I was told about this nonprofit, "Tails to Freedom", by a friend. I first visited it's thrift shop, "Lucky Dog" about a year ago and I've made multiple trips there since. The shop itself is large, immaculate, and always has a treasure or two to find. Purchase an item, and the money goes to help animals - what better combination could there be! The shop is also a resource for people to learn more about issues related to all animals and to the environment. You will find educational displays and a lending library. Preventing suffering before it begins is key; spaying and neutering is promoted including info about low-cost services; financial aid is given when necessary. The people who work at Lucky Dog are knowledgeable, pleasant and devoted to the cause.

I love the lucky dog thrift shop and they helped us when we were in need and were quite happy to do so! Thanks so much!

Were getting Stiffed by Lucky Dog Thrift (AKA Tails to freedom)

Lucky Dog Grooming, did the necessary research, before choosing the name Lucky Dog, to make sure no one in our area (The state of NH)was using the same name for a related business. This is the proper procedure and very easy to do with the business name look up on-line.

Regretfully, Lucky Dog grooming salon has been drawn into a controversy over the rights and title to our business name. Lucky Dog, Grooming Salon is not, nor ever has been, affiliated with the Lucky Dog, Thrift shop(aka tails to freedom). Lucky Dog, thrift shop has caused a public controversy by marketing and advertisement designed to cause consumer confusion. Now we are forced to defend ourselves and inform the public.

The confusion started right from the beginning when Katherine, the owner of the thrift shop, opened a business with the same name and on the same street name also, only a couple of towns over from my business and the thrift shop is in an area, the grooming shop owner frequented and has many friends.

We were in business a year before the thrift shop and the grooming business was a cumulation of years of planning and sacrifice. Starting my business was a big financial and emotional commitment. As one can imagine, starting a business in a bad economy, and it generally takes years to make a profit anyway and we started during one of the worst financial crises since the great depression.


My first notification of the thrift shop began when an acquaintance came to me and asked me if I’d seen the “Lucky Dog shop” across the street from our meeting, I said, “My name is Lucky Dog”, looking at him perplexed. Then others started to come to me about this woman, doing things for the animals. You can imagine my shock that someone would do this. Now, someone was trying to home in on my hard work by taking the thunder away from me in my community of friends. Many of my friends are our customers and also, we consider our customers as our friends, so, this was immediately effecting our business.

Then of course my phone starts ringing for the thrift shop.

Next thing you know the same acquaintance comes to me, after running back to her, and comes to me again saying, Kat had no idea of my existence and was so shocked and wanted to have me leave my card with her? Really?

She took the same name and didn’t bother to do the research before hand, and wanted me to leave my card in her shop? Do you think we believe that? Personally, I found this very insulting that Kat feels she can take my business name, home in on my business game and then wants to manage me and she doesn’t bother to contact me professionally? Does that not smack of communism.

http://blog.thenarcissistinyourlife.com/2010/09/28/narcissistidentity-theft.aspx

Her sense of entitlement is astonishing. As can be seen from the original plans of Tails to freedom they have a conflict of interest with my dreams and business plans. She wants to do dog day care, a dog boutique and do dog charity work, all things we do?

When we did go into meet her personally, and not telling her who I was, she immediately started with her spiel of being a non-profit organization. We only think about giving to our customers and keeping them satisfied with affordable services and not having them throw free money and items at us. I wasn’t going to have anything in common with her. We just tried to ignore the whole thing, as these type of people don’t last, until of course, they crossed the line further.

We will not support a questionable organization with questionable agendas that may conflict with our own and especially one who is taking my name. She isn’t being upfront with the public. My first interest is to protect the public from fraud and scams. She isn’t filling out the paper work for the Non profit correctly and we don’t want Lucky Dog Grooming to be associated with an organization that may end up in legal issues and in trouble for tax evasion, unless of course we are the ones instituting the law suit, for our own protection, and that is not out of the question. So, this is why we are dissociating publicly from them, for our own protection.

This is the state of NH letting this happen. Who is protecting the public from this?

http://tailstofreedom.org/links.php

Lucky Dog thrift shop is not a non-profit organization, nor a dog business and yet she crawled and slithered in the back window, taking the name “Lucky Dog” claiming to be a thrift shop, as Tails for freedom, an animal rights organization, focusing on dog causes. They wouldn’t have given her the name “Lucky Dog” , if they knew she was a dog business, because someone else was using it for a dog business, me.

They cross the line further, trying to get the jump on me for my move to Nashua

The groomer, me, has discussed with several people including my sister, mother and husband, and many close friends, my idea of using the dog and butterfly as a logo as this is based on spiritual experiences. Now, soon after my move to Nashua and that was always my goal to be in Nashua, suddenly she has a huge marketing campaign with a dog and butterfly logo, what I had been talking about. Apparently, copy Kat, feels my business was a charitable donation to hers, in all the great ideas she has taken.

Kat has someone calling himself her boyfriend, come in my shop and contacting me in public places and this is just way to creepy for me. She started using the dog logo and advertising with the fancy hand writing fonts similar to what we have been using on my sign and also, she has been using dog prints like on my sign. She doesn’t seem to realize she is a thrift shop. Is it so possible to be so completely talent less as to neglect to come up with your own ideas? Soon after this, the guy calling himself Kat’s boyfriend, calls again wanting to bring their dog in my shop and so, we ignored the call, why would we do business with these people? Then, several weeks later, he meets me in a public place and wants to know why we don’t call him? Maybe it’s like out of a fatal attraction movie!

If they think they will take from us with out a fight they got something new coming! You will see a one woman, higher powered, little human rights organization in action.

The groomer/owner of this grooming shop, has worked very, very hard, at creating a business, in developing a skill, acquiring knowledge, buying equipment, maintaining equipment, challenging financial investments, insurance, many, many hours, at least Seven years of commitment and charity work in going to grooming school, purchasing literature and the development of a clientele. All my life decisions, for the last 7 years, have been centered around creating and providing a necessary service for the community of dogs, and dog people.

I work nights, weekends and Sundays. A groomer must work for years without profit to develop a business and clientele. We network with veterinarians and we particularly, have taken classes in veterinary medicine. Ditto for all my education in the medical field. For another business, to come and try to skim the cream off of my hard work, is hardly what is called humanitarianism and definitely not considered ethical to those with a conscious or with good critical thinking skills.

Apparently, female, small business entrepreneurs, are not on copy Kat’s list of endangered species. We think that starting our own charitable organization dedicated to the ethical, and humane treatment of dog groomers and dog related workers, is an awesome idea.

This controversy has all been very discouraging for me, we even thought of changing our name, however, there are obstacles in life and it is still all very rewarding to me, when my customers, human and dog alike are happy and satisfied. My pay and reward has been and still is, the look of reassurance the dogs and customers give me, when they know they are safe and in good hands. If we did change our name, me, actually being creative, would come up with something others would covet also, and so, it could happen again. So, we choose not to run from this.