The Bark & Co.

23/08/2025

Please don’t let pups in the water

Bathers advised not to swim at Causeway Coast beach ⛱
Full details in story link below 👇

16/08/2025

Closed today sorry for any inconvenience caused will be back on Monday 🐾

21/07/2025

Thinking about buying a poodle? Have you been told they "don't need grooming until 1yrs old" or "coat maintenance is easy"?
*PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING piece written by a groomer..in the pic that's known as a pelted coat /Pelting. A dog’s fur gets so matted & tangled it will come off in one piece. It's outs tension on the skin, can damage the skin causing horrible infections and sometimes renders the dog helpless,unable to move and it can then cause fatality
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Poodle crosses (cockapoos, doodles, maltipoos etc.) are not "easy breeds" to maintain. The photo attached (shared from another groomer) shows how matting forms at the skin. By looking at this dog's top coat, you may not see the knots and you may not feel them as you would a knot on the ends of the fur but under that fluffy top layer this is going on. Once it starts its very difficult/ impossible to brush out... and even if you could it would be cruel to put the dog through it. Maintenance at home has to be more than a quick once over for these dogs if you want to keep them in that fluffy coat which was probably one of the reasons you chose a poodle cross in the first place. You really need to sit down with a brush and then a metal comb and make sure you can get it through the entire body at least 2 to 3 times a week.
I often feel like owners don't believe groomers when they say their dog has to be clipped very short. I always hear "I know he/she is matted, but leave as much as you can". You cannot clip through matting, you can only clip under it. As this photo shows, clipping under the matting means taking the coat back to the skin.
I promise you, your groomer really doesn't want to do this but they won't hurt your dog by putting it through dematting, they also don't want to hurt their reputation when the clients go around complaining about how the last groomer "scalped" their dog but there really is not any alternative. Instead of being angry with your groomer if they clip your dog very short please respect their commitment to do what is in your dog's best interest, accept responsibility for not having brushed your dog properly at home, and work with your groomer because, together, you can prevent this happening again. All groomers will be very happy to demonstrate a technique called line brushing which will help make your grooming at home more effective. Just ask! We all want owners to know how to do this
Poodle crosses are easily one of the highest maintenance dogs in reference to their coats. The combination of the soft coat they are mixing poodles with these days is a coat that is extremely prone to matting.
If you like a fluffy pup, you probably need to consider no more than 3-5 week intervals between grooming and set aside time for regular brushing AND combing at home.
Please know, if you bathe your poodle cross you really need to blow dry and brush out right after. Moisture, be it a bath, rain, swimming, snow etc are all going to make matting worse. If you know your dog is already matted-- bathing is only going to make it worse! Brush out before the bath.
Lastly "breeders" who say these dogs can't or shouldnt be clipped and not to give them a hair cut until they are one year old are misleading potential owners in order to sell$$$$ puppies and setting them up for a sad day when they finally take their pup to the groomer!!!
If this hasn't put you off buying one please schedule your puppy's first groom immediately after they've had their vaccinations and then be prepared to do the maintenance at home between regular professional grooms.

Post (collected).

11/07/2025

Thank you to everyone who took the time to send me a birthday message it’s greatly appreciated, I know a lot of you that have been in over the past few weeks have been messaging asking about Otis he finally got discharged today and he is back home ♥️ so greatful to all the vets and nurses that have worked with him over the past 5 weeks ♥️

I’ll be back on Thursday 17th July I need a few days rest 😴

28/06/2025

Good morning

✨Appointment Update✨

Fully booked until Monday 21st July there’s a few scattered appointments that week

I will be taking from 9th to the 16th off as it’s my birthday and a perfect excuse to spend some time with my kids.

Thank you all for keeping me busy as always 🐾

03/06/2025

24/05/2025

The town will be busy today, but what a great event

10/05/2025

😔 WHY IS NO ONE COMING FOR HANK?

💔 This gentle boy has lost everything and still, no one has come forward.

Hank is 4 years old and was with his owner from just 8 weeks old. That person was his whole world. And then suddenly they were gone as they passed away.

Now he’s in kennels, grieving, confused, and still holding onto hope that someone will walk through the door and take him home. But day after day not one enquiry. Not one person asking to meet him.

And we just don’t understand why.

🐾 Hank is a dream of a dog.
• An American Bulldog cross with a heart of pure gold
• Fantastic with children (with dog-savvy parents who can support positive interactions)
• Friendly with other dogs
• Toilet trained, knows his basic commands, and walks beautifully on lead
• Loves cuddles and just wants to be close to his people

Kennels are breaking his spirit. He’s used to home comforts, curled up on the sofa, snoozing at your feet, living life as someone’s best mate.

✨ Hank is looking for:
✔️ A loving home with a comfy sofa and lots of cuddles
✔️ A garden to sniff around in
✔️ A family who will never let him go
✔️ He’s happy solo or with another friendly dog
✔️ He can live with children, as long as they have dog-savvy adults around

Hank has so much love to give.

Let’s make sure Hank’s next chapter is full of love, comfort, and the security he’s aching for.

📣 Can’t adopt? Please share him. It only takes one person to change everything. 🐶💜

10/05/2025

Good luck to everyone today stay safe ♥️

20/04/2025

Happy Easter 🐥🐰
Back on Tuesday

07/04/2025

Good morning, unfortunately I have no option but to increase the prices, I have been putting this off for quite some time unfortunately I can no longer, I hope you all understand.
Thank you for your continued support 🐾

Jacqueline

03/04/2025

Such a happy guy 🩵