# high-maintenance bitch

Category: Animal House

## Post 1 by TexasRed (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Tuesday, 11-Apr-2006 13:33:44

Shop gives dogs a bad name, a few say
But the owners of Lynnwood's High Maintenance Bitch pet store say the name
is just a cute way to get attention.
By Scott Pesznecker
Herald Writer
LYNNWOOD - Toni Rankin is used to seeing risque slogans plastered across
buildings from her days living in Las Vegas.
However, the Lynnwood woman did a double-take when she saw such a sign above
a new pet shop in the 20100 block of 44th Avenue W.
In classy and sassy letters, the sign reads: "The High Maintenance Bitch."
HighMaintenance2_200
Dan Bates / The Herald
Jean Powell, owner of the High Maintenance Bitch dog and cat specialty store
in Lynnwood, holds her dog, Reggie, who has his own business card
identifying
him as co-owner.
"I looked over, and there it was," Rankin said. "I thought to myself, 'Did I
really see that?'"
A look inside the store explains its name.
Fluffy, pooch-sized feather boas adorn a wall alongside an arrangement of
doggy perfumes, paw polish and body glitter. The store sells custom, canine
couches
at $1,400 a pop, including one shaped as a pink, high-heel shoe. There is
dog clothing - one tiny shirt says "Muterosexual" - and even a set of
$45,000
magnetic diamond earrings.
The name of the business isn't the only play on words that might raise some
eyebrows.
For example, the shop sells shopping-cart-sized pillows for people who take
their dogs shopping with them. The pillow product line is called She Sleeps
Around. Escort Service is the name of the leash product line.
The collars? Collar for a Good Time.
Siblings Lori and Ryan Pacchiano, who started the business four years ago in
their grandmother's garage near Seattle, say their slogans aren't meant to
offend anyone. They're trying to catch the eyes of independent, fun-loving
women who think of their four-legged friends as their children, they said.
HighMaintenance3_200
While Jean Powell, owner of the High Maintenance Bitch dog and cat specialty
store in Lynnwood (right) helps a customer, her own dog, Reggie, a
Maltese-poodle
cross, stretches out on his own $1,400 couch.
"We take these things that are negative about women and we make them about
the dogs," Lori Pacchiano said.
They've caught the attention of the nation's top celebrities. One of their
most famous clients is Tinkerbell, Paris Hilton's Chihuahua. They've also
sold
items to Jessica Simpson, Sharon Osbourne and John Travolta, as well as many
others. Their products are sold worldwide.
The Lynnwood shop, owned by Jean Powell who has a licensing agreement with
the Pacchianos to use the name, has also caught attention in town.
Lynnwood planning manager Ron Hough, who paused in his conversation before
calling the business "The High Maintenance Puppy" on first reference, said
his
office has received six phone calls from people complaining about its name.
To get any complaints about a business name is unusual, he said. The last
time it probably happened is when Hooters came to town.
"There are so many Hooters around nowadays that I think people just kind of
accept it," Hough said.
There's nothing the city can do about the pet boutique's name because it's
not being used as profanity. Even if it were, there still might not be
anything
the city could do to change it, Hough said.
"Even though it may be irritating personally to some people, bitch is a name
of a female dog, and this is a business that deals with that sort of thing,"
he said.
Lynnwood resident Kari Nord, 33, doesn't see anything wrong with the sign.
She and her Shih Tzu, Echo, have become regular customers.
"I think it's fun, it definitely fits the bill," Nord said. "This is the
store for somebody who doesn't mind being high maintenance, or having a
high-maintenance
dog, and just wants to have fun with it."
Lori Pacchiano said her brother jokingly stumbled upon the name of the
business after she picked him up from a friend's house one night. She had
been considering
the names "High Maintenance Dog" and "High Maintenance Puppy," but neither
had the same ring, she said.
They expected some objections, but they went with the name anyway. It's
edgy, hip and embraces women's sexuality, Pacchiano said.
It also empowers women by taking back a term many perceive as derogatory,
she said.
"I'm looking forward to the day the word bitch is defined only as a spoiled
dog," Lori Pacchiano said.
Still, Rankin is unconvinced.
"Anybody knows that when you call someone a high-maintenance bitch, you're
not talking about a dog," she said.

## Post 2 by SensuallyNaturallyLiving4Today (LivingLifeAndLovingItToo) on Wednesday, 12-Apr-2006 18:43:01

Awsum!

## Post 3 by Big Pawed Bear (letting his paws be his guide.) on Thursday, 13-Apr-2006 3:43:39

this shop just speaks to me of the crazy lengths ppl will go to to show love to their pet. the usual care, plus a hug and a rub down is all they need to show them you love them.

## Post 4 by SensuallyNaturallyLiving4Today (LivingLifeAndLovingItToo) on Friday, 14-Apr-2006 17:59:22

Yes, but it's as much for the owners as for the pets, and hell, if it makes the owners happy, and doesn't make the pets unhappy then, by all means.

## Post 5 by jessmonsilva (Taking over the boards, one topic at a time.) on Friday, 14-Apr-2006 19:23:15

I kinda like it. It's kinda neat, lol.