Need To Vent About

[Purdie]

I took mum's one eyed shih tzu to a groomer once and neglected to point out she was one eyed, thinking it would become apparent pretty quick, I left and half an hour later had 15 missed calls from her asking if Petunia had one eye when I dropped her off and how she had sifted through the bathwater to find it and couldn't...it was a 5 year old scar, very old and very much closed over. Not sure what she planned to DO if she found the eye though...they don't just pop back in.

We have seen some shockers.

She must have thought the dog had a glass eye like some people have,

[Steph M]

A groomer looked all over for a dog's missing eye????????????? oh dearie me . I do hope they haven't spent much time then looking for missing testicles !!!!

She would probably be more shocked to find a pair, I suspect!

[denali]

I thought this was going to be a post about shitty haircuts :laugh:

And i was going to say that everyone has to start somewhere.

But no, this is entirely different.

But i will also say that i started dog grooming because an experienced and recommended groomer did this to my dog, and i saw her hit my dog with the dryer hose when i came to pick him up..

And he was the most placid cavalier, I called his previous groomer to ask if she ever had issues and she said that she'd had none at all.

So its not necessarily inexperience, they could just be a terrible human.

A lot of the issues with bad groomers started when courses became available.

20 years ago when I got into the industry the only way to really learn was to work with an already experienced groomer. I was not allowed to touch a set of clippers or scissors for the first 6-8 months of grooming, my first two bosses taught me the ins and outs of dog handling, bathing, drying and grooming out before I learnt to clip.

Seems anyone that has done any type of grooming course can use dangerous equipment without supervision or necessary handling skills.

I started like you did, apprenticing.

Was a bather for a long time, then moved on to the pre bath hygiene clips, then to feet trimming etc.

Working my way up to a full groom. It took a long time, but it was worth it in the end :)

[denali]

I took mum's one eyed shih tzu to a groomer once and neglected to point out she was one eyed, thinking it would become apparent pretty quick, I left and half an hour later had 15 missed calls from her asking if Petunia had one eye when I dropped her off and how she had sifted through the bathwater to find it and couldn't...it was a 5 year old scar, very old and very much closed over. Not sure what she planned to DO if she found the eye though...they don't just pop back in.

We have seen some shockers.

i don't think someone that idiotic should be handling sharp instruments..

At least she was concerned though

[RedFeather]

I just don't know where to start when it comes to finding a decent groomer. I'm already having trouble with our dog getting matts in his undercoat, and my brush will barely touch them. But I'm too scared someone will start trimming him, which is NOT something you should do with a lappie's coat...hearing how moronic some people are is not helping me work out what to do

He does NOT like being brushed and I need a groomer who can help me desensitize him a bit. Also he just wants to eat the brush which is entirely not helpful.

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

Redfeather

You need blinkblink aka Adelaide Groomery on Payneham road.

She's not working this week but hopefully will be back to it soon.

Me and Snook and Evil hound and Justice all highly recommend her.

And she will let you observe but prefers you out of sight of the dog - cos dogs try to train their owners to "save them" from the horrible person with the water and the dryer...

But owners feeding treats (me) can get in the way and interrupt the flow.

But I have gotten in the way and trust her now to do the right thing by my dog. And she'd have no hope with Justice if she couldn't keep a dog calm and happy.

Skills that so many vets and vet nurses don't have let alone other groomers.

[Rascalmyshadow]

I thought this was going to be a post about shitty haircuts :laugh:

And i was going to say that everyone has to start somewhere.

But no, this is entirely different.

But i will also say that i started dog grooming because an experienced and recommended groomer did this to my dog, and i saw her hit my dog with the dryer hose when i came to pick him up..

And he was the most placid cavalier, I called his previous groomer to ask if she ever had issues and she said that she'd had none at all.

So its not necessarily inexperience, they could just be a terrible human.

A lot of the issues with bad groomers started when courses became available.

20 years ago when I got into the industry the only way to really learn was to work with an already experienced groomer. I was not allowed to touch a set of clippers or scissors for the first 6-8 months of grooming, my first two bosses taught me the ins and outs of dog handling, bathing, drying and grooming out before I learnt to clip.

Seems anyone that has done any type of grooming course can use dangerous equipment without supervision or necessary handling skills.

I started like you did, apprenticing.

Was a bather for a long time, then moved on to the pre bath hygiene clips, then to feet trimming etc.

Working my way up to a full groom. It took a long time, but it was worth it in the end :)

I agree I have worked with a couple of very experienced groomers that should never get their hands on anyone's animals, was the main reason I went out on my own. I would come home to my husband in tears at some of the things I saw, caused me to have long lasting horrific nightmares.

This situation however was caused by someone with very little hands on except for a completed course.

Edited August 26, 2015 by Rascalmyshadow

[Rascalmyshadow]

I just don't know where to start when it comes to finding a decent groomer. I'm already having trouble with our dog getting matts in his undercoat, and my brush will barely touch them. But I'm too scared someone will start trimming him, which is NOT something you should do with a lappie's coat...hearing how moronic some people are is not helping me work out what to do

He does NOT like being brushed and I need a groomer who can help me desensitize him a bit. Also he just wants to eat the brush which is entirely not helpful.

Seems many groomers are keen to put clippers on double coated breeds. Hope you will find someone good via word of mouth, Lappies are easy to do, one of my good friends has two and I've been grooming them since the day she got them. Even more important than getting them used to being brushed is getting them used to a force dryer, this will save a lot of time and discomfort for the dog, especially when they are blowing coat. I would also only be brushing the dry coat while using a spray conditioner or something like cowboy magic, helps the undercoat come out without as much breakage and pulling on the skin.

[JulesP]

I didn't even do a course! I did a one day ride along with a mobile groomer and then decided to start my own rather than go through a franchise. I thought I would be mainly doing washing but pretty much did SWF all day long. Didn't do too much fancy stuff.

I had been showing ponies & Arabian horses so was quite used to clipping and trimming etc

I mustn't have been too bad as most people re-booked me.

12 years later I am still traumatised by the experience! I get PTSD picking up a brush to groom by own dogs :laugh:

[RedFeather]

Thanks for the recommendation. It's tough because I am a 'it's too hard for me to deal with on my own so I'll pay a professional' type...Hubs is more of a 'we can do it OK, maybe not perfect but free' type so it might be hard to convince him. I am not super keen to deal with coat drop on my own though!

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

redfeather

I get my evil hound a hydrobath, claw trim and blow dry for less than the price of a cheap carton of beer.

Mostly I just get a claw trim and that's totally worth every cent.

I'm sure you could find it in the budget. But if hubby wants to do it for free - let him. Otherwise - he's paying.

https://www.everydollar.com/

By the way - last time I costed out a 24 hour a day live in house keeper, cook, child/dog minder, taxi service... it was over $120K per year.

[Leah82]

Thanks for the recommendation. It's tough because I am a 'it's too hard for me to deal with on my own so I'll pay a professional' type...Hubs is more of a 'we can do it OK, maybe not perfect but free' type so it might be hard to convince him. I am not super keen to deal with coat drop on my own though!

if your brush isn't getting close enough to the skin look at getting a rake and google line brushing (this is where you essentially lift up the coat to get the undercoat underneath)

As with everything there are right and wrong ways to use these tools so be careful you're not putting your dog in any discomfort.

And of course when you experience a coat drop a good groomer will be your vacuum's best friend :p

You might want to look at booking in soon, blinkblink can easily remove the existing matts and show you how to brush him to make sure you're getting to the undercoat which will be a small win for your husband as you can stretch your visits out

[Mim]

Oh Rascal, that poor dog! I hope you can help the dog recover from the trauma.

A neighbour's dog went to a groomer and came back very scared and took a few days to get over it. They never went back.

On the topic of bad groomers, a "groomer" at the sydney dog lover's show shaved a corgi as a demonstration on how to "properly" groom a double coat

Edited August 28, 2015 by Mim

[kami]

Huw and I took Annie our dog to a certain large pet store chain yesterday which also has a grooming salon. When huw returned to pick her up her eye was swollen closed, and one of her dew claws was bleeding. It was not like that prior (we pay good attention to her eyes and have taken her to the vet for a previous infection). Huw immediately rushed her to the vet, and they said poor Annie had an ulcer covering her entire cornea. She is back to the vet in two days to see if she will need to have surgery to close the eye for a while, or worse, burr the cornea. In the mean time its cone, antibiotics and ointments for her.

Angry with myself as I normally read reviews ect and would get a recommendation for anything for Annie. Unfortunately Huw didnt notice until he got her in the car that it was swollen so didnt say anything.

If anyone can recommend a top notch groomer for future use in the moorabbin area I would be greatly appreciative.

Edited August 28, 2015 by kami

[kami]

Accidental double post

Edited August 28, 2015 by kami

[Rascalmyshadow]

Don't really know of any good groomers in the Moorabbin area, it's why so many if my old Moorabbjn customers still travel to me in Seaford and why Moorabbjn vet and Black Rock vet recommend me also. Please be very careful everyone where you take your dogs.

[Jemmy]

Part of me would love to take Luna to a groomer...the other part of me can't hand over the responsibility. I'd never owned a German Shepherd before her, it's been a massive learning curve. I'm still baffled as to where all the hair is coming from :laugh:

[RedFeather]

redfeather

I get my evil hound a hydrobath, claw trim and blow dry for less than the price of a cheap carton of beer.

Mostly I just get a claw trim and that's totally worth every cent.

I'm sure you could find it in the budget. But if hubby wants to do it for free - let him. Otherwise - he's paying.

https://www.everydollar.com/

By the way - last time I costed out a 24 hour a day live in house keeper, cook, child/dog minder, taxi service... it was over $120K per year.

Hubby isn't THAT stingy, I've just only ever seen pretty high prices quoted before now. What I might do is suggest we get him groomed really well just before we hand him over to my sister-in-law and her fiance when we go on holiday - that way they don't have to bother grooming (their dog is a greyhound, not sure they'd cope with my spitz boy's coat!) while we're away. I already promised them that if he starts dropping coat while we are away I'll entirely pay for a groomer!

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

I think a clip would be extra. And sometimes it depends on the size of the dog. But Blinkblink is possibly the best value in town at the moment given how good she is at it.

The only downside (tho I find it funny) is she's located next to the local "rub and tug" aka Chinese massage.

[Rascalmyshadow]

Update: today I got to groom the gorgeous Lily and after three years she remembered me :) ran over with a wagging tail and rolled straight on her back for a belly rub, exact routine we used to have.

Even better news although a bit nervous and scared I did the whole groom (her owner didn't go far away incase we had any issues) without a muzzle, sedation or anaesthetic and I ended up with a face full of kisses! Her owner was over the moon having her go home comfortable and happy.

It's dogs and owners like this that after 20 years give me the joy and motivation to keep grooming.