A woman is defending her decision to dye her dog’s fur after insisting that the pampered pooch loves having her hair colored and that she is simply ‘following her wishes’.
Nicole Rose, 33, of Ontario, Canada, dyed her mixed-breed rescue dog, Stella, a fuchsia pink color to match her bridesmaids’ dresses for her wedding day.
But Nicole’s big day wasn’t the only occasion Stella has sported a head turning style because the pampered pet loves being dyed to look like everything from a zebra to a rainbow, according to Nicole who believes dyeing Stella’s fur isn’t animal cruelty but rather a way to keep the pooch happy.
Filled with joy: Stella, a mixed-breed rescue, is dyed by her owner who insists that coloring the pooch keeps her happy
Spoiled: Nicole Rose, 33, of Ontario, Canada said that it’s not cruel to dye Stella because she enjoys to be pampered
Bizarre: Stella has sported a number of interesting styles such as her tie dye look all over her tiny body
Cartoon character: Stella has also been colored to look like a purple Care Bear
Nicole, who is the co-owner of Ontario dog grooming parlor, Fur-Ever Loved Pet Salon, said: ‘By dyeing Stella’s fur, we are following her wishes.
‘She’s not an accessory. We don’t dye her hair so she can prance around and be all fancy.’
She added: ‘When we left her with her natural white color, she sulked and moped around, like she was unbearably unhappy with how she looked. Dyeing is totally safe for pets, and Stella loves it.’
Stella was already two-tone, when Nicole adopted her in 2011 at five-months-old, after she was rescued by a charity from a puppy farm.
‘She was so tiny and fluffy, but had been dyed pink and blue, which I thought was really cute,’ Nicole, mom to Halle Jackson, 14, Ashton Jackson, 12, and Landon Rose, five, said.
Regular: Stella gets her fur dyed at Nicole’s Ontario dog grooming parlor, Fur-Ever Loved Pet Salon
Authentic: Stella after she was dyed to look like a panda complete with the black coloring around her eyes
Different breed: Stella was dyed to look a like a Dalmatian with different sized spots on her body
Unique: Stella was made to look like a Zebra but with a twist – a brightly colored purple mohawk
Festive: Once again, Stella was dyed to look like a zebra but this time, she was given green and red accents
Natural: Nicole said that Stella was dyed when she first got her and that she assumed she would want to go back to her original color
‘I hadn’t seen many dogs dyed bright colors back then and assumed she would want to go back to her natural white color,’ she added.
But Nicole, who has three other dogs, which are not dyed – mixed-breed rescue pooch Twister and German Shepherds Denali and Duke – could not have been more wrong.
‘When we trimmed her fur for the first time, to get rid of the bright colors, she didn’t like it at all,’ Nicole said. ‘She just climbed into her bed and looked all sad, like she was missing a part of herself.’
After that, Nicole, whose husband Wesley Rose, 39, is a contractor, took her new pooch to her salon, where she was hand painted by colleague Kirsty Coulson, 33, using dyes which have been approved for dogs.
Incorrect: But when she dyed her back to white, Nicole said she looked sad and like she was missing a part of herself
Multi-colored: Nicole said Stella was already two-tone, when she adopted her in 2011 at five-months-old
Back to color: After Nicole dyed Stella her original color, Nicole’s husband took her new pooch to her salon, where she was hand painted
Living the life: Now Stella enjoys quarterly 90-minute pamper sessions and Nicole said she loves them
Excited: Nicole said she went with pink, blue and green the first time she dyed her and Stella couldn’t have been happier
Contrast: Stella stood next to another normal-colored pooch which highlighted the difference in their fur colors
Dog-lover: Nicole has three other dogs, which are not dyed – mixed-breed rescue pooch Twister and German Shepherds Denali and Duke
Now Stella enjoys quarterly 90-minute pamper sessions with Kirsty, who dyes her fur everything from purple to tie dye style designs, and salon co-owner Trish Jemiola, 30, who cuts Stella’s fur too.
‘We went for pink, blue and green the first time we dyed her and Stella couldn’t have been happier,’ Nicole said. ‘She started running around like mad, smiling and jumping into everyone’s laps like she was saying, “Look at me, I’m so pretty.'”
‘I realized it was a part of her personality – who she was – and we couldn’t deprive her of that. Stella is a princess. She loves her different looks, she is just so pampered,’ Nicole added.
Now seven-year-old Stella has enjoyed an array of eyecatching looks, including a black-and-white panda style, multi-colored mohawks, angel wings and Christmas lights – each of which would have cost customers up to $79.
Flying: Stella was given angel wings during one of her ‘pampering sessions’
After: Stella was given angel wings that were bright pink and purple colored
Safe: Stella is hand painted by Nicole’s colleague Kirsty Coulson, 33. She uses dyes which have been approved for dogs
Attention: Nicole said that after the she was dyed after being her natural color, Stella kept smiling and jumping into everyone’s laps
Pose: Stella models her colorful and eccentric fur style with her colorist Kirsty
Trim: Stella also gets her fur cut during her quarterly pampering sessions at the salon
Not cheap: Now Stella enjoys an array of looks which would have cost customers up to $79
‘People are always coming up to her in the street and asking what sort of dog she is and wanting pictures taken with her,’ Nicole said. ‘But one person said she should be taken away from me because of the dye, even though it’s totally safe.’
‘I get people telling me it’s cruel, because it’s a funky color and dogs should just have a natural look,’ Nicole said.
‘But it’s safe to use this on pets because, even though some of it is human hair dye, it is missing the toxic ingredients and has been approved by the Creative Groomers Association. And, honestly, Stella cannot be without her color, it’s expressing her personality and she loves it,’ she added.
Nicole, who believes Stella may have been mistreated at the puppy farm, also insists the hair dye gives her a confidence boost.
‘Stella can be quite scared of people, so it helps her socialize, because of the attention she gets from them,’ she said. I always try to tell people her story, so they understand why I do what I do.’
‘I don’t dye her so she can be fancy and I can carry her around. She loves to be dyed, that’s her identity. Some people like to dress up their dogs, but Stella doesn’t want to do that, she likes to have her fur dyed.’
Famous: Nicole said that people are always coming up to Stella on the street ask asking for photos
Same color: Stella was dyed a fuchsia color to match Nicole’s bridesmaids’ dresses on her wedding day
Family: Nicole said that her dogs are her life so it was important that they were part of her nuptials
No dye: Stella with her natural, fluffy white fur which Nicole said makes the canine sad and unlike herself
Subtle: Stella with her natural fur (left) and sporting a not as out there pink style
And when Nicole coordinated Stella’s fur to match her bridesmaids’ dresses at her wedding on August 24, 2015, her eyecatching pooch stole the show.
She said: ‘My dogs are my life, so it was so important they were a part of my nuptials. I wanted Stella to match my bridesmaids and be as much of the big day as possible.’
Stella’s styles have also helped the business with Nicole saying that more dog owners have been inspired to bring their pets to Nicole’s salon.
She said: ‘Stella is the poster girl for our salon, with so many more people bringing their dogs in to have them dyed now, after seeing her.’
‘We always tell people never to dye their pets at home and you should never dye a black dog, but other than that it’s totally safe to be colored in a salon.’