Directly across the street from The Sayville Movie Theatre on Railroad Avenue is the best thing for dogs since leashes – the green dog, an organic grooming salon & shop for dogs (106 Railroad Avenue, 750-6969, the website is in development).

James Hanington, the green dog owner and primo dog lover, studied at the New York School of Dog Grooming in Manhattan. It did not take long before he noticed the skin on his hands was being severely and adversely affected by the dog shampoos and flea treatments. Over time, it became obvious to him that many of his clients (from Sheep Dogs to Chihuahuas) were also experiencing painful skin-related side effects to the same products.

Hanington, with the help of his mother, Joan Moore, began to read about and research the ingredients listed on the dog grooming products. In no time at all they discovered that there are no government regulations or agencies overseeing the manufacture of pet grooming supplies. Therefore, if a company decides to claim a product is organic, when in fact it is not, they cannot be stopped. Today there are many ‘organic’ shampoos on the market that actually strip the natural oils from an animals hair/fur instead of replenishing and nourishing it.

Dear Reader, here is a point that is not well known and dare I say it hopefully will dispel many inaccurate rumors – Organic does not mean expensive; just better. Better for pets, people, and the planet. James’ grooming fees are in line with (and in some cases less than) competitive dog grooming facilities. His shop is all about the dogs, from the music, to the comfy, dog-friendly sofa and of course everything that touches your pooch’s skin is pure and safe.

There is another bonus to having the green dog in Sayville … preliminary plans are being considered to have a dog-friendly reading group meet at the shop, in the evening. Think of it as the green dog reading group, humans welcome, dogs encouraged! Bring your book, your BowWow and listen to a bit of Three Dog Night. Nothing is definite about this prospect, but it’s a great idea, isn’t it?

James Hanington is an experienced and conscientious dog groomer, who is the only one of his kind as far as I was able to determine while doing my research for this article. What doggone good luck it is for Sayville to have him here to pamper our pets.

Sayville, it seems, is going to the dogs, and we couldn’t be happier. Visit the green dog at 106 Railroad Avenue and be sure to high paw James and tell him, Ginnie said, “Woof!”

The author, Ginnie Moore, lives in Sayville and loves it almost as much as she loves her luggage. Ginnie can be contacted at: ginniemoore@verizon.net, and she would love to hear from you, really.