We recently had the chance to connect with Peston Douglas and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Peston , thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What is a normal day like for you right now?
Wake up at 4 am, workout 5 am to 6, come home for an hour and a half enjoy some breakfast and a cup of coffee, head to our first groom at 8:30 am, and from then on groom 3-5 dogs a day.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Preston, one half of the husband-and-wife team behind Bigfoot Pet Mobile Grooming. We’re based out of the Sachse/Rockwall area, and our whole mission is pretty simple: bring high-quality, stress-free grooming right to your doorstep Texas style.
What makes us a little different is that we don’t just show up, groom, and leave. We actually care about the pets we work with and the people who trust us with them. Between my background as a truck driver, and Christa’s years of grooming experience, we’ve handled just about every type of pup you can imagine from the chill “I was made for this” dogs to the spicy little firecrackers who keep us on our toes. And honestly? We love them all.
We built Bigfoot around the idea of comfort, kindness, and community. Whether it’s helping nervous dogs feel safe, educating owners, partnering with local businesses, or bringing a bit of humor and heart into everything we do, we want people to feel like they’re part of Bigfoot’s Pack.
Right now, we’re working hard to grow our brand everything from fun grooming videos and YouTube content, to local partnerships and a faith-based outreach that blends pet care with serving our community. Bigfoot Pet Mobile Grooming isn’t just a business for us. It’s a story we’re writing every day, one dog at a time, and we’re grateful for everyone who chooses to be part of it.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
My earliest memory of feeling powerful was the day I walked into the University of Wyoming football program as a transfer junior with a chance to walk on. Most guys who make it that far have been groomed for it since high school. Me? I was showing up a little later in the game, carrying all the miles, setbacks, and hard lessons that got me there.
Walking into that facility for the first time felt like stepping into a whole different world — the weight room buzzing, the field stretching out in front of me, the sound of cleats on concrete. But instead of feeling out of place, I felt ready. I felt mighty.
It wasn’t about being the biggest or the fastest. It was about knowing how hard I had fought just to earn that opportunity. That moment taught me that real power doesn’t come from the spotlight — it comes from showing up, standing tall in a room you never thought you’d be in, and backing yourself when no one else has a reason to.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Absolutely. The early days of Bigfoot Pet Mobile Grooming were some of the hardest months of my life. When we launched, we weren’t walking into success we were walking into survival mode. Money was tight to the point of being painful. I was working at Domino’s just to keep the lights on, and even then we were still hitting food pantries to make ends meet.
What made it worse was the uncertainty. I applied to trucking jobs something I knew I could fall back on and no one was calling me back. Every day felt like a reminder that the safety nets I thought I had weren’t there anymore. Things got scary in a way that hits you deep in the chest.
There were nights I sat there wondering if we made a huge mistake and if I should just give up and walk away from the grooming dream entirely. But then we’d get a client who believed in us. Or we’d groom a dog that reminded me why we started this in the first place. Or Christa and I would look at each other and realize that even if we were broke, we were still building something real together.
So yeah, I almost gave up more than once. But those hard days built the foundation for what Bigfoot is now. They taught me resilience, humility, and faith. And honestly? I’m grateful we didn’t quit right before things started to turn around.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
One of the biggest lies in the grooming world is the idea that groomers are always on the same team and that everyone has your back. Don’t get me wrong there are amazing groomers out there who support each other, share knowledge, and genuinely want everyone to succeed. But pretending the entire industry operates like one big family isn’t honest. There’s competition, ego, and insecurity just like in any other field. And if you’re new, you find out pretty quickly that not everyone cheering you on is actually rooting for you.
Another lie is that you have to go to grooming school to be a “real” groomer. Schools are great for some people, but they’re not the only path and they’re not always the best one. Plenty of talented groomers came up through apprenticeships, on-the-job training, or years of hands-on experience in the vet world. The industry likes to package schooling as the only legitimate route, but skill, patience, and a willingness to learn matter way more than where you learned to hold a pair of clippers.
And finally, there’s this belief that if you don’t have a massive Google presence or a perfectly curated social media profile, you somehow can’t succeed. That’s just not true. Does online visibility help? Sure. But it doesn’t replace hard work, word-of-mouth, quality service, and building real relationships with clients. We started Bigfoot Pet Mobile Grooming with basically zero online presence and built our name through trust, consistency, and treating every dog like they matter because they do.
At the end of the day, the truth is simple: this industry is tough, and there’s no single “right” way to make it. But if you stay humble, keep learning, and serve people well, you’ll carve out your own path no matter what the “rules” say.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What pain do you resist facing directly?
Honestly, the hardest thing for me to face is the pain tied to the people from the life group we used to be part of at church. That whole season left a mark I still don’t like to look at too closely. There were expectations, misunderstandings, and relationships that didn’t end the way I hoped they would.
It’s tough because those were people I genuinely cared about people I trusted, prayed with, shared life with. And when something that meaningful falls apart or drifts away, it hits differently. It’s easier to just stay busy, put my head down, and keep moving than it is to sit with the disappointment or the hurt that’s still sitting there under the surface.
I know I’ll have to face it one day, but for now… that’s the one area I tend to sidestep. It’s a chapter that still feels a little too raw to open back up.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bigfootpet.com
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/bigfoot_pet
- Twitter: @bigfootpet
- Facebook: https://Facebook.com/bigfootpet
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@bigfootpetmobilegrooming?si=xVsvbBLkQuJlHu7t
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