and bouncy and I wouldn’t consider her «limitedly mobile». It was actually kinda funny, although strange. I’m happy the owner does the cutting and interacting, because my experience with the staff was hazy at best. Overall pleased, just thought I would share my full visit feedback. She looks cute, huh? ;)

Designs by Em is an awesome grooming salon for pets. They are flexible with appointments and they really do take time in grooming your little ones. I would have given them 5 stars but the only minor incident was the groomer nipped my dog and didn’t tell me about it. I only noticed it after I arrived home. Nonetheless, it wasn’t bad but I just think I should have been told when I picked my dog up. If your looking for a place that offers variety and great service, this is the place you want to go.

After ten years of trying different groomers that obviously don’t care about the end result, I found Grooming by Em. I have a Yorkie and a Bichon, both of whom love to romp and roll in everything which makes their upkeep very difficult. Prior to EM, groomers would just shave them completely skinny, but at Em’s they did a vary careful job and made the dogs look beautiful. The dogs love the attention and are very calm and happy when I pick them up.
Their location is a ways out of the city, but absolutely worth the trip!

I came across this groomer solely based on the reviews. I wanted to use a small business and a groomer that truly loved their work and their special clients.
I adopted a dog from the kennel that had matted hair in all the wrong places. And his hair was so long, you couldn’t see his beautiful eyes. The groomers at this shop did the cut exactly as I requested and managed to fit me in so I could avoid commuting 25 minutes in the bad weather (snow was forecasted).
Not only was the grooming job great, but the owner went the extra mile to limit my maneuvering, recognizing my mobility challenges. I love when people provide special touches.
We’ll be back. Take your pet here. You won’t be disappointed.

We’ve been using this place for over a year now and just want to express how pleased we are with the services we’ve received.
Just recently, they did a wonderful job with grooming our long haired cat. This is the best cut she’s ever received!

Purchased the Unilocal deal and I took my main coon mix, Daisy, to Emily for a teddy bear cut. She did a fantastic job! This is my first time taking Daisy to the groomer since I got her in September and I’m so glad I listened to my fellow Unilocalers. Her prices are way more reasonable than a lot of other places ($ 110?!? For a 7 pound cat? I think not!) and her little shop is clean and inviting. Emily gave me the exactly what I wanted and everyone who works there is friendly. Thanks again, Emily! I’ll definitely be back!

Our sheltie was in desperate need of a grooming. They did such a wonderful job! Highly recommend this place. Excellent service as well.

Em is great at what she does. After 3 hours with our pup, she was able to tell us so much about his character showing us that she took care of him. Her grooming was exceptional. We were very selective of what we wanted done, and Em worked to match our wants with what was possible.
We intend to use her services more in the future. And we will be recommending her to anyone!

I posted my review for Grooming by Em and later THAT NIGHT I received a call from the owner (Emily). She was an absolute delight to speak with and took the time to educate me on the entire grooming process. I also found out that Emily was in the hospital the day I visited and the poop smell was due to a dog that had just had babies. After speaking with her I have much clearer knowledge of the Grooming process and what to expect. I will be returning to Grooming by Em for all of my grooming needs. It is great to know that there are still owners around that give a shi* about what their customers think. Thank you Emily for the phone, it was much appreciated and I will be seeing you soon!

This place is absolutely amazing –
Somewhat off the beaten path if you’re coming from DC; but well worth it!
I took my sweet puppy here today and was impressed from beginning to end! They did a thorough inspection and Q & A session when I dropped my dog off, about how I wanted his grooming done… etc…
They called to let me know there would be some changes to see if I was okay with them and then of course called to let me know he was finished!
It’s extremely obvious this salon and their employees are passionate about animals and excellent customer service!
They have lots of spa like options (without the spa price!) hair/​fur coloring options, nail polish, scented shampoos, mud wrap and hot oil treatments.
The lobby looked like a pet boutique, offering collars, pet clothing, pet bakery items, and grooming products!
With such a boutique-​like feel, the prices were affordable and the staff was excellent!
My dog came back soft and smelled fresh, not like he’d been at the groomer-​smell! You can even leave a tip when paying with your credit card!
This place is in a small industrial like strip mall and there is grassy patch outside, for the obvious… but how can I forget they offered to walk and feed my dog, if I was going to be longer than expected when picking him up!
Em’s deserves an A+! So glad I found them!

The owner messaged me on Unilocal to offer my dog a complimentary cut and groom after I pointed out something that I disliked on my first visit. This in itself was remarkable because it shows how much the owner cares about her business and her canine customers. My dog Channing received a nice summer cut and came out all smiles after I picked him up. The fur around his ears, paws and butt were also trimmed. I like that the owner, Emily, works at her business and is very hands on, grooming and caring for the dogs on site. When I arrived to pick up Channing, Emily and her staff came out with Channing and greeted us personally. I’ll definitely be coming back!
Additionally, they give customers $ 20 in grooming credit with every referral you make. The prices at Grooming by Em are unbeatable! You won’t get great service for these prices anywhere else in the DC area. The salon is very well maintained, organized and lots of pet products and snacks to choose from.

I took two of my cats here in 2012 so please take my review in that context. However, I did want to make sure this was said. Do NOT take difficult pets to this salon. This groomer can only handle your typical, calm pets. With those, she was great. She used quality products on my cats, and one of them was very happy and very clean when we left. My second cat did not have the same experience at all.
Let’s focus on the latter… my cat is a handful, I know that and I warned her. He is very very scared of dogs. He requires patience, a steady hand, and a dog-​free atmosphere. Again, I explained all of those things but when I picked him up he was sitting in his carrier near barking dogs. Anyone who regularly handles cats knows this is a recipe for disaster. He still had shampoo in his fur and was crying very loudly. This is not the way you want to see your pet, ever. Please note, I have taken him to mixed animal groomers before and he was fine (difficult but fine).
This groomer proceeded to blame me and my cat; she called him feral; and she refused to give us a refund.
Moral of the story — difficult cats should stay away from Grooming by Em.

I love Grooming by Em! I have taken my puppy there four or five times now, and every time she’s had a good experience. Emily and her groomers do a great schnauzer cut, and Penny always looks very distinguished after her grooming.
Her very first time, Penny apparently was pretty antsy and nearly snapped at a groomer (this was when she was maybe 12 weeks, so it was her first-​ever grooming experience). But the team at Grooming by Em gave me some tips on how to improve her experience, and I worked with her at home extensively. The first couple times I dropped her off, Penny was nervous, but after being treated kindly by the staff she is excited to go in the building and see all the people who love on her. Now, I only get positive reports from Emily and her staff when I come to pick up Penny.
I also love all the little extras that you can add on to your grooming. The full grooming (which I think is $ 50?) includes everything you really need — a bath, a cut, nail clipping, ear cleaning and trimming — but you can also add on «Spaw packages», hair color, aromatherapy, or «pawticures.» I’ve done one spaw package when it was part of the monthly deal, and Penny smelled so nice!