Dog groomer accused of slicing pet’s nipple and supergluing wound

A dog owner is demanding answers after she claims her pet was returned from a grooming appointment with a sliced nipple that had been superglued back together without her knowledge or consent.

Tegan Williams says she dropped off her dog, a three-year-old female Labrador mix named Biscuit, at her regular groomer last Tuesday morning expecting a routine wash and trim. What she got back, she says, was something far more disturbing.

What Williams says happened

According to Williams, she noticed Biscuit was unusually quiet and reluctant to be touched when she arrived home. It wasn’t until later that evening, while petting her dog, that she discovered what appeared to be dried adhesive around one of Biscuit’s nipples. The skin had been cut and, Williams alleges, the groomer had attempted to conceal the injury using superglue rather than disclosing the accident.

“I was physically shaking,” Williams told reporters. “She had a wound that had clearly been glued together and nobody said a single word to me. I paid $65 and they handed her back like nothing happened.”

Williams took Biscuit to a veterinary clinic the following morning. A vet confirmed the nipple had sustained a laceration consistent with a sharp instrument. The clinic charged $180 for the examination and wound treatment, which included removing the adhesive and properly cleaning the area.

The grooming salon’s response

The grooming business, located in a suburban shopping strip in Williams’s town, has not issued a public statement. Williams says she called the salon twice and was told a manager would return her call. That call never came.

Still, the salon has not denied her account either.

A spokesperson for a national animal welfare organization said incidents like this, while not common, do happen when groomers attempt to hide mistakes rather than communicate openly with pet owners. “Any injury to an animal during a grooming service should be disclosed immediately,” the spokesperson said. “Using an adhesive to close a wound without veterinary consultation isn’t appropriate, and it certainly isn’t transparency.”

A growing frustration among pet owners

Williams posted about the experience on a local community Facebook group, and within 24 hours the post had received over 340 comments. Several other pet owners shared similar stories, including one commenter who claimed her dog had returned from the same salon with an unexplained cut on its ear six months earlier.

The grooming industry is largely self-regulated in many parts of the country. There’s no universal licensing requirement, and standards vary widely between states and provinces.

What happens next

Williams says she has filed a formal complaint with her local consumer protection office and is considering small claims court to recover the veterinary costs. She’s also contacted two local television stations.

And she won’t be going back.

“I just want accountability,” she said. “If this happened to Biscuit, it’s happened to other dogs too. Someone needs to answer for it.”