From Homelessness To Home Ownership Mother-Daughter’s Dog Grooming Hustle Paves The Way To A Secure Future

Facing homelessness for the second time in five years, Jenny Harper and her daughter Katie were running out options.

Upon finding a secure rental in Home Hill, the mother-daughter duo turned to their unique skillset of dog grooming as a way to save money to buy the house.

Jenny, who lives with a disability, and Katie, who is also Jenny’s carer, were living in Townsville when they were evicted from their home for reasons out of their control.

They returned to the Burdekin where Jenny grew up, finding a house in Ayr when, three years later, it happened again.

“We couldn’t find anywhere, and the only other option was to live out on the street,” Jenny said.

“I was just gutted, absolutely gutted.

“That feeling of homelessness is just the most degrading, gut-wrenching, horrible feeling.”

With limited options available, Jenny weaved through the streets of the Burdekin looking for vacant houses and asking neighbours if they knew the owner.

Eventually, she got in contact with the owner of a cottage in Home Hill, four doors down from where Jenny’s father lives.

“When I rang David and he said we could have the house, it was such a feeling of relief,” she said.

“It’s not pretty, but it’s a roof over our heads.”

The house required upgrades before the pair moved in, from scrubbing and repainting walls to replacing the electrics, but with the help of the landlord, Jenny and Katie were up to the task.

“The fact that we’ve moved in and taken over that has taken a weight off his shoulders, too, so he’s been the best landlord ever,” Jenny said.

“Now I’m hellbent on getting this place.

“It’s somewhere that I can call mine and no one can sneak up behind me and kick me out.”

Jenny lives off a disability pension, and Katie a disability carer’s pension, but the pair have gone into business together to raise extra money to purchase the house.

Katie learnt how to groom dogs and started acquiring equipment to care for their own dogs when she was 17 and, now 24, she is offering her services to the whole community.

She had begun a hairdressing course at TAFE while in high school, however dropped out of school in year 11 to care for her mother and father, who has since passed away.

“Katie learnt to groom because we had that necessity, and she was just good at it,” Jenny said.

“That’s why we’ve put ourselves out there in the grooming business, because that’s the talent that we have, that we can utilise.”

They have been building the business, Katie’s Klippers, up over the last 12 months and now have loyal customers throughout the Burdekin and Townsville.

“We try to provide an affordable service for people, because sometimes people leave it and the longer you leave your dog ungroomed, the worse it gets, and then the more expensive it gets,” Jenny said.

“We’re in a situation where we can provide a service at a little bit less, so people who may not normally be able to afford it can afford it a lot easier.

“We have no overheads, we’ve been collecting our equipment over the years, now it’s a case of providing some extra income because we want to buy this house.”

As well as saving up for the house, Jenny sees the business as a future-proofing plan for Katie.

“Katie quit school halfway through grade 11 to stay home and care for me and her dad, who we lost to cancer,” she said.

“All she’s ever done is be at home caring for me, she’s got no qualifications whatsoever, so if something were to happen to me, she’d lose her carer’s pension.

“It’s giving her a talent that, if she needs to, she can fall back on to look after herself.

“She cares for me, it’s my way of looking after her.

“She’s my kid; that’s just what you do.”

Contact Katie’s Klippers on 0457 412 308 or 0481 738 818.

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Caption: Jenny and Katie Harper and their dog Tilly

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