Our Staff

Sarah - Co-owner

Sarah joined Scruffy's as the full-time manager in September 2008 and is now a co-owner of the business. Originally from the UK with a background in childcare management, Sarah moved to Australia in 2004 to help build and run six childcare centres on the Northern Beaches. Four years on her passion for dogs took over and she made the move to Scruffy's and has never looked back. Sarah has a certificate in Advanced Canine Communication and is qualified in Canine First Aid.

In 2017 Sarah and husband Matt welcomed their son William into the world and in 2020 daughter Maddie joined this growing family. Sarah is pictured here with Chester a Koolie x Kelpie x Corgi rescue dog who it could be said, changed everything and started Sarah on her new career.  Also introducing Heidi, their latest addition, a rescue Bull Arab-x-Kelpie x we’re not sure! Going by this pup’s feet we think they might have taken on a Great Dane x!

Sarah has completed her NDTF Dog Training qualification

Eleanor - Co-Owner

Eleanor is not quite sure how she moved from being a client with a 16-week-old Shih-tzu puppy to a few years later, the proud co-owner of Scruffy's. However, the adventure continues, and Eleanor brings a solid background in business development and marketing experience to the team. After training in Opera as at the NSW Conservatorium of Music Eleanor embarked on a career in business focused on sales and marketing and left a career in advertising account management/sales to take on the adventure with business partner, Sarah, of building Scruffy's into the business it is today.

She is proud to introduce the afore-mentioned Shih-tzu, Lexie, now a retiree but as alert as ever. Lexie is not sure if she fully approves of younger half-sister Aria who arrived on her doorstep in 2018 but we all know they are best of friends!

Lauren - Manager

Since moving here in 2003, Lauren now calls Australia home. She holds strong ties with her home-town London, England and grew up in a family committed to rescuing homeless and abused cats from the streets of London. Back home in Australia, Lauren has continued to be involved with street cats; rehabilitating and rehoming a colony of street cats in conjunction with Pittwater Animal Hospital. After a career in retail and management Lauren started at Scruffy's in 2011 as a daycare attendant is now the general manager of Scruffy's, she manages about fifteen people across four departments, daycare, grooming, reception, retail and our school bus. Scruffy's survives and thrives because of Lauren’s commitment to her team members, her passion for dogs and her experience in managing people and building relationships with clients.  In 2018 Lauren took on Hunter, a young rescue Huntaway x Beagle and they have been inseparable ever since. Finally, an honourable mention must also go to Spencer, the British Shorthaired cat who keeps young Hunter firmly in check!

Lauren has completed her NDTF Dog Training qualification and is part of our training team.

Anna - Assistant Manager

Anna’s passion for dogs led her to Scruffy's and we are thrilled to have her on our growing team. At the ripe age of two Anna began a nineteen-year relationship with her first love, Flopsy, a Maltese x Llasa Apso. By the age of seven Anna was minding dogs for neighbours and family friends and now, many years later, that passion has only grown stronger.

After a three-year stint working and completing qualifications in childcare Anna was lured to working in the Scruffy's daycare team and now heads our reception team. In 2021 Anna commenced a double degree in Law & Psychology at Macquarie University. On reception she is most ably assisted by Theo and Huxley, her two Giant Bernese Mountain dogs who go everywhere with her except uni!

Anna has completed her NDTF dog training qualification and is part of our training team

Sarah - Reception  

Sarah first came to Australia in 2019 where she studied Environmental Science at the University of Canberra as well as Georgaphy at the University of East Anglia, Norwich. Sarah grew up in South East London and would often holiday in France where she fell in love with her families Border Collie, Alex - which kick started her love for dogs. 

Sarah joined Scruffy’s in 2022 as our receptionist but has since worked in both daycare and grooming too. After she started working here, she got her own pup with her partner - a Cavoodle called Baloo. Sarah has been putting in a lot of time and effort in to training Baloo outside of work and they love going on weekend adventures together.

Margherita - Senior Daycare Team Leader and Head Canine Trainer

Margherita is one of our fantastic trainers who has become an important part of the day-care team. She moved to Australia from Italy in March 2022 and joined the Scruffys Team shortly after. Margherita was born in Rome and dogs have always been a part of her life. At just 3 years of age, she began her relationship with her first dog Mila, a rescue greyhound X. As she grew older, she aspired to be a veterinarian however this changed course with the adoption of Ares in 2013. Ares is an American Staffy X who was rescued as a puppy from a dog fighting ring in Naples and still lives with her family in Italy. Margherita had to put a lot of training into him to counteract his aggression attributed to his breeding lines. In 2015, Margherita chose to complete her Enci Diploma, the nationally recognized dog training qualification in Italy, to ensure she was giving Ares everything he needed for the best quality of life. Since then, she has found herself in many roles and holds so much experience in training dogs particularly in behavior recovery. Her favorite role was freelance training as it exposed her to such a diverse range of behavioral issues and allowed her to gain more experience and refine her skills. Margherita entered dog training to make a difference. Her passion comes from seeing the change within dogs and she aims to improve their quality of life. Within all her training she emphasizes the importance of trust and respect between owner and dog. In the future she hopes to open her own rescue and training facility that focuses on rehabilitation and rehoming as well as opening a program for children to be involved in focused on dog education and training. 

Kiyoko - Senior Groomer

Originally from Japan, Kiyoko has been with Scruffy's since 2007. She is an award-winning groomer with a wealth of experience in all styles and a gentle approach. Kiyoko enjoys grooming all dogs but has a passion for Poodles and Shih-tzus.

Kiyoko is constantly striving for that perfect groom...personally we think she already has it! In 2017 Kiyoko won first place in Open Poodle at the Royal Easter Show on a mini brown poodle. Previous Awards include 1st Place - Open Terriers, Royal Easter show 2013, 2nd place - Gundogs & 3rd place - Master Salon Freestyle, Ausgoom 2013, 1st place - Salon Freestyle, Royal Easter Show 2012 and Best In Group, Summergroom 2011 Poodle competition on a standard white poodle.

In 2020 Kiyoko and her partner Michael welcomed their son, Taiyo into their lives. 

Lia - Junior Groomer

Coming Soon. 

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