Part 7: Lauren Salzman Becomes Dog Groomer; Makes ‘Tremendous Impact’ as She Admits ‘Mistakes’

This is Part 7 of my report regarding the unredacted sentencing memo of Lauren Salzman.

Any redacted material will be in RED.

Here are the previous reports in this series:

Unredacted Lauren Salzman Sentencing Memorandum Falls into My Hands [Part 1] 

Part 2 Unredacted Lauren Salzman Sentencing Memo — Upbringing and Intro to Raniere and ESP

Part 3 Lauren Salzman Unredacted Sentencing Memo — She Wanted Children and Raniere Dangled It Before Her

Part 4 Sentencing Memo: Lauren Salzman Believes She Was Asked to Join DOS to Keep Her From Leaving After Mariana Got Pregnant

Part 5: Sentencing Memo: Lauren Cooperates With Prosecution – Flips After Reading Cami Texts With Raniere

Part 6 Like Other ‘Victims’ of Raniere, Lauren Salzman Says Mental Health Therapy Must Continue for Years

Lauren Has Embarked on a New Career Path

By Hector Diaz and Andrea Tazioli, Lauren Salzman’s lawyers

Lauren became involved in ESP/NXIVM at age 21, at the encouragement of her mother. Prior to her indictment, NXIVM was the only professional endeavor that Lauren has ever known. After her trial testimony, and for the very first time in her adult life, Lauren now had the opportunity to choose her career path, free of any external influence.

Lauren consciously made the decision to avoid any career path that resembled her prior life in NXIVM. Instead, she chose to embark on a career that involved caring for and working with animals.

In the fall of 2019, Lauren enrolled as a student in a pet grooming academy in Clifton Park, New York. While in this program, Lauren completed over 300 hours of work and ultimately earned a certificate in Professional Dog Styling in November of 2019.

While attending this certificate program, and in an effort to further bolster her career in this new field, Lauren also began working as a dog groomer at a local pet store.

They All Like Lauren – Dogs and People

The owner of [name of pet store redacted] stated:

“I met Lauren Salzman in September of 2019 where we both attended Grooming School at Golden Paws Pet Styling academy in Clifton Park. During the course Lauren was always on time and displayed such love compassion, and devotion to the animals that she worked on and the other students, including myself. It was this love and kindness that led me to offering Lauren a position within my company.”

[Another letter, name redacted] a manager at [redacted] Pet [Center] states that Lauren shows dedication and compassion to her career and customers.

Specifically, [the manager] comments that:

“Lauren is an extremely hard worker and takes her career very seriously. Lauren is always hoping and finding ways to better herself with education to grow her skills and career path. She is compassionate and genuinely cares about all the dogs and customers that enter [name of Pet Store redacted]. She goes above and beyond every day to make other collaborators smile and enjoy their day. Her commitment and positivity towards her skill inspires me and encourages me to better myself.”

She Took Courses…

While working as a dog groomer, Lauren also completed the four additional certificate programs and earned certifications of completion of all four programs. These programs included:

(1) Course Certificate for Dog Emotion and Cognition from Duke University, April 30, 2020;

(2) Certificate of Completion for the Science of Skin Learning Series from IV San Bernard USA dated May 14, 2020;

(3) Course Certificate for Animal Behavior and Welfare from the University of Edinburgh, Oct. 21, 2020;

(4) Certificate of Completion as an ABC Certified Dog Trainer from the Animal Behavior College, March 17, 2021.

Lauren’s commitment to her new career had a tremendous impact on those with whom she worked as well.

Her fellow co-workers have described her as “hardworking, outgoing, compassionate and warm-hearted;” and they admire her “dedication” to her new career.

[Three co-workers at the pet store where Lauren grooms dogs have written letters and there is a letter from a customer, who writes, she is “impressed with her knowledge” in her new field.

Lauren Buys Grooming Table and Stainless Steel Bathtub; Starts  Business

While Lauren excelled in her work at [a pet store, name redacted], Lauren also had a strong desire to start her own pet grooming and skin and coat therapy services business, and she began to develop the business which she incorporated on or about May 2020.

[The name of her new business is redacted. It is Milo James Animal Wellness. And this seems fair to tell for why should she want to keep that a secret.]  

Lauren left her employment with [the pet store, name redacted] on or about March 2021 so that she could focus more of her time on developing her business. Seeking to further her entrepreneurial efforts, Lauren has even reconfigured a portion of her home to allow for a full dog bath and grooming area.

Over the last several months, Lauren has been taking on customers for pet grooming as well as skin and coat disorders. One of Lauren’s customers, [name redacted] believes that Lauren is incredibly talented in her new career path:

[She said in a letter] “I reached out to the animal wellness business and Lauren immediately got back to me to schedule an appointment. I went two weeks later to Lauren’s home with [my dog]. I was greeted by Lauren and we sat down and she explained the dog grooming process so I knew what to expect. She took time to text me updates after I dropped [my dog] off. Lauren was very gentle, patient and loving with [my dog]. When I picked her up, Lauren gave me a bag of homemade products for [her] specific skin condition and explained the condition and treatment thoroughly. She went above and beyond in the whole process. I have since brought [my dog] back for more treatments, as I am seeing a major improvement in her skin condition.

“Lauren has an in-home business with a dedicated room that includes a dog grooming table and professional stainless steel bathtub with a ramp. Lauren’s heart has been dedicated to helping animals. It shows. I referred my best friend to Lauren, who has been to many groomers, and we both agree that we will always go to Lauren for the grooming needs of our fur family.”

In order to ensure that she is meeting her monthly expenses while she is starting her own business, Lauren also began part-time dog grooming work at [a pet grooming salon, name redacted]  Her employer, [name redacted], describes that Lauren’s “attentiveness to every animal is authentic and sincere,” and she praises Lauren for bringing “her knowledge of skin and coat care to [her] business.”

Her coworker, [name redacted], boasts that Lauren is a “valuable member” of the staff and truly believes that “Lauren’s work with animals has helped her during a very difficult time as she comes to terms with her mistakes and work[s] hard to move forward.”

It is clear from these letters that Lauren has a passion for working with animals, and she is excelling in this line of work. This is in large part due to the fact that for the first time in her adult life, Lauren has grabbed the reins and has directed her life in the manner she sees fit.

She has taken the initiative to obtain the proper schooling, certifications, and training needed in order to open her own business. It is rather remarkable that in just two short years, Lauren has completely shifted her career path and has excelled as a budding entrepreneur.

What is even more remarkable is that Lauren has humbly shared her past misconduct with her fellow colleagues.

In doing so, she has demonstrated through her words and actions that she is remorseful for her conduct. Lauren’s employers and colleagues have embraced Lauren and her mistakes with open arms, are empathetic to the circumstances surrounding her guilty plea, and want nothing but the best for her as she starts anew.

Frank Parlato