This Niagara pet groomer's become a social media star who uses her fame to help shelters
Girl with the Dogs has already raised $22K for one animal shelter in upcoming event
Vanessa De Prophetis, known as Girl with the Dogs, has more than 10 million followers across her social media platforms — people around the world log on to watch the social media star groom dogs, cats and, when duty calls, a pig or duck.
The Niagara Falls, Ont., resident also uses her fame to help local shelters. This Sunday, for instance, she'll host a fashion show for pets as part of raising funds for the Niagara SPCA and Humane Society.
"To be able to use my influence to help pets in need, whether that's my local community or anywhere around the world means everything to me," De Prophetis told CBC Hamilton.
There will be around a dozen contestants at the event — which De Prophetis calls the Trendy Tails Fashion Show — competing for $3,000.
The show runs Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. ET at the Greg Frewin Theatre in Niagara Falls, and will be livestreamed on De Prophetis's YouTube channel.
"The hope is that we will reach millions of people around the world that will tune into the live and they will donate as they're watching it," said De Prophetis.
She said the show has already raised $22,000 for the local shelter. Tickets start at $17.31.
From hairdressing to dog grooming
De Prophetis started out as a hairdresser — for humans — but "didn't really love the social aspect" of the job. So she decided to use her skills to make animals even more beautiful, and healthy.
She had been running her pet grooming business for close to 10 years when the COVID-19 pandemic hit and she had to close down.
"A lot of my clients were … asking me, 'How do I clip my dog's nails? How do I shave their matted fur?'" De Prophetis said.
It inspired her to create videos on Facebook to answer the questions she was getting from customers worried about how to keep their pets healthy during the pandemic.
Soon, she realized people outside of her community in Niagara could use the help, so she started posting to TikTok as well, hoping to reach a wider audience.
De Prophetis's dry humour, helpful advice and silly nicknames for the pets have earned her 6.8 million followers on TikTok. Thanks to her success, she grooms every pet that comes into her care for free.
$100K raised for local shelter dog
The work has also allowed De Prophetis to have more time to dedicate to animals with behavioural issues.
"It's just a great connection that I'm able to have with the pets."
As her success has grown, she's been able to help raise money for local shelters and volunteer to groom some animals, a full-circle moment for De Prophetis.
"When I first opened my business, I used to volunteer for the Humane Society, but then I got really busy and I couldn't do that anymore. And now it's almost like I've reverted back," she said.
Tammy Gaboury, animal care manager at the Niagara SPCA and Humane Society said she hopes to reach more people through Sunday's event.
She said partnerships with De Prophetis have helped many animals find their forever homes.
"There's a cat, Sabre, that she groomed for us, a Scottish fold, and we have somebody from Tennessee that is very, very interested in Sabre and willing to make the drive to Niagara Falls so that they can adopt [him]," Gaboury told CBC Hamilton.
"That person only knows about Sabre because they saw Vanessa's video."
Then there's Angel, a senior Shih Tzu that was so severely matted, Gaboury said, in December she "couldn't tell her head from her tail."
"Vanessa was there within half an hour of us calling her about Angel to come and help us get the grooming that she so desperately needed," said Gaboury.
De Prophetis said she'd "never seen anything like" Angel's case before, but seeing her free from her extreme matting was the "most incredible thing."
In the video featuring Angel, De Prophetis encouraged viewers to donate for Angel's medical expenses. She raised over $100,000 for the Niagara SPCA and Humane Society.
"I actually cried when they called me and told me that, because I was not expecting that at all. So, that's definitely my most favourite story of doing all of this."
You might see Angel at Sunday's fashion show.
De Prophetis said she hopes to continue to help shelters in the Niagara area and grow to help shelters around the world.
"I'd like to find different rescues and shelters so that everybody has a chance to benefit from my fundraising."
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