(Photos: Zach Steaban (Groomer Has It); Adam Fagen (Howl to the Moon, The Big Bad Woof); Roshani (The Dogfather); Tom Smith (Indiana Bones); Kevin Lively (Pooches Gracias); Abhishek (Barks 5th Ave); Robin Colgrove (Laundromutt))
See our ultimate crowdsourced map of punny businesses in America.
As much as we love our furry companions, we know deep down that there’s something inherently ridiculous in taking an animal to school or to get a haircut.
As a result, many of our punniest pet care businesses are tongue-in-cheek about how their establishment provides services that would be fancy for humans, but are, in fact, for animals (Fine Whines and Lickers, Barks 5th Avenue, Groomingdales). Boarding facilities range from the kingly (Barkingham Palace), to the trendy (Chateau Marmutt), to the shamelessly bourgeois (Crate and Marrow). The particularly cultured creature would likely appreciate a trim at at Vanity Fur in Millbrook, Alabama, followed by a stint at the Bowhaus in Erie, Colorado.
Another trend in pet care pun names involves wishful (wagful?) recasting of beloved TV shows and classic movies. Barks and Recreation and Barking Bad take home top awards in the television category. Two Oscar contenders make an appearance (Citizen Canine, The Dogfather), as do a couple of adventure blockbusters (Indiana Bones and the Temple of Groom, The Crate Escape). Any intellectual property concerns can be directed to Barker & Meowski: A Paw Firm in Chicago.
Sorting through all these submissions can be ruff, so here are some highlights:
—Variations on doggy style (“Doggie Style,” “Doggie Styles,” “Doggie Stylez,” “Doggy Style,” “Doggy Styles”), with 12 total examples.
—4 plays on “canine”
—3 musical references: Cats on Broadway, Wagtime, Wizard of Paws
—3 examples of “The Barking Lot,” in 3 different cities
—Chicago and Portland are tied with 5 submissions each. Virginia Woof Dog Daycare gives Portland the edge.
Editor’s picks:
Ace of Spays (Hainesport, NJ)
Bark Side of the Moon (Chicago, IL)
Bark Harbor (Bar Harbor, ME)
Barking Bad Grooming (Albuquerque, NM)
Chateau Marmutt (Los Angeles, CA)
Citizen Canine (Chicago, IL and Oakland, CA)
Crate & Marrow (Charlottesville, VA)
Fine Whines and Lickers (Pittsfield, MA)
Howl To The Chief (Washington, DC)
Howl-A-Day Inn (El Paso, TX)
Indiana Bones and the Temple of Groom (Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, CA)
K9dergarten (Jersey City, NJ)
Pretty Coat Junction (Lakewood, OH)
Snip Doggy Dog (Des Moines IA and Fairfield CT)
Tails Of Two Cities (Minneapolis, MN)
The Crate Escape (Cambridge, MA)
Vanity Fur (Millbrook, AL)
Virginia Woof Dog Daycare (Portland,OR)
Here are the other categories:
Coffee shops
Bar/Pubs
Other (including retail stores, vape shops and lots of yarn stores)
Doctors and Dentists
Food Trucks
Restaurants
Cleaning Businesses/Flower Shops/Portable Bathrooms
Hair/Nail Salons
The full list:
Ace of Spays |
|
All Things Pawssible |
|
Anything is Pawsible |
|
At Your Bark & Call Pet Sitting & Dog Walking |
|
At Your Bark and Call |
|
Bark Avenue |
|
Bark Harbor |
|
Bark Side of the Moon |
|
Bark Tudor School for Dogs |
|
Barker & Meowski: A Paw Firm |
|
Barking Bad Grooming |
|
Barkingham Palace |
Delray Beach, FL |
Los Angeles, CA |
|
Barks 5th Avenue |
|
Barks and Recreation |
|
Beauty for the Beast |
|
Blooming Tails Dog Grooming |
|
Bone Marché |
|
Bowhaus |
|
BYOD Dog Wash |
|
CaNine to Five |
|
Canine to Five Detroit |
|
Cats on Broadway Hospital |
|
Central Bark Doggy Day Care |
Broadview Heights, OH |
Milwaukee, WI |
|
Chateau Marmutt |
|
Citizen Canine |
|
Clippity Do Dog |
|
Crate & Marrow |
|
Dog Is My Copilot, Inc |
|
Dogfather |
|
Doggie Style |
Bremerton, WA |
Philadelphia, PA |
Tangent, OR |
Washington, DC |
|
Doggie Styles |
Azusa, CA |
Brooklyn, NY |
Eugene, OR |
Stuart, FL |
|
Doggie Stylez |
|
Doggy Doo |
|
Doggy Style |
|
Doggy Styles |
|
Dogma |
|
Doody Calls |
|
Ewe-Topia Herd Dog Training |
|
Fenway Bark |
|
Fine Whines and Lickers |
|
For Pet’s Sake |
|
Fur-Get-Me-Nots |
|
Groomingdale’s |
St. Louis, MO |
Vineyard Haven, MA |
|
Groomingdale’s Pet Salons |
|
Groomingdales |
New York, NY |
Wyndmoor, PA |
|
Groomingdell’s |
|
Hair of the Dog |
|
Hair of the Dog Grooming Spa and Boutique |
|
Hair of the Dog Pet Salon |
|
Happy Tails Country Club for Dogs |
|
Howl To The Chief |
|
Howl-A-Day Inn |
|
Indiana Bones and the Temple of Groom |
Simi Valley, CA |
Thousand Oaks, CA |
|
K9dergarten |
|
Laund-Ur-Mutt |
|
Laundermutts Pet Services |
|
Laundromutt |
Cambridge, MA |
Newton Centre, MA |
|
Living Pawsitively |
|
Main Lion |
|
Noah’s Arf |
|
Pawfection |
New Milford, CT |
Pasadena, CA |
|
Paws in the City |
|
Paws T’ Notice |
|
Paws With Inn |
|
Pawsitive Training Center |
|
Personal Beast |
|
Pet Cetera |
|
Pet-a-cures |
|
Pettin on the Ritz |
|
Pooches Gracias |
|
Poochini’s Pet Grooming |
|
Pretty Coat Junction |
|
Pride and Groom |
|
Purrrniture |
|
Raise the Woof |
|
Reigning Cats And Dogs |
|
Ruff Love Dogs |
|
Scoobies We Do & Kitties Too |
|
Sit Happens |
|
Snip Doggy Dog |
Des Moines, IA |
Fairfield, CT |
|
State of the Arf Mobile Grooming |
|
Tails Of Two Cities |
|
Tales of the City |
|
Tales of the Kitty |
|
The Barking Lot |
Chicago, IL |
Louisvillle, KY |
Urbandale, IA |
|
The Big Bad Woof |
|
The Bone Adventure |
|
The Bone Appetite |
|
The Crate Escape |
|
The Dog Spaw |
|
The Dogfather |
|
Vanity Fur |
|
Virginia Woof Dog Daycare |
|
Wag On Inn |
|
Wag the Dog |
|
Waggs to Riches |
|
Wagtime |
|
Wizard of Paws |
Raleigh, NC |
Rehoboth Beach, DE |
|
You Dirty Dog |
|
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