Photo by Steve Widoff
Trisha Francisco, Owner of Cross Town Pet Care
I grew up riding horses in Pennsylvania. I did three-day eventing, horse trials and other competitions. I started riding before I could walk and spent most of my childhood in a 60- to 70- horse barn. I’m an animal person, and I guess I always just assumed that I would take over the barn when I grew up.
I tried to be a “real” person, or normal I should say. I went to college and left college to go back to horses. Then I divorced myself from horses and went into the vacation rental business on Sanibel Island in Florida. When my mother got sick, I moved back to Pennsylvania to work on the family farm. After she passed away, I stayed on for another year trying to figure out my next move. I took a few community college courses to see if school would stick. It did, so I went to college in North Carolina. My best friend since childhood was back home and working as a dog groomer at PetSmart®.We were both in a stage of our lives where we were trying to re-invent ourselves. I looked at what she was doing and decided once and for all that college wasn’t for me. I moved back to Florida, this time to Tampa, and started going to a dog grooming school. It was a three-month course, and while I was there, I ordered the RV that would become the basis for my mobile dog grooming service.
The RV comes from a company out of Granger, Ind., called Wag’n Tails. They modify buses and trailers into mobile dog grooming units.
There was a show on TV called “Groomer Has It”; I didn’t really watch it, but this was the [same model] RV that they gave away on national TV. This particular RV is considered the crème de la crème of mobile grooming units. It has a Ford Triton® V10 E-450 engine with a Glaval Bus shell body. It’s got a grooming table; a tub; and a clipper vacuum, which is a lot like a Flowbee. It’s healthier for the dog and you since you don’t have dog hair floating around.
Photo by Steve Widoff
Trisha Francisco, Owner of Cross Town Pet Care
I’ve added a few modifications of my own. I installed a bigger ramp to the tub, because I groom a lot of Great Danes, which are tough to get into a tub with the standard issue ramp. I had the tub base expanded since I tend to work with more big dogs than small dogs. I also added floor drains. For Internet access, I use a tethering device so I can get online from just about anywhere on the road.
I have a Cummins Onan® generator, a tank with 100 gallons of water, a hot water heater, refrigerator, microwave, flat-screen TV with a DVD player and a bathroom for humans. The RV has been engineered to be more sophisticated than most traditional brick and mortar grooming shops. I have more technology on board, and I’m able to keep this unit a lot cleaner and more sanitary than I would if I had a standing shop.
Time is money: If the RV breaks down and I can’t get in for service right away, I lose time and money. I’ve learned how to do a lot of preventative maintenance. I do my own oil changes on both the RV’s engine and the generator. I’ve learned how to change out fuel filters and fuel pumps. I’ve also learned about fuses.
You do what you can with what you have to stay on the road. I’ve sought out help and guidance from people who know more than me and are willing to help me learn. Someday I’d like to take Master Certified RV Technician courses to learn as much as I can about repairs. I like hands-on things, and I like to learn. I guess that makes me an RVer at heart. I also love the fact that I’m on the road and get a different view everywhere I go.
I tend to be a bit of a free spirit, and I tend to do whatever the heck is on my mind. Life is short and you don’t really know how long you’re going to be here. But I really love what I do. Someday I hope to expand my business to include more RVs on the road. It’s dog grooming. It’s not brain surgery. Actually, it’s more fun than brain surgery, I mean … you get a lot more kisses from your clientele.”
Visit Trisha’s mobilepet grooming service online at www.crosstownpetcare.com.
Click here to see how Gerhard Sammet wired his coach for the road.