The light shines on the brick wall outside Pet Grooming by Paul and Alice and it’s hard to miss the large photo of Paul and Alice Williams with two of their of pink poodles.

The Williams have been the owners, keepers and groomers of Macon’s “pink poodle” for years.

“It has a pop,” Paul said in describing the shade of pink chosen for the dog. “We like her after she’s been washed two or three times.”

The Williams own Pet Grooming by Paul and Alice. Their business has groomed generations of family pets during their history in Macon. 

Paul and Alice are also the owners of ‘Cherry’ —  the 6-year-old pink standard poodle most famously known for her appearances at Cherry Blossom events here in Macon and a pet.

“These are our fuzzy children, so we’re very protective of them,” Paul said.

For 30 years, the couple has been dying poodles pink and spreading joy throughout Macon not only at the Cherry Blossom festival, but at schools, elderly homes, fashion shows, and at other events in the city.

Paul recalled a moment when his friend changed his perspective on why he and Alice continue to dye their dogs every year for the festival.  Paul said he previously told people it was because of the smiles the dog brings, but the friend sought the importance of the joy the dog brought due to the toughness of the world.

“I have people [who] will stop their life at that moment and pet that puppy, and at that moment, the world’s okay,” Paul said. “And so that’s the reason I do it.”

According to Pets For Patriots, interactions with dogs produce oxytocin in the human brain. Oxytocin is the chemical that is responsible for feelings of relaxation and reducing symptoms of anxiety and stress.

For the pink poodles, there is an added bonus with their coloring as according to Hunter Lab, pink works similarly with the human brain when it comes to reducing stress. Color psychology states that pink evokes joy as it is associated with feelings of calmness, comfort, and love.

Paul and Alice explained the way they dye Cherry’s fur is a cycle. She is dyed a fresh coat of pink in March before the festival season starts, then her coat is trimmed short for summertime.

“She’s white where we cut her, and she’s pink where we leave her full,” he said. “Well, she’s now probably, what, 80% white, and you’ll see but, and by the time March comes, her roots are showing. By the time March comes, you’ll get her fresh pop, and we start all over again.”

The local groomers’ pet dye of choice is OPAWZ, a pet dye popular amongst pet groomers who specialize in creative grooming. Formerly it was Manic Panic and in the beginning, food coloring. Throughout the years the shade of pink for the festival has changed and a long with it, the shade of the poodles.

The tradition of dying poodles for the Cherry Blossom festival began in 1994 when, according to The Telegraph,  Deslie Knight introduced the festival’s first pink poodle, Tedi. Before moving to Peach County, Knight passed the tradition down to Paul and Alice as their poodle Casper was the only other pink poodle in Macon. They had been dying Casper previously as branding for their trade banking business.

“All of that was important,” Paul said. “None of that’s important anymore. It’s just being able to share with my community.”

Petals The Poodle is the official mascot for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival. Paul and Alice say children always call their real poodles by the official mascot name. 

“(The children are) not afraid of this one, but they were afraid of the big one” Alice recalls a memory from when Petals first came to the festival as the official mascot.

Inside the lobby of Paul and Alice’s grooming business, their love for all of their poodles was evident through the multiple painted and photographed portraits of their dogs, Casper, Lacy, Blossom, and Cherry that filled the room.

“The poodles are the most human,” Paul said. “In my world philosophy, that only thing people in this life want is attention, you and I both. Poodles are basically the same way.”

Paul and Alice emphasized that this is not a job for Cherry and never has been a job for any of their dogs. The moment one of the dogs gets antsy and is not having fun anymore they take her home. If a crowd is showing high levels of receptiveness, naturally Cherry wears out faster.

“We don’t have children. These are our fuzzy children, so we’re very protective of them,” Paul explained.

Due to the fast-paced nature during festival season, Cherry is very used to being able to go out and be social. When it is not festival season, she finds it hard to adjust to not getting ready and going to an event. Any time Paul and Alice spend extra time primping her, she knows that she will go somewhere that day.

“We’ll have to make some place to go this afternoon, Bass Pro Shop, any place that’ll let her in,” Paul said. 

The future is unknown when it comes to another poodle puppy. Each of their poodles have lived to be from 12 to 15 years old. Recently, for the first time in their 55-year history with poodles, the couple adopted a Cane Corso which they named Thor. Paul rescued Thor near the grooming property. For now, unless the perfect poodle comes along, Paul and Alice’s only dogs are Cherry and Thor.

Every year as the festival approaches Paul and Alice talk with each other and he asks the question, “are we going to do it again?” 

The Williams, who are nearing retirement age, have stopped grooming big dogs aside from their own. Chery will jump on the table herself, making it easier for Paul, who does not have to lift her up. 

But the Williams don’t have immediate plans to exit the pet grooming business or discontinue the tradition of dying their poodle pink every year for the festival. 

“My life philosophy again is I’m going to retire at 10 a.m. on the morning that my funeral is at two,” Paul said.

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