CEDAR FALLS - A Cedar Falls woman has turned her love for animals into a thriving business.

Kelly Davis, who teaches sign language at Hawkeye Community College, opened Paw Prints Pet Salon in December.

"I have been really busy. I'm really glad. I've already had some repeat customers," said Davis, whose shop also offers boarding.

A former employee of other local grooming establishments, Davis said she enjoys operating her own business because she gets to meet the people behind the pets.

She learns more about the owners' and dogs' personalities, and that translates into the type of haircut and styling the dogs receive.

"It's kind of like artwork because each pet has its own personality," she said. "I spend extra time to see if they should have spiked hair or fluffy hair."

Although not shying away from petit pooches, Davis likes working with large dogs.

"A lot of people are nervous about dogs, but they are just as sweet and lovey," she said.

Davis does most of the grooming herself, and Paw Prints employs two other people at its location at 714 First St.

It is open on Saturdays and closes late on Tuesdays and Thursdays to accommodate customers' work schedules.

The business has a boarding area for seven dogs, and the four-legged clients get walks every morning and night, she said.

Davis, a mother of four who grew up in Cedar Rapids, has been teaching American sign language at Hawkeye since 2004 and is currently working part time at the college.

She has been signing for 20 years and started because she has a deaf family member and a deaf friend.

Davis has two dogs of her own at home.

There is Zoe, a German short hair who was recently injured while trying to greet a van she thought belonged to her owner. The other is Daisy, a Lhasa apso.

Davis has close ties with the Cedar Bend Humane Society, and recently fostered a female German shorthair and her eight puppies for the organization.

Contact Jeff Reinitz at (319) 291-1578 or jeff.reinitz@wcfcourier.com.