Dogs of Del Rio Are ‘Dying’ For Your Attention this Halloween (VIDEO)

On Tuesday, a dog costume contest at Carranza Dog Park awarded prizes to the top four costumes. While some creative entries dressed as popular characters like Winnie the Pooh and Scooby-Doo, one pooch came as a regular ol’ tiger. But it was the vibrant — and permanent — application of the costume that turned heads. Tiger-dog’s fur was designed and dyed a tiger pattern by Debbie’s Dog Grooming. Located at 10th and Avenue H, Debbie’s has been gaining a reputation for their colorful and creative dog dying services.

Rebecca Gomez, owner of Debbie’s Dog Grooming and daughter of Debbie herself, says she found inspiration from internet-famous dog-dying artist, Gabriel Feitosa. She decided to dabble in the art with her grooming specialist, Samantha, who has a background in hair styling. Humans, that is. But the skills are all the same, and they quickly gained attention from clients as far as San Antonio.

“I did a giraffe [design] as one of my first really big [dog] transformations. I hand-painted all the spots and turned a golden-doodle into a giraffe. And somebody liked it so much that the following year I had somebody from San Antonio actually come down and get their golden-doodle turned into a giraffe,” says Rebecca.

This Halloween season, Rebecca and Samantha have designed dogs as a skeleton, with an exposed brain, as the bride of Frankenstein, the Beetlejuice sandworm, a tiger, and more.

Rebecca cites economic hardship for light business this season. She says people, and the business, are feeling the effects of an ongoing government shutdown and tariffs. But her affordable prices are still attracting clients who want a living piece of artwork as a pet.