Our Story
In 1998, after 10 years of professionally and passionately grooming pets, and a lifelong journey surrounding herself with animals, Yolanda Gartside dove into small business ownership and started Yolanda's Mobile Pet Grooming. With four kids and an infant in tow, she built her business from the ground up through pounding the pavement; mailbox to mailbox, and word-of-mouth. Her deep love and admiration for animals was not lost by her potential clients as her business grew quickly and word spread like wildfire, of the unique and wonderful services pet lovers could get for their best friends, with Yolanda.
In no time, Yolanda had 2 vans, and then 3 to best serve her clients. Close relationships with local veterinarians, her avid motivation to learn new grooming techniques and expand her mind in the world of caring for your pet yearly, keeps her grooming practices on the forefront of what's best for your animal. Her grooming team have years of experience under their belt, personally trained by Yolanda in her specific, special, and gentle ways, and also required to keep their skills polished with yearly classes.
Borrowing some quotes from a beautiful article written by local author Joe Puglia, in the Valley Sun about Yolanda, that shares a glimpse of her life, captures who she is as a person and why she, and her business are so special.
Growing Up in rural Mexico, on a ranch, on the beach, she lived on horseback, collecting, healing and caring for stray dogs, something her more practical family who saw animals as a source of food or work, didn’t understand. She was just born different than them. With no budget to care for every animal in need she stumbled upon, she would have the vet squeeze the bills into the ranch animal bills, unbeknownst to her father, as well as teach her how to care for them herself, learning long-used techniques to rid mange and other common ailments paired with grooming techniques.
Joe wrote, “She grew up collecting animals. ‘The animals rescued me,’ she said. ‘The animals would follow me on the beach and, at 12 years old, I owned 13 dogs.’”
As a young adult she she got married and moved to los Angeles, fell in love with the Siberian Husky breed and learned how to obedience train competitively. She became an award winning trainer, and bred gorgeous award winning Huskies.
As a young mother she focused on her children, while still rescuing animals of all kinds, including an adorable Raccoon, among her dogs and cats. She came back around to a career with pets when her friend started a grooming business, and pulled her onboard, knowing her heart and soul was made for pet grooming.
After a divorce, and struggling as a single mother of 4, for years, she set her sights on a possible future owning her own business. In 1998, her new father in-law saw the love, and motivation in her, and helped her get her first mobile pet grooming truck, which launched Yolanda’s Mobile Pet Grooming.
Her mission to ALWAYS help animals in need, and to be the groomer to takes the rejects, as she never viewed them as that. They are simply misunderstood, and need an ally.
Joe continues, “She rescues animals from death row, and the streets, volunteers at the Glendale Humane Society, Participates in the Annual La Cañada Memorial Day Parade, specializes in older animals with medical needs, and one day envisions owning a small ranch where she will rescue dogs and pets.”
“‘Life has been difficult for her as she lost two of her boys, Trevor (2007) and Lance (2016),’ as well as her Husband in 2021. ‘Yet she views life in totality. “The house of the Lord is everywhere we are,’ she said.”
Since the spontaneous loss of her husband, with a penchant to live and not waste anymore time, she decided to get back into the world of horses, something she let go of at motherhood, in her early 20’s.
Her Passion for horses was equal to that of dogs and cats, she felt a connection with horses as early as she can remember, attracted to wild stallions. She rode bucking broncos as a teen, beating adult men. She also rode Escaramuza charra, the only female equestrian event in the Mexican rodeo, and consists of a team riding horses in choreographed synchronized maneuvers to music. She lived for horses. Unfortunately though, unlike smaller animals, horses are FAR more expensive and time consuming, so she put that part of her heart on hold for over 40 years while she moved to the US, raised her kids and built her business.
In 2022, she jumped back into the saddle, and is in training to compete in Dressage, with three amazing Andalusians, two of which shipped from Spain. After so many losses, including her mothers death just a year after her husbands, her horses and two beautiful young grandchildren have been a wonderful way to breathe some joy into her life. As well as her menagerie of rescues, from dogs and cats to reptiles, of course.
Meanwhile, continuing to provide the luxury spa experience with gentle loving hands to all of our clients in the Los Angeles Area.
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