If It’s Not Yours, Then Whose Is It?
By Ariel Arnette
Editor’s note: Recently, Pet Naturals® of Vermont asked employees of the pet retailers who carry our products to submit a blog post about various pet topics. We picked three submissions from that round, and this month we will publish guest posts by the winners. Ariel Arnette has worked at the Sanford, Maine Pet Life store for six years, and this week, she shares an entertaining pet story that happened at her store. Read more about Ariel in the bio at the end of the story. Stay tuned for more guest posts this month!
If It’s Not Yours, Then Whose Is It?
The most entertaining story that I have to share is actually a rather recent one. Our pet store is located in a shopping plaza that is shaped much like a horseshoe. In the middle of our plaza is a large parking lot, which has access to all of the stores along the strip.
One day an associate from AT&T comes in, and asks us if someone had lost a dog. I told him, “No, we don’t have any customers in the store right now, but I will make sure to ask anyone who happens to wander in.” Sure enough as the associate walks out of the store, I see a flash of a small tan dog running the parking lot. I poke my head out of the front doors and look around. I didn’t see anyone frantically running around the plaza trying to catch it, but was beginning to see traffic slowing down as they were coming in. Other associates from other stores were now poking their heads out too, and I then see the dog run into Sun Tan City!
At that very moment, I see a gentlemen heading toward our doors with a retractable leash in his hands. I asked him, “Hi there! Do you have a small tan Pomeranian?” He gives me a nod. I then said to him, “OH! Well it’s over there in Sun Tan City right now, if your looking for it.” The guy is now in complete and utter shock because he thinks that his dog has gotten loose from our store. It then hits me, so I then said to the gentlemen in a rather less frantic tone, “Oh wait? Is your dog getting groomed?” He nods again, this time with more uncertainty. “Oh then, your dog is still in the grooming room with Amy. Yours is not the one on the loose. I’m sorry!”
He then brushes past me to head to the grooming room, shaking his head. I really think I threw him for a loop! I mean, what are the odds that he had the exact same breed of dog to the one that was running around the parking lot? About 10 minutes later, I see the Pomeranian being carried off by another person back to their car. I apologized to that gentlemen the entire time he was cashing out for his groom. I’m sure we both were feeling a bit of relief. Him probably more than me. I was just feeling so utterly embarrassed, but I really was laughing so hard on the inside.
About Ariel Arnette: I am a single Mom to a beautiful 10 month old baby girl. She certainly keeps me going, and there is never a dull moment with her. I love to take her places to see pretty things, and when we are home, we like to sit outside on the porch and watch the seagulls fly by. Babies really do grow up too fast, so I try to cherish every moment of it that I can! When I do find time for myself, I like to play World of Warcraft, watch Netflix or Hulu, find uses for recycling baby jars (I have quite a few art projects already started), and playing with my cats Nikki and Miss Mittens, and my African fat-tail gecko, Alphonse.
I find that working in the pet industry has been very rewarding. Most pet people are happy people. So it truly makes for a comfortable stress-free environment. I am a true believer that one should enjoy that work that they do. I have had some college under my belt, at which I was studying to be a Marine Biologist with a concentration in Animal Behavior. I hope to be able to complete it someday, but I know that the closest I can get to it right now is by working in a pet store.