Clipping The Designer Dogs

[Christina]

This whole subject just pisses me right off, a lot, I don't swear very often.

Apart from the lies from DD sellers are people so focused on the cute factor that common sense does not tell them that if a dog has anything more than a short coat, pedigree or mutt, that it is going to need attention ? Don't they think ?

Unless its a really big dog 5 or 10 minutes a day brushing, or alternate days & trimmed to a manageable length is all it takes.

I have seen them so bad that blood runs from the flea infestation when they are in the bath.

Matted so much they can't stretch the back legs properly.

So bad you can't even tell what kind of a dog it is.

Tails & ears indistinguishable from the body.

Scruffy, filthy, miserable, smelly, sores & fleas & they don't even consider the stress on the dogs to sort this mess out.

Why have a pretty, fluffy dog if you are going to let it look like this & can't be bothered with the short daily time to care for it.

Cruel & stupid.

Big rant over, just makes me so mad.

[Silverblue]

Christina,

I can totally understand why you get so cross, It makes me mad also that these so called "breeders" take our lovely purebreds that we put our heart & soul into & create these bloody DD's.

[Gayle.]

Can I ask a question of the groomers? For those of you who are taking the time to talk to your clients and explain basic coat care to them, are you seeing at least a few are heeding your words and presenting non-matted dogs back for a regular bath, trim etc?

For some people, this might be the very first dog they've ever owned and they just might not know how to care for the coat, or that it even needs caring for.

[Ashanali]

Can I ask a question of the groomers? For those of you who are taking the time to talk to your clients and explain basic coat care to them, are you seeing at least a few are heeding your words and presenting non-matted dogs back for a regular bath, trim etc?

For some people, this might be the very first dog they've ever owned and they just might not know how to care for the coat, or that it even needs caring for.

I haven't groomed for a few years but there were always repeat offenders who you knew didn't touch the dogs since the last time you saw them (A cocker spaniel I groomed about once every four months comes to mind. Poor thing was always a foul smelling mess) and then there were a few who did the right things. I re-educated two couples. They were friends and both couples bought Cairn Terriers. They had both let the undercoat grow through and were terribly matted the first time I saw them. However I showed them how to brush them properly and they brought them to me every 6 weeks after that for stripping. I loved those clients and the dogs were great little dogs also.

[Dogsfevr]

Can I ask a question of the groomers? For those of you who are taking the time to talk to your clients and explain basic coat care to them, are you seeing at least a few are heeding your words and presenting non-matted dogs back for a regular bath, trim etc?

For some people, this might be the very first dog they've ever owned and they just might not know how to care for the coat, or that it even needs caring for.

Most still bring them back no different.

Most whether oodle or not a very aware of what they should do they just dont do it & we see a big number of pedigree dogs from well known breeders who still come matted .

The percentage of pet shop,DD & good breeders is very even with owners who dont bother to brush even after the best knowledge.

We have groomed some of our own that came back matted.

Our pups go with te h correct tools,they are shown how to brush,the technique varying from bub to adult but the owners who chose not to brush isnt due to no knowledge just due to cant be bothered

[becks]

I have found the majority once they have been shown the correct way to care for the coat are good and do keep the coats in decent condition from then onwards.

I had a mini in recently, in 12 months he has been to a few groomers and neither them or the breeder had shown them what tools to use and how to use them. I showed them what they should be doing and recieved a lovely email a few days later saying how well the brushing was now going with their dog.

[percyk]

i dont know that it is laziness

on the part of the owners

what new owners dont realise is how hard you have to work in the beginning to ignore the biting and growling and just keep brushing

my daughters pup would have been a nightmare had i not sat him on my knee every night for a five minute brush with a baby brush

he had only a puppy coat but i knew that thered be trouble ahead if he didnt grow used to it

today he can be brushed and brushed - even the fur on his belly and back legs

i can have him on his back and he will tolerate some tugging

we dont let it get far...but golly if he were a big dog i think id have rsi by now

breedersmust show the owners what to do ....i know that my two didnt ..we went to a show and asked

as for pet shops..no chance of an education there

[Gayle.]

what new owners dont realise is how hard you have to work in the beginning to ignore the biting and growling and just keep brushing

Yes, I think that's the trick in the beginning, My two Aussies would be a massive handful now if I'd not spent time grooming them daily as puppies. They have a relatively easy care coat but parts of it are as prone to matting as the schnoodledoodles (the pants and behind the ears in particular). It was just a matter of patience, rewarding for good behaviour and making the whole deal a peaceful and pleasureable experience. Now, when I walk out with a brush in my hand, I have two eager doggies presenting themselves to me in the "groom" position.....lying on their sides, ready to be brushed.

[tlc]

what new owners dont realise is how hard you have to work in the beginning to ignore the biting and growling and just keep brushing

Yes, I think that's the trick in the beginning, My two Aussies would be a massive handful now if I'd not spent time grooming them daily as puppies. They have a relatively easy care coat but parts of it are as prone to matting as the schnoodledoodles (the pants and behind the ears in particular). It was just a matter of patience, rewarding for good behaviour and making the whole deal a peaceful and pleasureable experience. Now, when I walk out with a brush in my hand, I have two eager doggies presenting themselves to me in the "groom" position.....lying on their sides, ready to be brushed.

I agree with this too, So many people say to me "oh how do you deal with grooming 4 coats" but the proof is in the pudding as they say. Lots of time with the brush and clippers when they were all young and its never been a problem, Like you GayleK, mine are keen to be brushed, one in particular my white girl jumps on the grooming table in rediness for the brushing :D the other cant jump that high or they would be up there too.

[Clyde]

Can I ask a question of the groomers? For those of you who are taking the time to talk to your clients and explain basic coat care to them, are you seeing at least a few are heeding your words and presenting non-matted dogs back for a regular bath, trim etc?

For some people, this might be the very first dog they've ever owned and they just might not know how to care for the coat, or that it even needs caring for.

I have first time dog owners who take beautiful care of their dogs coats. I find they come in well brushed however by about 7 months they've had enough and want it short rather than longer and styled :D

I always talk new clients through. When people call I encourage them to come in for a free nail clip and face trim then go through with them how to best comb the dog. I always try to explain it to any kids about too. So that at the very least the kids can learn to recognise matting areas.

Then I've got my clients where I simply don't waste my breath anymore. TBH my clients are well trained and I rarely get bad matting in anymore. Those who don't brush just bring the dog more frequently. I don't try to save coat anymore, even tails - if it's knotty it comes off

[Christina]

i dont know that it is laziness

on the part of the owners

what new owners dont realise is how hard you have to work in the beginning to ignore the biting and growling and just keep brushing

my daughters pup would have been a nightmare had i not sat him on my knee every night for a five minute brush with a baby brush

he had only a puppy coat but i knew that thered be trouble ahead if he didnt grow used to it

today he can be brushed and brushed - even the fur on his belly and back legs

i can have him on his back and he will tolerate some tugging

we dont let it get far...but golly if he were a big dog i think id have rsi by now

breedersmust show the owners what to do ....i know that my two didnt ..we went to a show and asked

as for pet shops..no chance of an education there

I think it is laziness. Would be with any of mine. Owners get a grooming instruction sheet, a big lecture, I mean talk,a demonstration if needed, an offer to teach to clip, home visit if problem, a pup that has been brushed daily from week 5, bathed weekly & had a couple of clips.

Yes they do sometimes still kick up a bit for a while, others are really good. So

For those who dont get all this info they should still realise you can't just leave it, even if they just brush it & give it a home haircut with the scissors & keep it tidy, or phone & ask someone how to do it.

When little puppy is all over & growling, biting & being a pain in the butt do they think I will put it in the groomers & it will all be magic ?

Some groomers with good handling skills & patience will manage & train. Some pups are not so brave out of their environment with owner absent & may be good,

But some pups get hysterical & get a rough, cranky, impatient groomer who is time stressed & thinks they will make it behave, no matter how. Some get a terrible hard time, using methods that would not get RSPCA, or anyones, approval

& stupid owner goes to collect a done puppy with a waggy tail, which is probably Thank god you are here & have saved me.

Having no idea of the crap the dog has gone through.

A dog that is used to grooming gets it better all round. People really need to think, Its not rocket science to figure out.

Long hair, needs brushing & attention in some form. Find out.

shouldn't look.

[luckypup]

i had a spoodle once that came in basically bullet proof...and what was the owners excuse?? "oh i thought they brush themselves"!! i couldnt believe my ears!! took all my restraint to pretty much not laugh in their face!! i felt like pinching them and saying "does YOUR hair brush itself??" SERIOUSLY!! some people just have absolutely NO CLUE what it means to have a dog!

Another time i had a standard labradoodle who was almost 2 years old and had NEVER had a bath in its life, let alone a groom!! the lady said she was told they dont need clipping or bathing at all...BY THE BREEDER!! Some breeders just should NOT exist!! The amount of shit in this dogs coat was amazing!! and the lady tried to tell us it didnt really need a bath because it didnt smell! you could smell this dog from a mile away! i just stood there astounded that anyone could believe crap like that!!

I think some people make excuses so they dont have to justify the condition the dog's in! the best excuse is "its the kids job to brush the dog"!! IF THE KIDS NOT DOING IT, WHATS STOPPING YOU?!?!!?!?!

lazy people!!

ok thats my vent hehe thanks lol

[Crazy Daisy]

In 12 years of grooming I have called the council rangers twice to come and collect a neglect case. I should have done it more. In both cases I called the owner to say I was reporting them and in both times the owner said they didn't want the dog back and I rehomed them.

I agree that with experience comes the "I just can't take it anymore" attitude. I was in tears every second day with how people treat their animals. I am always happy to explain to new dog owners how to manage a dogs coat but it's the repeat offenders that really make me mad.

I made all my clients sign a contract when they came to me and part of that is I will do what I see fit to make the dog feel comfortable. I never shaved for shaving sake. Dogs that were happy to put up with the pulling got 1/2 hr of dematting anything more than that is cruel. It's not the dogs fault they are in that mess. Clip them off, educate the owners and start again.

Always take photos before, during and after!!! If you can, have a contract for people to sign. It cost me $100 for a lawyer to draft me one, only one page and easy to read.

I would love to do a sign up of before and after shots of DD's and give it to all the young people working in pet shops so they can tell the new prospective owners what they will have to deal with. I'm sure a lot of the staff don't know the problems of these little fluff balls they are selling.

My rant over

[RallyValley]

It would be nice to have a hidden camera and talk to one of these DD breeders/petshops and record all the lies, then report them to comsumer affairs. My cousin wants a poodle cross for next dog. I was just like whats wrong with a plain poodle?

Edited December 10, 2009 by valleywa

[percyk]

sorry christina you either missed my point or i made it badly

i am saying that brush training is essential during puppyhood whenthe coat is still manageable

so many people dont think to brush til it is long but the dog has had no exposure to the discomfort

im glad some breeders give guidance

but mine didnt...im a dog person so i found out what to do...the techniques needed for that breed

but im sure lots of first timers dont realise that you cant wait til the coat needs grooming

[aussielover]

My first dog was a poodle cross. His coat was a nightmare to look after! even though we groomed him frequently, he would still haved to be shaved a few times in the year. He was our first dog and we were never told how much work his coat would be and we frequently took him swimming, bushwalking etc so you can imagine the nightmare especially because he was white!

Our Aussie girl was so easy in comparison, I don't know if other aussie shepherd owners have found this, but Clover hardly shed at all (that we noticed). We also only had to brush her weekly, and her coat would never getted matted (only under her ears for some reason?). We did get her clipped for summer though as we live in a very bad tick area.

[Crisovar]

With the dogs that present in a badly matted state, I think some people are just plain stupid.

If they actually ever had their hands on the dog they would feel the matting, if they can't tell that it is wrong then that is sheer stupidity, if they do nothing about it it is plain laziness or downright cruelty.

Some people manage quite well for a while to deal with the coat then it becomes too hard, too time consuming, the cute factor has worn off and they get slack about it. I find that often once the dog has been clipped right back and they decide to keep it clipped that they get even slacker and don't bother at all.

Although most buy the DDs with no idea at all how much work they will be because they are not told at time of purchase surely they can feel the mats developing and realise something has to be done??

The whole subject just makes me cross.

[Blue Fox 001]

I only started grooming other peoples dogs out of necessity eg. no other groomer for 400km and it has only taken me 2 years to become disillusioned with the human race.

90% of my clients are Xbred, we're in the country and they don't call them DD's out here just plain old Shih X's most of them, not bought from pet shops or puppy farms usually the neighbours mistake or Jo Blow from up the road's bitch got out blah blah .....

Anyway I have tried to educate every single client who comes in the door and I reckon maybe 5 in 100 have actually changed their ways and now brush their dogs between grooming.

I had one just last Saturday - one of very few purebreds I have a Lhasa - the dog is on a 4 week rotation wash one visit and then clip off 4 weeks later. She rang and cancelled the last bath only visit cause he 'looks and smells fine' and moves the full clip visit for another month later, brings him in on Saturday and the poor dog is a matted mess, faeces caked all over his rear, dog is constipated and sleeps on the kids bed and she has the nerve to say 'Oh he just got like this this week cause we've been soooo busy' How stupid do they think we are?

OK rant over!

[carrie]

This afternoon at work I sold a crate to a lady about to pick up a puppy. I asked her what it is and she explained it is a "Woodle". I asked her what that was and she said ti was a Westy x Poodle... What the? Imagine that coat!

[Tim'sMum]

They got a poodlecross because they were told how maintenance free their coat was.... All good intentioned but they just didnt understand.

Exactly what a dog owner, who I met regularly at the park where we used to live, was told.

She bought the puppy from a pet shop....supposedly a Mini-Poodle x 'Mini' Curly Coated Retreiver....yep sure!

She was also told by the pet shop staff that his coat was 'low maintenance' and that all he would need was an occasional trim with scissors (by her) on his tummy....yep sure!

She didn't believe me when I said that she would have to take him to a groomer on a regular basis.

It didn't take long for her to realise that I was right. His coat is diabolical.

It makes me wonder.....?????

Stores cannot sell products that are labelled incorrectly about the care and maintenance of that product, yet pet shops can sell a 'product', a puppy, and tell the purchaser blatant lies about the care and maintenance? Surely a case for Fair Trading?